Take It Away: The Complete Paul McCartney Archive Podcast
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SusyLuvsPaul wrote:
Chris and Ryan, thank you so much !! I will love hearing your Paul music podcasts and appreciate completely you two young men's work on these, and your love for Paul solo...B.J.'s extensive commentary is also greatly appreciated and Yankee Fan's many comments, and Nancy R's. I'll read these more closely when I get more time. Presently what sticks out is, I love Red Rose Speedway in its entirety much more than B.J. does, including the exciting, rousing medleys, and I like Pipes of Peace more, though I agree the few throwaways on there should have been replaced with some of his true gems. I really like "Motor of Love" for its celestial other worldly sound and lyrics. I'm wild about certain "Driving Rain" offerings that don't much strike his fancy. I agree the fantastic diversity of styles and genres in "Flowers in the Dirt" are all enthralling delights, for the most part, and his more mature sophisticated lyrics and themes for songs reflecting his stage of life, during that time period.
"Beautiful Night" and "No More Lonely Nights" blow me away, especially the latter. I adore "World Tonight" "From A Lover To A Friend" and "Daytime/Nighttime Suffering," just to name a few of the numerous genuine jewels in Macca's songwriting and singing Crown. "That Day is Done" really grew on me.
Thanks SusyLuvsPaul. I just finished listening to Ryan and Chris's latest installment "Driving Rain". Like part of their preparation, I have been listening to DR on my car CD player over the last couple of days. It's always good to revisit older Paul albums and see how you now feel about certain songs and the whole album in general. On the whole I like DR a little better than they do but I also agree with them on certain aspects of the album. DR like Press to Play and Back to the Egg, got many very unfavorable reviews but they are personal favorites of mine. While I don't consider them top tier albums like Flaming Pie, Chaos, Flowers, Tug of War etc... I do find parts of DR, Press and Egg for highly enjoyable.
My more extensive commentary on DR along with Ryan and Chris's opinions will be forthcoming over the next day or two. Like you, I really enjoy their objectivity and honest evaluations. I don't always agree but that is what makes these podcasts so enjoyable.
PS Yes, I still don't like the way Paul ended Red Rose Speedway with that medley. Just my opinion, the ending (10 plus minutes on the Medley) spoiled an absolutely brilliant 1st half of Speedway especially when he had so many alternative songs including great rockers that didn't make the cut. In hindsight, I wished that Paul would have done a "double album" like he originally intended. Then again, the record company unfortunately refused to back a "double" Red Rose Set at that time.
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A double "Red Rose Speedway" album would have been fantastic ! They should have done it, because he's Paul and it's Paul music.
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SusyLuvsPaul wrote:
A double "Red Rose Speedway" album would have been fantastic ! They should have done it, because he's Paul and it's Paul music.
Agree 100% Susy.
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As usual, I love the latest episode of Ryan and Chris's Podcast ---Driving Rain. I not only love their "objectivity" regarding Paul's Post Beatles' Catalog, but I like their "chemistry". At this point, I feel like I know them. Over the last several episodes, they have me laughing especially when they disagree on various Solo songs which is a real tribute to the quality of Take It Away.
Where do I begin with the Analysis of the album Driving Rain (I'll refer to it as DR). My biggest challenge is to condense the overall material of DR and its subsequent positives as well as the warts into the shortest amount of space as I can. Believe me, it is a challenge.
Perhaps I'll start with some of the main criticisms of DR in general. First, let me say that after hearing this episode, I like the album in general a little better than they do. At the same time, I also agree with many of the shortcomings they believe that DR has. As a big time Macca fan, I would never play DR to someone (e.g. a friend) I'm trying to convince that Paul has had a very good career after the Beatles. DR just has too many holes and weaknesses and it's not mainly the songwriting or lyrics themselves in my opinion. Recently, I played 4-5 of the top songs from Flaming Pie to my fiancee. She is the typical "casual" Paul Beatle fan who knows his famous Beatle songs as well as a few of the big Wings' hits. She loved the Flaming Pie songs (e.g. Beautiful Night, Calico Skies, Little Willow, Somedays etc) and added that she never knew how good some of his Solo songs were. Of course, she was judging those songs. Unfortunately, some of the best DR songs still have certain flaws and in the end are not near as good as the best stuff from his top tier Solo albums. But as a huge fan of Paul, I still find greatness in parts of Paul's lesser albums. That is where I'm basically at with DR.
