PAUL McCARTNEY
& WINGS
VENUS AND MARS
WINGS AT THE SPEED OF SOUND
(Deluxe Remasters)
Much has been written and said about Paul
McCartney over the last 50
years or so. In regards to his career, I have nothing to add - you all know
about The Beatles, his
solo success, and all of that what-not so I will skip straight to reviewing
these two reissues!
VENUS AND MARS (1975)
2CD Edition
Deluxe 2CD/DVD Book Edition
Coming on the heels of the success of Band On The Run, which
essentially ignited the Wings franchise after two great but
overlooked albums, Venus
And Mars had a lot to
live up to. Upon release, if you were looking for some sort of 'sequel' to - or
extension of - BOTR, then you were bound to be disappointed.
If you approached Venus And
Mars as an entirely
separate, stand-alone project then there was much to love about it. These rules
apply to listening to the album today - why compare it to BOTR? Why compare
it to Abbey Road?
Why compare it to anything Macca released before (or since)? Venus
And Mars is a wondrous
affair that has more peaks than valleys and stands on its own two feet. It
doesn't hurt that the album has a real sense of 'fun' in its grooves.
Perhaps Paul and the band were feeling rejuvanated after the success of BOTR?
The opening 'medley' of "Venus And
Mars" and "Rock Show" still stands as one of the best
two-pronged album openers ever. OK, so some of the lyrics of "Rock
Show" may be a bit trite, it still packs a solid punch. "Love
In Song" is one of the most overlooked gems in Macca's canon and serves as
an emotional interlude between the the goofy fun of "Rock Show" and
the rollercoaster ride that was about to follow. "You Gave Me The
Answer" proved that Paul was still enchanted and influenced to the music
that permeated his household during his days as a wee lad - very much along the
lines of songs like "When I'm 64" and "Honey Pie" from his
Beatles days. "Magneto & Titanium Man" is melodic, silly fun. “Letting
Go” is a nice mid-tempo rocker that is not quite “Let Me Roll It” (from BOTR)
but feels like it is cut from the same cloth.
Denny Laine’s “Spirits Of Ancient Egypt” always sounded tinny to these
ears but sounds a bit more beefy and robust here. Jimmy McCulloch handles lead
vocals on “Medicine Jar,” a fairly enjoyable rocker, but one of the weak points
of the album. ‘Call Me Back Again” features a great vocal from Macca and a great
long fade-out that always demands a relisten.
The gem of the album is “Listen To What The Man Said,” one of Paul’s
biggest solo hits and certainly one of his best. Every note of the song is perfect, including
the lovely ending with Tom Scott blowing away on sax before it segues into the
lovely “Treat Her Gently/Lonely Old People” (another overlooked Macca
gem). The album closes with “Crossroads
Theme” and Venus And Mars comes to an end. As mentioned before, the sound
of this remaster is more robust and the warm feeling of the album really
shines.
BONUS CD:
Both sides of the “Junior’s Farm” single
start off the disc – “Sally G” has long been a favorite of mine – and there’s
plenty more fun to be had here. This disc includes the single edit of “Letting
Go,” both sides of the “Walking In The Park With Eloise” single (instrumentals
originally released under the name The
Country Hams featuring Chet Atkins
and Floyd Cramer), plus some rare and
unreleased gems like “My Carnival”, “Hey Diddle”, “Let’s Love”, “Soily” and “Baby
Face” (from One Hand Clapping), an early version of “Rock Show” and more. Many
of these tracks have probably ended up on bootlegs over the years but I stopped
collecting those some 20 years ago. As far as quality and quantity, this is a splendid
collection of oddities.
BONUS DVD:
Containing vintage footage of recording “My
Carnival” (which remained unreleased for many years), partying in New Orleans
(including footage of a boat party with live music provided by The Meters) and
Wings rehearsing at Elstree Studios, the bonus DVD evokes the excitement behind
this period in the band’s career. Such a
joy to see this ‘behind the scenes’ footage packaged alongside the album. Much of it has probably made the rounds on
bootlegs and on YouTube, but you can watch and enjoy in its original context.
