Is "your" Macca all good or all bad?
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Hendrix Ibsen:
McCartney is driven by creating music. Like few others. He does not even care about compilations, the last was "All The Best!" in 1987. "Wingspan" was a celebration of Wings and Linda... A documentary.
Sir Paul owns a very large collection of copyrighted material with MPL. I would say he is very interested in compilations.
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Yes, he is interested in other peoples music, old and new, but when it comes to his own music he makes rather "New" music than to recycle compilations with old music. I thought of this as an example that he not only thinks money and ego. It's about music.
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yankeefan7:
RMartinez:
yankeefan7:
oobu24:
left hand man:
My main complaint with McCartney is his setlist! Starting in the 80's, he just hasn't performed enough of his Wings/solo material! To me that will be the main blemish on his career after the Beatles, not the false misconception and negative narrative about his post Beatles albums, but the fact that he just didn't perform the music live! McCartney has missed out on many opportunities to show the world just how fantastic all that music really is!
I sometime wonder if Paul really knows how good it is.
Me too. I think once he records a new solo record and is "done" with it in concert, it is like the albums never existed. IMO - he never seems to "like" solo songs the way he does with Wings songs for example. The only thing I can think off is that after Wings, McCartney did not do as well commercially with rare exceptions so he feels the work is inferior.
In a way he is his own worst enemy. I have never read an interview where he says, "I want to write and record what I want. I need to express myself. If the public comes along, fine. If not, that is ok, I am an artist first." He has always been about performing and pleasing a crowd. Which is why he is one of the most successful entertainers out there. The Beatles spoiled him, because no matter what he did, at least up to Magical Mystery Tour, everything he touched turned to gold. And that can be intoxicating. Who DOESN'T want to keep feeling that?? So, now his concerts are essentially a celebration of that part of his career. Yes, he had lesser hits like My Brave Face and Hope of Deliverance, but they pale compared to Hey Jude or Let It Be. So we know why he keeps going back to those. No risk. No challenge. A splendid time is guaranteed for all. And a packed arena with adoring fans. Can you imagine what John Lennon would have thought and said into the mic if he played Mother and fans headed to the bathrooms??
The thing that frustrates me is that when Mr. McCartney went back on tour in 1989, he said in interviews that he opened with "Figure Of Eight" because he wanted to be seen as a relevant artist and not somebody living totally in the past. I miss that Mr. McCartney !! It is a good thing to want to please an audience who are paying big bucks to see you but as I have said many many times, there should be a better balance IMO. Yes, people seeing Mr. McCartney want to hear the classic songs but does it have to be close to 70% of the concert. I can't think of any other artist who has left the group that made them famous do as many songs from that group as Mr. McCartney does live. Does Mr. McCartney owe something to fans like Audi who buy his solo recordings and would love to hear more of it live. It seems to me Mr. McCartney does not give them much of a thought, it is all about the Beatle Paul fans IMO. Finally, many years from now all that will be remembered about Mr. McCartney's recording career will probably stop at 1980. The sad thing is that over 30 yrs of some wonderful music will never be enjoyed or remembered. IMO Mr. McCartney should be remembered for more than those "Early Days" - lol.
well said
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Reading one of these posts makes me wonder why he NEVER plays Take it Away. Surely one of his 10 best solo songs and one most people know.
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oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
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B J Conlee:
oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
Wow...an old thread from March 2015. I wonder why I said "still be selling out venues". There must have been problems that year with a few shows. But yes...another setlist thread from years ago. I remember coming on this board doing a setlist watch...song by song...many of us commenting on each. Now not so much. It is almost totally predictable. Which, of course, is not bad but a few more from recent decades would be great.
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christophero30:
Reading one of these posts makes me wonder why he NEVER plays Take it Away. Surely one of his 10 best solo songs and one most people know.
As BJ and a few others will testify for me (lol), I have been saying the same thing for many years !!
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oobu24:
B J Conlee:
oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
Wow...an old thread from March 2015. I wonder why I said "still be selling out venues". There must have been problems that year with a few shows. But yes...another setlist thread from years ago. I remember coming on this board doing a setlist watch...song by song...many of us commenting on each. Now not so much. It is almost totally predictable. Which, of course, is not bad but a few more from recent decades would be great.
Yep at one time the set list watch was probably fun, not now - lol. I think a few years back concerts struggled a bit selling out in comparison to previous years. IMO, he has toured too much and it seems like he is always on tour. He basically just changes the name of the tour. Personally, I like it better when an artist goes 3-5 years before doing another tour. Gives them a chance to really refresh the show.
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B J Conlee:
oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
McCartney must think every Beatle song was a hit, there is no other way of explaining why he would play something like "Benefit Of Mr. Kite" or "I Wanna Be Your Man" instead of "Take It Away" which actually was a hit - lol. His solo albums have been critically acclaimed for many years now. Rolling Stone said "New" was the 3rd best album of that year. CHAOS and "Flaming Pie" received Grammy nominations for album of the year. TOW was called masterpiece by Rolling Stone magazine in 1982,
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yankeefan7:
B J Conlee:
oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
McCartney must think every Beatle song was a hit, there is no other way of explaining why he would play something like "Benefit Of Mr. Kite" or "I Wanna Be Your Man" instead of "Take It Away" which actually was a hit - lol. His solo albums have been critically acclaimed for many years now. Rolling Stone said "New" was the 3rd best album of that year. CHAOS and "Flaming Pie" received Grammy nominations for album of the year. TOW was called masterpiece by Rolling Stone magazine in 1982,
____________________________________________________________ You are so right Yankeefan. I can't explain "Take It Away". George Martin played some piano on it...you would think he would want to play it as a tribute to Mr. Martin. How about Wanderlust. Mr. Martin called it one of his best songs and vocals of all time. Nigel Goodrich said that Tug of War (the song) was one of his favorite songs growing up as a kid and yet Paul has never played it live. Can't explain any one of those songs being ignored during all those tours. Looking at all these recent articles on the Internet, Macca just seems so "fixated" on his Beatle years. One of the latest stories was all about "I was so lucky" joining the Beatles. Yes he was lucky...all 4 of them and Brian Epstein and George Martin. Life in many ways is about timing. But how about his career after the Beatles? Besides luck, Paul (along with John and later George) had a special talent for God sake. Paul was giving songs away (e.g. Peter and Gordon) that later became hits before the Beatles were famous. It was far more than just "luck". He continued to write great songs well after the Beatles split up and for some reason he hardly acknowledges that fact. Worse yet, after all these years of touring, there are so many Post Beatles, Post Wings songs that only he could make better known. In cases like the 3 great songs above, he never did it. As I have said, it just baffles me.
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B J Conlee:
yankeefan7:
B J Conlee:
oobu24:
As you say...I think he is "on" too much. He is the bearer of the Beatles flag. He sells his solo career short...I wish he knew just how good his solo stuff is. And if he had continued playing more of his solo stuff, people would know it by now. Therefore he'd still be selling out venues.
_____________________________________________________ Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
McCartney must think every Beatle song was a hit, there is no other way of explaining why he would play something like "Benefit Of Mr. Kite" or "I Wanna Be Your Man" instead of "Take It Away" which actually was a hit - lol. His solo albums have been critically acclaimed for many years now. Rolling Stone said "New" was the 3rd best album of that year. CHAOS and "Flaming Pie" received Grammy nominations for album of the year. TOW was called masterpiece by Rolling Stone magazine in 1982,
____________________________________________________________ You are so right Yankeefan. I can't explain "Take It Away". George Martin played some piano on it...you would think he would want to play it as a tribute to Mr. Martin. How about Wanderlust. Mr. Martin called it one of his best songs and vocals of all time. Nigel Goodrich said that Tug of War (the song) was one of his favorite songs growing up as a kid and yet Paul has never played it live. Can't explain any one of those songs being ignored during all those tours. Looking at all these recent articles on the Internet, Macca just seems so "fixated" on his Beatle years. One of the latest stories was all about "I was so lucky" joining the Beatles. Yes he was lucky...all 4 of them and Brian Epstein and George Martin. Life in many ways is about timing. But how about his career after the Beatles? Besides luck, Paul (along with John and later George) had a special talent for God sake. Paul was giving songs away (e.g. Peter and Gordon) that later became hits before the Beatles were famous. It was far more than just "luck". He continued to write great songs well after the Beatles split up and for some reason he hardly acknowledges that fact. Worse yet, after all these years of touring, there are so many Post Beatles, Post Wings songs that only he could make better known. In cases like the 3 great songs above, he never did it. As I have said, it just baffles me.
It baffles me also BJ. I truly get that the Beatles was how he became famous and that will always be a special time for him but my goodness the Beatles broke up almost 50 years ago. I just don't get why he would not want to sing live so many good songs he wrote over the last 30 years especially when so many albums like the ones I mentioned were critically acclaimed. Maybe it is me but I always thought you created new music not only for people to buy the album but perform it live for the masses. In the end, I guess he is happy with just being Beatle Paul and having most people believing his career basically ended in 1980.
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B J Conlee:
Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
Ironic, isn't it? He plays Beatles songs because they're the most famous and he doesn't want his fans to think there's any filler. But if he had been playing so many of his solo songs for the last 40 years, they would be very famous.