Here are some of Ryan and Chris's general negatives about DR:
*DR is too long (almost 68 minutes) and has too many inferior songs -- I would agree with the guys 100% on both criticisms. I also agree with them that DR should have ended with Your Loving Flame (I will get to my track by track analysis later). In my opinion, the last 3 tracks --- Riding into Jaipur (4:08), Rinse the Raintracks (10:08) and Freedom (only 3:34 but badly didn't fit the album) are inferior tracks. If you then, take off Spinning on an Axis (another inferior track being 5:08 long) and you would have an ideal length of a Pop-Rock album. If you did that, then DR would be a much better album.
*Many of the DR tracks have an inferior Paul vocal -- Again I largely agree with the guys regarding his DR voice. They both point out that Paul sounded like he had a bad cold. Ryan told Paul's story of his "run-in" with an dishonest Indian Rug dealer that might have been the beginning cause of Paul to lose his voice 1 week before the album's initial recording sessions. That begs the question as the guys pointed out... why wouldn't Paul postpone these sessions for another month or two until his throat was better. The guys further bring out that this was 2001 where on his previous album (Run Devil Run), Paul showed great vocals. For further proof, Paul began recording DR in February of 2001 and finished almost all the tracks in two weeks. Conversely, he didn't record "Your Loving Flame" until June of 2001 and that track vocally is far superior to almost all the earlier tracks. And personally I saw Paul in Philadelphia on the Driving Rain tour in 2002 and his voice sounded great. HIs take on the 3 Driving Rain songs performed in Philadelphia that night was significantly superior to my ears compared to the identical studio/album versions. While I like quite a few of the tracks on the album, I have to agree with the guys here relatively to his vocals.
*Many of the songs on DR sounded unfinished, half baked and "underproduced" from a Production point of view - On the whole I agree with these critical summations. They also believe that Paul's producer, David Kahne, didn't push Paul harder to get better vocal takes. Again, I agree with them 100%. Where I relatively disagree (like Thrillington from the previous post) I think there are a bunch of solid Paul songs on DR with creative songwriting and excellent sounds. As a whole, I think DR is a little better than the guys. As far as being underproduced, I find DR despite its flaws to be charming and refreshing in many parts. Again, this is more of a Paul album for the "real" fans than casual fans. For the critics that don't like Paul in the first place, DR feeds into the premise that Paul's Post Beatles' career was very inconsistent and hit and miss at best. I don't agree with that opinion, but it doesn't help when Paul rushes out an album that could have been significantly better with more editing and more vocal takes.
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Before I get into my Driving Rain (DR) track by track analysis, let us just imagine that Nigel Godrich (Paul's Producer for Chaos and Creation) was the Producer for Driving Rain. I can't imagine a very "strong" Producer like Nigel (who is hired by Paul to create the best album for his artist) to have allowed a non-song /10 minute jam session like Rince the Raindrops to end up on the proper album. I also have a feeling that inferior songs like Riding into Jaiper and Spinning on an Axis would have made the cut either. At best they might have been B-sides. Take those songs out and also Freedom (that didn't fit the album in any way) and the total time on DR would still have been longer than Chaos and Creation. Chaos was 46:53 in total length. Only 3 Chaos songs were over 4 minutes and only one (Riding to Vanity Fair) was just barely over 5 (5:07). Similar to a great album like Revolver, Nigel preferred 3 to 4 minute "real" songs and so do I.
The other thing that might have happened relates to the shape of Paul's voice upon beginning the DR sessions in Feb. 2001. Knowing Mr. Godrich's personality, I think he would have postponed the sessions telling Paul to come back in a month or two when his voice was back in top shape. Although David Kahne is a season Producer and had good ideas, Paul was allowed to make all the decisions at the expense of what eventually became a mediocre album at best. For the most part, most of Paul's best, top tier Solo albums had strong Producers (George Martin, Nigel Godrich) who weren't afraid to tell Paul what they thought. My previous post went into more detail regarding Paul's voice on DR.
Conversely, one very positive thing about DR as a whole is that like others have said, I love his bass playing throughout. I also like that it is primarily a guitar based and oriented album with little production. That makes it distinctive.
For this DR podcast and like the guys did, I put my Driving Rain CD back in my car CD a few days ago. I wanted to see how I felt about the album now compared to years ago. For the most part it was pretty similar. Along with the inferior songs that should have never made the cut in my opinion, I think a lot of DR's problems was more in "execution" particularly his vocals than in poor song writing and innovation in my opinion. That is where I differ slightly from the guys.
Track by Track Analysis for Driving Rain (1 to 10 Rating with 10 being the top)
1. Lonely Road (9) - To me this is one of the top songs on DR. I love the song and liked Chris's comment that he liked the song's melodic arc. I also agree with Chris that I also see the lyrics as a "defiance song against loneliness". I would have given "Lonely Road" an even higher grade if the vocal was better. I heard Paul do it "live" on the subsequent tour (Philadelphia - 2002) and his vocal was awesome. The crowd loved it too.