WINGS AT THE SPEED OF
SOUND (1976)
2CD Edition
Deluxe 2CD/DVD Book Edition
After the success of their previous two releases,
Macca was intent on proving that Wings was a band and not just a bunch of guys
(and gal) that backed him up. WATSOS
was an album that was meant to showcase all the band members and make good on
Paul’s assertion that it was a team effort – not quite the Beatles but an
incredible simulation, maybe? Well, on
that respect, one thing that WATSOS proves is that Wings was a
talented lot, but McCartney was their bread and butter. Two of the band’s most well-known songs are
here – “Silly Love Songs” and “Let ‘Em In” – as well as more McCartney
treasures that demand to be heard by more folks. “Beware My Love” is a strange little rocker
that may not have made a great single, but it stands as one of his best tracks
of the ‘70s (what is it about the majesty of his sometimes goofy ad-libbed
screams and yelps that draw me in?). “She’s
My Baby” is a playful and funky little number that is always a pleasant treat
to listen to. “Warm and Beautiful” is a
lovely and sincere piano ballad that is sorely overlooked (but that could be
said about a lot of his album tracks to be honest). “San Ferry Anne” has a
similar feel to the lighter moments on BOTR (“No Words” comes to mind)
though it is not entirely up to that caliber. However, that is it with Paul’s
tracks on the album – the remaining five are handed over to the other band
members.
“The Note You Never Wrote” (lead vocal by Denny Laine) is lovely and dramatic, but sorely misplaced as the
album’s second track (would have fit better as a Side One closer). “Wino Junko”
is a great Jimmy McCulloch track (with a fabulous guitar solo) that, combined
with the previous album’s “Medicine Jar” clearly shows he was on the wrong side
of drug use (he died of a heroin overdose in ’79). “Cook Of The House,” sung by
the lovely Linda McCartney, is better suited for a Ringo album and is usually
the first song Macca haters bring up when they try to make an argument against
him. Let’s be honest – it’s quite fun
and not as bad as Macca detractors lead you to believe! Denny’s “Time To Hide” is a
great FM rocker that sounds nothing like a McCartney song. However, that is also the charm of the track. Drummer Joe English sings the
McCartney-penned “Must Do Something About It,” which is a nice pop song that
doesn’t stand out, though it does add a nice feel to the album. The sound of the remastering is clear warm,
making this the best version yet of the album. Where Venus And Mars sounded like it was geared for a big stadium, WATSOS is much more intimate and comfy. While it may not have been a critical success, WATSOS was a huge
commercial one and remains one of their most well-known LPs.
BONUS CD:
Not as plentiful as the Venus And Mars bonus
disc, there is still enough here to excite McCartney fans (again, not sure if
these recordings have made the rounds on bootlegs). Paul’s original demos of “Silly
Love Songs,” “Let ‘Em In,” and “She’s My Baby” are revealing peeks into the
genesis of these songs. It’s nice to hear Paul singing “Must Do Something About
It” on the version here. With Paul handling vocals on this recording, it ends
up sounding like an early ‘70s Wings track.
The short “Message To Joe” soundbye is a bit useless to be honest. The
instrumental demo of “Warm And Beautiful” is nice since it showcases the song’s
true beginnings. The much-talked-about
version of “Beware My Love” featuring Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham is nice to
hear, but is nothing more than an early and unfinished run-through/rehearsal of
a song that really stands out on the album. However, all of these tracks are must-haves
for the Macca fan though not necessarily for the casual listener.
BONUS DVD:
The accompanying DVD features the original 1976
video for “Silly Love Songs” as well as “Wings Over Wembley”, a short
behind-the-scenes look at the final three dates of the WATSOS tour, and a
similar short look at the band’s gig in Venice. I have always found footage
like this very interesting because they reveal a true look at a band at the
peak of their success and behaving just like…er.. us normal folks.
And now, I sit and wait for similar packages for Red
Rose Speedway and my two favorite Wings albums, London Town and Back
to The Egg….
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment