THE NEXT DELUXE/REMASTERED ALBUM FROM PAUL
-
That part about Paul cleaning up the dog poop in the hotel cracked me up! The hotel manager didn’t give a rat’s a$$ that he was “PAUL McCARTNEY” - he was gonna clean up after his dog! Lucky was the dalmation, wasn’t he?
-
Nancy R wrote:
That part about Paul cleaning up the dog poop in the hotel cracked me up! The hotel manager didn’t give a rat’s a$$ that he was “PAUL McCARTNEY” - he was gonna clean up after his dog! Lucky was the dalmation, wasn’t he?
Yes he was. Mind you,after the mess he left, if Paul kicked him up the backside for his troubles, he might not have been feeling so Lucky.
-
B J Conlee wrote:
For the past couple of weeks I have been obsessed with the RRS Remaster. For the American fans who want a far more affordable RRS package, I would highly recommend the 2 CD RRS Remaster from Target for under $20. What a steal!!
First of all, I've been enjoying relistening to the original album. The sound is terrific and hearing many of these great songs brings back many happy memories. But for the real fans, the true gem of the package is Disc 2. It contains a whopping 18 tracks most of which are B-sides and official unreleased songs. This is, in my opinion, easily the best companion disc in the "Archive" mini, more affordabe packages. All 18 tracks are complete songs and not snippets like you got in some of the previous 2nd discs. It's Disc 2 that I have been listening to the most.
As a big time fan of Paul's music, my biggest problem with the original RRS album in 1973 was the final 15-16 minutes with the last 2 tracks (Loup and Medley). As most here know, RRS was originally set to be (in Paul's mind) a Double Album but the Label EMI voted against the idea due to poor sales of Wildlife.
As I first listened to RRS way back when (like 45 years ago when I was obviously much younger) I really liked the first 7 tracks (up to "When the Night") but then the album's enjoyment came to a screaching halt with the experimental "Loop" and the final 11 plus minutes of the "Medley". Upon listening to this special 2nd disc in the new remaster, the same thing kept entering my mind...How could Paul omit an number of great songs compared to the last 2 tracks (15-16 minutes by the way). So many of these songs are so much better than the "Loop" and "Medley" in my opinion.
What was seriously lacking in the original Album was a few "rock" tracks to far better balance the overall album. As usual with Paul is that it's never a lack of material, but with Paul making better choices. Another mistake I believe that Paul made was trying to emulate the "loose" medley on Side 2 of Abbey Road where Paul rightfully receives a lot of praise. The problem is that the RRS Medley is not in the same universe as the Abbey Road medley relative to the songs. There you have a masterful variety of Paul and John songs filled with ballads, mid tempo and rock. While the RRS grouping was more of a true medley, all the songs were similar with a slow tempo and ballad types. To make matters worse, the lyrics were lame and very repetitive especially with the first 2 tracks (Hold Me Tight and Lazy Dynamite). I clearly remember trying to like the overall track but when Paul repeated "Hold Me Tight" so many times, I was ready to scream. Upon listening to the "Medley" today, I do admit to liking it better. I guess that because I'm much older I don't mind the individual songs (especially "Hands of Love" and "Power Cut") and I'm appreciating better the instrumentation and vocals. But keeping in mind that we were in the early 70's and the"Rock" genre was still king, I believe that Paul's final track choices for RRS was a huge mistake relative to his reputation at the time. Instead of RRS ending with a few great "Rock" tracks (e.g. The Mess, Best Friend, Hi Hi Hi and even Live and Let Die), RRS ended with a "wimp". Many of the critics of the day who were biased against Paul anyway (they preferred John) had a field day after Wildlife and now RRS. In reality, Paul could of had a much better balanced RRS with superior songs in general. With better track selection, I believe RRS would be considered at the same level of BOTR and Ram. Conversely, you never hear RRS brought up when music fans in general mention Paul's best Post Beatles' albums. That should not have been the case when you listen to Disc 2 in this latest Remaster package.
My track by track analysis of both discs will follow.
Let me start off with Disc 2 of the mini 2CD Set in the new 2018 RRS Archive Collection. If 4 or 5 of these tracks would have replaced the 2-3 tracks (including the 11 plus minute Medley track) from the final album, RRS would be considered one of Paul's greatest Post Beatles' albums in my opinion. I'm loving this disc with so many hidden gems.