2. From a Lover to a Friend (7.5) - I like this song as an album cut because of its distinctive sound. The lyrics can be a little strange but lyrically it is a transition song between his marriage to Linda and his new love at the time Heather Mills. His singing is even worse however on the studio version. It definitely brought the rating down for me.
3. She's Giving Up Talking (8.5) - This is the 1st of 3 songs that I like considerably better than Chris and Ryan. I also realize that I'm in the minority as I have noticed that many fans don't care for it. To me, It is also a very distinctive song from the rest of Paul's catalog. I like the opening chords and the melody as a whole but what I really "love"are the lyrics. I think it is one of Paul's best lyrics in his Post Beatles' career (I will touch on this later). Chris is a stickler for lyrics and I noticed he liked the lyrics too. The only negative for me (and the guys mentioned it) is that it didn't need to run as long (4:57). The melody became a tad boring and would have been much better in my opinion as a 3 minute type song.
4. Driving Rain (8.5) - I was not surprised at all that Chris didn't like the 1,2,3, 4, 5...lyric at all. In fact many don't and I certainly understand it. I don't like it either but at least the rest of the lyrics are good (it is a love song). But to me, the great bouncy up-tempo Paul melody is here and it overwhelms that bad lyric. When I just reheard it after many years, I still like the bounce to it and Paul's singing. I have a good friend who went to the Philadelphia show with me (he absolutely hated the 1,2,3,4,5) but he was very surprise at how well the song went over and that it sounded much better live.
5. I Do (8) - I would have rated this song higher but again, Paul's vocal was a mess on the song. I do love the melody a lot however. Again, Paul needed David Kahne to tell him to rerecord it. I don't skip it because the melody is so good.
6. Tiny Bubble (8) - When I heard DR over again this past week (after many years) this was the song that surprised me the most. It didn't do much for me in 2001 (and Paul didn't play it live) but I really like it now. Ryan didn't like it on the Podcast but Chris did. He thought it was a "nice charming little pop song" and I now agree. The music is really good, I like the bridge and hearing it in the car put you in a nice mellow tranquil state.
7. Magic (8.5) - The guys both like this one and called it a highlight. I like it too but parts of the vocal again put my rating lower than it should have been. Like many of these songs, I love the bass and the lyrics. As the guys said, it allowed Paul to "turn the corner" from losing Linda. I think Paul said it too. Another song that I wished Paul had done live at some point. It might have been a classic if people heard a better vocal.
8. Your Way (8.5) - Another song that I really like and so did the guys. I like the harmonies too with Paul's band.
9. Spinning on an Axis (4) - A song that I mentioned shoudn't have made the cut. It would have been an ok "B"side for the fact that Paul is doing a Rap parody but this is an inferior song.
(to be continued)
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(Continued)
10. About You (8.5) - The 2nd song that I seem to like better than Chris and Ryan. To me, this is a good modern rock song. I like the lyrics too. This is another song that is criminal that Paul never performed live. While I like the album version, it just seems to be missing something that a live performance would probably would have brought out. Abe and Rusty from Paul's current Band played on the album and so this song would have been easy for them to have played.
11. Heather (9) - like Ryan, I like this song a lot. Ryan described it best as a "summer light pop song". I felt similar to the song on Press to Play (Good Times Coming/Feel the Sun). They make you feel good. I also like the fact that it is primarily an instrumental but has a nice lyric section at the end. Chris mentioned his like for the lyric "runsible tune"which I always liked.
12, Back in the Sunshine Again (8.5) - this is the 3rd song on DR that I definitely like better than the guys. I think it was Chris that described it as a basic rock song. I don't see it like that at all. I see it as a cross between the R&B and jazz genres. Unlike many of the songs on DR, I like Paul's vocal here especially when he hits the high registers. Sort of reminds me of Al Green. I also like the song's nice piano groove (think it is Gabe Dixon) and the upbeat lyrics.
13. Your Loving Flame (9) - Like Chris said, Paul delivers a fantastic vocal on the album. He also did a great job on the live version I heard on the tour. Rhyming "love" with "What it is you're thinking of"while containing obvious poor grammar doesn't really bother me when it comes to a good song. The melody and his vocal phrasing overwhelm a bad grammar lyric. Along with Lonely Road, Magic, Heather, and Your Way, a definite "highlight" on DR in my opinion and yet another classic Paul piano ballad.