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yankeefan7:
It baffles me also BJ. I truly get that the Beatles was how he became famous and that will always be a special time for him but my goodness the Beatles broke up almost 50 years ago. I just don't get why he would not want to sing live so many good songs he wrote over the last 30 years especially when so many albums like the ones I mentioned were critically acclaimed. Maybe it is me but I always thought you created new music not only for people to buy the album but perform it live for the masses. In the end, I guess he is happy with just being Beatle Paul and having most people believing his career basically ended in 1980.
He did a good interview a while back and explained why he mostly does Beatles songs. He said he plays what the people want to hear. If everyone cheers for "Yesterday" and goes to the bathroom during "Wanderlust", it's obvious which one he'll lose next time.
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HaileyMcComet:
B J Conlee:
Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
Ironic, isn't it? He plays Beatles songs because they're the most famous and he doesn't want his fans to think there's any filler. But if he had been playing so many of his solo songs for the last 40 years, they would be very famous.
If only...there are some bright spots tho never thought he'd play Temporary Secretary. Enjoyed Rita Mita Maid addition also. Still dreaming for a Solo songs, including Fireman...gig in a smaller theater... east coast, west coast, London, Paris, Hamsterjam and other hand picked cities. I've actually had dreams being at this gig
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love2travel:
If only...there are some bright spots tho never thought he'd play Temporary Secretary. Enjoyed Rita Mita Maid addition also. Still dreaming for a Solo songs, including Fireman...gig in a smaller theater... east coast, west coast, London, Paris, Hamsterjam and other hand picked cities. I've actually had dreams being at this gig
"Hamsterjam" made me LOI.
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HaileyMcComet:
B J Conlee:
Oobu24 I could not have said it better. He will always sell out venues, big or small. When you think about it, his tours were the only way to "showcase" his very good to great Solo songs never played on the radio. Even many of the music critics in his later Solo years were on the whole quite positive to many of the albums he did. Unfortunately, Macca seems to mainly focus on "hits". Paul seems to suffer from a "hit only" syndrome. If it isn't a hit, then therefore it's not as good as his "old" stuff. Such a shame and totally wrong in my opinion. Just because radio doesn't play aging "classic rockers" anymore, doesn't mean the songs aren't as good. I could list 20 Solo songs off the top of my head that are every bit "Beatle worthy".
Ironic, isn't it? He plays Beatles songs because they're the most famous and he doesn't want his fans to think there's any filler. But if he had been playing so many of his solo songs for the last 40 years, they would be very famous.
Yep, like "Here Today"
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HaileyMcComet:
yankeefan7:
It baffles me also BJ. I truly get that the Beatles was how he became famous and that will always be a special time for him but my goodness the Beatles broke up almost 50 years ago. I just don't get why he would not want to sing live so many good songs he wrote over the last 30 years especially when so many albums like the ones I mentioned were critically acclaimed. Maybe it is me but I always thought you created new music not only for people to buy the album but perform it live for the masses. In the end, I guess he is happy with just being Beatle Paul and having most people believing his career basically ended in 1980.
He did a good interview a while back and explained why he mostly does Beatles songs. He said he plays what the people want to hear. If everyone cheers for "Yesterday" and goes to the bathroom during "Wanderlust", it's obvious which one he'll lose next time.
I understand that and have said that many times but I think 25 Beatle/Wings hit songs are plenty to please the audience and he could mix it up with the other 10-12 songs he does in a night. I would think McCartney should have enough self confidence he is giving people a good show even if they don't respond hugely to songs they don't know. His 25 Beatle/Wings hits are more songs than most artist play in total during a concert. Springsteen is the only one I can think of off the top of my heard who plays longer.
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Macca is all good with me!
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yankeefan7:
I understand that and have said that many times but I think 25 Beatle/Wings hit songs are plenty to please the audience and he could mix it up with the other 10-12 songs he does in a night. I would think McCartney should have enough self confidence he is giving people a good show even if they don't respond hugely to songs they don't know. His 25 Beatle/Wings hits are more songs than most artist play in total during a concert. Springsteen is the only one I can think of off the top of my heard who plays longer.
By now, his 1970-2010 songs could be huge. But at the Tokyo Dome, he played mostly 1962-1970, a few from 1972-1975, 2 from 1980-1982, and 4 from 2012-2015. There was absolutely nothing from the last half of Wings or 1983-2011.
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Except for the set list, he's still my favorite musician. At least I have the Beatles channel on XM to play those great Paul McCartney toons that I wish he would play live. And let's not forget the Fireman...he's a cool cat too "HUZZAH"