Bonus Audio Disc (track by track grade with 10 being the highest)
Mary Had a Little Lamb (6) - Basically a children's song and Paul was right not including it on the final RRS album. Although it was too "bubble gum" to take as a serious song, it's pretty impressive how Paul can construct a catchy melody to seemlessly go with a popular nursery rhyme. It came out as a single but in the US thankfully it got little air play.
Little Woman Love (7)- Paul played this a lot on his early Post Beatles' live shows. Nice up tempo piano riff
Hi Hi Hi (9) - Great early Paul rocker that he is still playing on his 2018 shows. While it was banned by the BBC, I remember hearing it on US radio back in the early 70's. Should have been on the original RRS album because it needed a rocker like Hi Hi Hi.
C-Moon (7) - While this divides fans (some like it and others despise it) I like the catchiness of the track. Good vocal by Paul and catchy instrumentation
The Mess (10) - Another great rock track that should have been on the final RRS album. Great singing by Paul and I love Henry McCullough solo guitar work as well as Denny Seiwell excellent drumming.
Live and Let Die (10 plus) - No doubt should have been on the final album (probably last track). I know it was a huge single but it was very short-sighted by the record company to keep it off the main album. By that point, the majority of buyers went from buying singles to albums. Would have made RRS a much stronger album as an entity.
I Lie Around (8.5) - Very catchy song that makes a very good album cut. One of the early Wings tunes where Denny Laine taked the lead vocal through much of the song. Great guitar work thoughout. Only negative to me is that it is a tad too long but I still love it. Not sure if it is a total Denny song or a combination of Paul and Denny.
Night Out (7) - Not much of a song (lyrically and it is short at a little over 2 minutes) but I like the guitar and drum work by Henry and Denny Seiwell. Has a heavy metal sound considering it is Paul.
Country Dreamer (9) - Have always loved this little countryish gem. It was already on the Bonus disc from the Band on the Run Archive Collection. Love it when Paul does his "southern US vocals".
Seaside Woman (7) - one of the first tracks where Linda sings lead and it has a catchy reaggae flavor to it.
Best Friends (10) - Another great rocking track in this collection. Whether this "live" track or a studio production, Paul has always sung "rockabilly" very well (just hear the Run Devil Run Cd) and his vocals are no exception here. Love Denny Seiwell's drumming and Henry's guitar work. And as usual, Paul does his great "Elvis" impersonation on his vocals. How Paul never put "Best Friends" on an album just baffles me. He could also do a great "live" performance like he does here.
Mama's Little Girl (10) - love this little country acoustic gem and again I never understood why Paul never put it on an album.
I Would Only Smile (9) - One of Denny Laine's great songs and also could have easily replaced 2-3 tracks on the final RRS. It has a definite Bob Dylan feel to it and I love the bridge. Sounds a little like Denny's "Again, Again, Again" from Back to the Egg and I always loved that one too.
Tragedy (9) - A cover song by the Band originally done by the Fleetwoods in the 50"s. Paul and Band in my opinion make it their own in my opinion with Paul's very good, understated lead vocal.
Thank You Darling (9) - I know that many Paul fans consider this a throw away song (and I agree) but I love the interplay vocals between Paul and Linda. I love their accents as they sing (of course Linda was American) and I would have loved to be at the recording. Don't know how they kept a straight face. Very simple but catchy melody and bridge.
1882 (9) - this has been a real grower for me now that it actually on CD. Love Paul's haunting vocal and the melody. One of Paul's story songs with more potential if he would have flushed out the lyrics better. The lyrics have an old time English/ Dickens feel to it about an impoverished boy trying to get/steal food for his dying mother. The melody and Paul's singing really draws you in despite being overly long at 6 and a half minutes.
Jazz Street (7) - I'm not big on Paul's instrumentals in general but this is a pretty good one despite the lengh of a little over 6 minutes. Parts of Paul's piano reminds me of 1985.
I think you can see why RRS should have been a better, much more balanced album. RRS ended up being "too soft" (even Linda said that on RRS the band was trying to find its way and needed a heavier sound). Just looking at the 10's and 9's songs above that didn't make the final RRS cut, you can easily see how the album could have been much more diverse and balanced. Take out the Medley and Loup alone (almost 16 minutes) and replacing them with songs like Live and Let Die, The Mess, Hi Hi Hi, Best Friends and RRS could have been a classic in my opinion.