14. Riding into Jaipur (5) - Like the guys, I'm indifferent to this song. I'm not a big fan of Indian music in general and this song reminds me of that genre.
15. Rinse the Raindrops (3) - I'm even a less a fan of long album jams and songs that are non songs. This one is even worse than "Really Love You" that kept Flaming Pie from "masterpiece" level in my opinion.
16. Freedom - The rating of this song as a DR track is pointless to me. It was not written for DR and has no relationship to the rest of the album. The song did work as a "live" track on tour particularly with the horrible events of 9/11.
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B J Conlee wrote:
Before I get into my Driving Rain (DR) track by track analysis, let us just imagine that Nigel Godrich (Paul's Producer for Chaos and Creation) was the Producer for Driving Rain. I can't imagine a very "strong" Producer like Nigel (who is hired by Paul to create the best album for his artist) to have allowed a non-song /10 minute jam session like Rince the Raindrops to end up on the proper album. I also have a feeling that inferior songs like Riding into Jaiper and Spinning on an Axis would have made the cut either. At best they might have been B-sides. Take those songs out and also Freedom (that didn't fit the album in any way) and the total time on DR would still have been longer than Chaos and Creation. Chaos was 46:53 in total length. Only 3 Chaos songs were over 4 minutes and only one (Riding to Vanity Fair) was just barely over 5 (5:07). Similar to a great album like Revolver, Nigel preferred 3 to 4 minute "real" songs and so do I.
The other thing that might have happened relates to the shape of Paul's voice upon beginning the DR sessions in Feb. 2001. Knowing Mr. Godrich's personality, I think he would have postponed the sessions telling Paul to come back in a month or two when his voice was back in top shape. Although David Kahne is a season Producer and had good ideas, Paul was allowed to make all the decisions at the expense of what eventually became a mediocre album at best. For the most part, most of Paul's best, top tier Solo albums had strong Producers (George Martin, Nigel Godrich) who weren't afraid to tell Paul what they thought. My previous post went into more detail regarding Paul's voice on DR.
Conversely, one very positive thing about DR as a whole is that like others have said, I love his bass playing throughout. I also like that it is primarily a guitar based and oriented album with little production. That makes it distinctive.
For this DR podcast and like the guys did, I put my Driving Rain CD back in my car CD a few days ago. I wanted to see how I felt about the album now compared to years ago. For the most part it was pretty similar. Along with the inferior songs that should have never made the cut in my opinion, I think a lot of DR's problems was more in "execution" particularly his vocals than in poor song writing and innovation in my opinion. That is where I differ slightly from the guys.
Track by Track Analysis for Driving Rain (1 to 10 Rating with 10 being the top)
1. Lonely Road (9) - To me this is one of the top songs on DR. I love the song and liked Chris's comment that he liked the song's melodic arc. I also agree with Chris that I also see the lyrics as a "defiance song against loneliness". I would have given "Lonely Road" an even higher grade if the vocal was better. I heard Paul do it "live" on the subsequent tour (Philadelphia - 2002) and his vocal was awesome. The crowd loved it too.
2. From a Lover to a Friend (7.5) - I like this song as an album cut because of its distinctive sound. The lyrics can be a little strange but lyrically it is a transition song between his marriage to Linda and his new love at the time Heather Mills. His singing is even worse however on the studio version. It definitely brought the rating down for me.
3. She's Giving Up Talking (8.5) - This is the 1st of 3 songs that I like considerably better than Chris and Ryan. I also realize that I'm in the minority as I have noticed that many fans don't care for it. To me, It is also a very distinctive song from the rest of Paul's catalog. I like the opening chords and the melody as a whole but what I really "love"are the lyrics. I think it is one of Paul's best lyrics in his Post Beatles' career (I will touch on this later). Chris is a stickler for lyrics and I noticed he liked the lyrics too. The only negative for me (and the guys mentioned it) is that it didn't need to run as long (4:57). The melody became a tad boring and would have been much better in my opinion as a 3 minute type song.
4. Driving Rain (8.5) - I was not surprised at all that Chris didn't like the 1,2,3, 4, 5...lyric at all. In fact many don't and I certainly understand it. I don't like it either but at least the rest of the lyrics are good (it is a love song). But to me, the great bouncy up-tempo Paul melody is here and it overwhelms that bad lyric. When I just reheard it after many years, I still like the bounce to it and Paul's singing. I have a good friend who went to the Philadelphia show with me (he absolutely hated the 1,2,3,4,5) but he was very surprise at how well the song went over and that it sounded much better live.
