And…speaking of singer/songwriters…

Paul McCartney
McCartney
Concord Records/DVD
www.concordmusicgroup.com

Paul McCartney
McCartney II
Concord Records/DVD
www.concordmusicgroup.com
By George W. Harris

Last year, Concord Records release Paul McCartney’s most popular band
album, Band On The Run, on a myriad of formats. Keeping with a winning
combination, they’re reissuing Sir Paul’s two solo discs, (where he
and his wife Linda play all instruments) both with a bonus cd of
concert and out-takes, and a dvd of concert/promo footage.

The 1970 McCartney was considered a bit weak when it first came out, as
it seemed to be just a tad more than Beatle leftovers. 40+ years of
hindsight changes a lot, as many of these songs have become part of
the Baby Boomer Songbook. At his deepest, McCartney wanted to be a
cabaret performer, and tunes like “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “Junk” reflect
this. Somehow, his fame with The Beatles took over, and Fab Four-ish
tunes like “Every Night” and “Ooh You” as well as some of the
instrumentals get to his rock roots. The bonus audio includes a handful
of demos like “Don’t Cry Baby” and some concert material from a 1979
Glasgow concert, while the dvd shows how the album came together, as
well as some more concert footage and MTV episodes with Paul. A
splendid time is guaranteed for all.

The 1980 followup McCartney II could easily be subtitled, “What Paul
did with his brand new keyboards.” It seems the entire release is
dominated by electronic/synth experimentation which sounds extremely
dated. Some tunes, like the nonsensical “Temporary Secretary” will
leave you scratching your head, while even the catchy “Coming Up” is
marred by a stifling synth sound. This comes out even clearer on the
bonus disc which includes a crisp and tight ska-flavored take of the
tune form the 1979 Glasgow gig. A bunk of throwaway experiments show
up, with the nadir being the #9-ish “Secret Friend.” Does this one say
“Paul Is Dead” if played backwards as well?

The dvd has a cute “Meet Paul McCartney’ as well as some rehearsal and
concert footage, which is nice for the ultimate fans of Sir Paul. For
most of us, the debut is the only one needed for those of us budget
minded fans.