-
As usual BJ, your review was almost perfect. Ha. I only have a few qualms about your grades. Here goes. Would have given Mary Had a Little Lamb an 8; absolutely love Night Out, an easy 9 (heard it was going to be the lead song on the double RRS; what a start); another 8 or 9 for Seaside Woman; Thank You Darling doesn't do a thing for me, so I give it a 5; and the Live and Let Die with just the band is a 10!!
-
If BJ were a female, there would absolutely be no problem with "too many Hold Me Tights" in the RRS medley; each one made us swoon, and the cumulative effect was dazzling ! Wanting so badly to "hold him tight" and go off like "lazy dynamite" LOL and the "When the Night" part is overwhelming, so great, I love that medley--
Being a female fan of Macca's always certainly featured a strong extra dimension in fanhood, of longing from afar. All those straight male fans of his can't grasp that particular overwhelming allure of the star, poor things (LOL) !!
-
SusyLuvsPaul wrote:
If BJ were a female, there would absolutely be no problem with "too many Hold Me Tights" in the RRS medley; each one made us swoon, and the cumulative effect was dazzling ! Wanting so badly to "hold him tight" and go off like "lazy dynamite" LOL and the "When the Night" part is overwhelming, so great, I love that medley--
Being a female fan of Macca's always certainly featured a strong extra dimension in fanhood, of longing from afar. All those straight male fans of his can't grasp that particular overwhelming allure of the star, poor things (LOL) !!
How true!
-
I love Thank you Darling. Many twists and turns. It's a fun song.
Night Out rocks.
Seaside Woman... I could do without that. So-so.
Best Friend....brilliant, even if the intro is way too long. But a great song. That had 'winner' all over it. Don't know why it wasn't on the original.
Mama's Little Girl.... sounds like it could've been on The White Album. A little long, but I love it.
Denny's I Would Only Smile is really good.
I always found the closing medley underwhelming. Loup destroyed the momentum.
Little Lamb Dragonfly makes the original album for me. With My Love.
-
wingsoverkc wrote:
As usual BJ, your review was almost perfect. Ha. I only have a few qualms about your grades. Here goes. Would have given Mary Had a Little Lamb an 8; absolutely love Night Out, an easy 9 (heard it was going to be the lead song on the double RRS; what a start); another 8 or 9 for Seaside Woman; Thank You Darling doesn't do a thing for me, so I give it a 5; and the Live and Let Die with just the band is a 10!!
Thanks always for your imput Wingsoverkc. I agree with you that "Thank You Darling" isn't a great song and I might have rated it too high but I just find it to be a favorite of mine for the reasons I gave. Just Paul and Linda having fun and love their vocals. I forgot to mention that the "kazoo" adds a nice fun touch.
No doubt that "Night Out" is becoming a definite grower for me. And "The Mess" and "Best Friends" are great rockers in my opinion.
The great thing about this bonus Disc is that, as a fan, it was such a surprise after the wonderful Egypt Station. It is like getting a brand new McCartney album just before Christmas. So many songs that I had heard only occasionally on youtube that you can add to your collection and play anytime you want. I think this whole bonus disc is the best one from the entire Archive collection so far.
-
toris wrote:
I love Thank you Darling. Many twists and turns. It's a fun song.
Night Out rocks.
Seaside Woman... I could do without that. So-so.
Best Friend....brilliant, even if the intro is way too long. But a great song. That had 'winner' all over it. Don't know why it wasn't on the original.
Mama's Little Girl.... sounds like it could've been on The White Album. A little long, but I love it.
Denny's I Would Only Smile is really good.
I always found the closing medley underwhelming. Loup destroyed the momentum.
Little Lamb Dragonfly makes the original album for me. With My Love.
Thanks for your imput Toris. Hope you're enjoying this bonus RRS Disc as much as I am.
In a strange way, I know that I'm not suppose to like "Thank You Darling" but I love it too. I can just see Paul and Linda having such fun recording it.
Your absolutely right about "Best Friend". Imagine if Paul had perfected it in the Studio. Such a great rockabilly song with the Elvis vocal style. And I love Denny Seiwell's drumming.
Like you, I love both "Mama's Little Girl" and Denny Laine's "I Would Only Smile". As I said, RRS could have been such a great album with a few alterations. I agree that "Seaside Woman" is just so-so but it is kind of growing with me. Nice to have a track with Linda's lead vocals. And another real grower for me (as you mention) is "Night Out".
What a great Christmas present the RRS Bonus Disc is! So many good to great tracks.
-
McCartney II climbs to 94 on Billboard. RRS WL and Egypt Station nowhere to be found.