5. I Do (8) - I would have rated this song higher but again, Paul's vocal was a mess on the song. I do love the melody a lot however. Again, Paul needed David Kahne to tell him to rerecord it. I don't skip it because the melody is so good.
6. Tiny Bubble (8) - When I heard DR over again this past week (after many years) this was the song that surprised me the most. It didn't do much for me in 2001 (and Paul didn't play it live) but I really like it now. Ryan didn't like it on the Podcast but Chris did. He thought it was a "nice charming little pop song" and I now agree. The music is really good, I like the bridge and hearing it in the car put you in a nice mellow tranquil state.
7. Magic (8.5) - The guys both like this one and called it a highlight. I like it too but parts of the vocal again put my rating lower than it should have been. Like many of these songs, I love the bass and the lyrics. As the guys said, it allowed Paul to "turn the corner" from losing Linda. I think Paul said it too. Another song that I wished Paul had done live at some point. It might have been a classic if people heard a better vocal.
8. Your Way (8.5) - Another song that I really like and so did the guys. I like the harmonies too with Paul's band.
9. Spinning on an Axis (4) - A song that I mentioned shoudn't have made the cut. It would have been an ok "B"side for the fact that Paul is doing a Rap parody but this is an inferior song.
(to be continued)
Lonely Road - I love this song and thought he did a killer vocal but maybe it was because I remember him doing it live and not the album version, will listen again in near future.
From A Lover To A Friend - this ballad did nothing for me and thought it was mistake to make this a single.
Driving Rain - Another song I loved on the album and it sounded great live. I find it amusing that all these people could not stand the 1,2,3,4,5 lyric but did not seem to mind the Beatle lyric (1,2,3,4,5,6,7, all good children go to heaven)
Magic - Another highlight and like you and the guys love the lyrics.
Your Way - nice little song with some good guitar picking and harmonies.
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B J Conlee wrote:
(Continued)
10. About You (8.5) - The 2nd song that I seem to like better than Chris and Ryan. To me, this is a good modern rock song. I like the lyrics too. This is another song that is criminal that Paul never performed live. While I like the album version, it just seems to be missing something that a live performance would probably would have brought out. Abe and Rusty from Paul's current Band played on the album and so this song would have been easy for them to have played.
11. Heather (9) - like Ryan, I like this song a lot. Ryan described it best as a "summer light pop song". I felt similar to the song on Press to Play (Good Times Coming/Feel the Sun). They make you feel good. I also like the fact that it is primarily an instrumental but has a nice lyric section at the end. Chris mentioned his like for the lyric "runsible tune"which I always liked.
12, Back in the Sunshine Again (8.5) - this is the 3rd song on DR that I definitely like better than the guys. I think it was Chris that described it as a basic rock song. I don't see it like that at all. I see it as a cross between the R&B and jazz genres. Unlike many of the songs on DR, I like Paul's vocal here especially when he hits the high registers. Sort of reminds me of Al Green. I also like the song's nice piano groove (think it is Gabe Dixon) and the upbeat lyrics.
13. Your Loving Flame (9) - Like Chris said, Paul delivers a fantastic vocal on the album. He also did a great job on the live version I heard on the tour. Rhyming "love" with "What it is you're thinking of"while containing obvious poor grammar doesn't really bother me when it comes to a good song. The melody and his vocal phrasing overwhelm a bad grammar lyric. Along with Lonely Road, Magic, Heather, and Your Way, a definite "highlight" on DR in my opinion and yet another classic Paul piano ballad.
14. Riding into Jaipur (5) - Like the guys, I'm indifferent to this song. I'm not a big fan of Indian music in general and this song reminds me of that genre.
15. Rinse the Raindrops (3) - I'm even a less a fan of long album jams and songs that are non songs. This one is even worse than "Really Love You" that kept Flaming Pie from "masterpiece" level in my opinion.
16. Freedom - The rating of this song as a DR track is pointless to me. It was not written for DR and has no relationship to the rest of the album. The song did work as a "live" track on tour particularly with the horrible events of 9/11.
About You - I have said for years this song justs rocks and it was criminal he did not play it live.
Heather - I like it but sounds like it is a warmup/unfinished type of song that is played in a soundcheck to me.
Your Loving Flame - Nice ballad and much better than "From A Lover To A Friend".
Riding Into Jaipur - Not a fan of Indian music either so this song was usually skipped when listening to the album
Rinse The Raindrops - This was not the album for this type of experimental song, maybe put it on a "Fireman" album. Plus, this song was 10 minutes and might have been slightly tolerable if it was 3-4 minutes at most. I agree with you, no way a producer like Nigel Godrich allows this song on the album.
