Tracklist:
- The Lovely Linda
- That Would Be Something
- Valentine Day
- Every Night
- Hot as Sun/Glasses
- Junk
- Man We Was Lonely
- Oo You
- Momma Miss America
- Teddy Boy
- Singalong Junk
- Maybe I’m Amazed
- Kreen-Akrore
The Family Way soundtrack notwithstanding, this is the first solo offering from the newly-minted Ex-Beatle Paul McCartney. Coming out around three weeks before what would be his old band’s last album, the record release was accompanied by a self-interview essentially confirming the group’s breakup. You can well imagine, then, that appreciation for the McCartney solo album would be somewhat lacking amongst all the furore it caused.
You would indeed imagine correctly – McCartney was made a pariah by the music press of the time who blamed him for the breakup of his band (another topic for another time). The album was generally badly received and reviewed at the time of its release, with Rolling Stone calling it “distinctly second-rate”. One song, Maybe I’m Amazed, was pretty consistently singled out for praise, though.
Ever the consummate musician, Macca played all the instruments for the album – the only contribution by anyone else were some harmonies by Linda. Making it a truly homemade record is the fact that the artwork for the album is also Linda’s: the famous cherries on the front, and the equally famous photo of Paul and baby Mary on the back. If I had to sum up McCartney in one word, it would be pastoral. This album positively reeks of domestic bliss, hardly surprising given that much of the recording for the album was done at his home.
Like I am with this blog, this is McCartney going out on a limb and starting anew, so please forgive me while I find my feet. I think the best way going forward is to discuss a bit about each track along the way, then give a final verdict and a guide of which songs to listen to if you’re pushed for time. Let me know what you think of the format – and whether you agree or disagree with my assessment – in the comments!
So, let’s get straight in with The Lovely Linda. To be honest, there really isn’t much to this song – it’s only about half a minute long and there are less than 10 different words in it. It’s a charming song, though, and Paul himself is clearly fond considering he included it in his 2001 greatest hits package.
That Would Be Something, track 2 on the album, really is something. There is little lyrical substance to be found, but the delivery is fantastic and the vocal percussion is entirely unexpected (were it not for the fact that I’ve just told you about it). It received high praise from George Harrison (in stark contrast to the rest of album) and was even covered by the Grateful Dead in the 90s. A live version also appears on Macca’s unplugged album.
The first, and in my opinion the weakest, of the album’s instrumental pieces is Valentine Day. Unfortunately there really isn’t much to say here, but it does act as a decent transition to the next song.
Every Night was written by Macca on holiday in Greece, and deals with the problems he was having at the time vis-a-vis the band situation. While depicting his depression (‘every day I don’t wanna get up, get out of my bed’), the song also strikes a more optimistic note as regards his relationship with Linda. A definite high point on the album.
Hot as Sun/Glasses is another instrumental piece, but one that I think is much better than the first. The first section is really fantastic, and if you close your eyes it wouldn’t be out of place playing by the poolside in a Spanish hotel. This song also contains a ten-second snippet of Suicide, a classic music hall-esque Macca song that took on somewhat mythical status before the full (disappointing) version was released as part of the Archive Collection.
Junk is relatively old for this album – it was written in 1968 after the Beatles’ return from Rishikesh, and was put forward but summarily rejected for inclusion on the White Album. The lyrics describe various items one might expect to find in a junkyard (‘parachutes, army boots, sleeping bags for two’), and perhaps is some form of rumination on the downsides of materialism. Clearly the time studying Transcendental Meditation wasn’t completely wasted if it allowed for the creation of such a beautiful song.
The country-tinged Man We Was Lonely closes out side 1 of the original album. This is another window into Paul’s psyche at the time of the Beatles’ breakup. Originally, he was at a loss and ‘hard-pressed to find a smile’, but thanks to his relationship with Linda, ‘now [they’re] fine all the while’. He’s never performed this song live, but there is a rumour that a recorded version exists of Paul and Johnny Cash. I guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Onwards and upwards (?) to side 2!
Side 2 kicks off with the brilliantly bluesy Oo You. This was almost another instrumental before Paul added some lyrics at the last minute – perhaps he wisely decided an album that was half without lyrics was a bit much to ask the public to accept at the time. After a short introduction, you hear “more guitar”, so you’d be forgiven for thinking there was someone else playing electric guitar on this one, but nope – just Macca!
Momma Miss America is our next instrumental. Originally titled Rock ‘n’ Roll Springtime, the song is in two sections which “ran into each other by accident and became one”. Given that Paul’s wife Linda was American, perhaps she is the titular Momma missing America?
The second confirmed Beatles relic on this album is Teddy Boy. This one was also written in Rishikesh, but recorded by the Beatles in 1969 for inclusion on Let It Be. It eventually appeared on Anthology 3. John Lennon didn’t like the song, as evidenced by his interruptions when McCartney was trying to teach it to the band. I think, though, that it’s a perfectly good song and could easily have gone on the Beatles album in place of Maggie May and Dig It, two throwaway pieces.
Singalong Junk is a pretty inconsequential song, to be honest. It’s a rehashing of Junk but without the lyrics. The melody is played on piano given the absence of vocals. It’s still a nice song, but the vocals do add to its haunting quality.
The real (and more or less undisputed) crown jewel of this album, and indeed one of the crown jewels of Macca’s solo career, is Maybe I’m Amazed. The song starts off with just Paul on his piano, with more instrumentation coming in later in the song. Even with his gift for writing ballads and love songs, this is truly one of his finest: so much so that it earned a spot on Rolling Stone’s top 500 songs of all time as well as high praise from George Harrison.
Somewhat bewilderingly given the fantastic reception Maybe I’m Amazed received, it wasn’t given a single release at the time. As a matter of fact, no songs from McCartney were. Maybe he didn’t want the song to compete with any of the singles from the forthcoming Beatles album, but anyway a live single version was released from Wings Over America in 1977 and went to number 10 in the United States and number 28 in the UK. I myself had the pleasure of seeing this performed live in December 2018, and it still sounds utterly sublime.
The final song on the album, Kreen-Akrore, is functionally instrumental (there are some voice tracks and breathing towards the end). It’s really more of a soundscape than a song. The Kreen-Akrore themselves are a Brazilian tribe living in the Amazon, and were the subject of a TV documentary which was watched by Paul, inspiring him to create this piece. It features a bow and arrow, percussion on a guitar case, and Paul and Linda making animal noises. It’s a highly interesting piece of work, and was a clear hint that Paul was willing to continue experimenting with music beyond the Beatles.
I’ve got to say, I do think this album was unfairly received at the time of its release and retrospectively it holds up pretty well alongside Paul’s other solo albums (which I will hopefully cover in due course). Of course, it’s a bit of a patchwork album, with perhaps a couple too many throwaway tracks and instrumentals (Valentine Day, I’m looking at you). It is clear, though, that Macca didn’t need the other Beatles to continue making great music, just as they didn’t particularly need him. Overall I would give this album an 8/10.
Highlights: Maybe I’m Amazed, Every Night and Junk.
Pocahontas and Me 