What’s going on ???
-
Frank wrote:
McCartney II climbs to 94 on Billboard. RRS WL and Egypt Station nowhere to be found.
What’s going on ???
Very strange indeed Frank. Every Paul and Beatle fan should grab the RRS 2 Disc Archive Set (from Target if you have one near) for the Bonus Audio Disc alone. As I said, so many great Paul and Wings' tunes even if a few of them could have been flushed out better in the studio. It really shows that Henry McCullough and Denny Seiwell were good players filling out the band at the time.
-
Frank wrote:
McCartney II climbs to 94 on Billboard. RRS WL and Egypt Station nowhere to be found.
What’s going on ???
Sorry For the oversight : while Mccartney II climbs to 94 ES climbs back to 34 !
-
Here's my track by track grading for the original 9 track RRS (1 to 10 with 10 being the best)
Big Barn Red (9) - upon my revisit with the 2018 Remaster, I find Big Barn Red even more enjoyable than all those years ago. Terrific album uptempo opener with great Wings' harmonies. Like Henry McCullough's electric guitar work (love the solo) and Denny Seiwell's drums.
My Love (10) - while some "rock" critics really trash this #1 US Single (and lead album track) I have always loved it. Love the melody and Paul's soulful lead vocal (great Denny and Linda backing vocals too). Henry's electric guitar solo is fantastic of course. Some critics dish the lyrics but while simple I like them. Always liked the line..."And when the cupboard's bare, I still find some there with my love". Especially love Paul's vocal at the end of the song.
Get on the Right Thing (6.5) - this Ram leftover track hasn't aged as well to my ears. I like the instrumental beginning but not fond of the studio background singers on the chorus. Their voices just have too much of a piercing shrill to me. Paul's vocal saves it but it is just an OK album track to me. Could have been replaced since Paul had so many better songs.
One More Kiss (8.5) - This song and Paul's vocals are so beatlesque like his early Beatle songs. Simple but a typical cool McCartney ballad.
Little Lamb Dragonfly (10) - Have always loved this one. Another Ram leftover and great example of Paul seemlessly merging 2 songs into one. Great Paul vocal with Denny Laine and Linda's terrific backing vocals. A little long (over 6 minutes) but I don't mind it at all.
Single Pigeon (10 plus) - My favorite track on RRS. Why Paul never did "Single Pigeon" during all his years of touring still baffles me since it would be so easy for Paul to do on the piano. Great piano melody and I love both Paul's lead vocal and Linda's harmony with Paul (one of Linda's best in my opinion). While slight, I also like the lyrics a lot with multiple meanings. Reminds me of my many visits as a youngster to the New Jersey shore where you would see pigeons all the time. Love the line..."Do you need a pal for a minute or two".
When the Night (9) - Another slower song with Paul on the piano. Great Paul vocal with Denny and Linda supplying the excellent harmonies. Excellent guitar work also.
Loup (3)) - I've always thought this was a dud and my revisit didn't change my mind. I know that this is an experimental type track for Paul but I always disliked the channting vocals. I just shake my head when he had so many great alternatives particularly in the rock genre which RRS really needed at this point on the album.
Medly ( 5 as an complete entitiy) - Before fans here start crushing me, let me explain. It's not that the individual songs are terrible although the lyrics on the 1st 2 tracks are ridiculously repetitive. On this revisit, I rather like the 2nd half of the Medley with Hands of Love and Power Cut and the way Paul blends all the different melodies in the last minute or two. The melodies and vocals are good in hindsight but the real problem with the "medley" is that it wasn't what Paul needed as the closing point on RRS . He had an overabundance of ballad type songs on the album already. And hearing the rock tracks he had available (just listen to the RRS Bonus Disc!) and that he omitted on RRS just baffles me.
I will follow this review up with my "dream" RRS album shortly (single and multi disc/vinyl versions).
-
Following my track by track analysis of the original RRS (in the 2018 Remaster format) posted above, here would be my "dream" vinyl or 1 Disc tracklisting:
1. Big Barn Bed
2. My Love
3. Hi Hi Hi (replaces Get On the Right Thing)
4. One More Kiss
5. Little Lamb Dragonfly
6. Single Pigeon
7. When the Night
8. Best Friend -my dream version would be a perfected studio one with a shorted intro (replaces the "Loup")
9. I Lie Around
10. The Mess
11. LIve and Let Die
(The last 3 tracks above would replace the "Medley"
Picking the 5 new replacement tracks above (#3, 8, 9,10, 11) was tough because there were so many very good songs on the Bonus Disc. In my opinion, other potential replacements for the era included Mama's Little Girl, Country Dreamer, I Would Only Smile and 1882. Any combination of these replacements would have made RRS a far better and balanced album. Who knows how RRS in retrospect would have been rated today.