Freedom - Horrible decision to include this on the album, made it look like he was trying to cash in on a song written about 9/11 tragedy.
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This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
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Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
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Yankeefan2 wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
(Continued)
10. About You (8.5) - The 2nd song that I seem to like better than Chris and Ryan. To me, this is a good modern rock song. I like the lyrics too. This is another song that is criminal that Paul never performed live. While I like the album version, it just seems to be missing something that a live performance would probably would have brought out. Abe and Rusty from Paul's current Band played on the album and so this song would have been easy for them to have played.
11. Heather (9) - like Ryan, I like this song a lot. Ryan described it best as a "summer light pop song". I felt similar to the song on Press to Play (Good Times Coming/Feel the Sun). They make you feel good. I also like the fact that it is primarily an instrumental but has a nice lyric section at the end. Chris mentioned his like for the lyric "runsible tune"which I always liked.
12, Back in the Sunshine Again (8.5) - this is the 3rd song on DR that I definitely like better than the guys. I think it was Chris that described it as a basic rock song. I don't see it like that at all. I see it as a cross between the R&B and jazz genres. Unlike many of the songs on DR, I like Paul's vocal here especially when he hits the high registers. Sort of reminds me of Al Green. I also like the song's nice piano groove (think it is Gabe Dixon) and the upbeat lyrics.
13. Your Loving Flame (9) - Like Chris said, Paul delivers a fantastic vocal on the album. He also did a great job on the live version I heard on the tour. Rhyming "love" with "What it is you're thinking of"while containing obvious poor grammar doesn't really bother me when it comes to a good song. The melody and his vocal phrasing overwhelm a bad grammar lyric. Along with Lonely Road, Magic, Heather, and Your Way, a definite "highlight" on DR in my opinion and yet another classic Paul piano ballad.
14. Riding into Jaipur (5) - Like the guys, I'm indifferent to this song. I'm not a big fan of Indian music in general and this song reminds me of that genre.
15. Rinse the Raindrops (3) - I'm even a less a fan of long album jams and songs that are non songs. This one is even worse than "Really Love You" that kept Flaming Pie from "masterpiece" level in my opinion.
16. Freedom - The rating of this song as a DR track is pointless to me. It was not written for DR and has no relationship to the rest of the album. The song did work as a "live" track on tour particularly with the horrible events of 9/11.
About You - I have said for years this song justs rocks and it was criminal he did not play it live.
Heather - I like it but sounds like it is a warmup/unfinished type of song that is played in a soundcheck to me.
Your Loving Flame - Nice ballad and much better than "From A Lover To A Friend".
Riding Into Jaipur - Not a fan of Indian music either so this song was usually skipped when listening to the album
Rinse The Raindrops - This was not the album for this type of experimental song, maybe put it on a "Fireman" album. Plus, this song was 10 minutes and might have been slightly tolerable if it was 3-4 minutes at most. I agree with you, no way a producer like Nigel Godrich allows this song on the album.
Freedom - Horrible decision to include this on the album, made it look like he was trying to cash in on a song written about 9/11 tragedy.
Same old story Yankeefan. So many Solo songs that we only wished Paul would have done in 2002, 2005 and 2010 when his voice was still top notch. Like you said, add "About You" to that list. Addiitionally, I would have loved to see Paul do "Magic" and "Your Way" to that list. They would have been so easy to do especially considering Abe and Rusty were on the original recordings.
Couldn't agree with you more on "From a Lover to a Friend". Your Loving Flame should have been the "single" upon the album's release. I agree that it was a much better song. I didn't quite remember all the background on the status of Paul's voice a week before the sessions were to begin. This podcast reminded me and gave me more information. The vocal on "From a Lover to a Friend" was really bad. Chris said it was the worse on the entire CD. And his CD vocal on "Your Loving Flame" (done like 4 months later where is vocals were norman) was great. Just another crazy decision that Paul has made during his great career and why didn't he wait a few months to start recording DR considering the status of his voice.