-
BJ, I too love “My Love!” You might not know the story behind the line you like - When Linda first arrived at Paul’s London home in mid-Sept. 1968, he was at the recording studio. She goes to the kitchen and the only thing in the fridge is some moldy cheese and sour milk. There was no dog food for Martha either. She had to call a number that the housekeeper had left in case she needed anything! (Yeah, Paul, groceries! The cupboard’s bare!)
-
Oh BJ: Just when I thought you could do no wrong, you did wrong! I LOVE Get On The Right Thing; should have been the second single from RRS. Easily Top Ten territory. And as I have stated before strongly, I adore the Medley. IMO, I would have replaced One More Kiss and Single Pigeon with HI HI HI and Live And Let Die. And I would have subtracted the LOUP and inserted either The Mess or Best Friend. RRS would have stayed on the charts for months and months.
-
Nancy R wrote:
BJ, I too love “My Love!” You might not know the story behind the line you like - When Linda first arrived at Paul’s London home in mid-Sept. 1968, he was at the recording studio. She goes to the kitchen and the only thing in the fridge is some moldy cheese and sour milk. There was no dog food for Martha either. She had to call a number that the housekeeper had left in case she needed anything! (Yeah, Paul, groceries! The cupboard’s bare!)
Thanks for the info Nancy. I had heard parts of the story on Wingspan I believe. Now I know Paul's inspiration for the line.
-
wingsoverkc wrote:
Oh BJ: Just when I thought you could do no wrong, you did wrong! I LOVE Get On The Right Thing; should have been the second single from RRS. Easily Top Ten territory. And as I have stated before strongly, I adore the Medley. IMO, I would have replaced One More Kiss and Single Pigeon with HI HI HI and Live And Let Die. And I would have subtracted the LOUP and inserted either The Mess or Best Friend. RRS would have stayed on the charts for months and months.
To each his own Wingsoverkc. You really love "Get on the Right Thing" and I love, love "Single Pigeon. I actually think "Get on the Right Thing" is a decent, even good album track. On my revisit with the new remaster, I just don't care for the background singers in the chorus at the beginning and end of the song. Linda is singing backing vocals behind Paul on much of the song but I don't believe she is on the chorus. The voices there are very strong but too high-pitched and piercing to my ears. Funny thing is that the track was a leftover Ram song and Denny Laine (from the album booklet) is not even on the track. In my opinion, it is the least sounding Wing's song (other than the weird, experimental "Loop") on RRS. My guess is that Paul used "professional session singers"to finish off the song. Maybe someone who bought the full Deluxe edition can inform us. I do remember hearing the track on FM radio way back in the day. As I said, it's a good album cut and doesn't marr the original album like the last 2 tracks do in my opinion.
I know that my overall comments about RRS and what it could have been are a futile exercise. The label refused to do a double album which would have been my 1st choice because he had so many very good songs at the time and Paul ran with the tracking list that we eventually got. I do think in the overall you agree with me that RRS was too soft as an album especially when you consider the rock tracks he had in his back pocket like Hi Hi Hi, Live and Let Die, Best Friends and The Mess. Having more of those tracks on RRS would have raised its stature significantly as far as Paul's best Post Beatles' albums. Very few fans (general and hard core) put RRS in the same league as BOTR, Ram and even Venus and Mars. Yet with the really good "rocking" material left off RRS, it should have been in my opinion.
The main thing is that we finally got all of these great songs in the Bonus CD in a very affordable package from Target and I'm thrilled with this little Christmas gift.
-
BJ, in the RRS book, it doesn’t list any other singers for Get On The Right Thing . Just Paul and Linda. It was recorded Oct. 14, 1970 in NYC at CBS Studios.
-
Linda's vocals do sound quite shrill and wild on "Get On the Right Thing" but they add quite a lot of zest and pizzazz! I love "One More Kiss" which has a rockabilly flavor and flair and would not want that left off RSS either. "Single Pigeon" is charming, I agree...I'm eager to obtain the two CD RSS reissue BJ and others have raved about. I've never heard a few mentioned on the second CD.