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Just a quick note presently, more later: I lost my Driving Rain cd, but I recall finding Rinse the Raindrops delightful and refreshing like a sudden rush of cool rain on a hot day...will re-listen in a while on youtube or somewhere to see if I still react so favorably....I recall finding "Heather" one of a very few, rare mediocre "just so so" Macca tunes, and remember just loving "World Tonight," and liking "Riding To Jaipur" as it made me think of the Fabs' sojourn at their Guru's ashram and finding sitar music wonderfully exotic and full of "zing" upon first hearings; and feeling "Your Loving Flame" sounds poignant, touching and heartfelt, sincere. Recall not liking the Axis song much. Loved "From a Lover to a Friend," liked "Lonely Road" for the punchy enthusiasm of the vocals but not the numerical intro which came off a bit jarring or obnoxious or kind of grating or something to my ears, wished there were no spoken numbers and only words...numbers sound just cold and mathematical (of course mathematical, LOL) compared to words, love of words. I initially thought "Freedom" sounds a bit too "sit around the campfire, roast marshmallows, have a wholesome sing-a-long Boy Scout outing" and rather simplistic, but I like it more, now. And its message and video (featuring monks and nuns! And what looks like an outdoor nocturnal campfire warm, friendly love fest).
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SusyLuvsPaul wrote:
Just a quick note presently, more later: I lost my Driving Rain cd, but I recall finding Rinse the Raindrops delightful and refreshing like a sudden rush of cool rain on a hot day...will re-listen in a while on youtube or somewhere to see if I still react so favorably....I recall finding "Heather" one of a very few, rare mediocre "just so so" Macca tunes, and remember just loving "World Tonight," and liking "Riding To Jaipur" as it made me think of the Fabs' sojourn at their Guru's ashram and finding sitar music wonderfully exotic and full of "zing" upon first hearings; and feeling "Your Loving Flame" sounds poignant, touching and heartfelt, sincere. Recall not liking the Axis song much. Loved "From a Lover to a Friend," liked "Lonely Road" for the punchy enthusiasm of the vocals but not the numerical intro which came off a bit jarring or obnoxious or kind of grating or something to my ears, wished there were no spoken numbers and only words...numbers sound just cold and mathematical (of course mathematical, LOL) compared to words, love of words.
Susy,
You are a "real" poet. Always like your posts.
I really like "Magic" can "Your Way" on DR. And my underrateds are: Back in the Sunshine Again, She's Given Up Talking, About You, and Tiny Bubble.
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B J Conlee wrote:
SusyLuvsPaul wrote:
Just a quick note presently, more later: I lost my Driving Rain cd, but I recall finding Rinse the Raindrops delightful and refreshing like a sudden rush of cool rain on a hot day...will re-listen in a while on youtube or somewhere to see if I still react so favorably....I recall finding "Heather" one of a very few, rare mediocre "just so so" Macca tunes, and remember just loving "World Tonight," and liking "Riding To Jaipur" as it made me think of the Fabs' sojourn at their Guru's ashram, and the fun song "Dear Prudence," and my discovery of sitar music as wonderfully exotic and full of "zing" upon first hearings; and feeling "Your Loving Flame" sounds poignant, touching and heartfelt, sincere. Recall not liking the Axis song much. Loved "From a Lover to a Friend," liked "Lonely Road" for the punchy enthusiasm of the vocals but not the numerical intro which came off a bit jarring or obnoxious or kind of grating or something to my ears, wished there were no spoken numbers and only words...numbers sound just cold and mathematical (of course mathematical, LOL) compared to words, love of words.
Susy,
You are a "real" poet. Always like your posts.
I really like "Magic" can "Your Way" on DR. And my underrateds are: Back in the Sunshine Again, She's Given Up Talking, About You, and Tiny Bubble.
Wowza, a "real poet," don't think so, lack true depth a lot of times and there are not enough metaphors or imagery in my English Lit. major appraisel--but I'll take it ! Thanks a gazillion ! I recall hating the sound of "She's Given Up Talking," unfortunately, found it jarring and obnoxious, while its lyrics struck painfully too close to home, since I often resorted to giving the silent treatment myself when hurt as a child and teen. It's striking he chose that particular subject, and denotes praise-worthy compassion and empathy in the man. (Another of Paul's "socialogy" songs, like "Only Mother Knows.") I just wish the melody and over all sound were more pleasing--though on second thought, maybe that dissonance was appropriate to the suffering in those lyrics... I recall liking Back in the Sunshine, it was typical optimistic Macca, and I think I liked Tiny Bubble; I don't remember "Magic" but have a feeling I really liked it. I don't remember "Your Way" and "About You." I draw a blank on "I Do." (Loads of songs on that album, weren't there ! Super!) Will listen to those again, too. I wish I hadn't left that cd at the beach by mistake. Again, I'm digging your reviews and reflections, B.J., and can't wait to hear those podcasts! Hubba Hubba !
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B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
Yes, see in my signature area below, I saw him in 2002 and he sounded fantastic! He did 4 songs: Lonely Road, Driving Rain, Your Loving Flame and Freedom. I never thought his vocals were bad on that album. I just wasn’t crazy about the songs!
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Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
Yes, see in my signature area below, I saw him in 2002 and he sounded fantastic! He did 4 songs: Lonely Road, Driving Rain, Your Loving Flame and Freedom. I never thought his vocals were bad on that album. I just wasn’t crazy about the songs!
Nancy,
You should revisit the album. A really good sequence on DR is Magic and Your Way (back to back). I think you would love both songs now. Of course you know the lyrics on Magic is when Paul and Linda met for the first time. Why didn't Paul ever do Magic live as a tribute to Linda. I know he has always done "Maybe I'm Amazed" but who says you always have to play the same songs. And Your Way would be an easy one for the Band and Paul to play.
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Because I saw this thread...
I clicked on the link.
I picked London Town as a first listen. I liked it. What I really enjoy (always have) are outtakes, unreleased or not heard often songs and demo songs.
While I seem to like just about everything that Paul has ever written and recorded... I sometimes wonder why he put something on an album or better yet, how could he have left that really good song off the album?
When Paul guessed that something doesn't work or fit or will not appeal to his audience ... (he sometimes needs an opinion or voice of someone saying it is good, people will like it a lot... use it).
Thanks for posting the link.
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B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
Yes, see in my signature area below, I saw him in 2002 and he sounded fantastic! He did 4 songs: Lonely Road, Driving Rain, Your Loving Flame and Freedom. I never thought his vocals were bad on that album. I just wasn’t crazy about the songs!
Nancy,
You should revisit the album. A really good sequence on DR is Magic and Your Way (back to back). I think you would love both songs now. Of course you know the lyrics on Magic is when Paul and Linda met for the first time. Why didn't Paul ever do Magic live as a tribute to Linda. I know he has always done "Maybe I'm Amazed" but who says you always have to play the same songs. And Your Way would be an easy one for the Band and Paul to play.
I wonder what HM thought about him writing that song? They were together at that time. I will have to revisit this album (just for you!)
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Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
Yes, see in my signature area below, I saw him in 2002 and he sounded fantastic! He did 4 songs: Lonely Road, Driving Rain, Your Loving Flame and Freedom. I never thought his vocals were bad on that album. I just wasn’t crazy about the songs!
Nancy,
You should revisit the album. A really good sequence on DR is Magic and Your Way (back to back). I think you would love both songs now. Of course you know the lyrics on Magic is when Paul and Linda met for the first time. Why didn't Paul ever do Magic live as a tribute to Linda. I know he has always done "Maybe I'm Amazed" but who says you always have to play the same songs. And Your Way would be an easy one for the Band and Paul to play.
I wonder what HM thought about him writing that song? They were together at that time. I will have to revisit this album (just for you!)
Well if she had a problem with it then it would truly say a lot about her. I have a feeling Nancy probably loves the song.
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Yankeefan2 wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
B J Conlee wrote:
Nancy R wrote:
This will probably seem crazy to you guys, but I don’t think I’ve listened to Driving Rain since it came out and the only song I really know the words and melody to is Freedom!
Nancy...if you still have the CD it might be a good warmup since Egypt Station is still close to a month away. Knowing you, I'm sure you were at the Driving Rain tour back in 2002 (probably in Atlanta). Do you remember the 3 DR songs he did on that tour...Lonely Road, You're Loving Flame and the title track. As I said, vocally he did a great job on them and better than the studio versions. The audience in Philadelphia was very strong.
I would also think you will end up skipping the last 2 tracks (not including Freedom...the hidden track). didn't like those 2 tracks at all.
You can tell by my track by track analysis...which are my favorites. Since you know Paul's current voice more than practically anyone, you may not find his vocals so bad on the original CD. Considering it was 2001, his vocals on many of tracks however should have been much better and stronger.
Yes, see in my signature area below, I saw him in 2002 and he sounded fantastic! He did 4 songs: Lonely Road, Driving Rain, Your Loving Flame and Freedom. I never thought his vocals were bad on that album. I just wasn’t crazy about the songs!
Nancy,
You should revisit the album. A really good sequence on DR is Magic and Your Way (back to back). I think you would love both songs now. Of course you know the lyrics on Magic is when Paul and Linda met for the first time. Why didn't Paul ever do Magic live as a tribute to Linda. I know he has always done "Maybe I'm Amazed" but who says you always have to play the same songs. And Your Way would be an easy one for the Band and Paul to play.
I wonder what HM thought about him writing that song? They were together at that time. I will have to revisit this album (just for you!)
Well if she had a problem with it then it would truly say a lot about her. I have a feeling Nancy probably loves the song.
Hate to say it, but I bet Nancy has never heard the song.
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