Continued from page 16 created a highly professional album that will keep you head banging from start to finish .
– Kelley Simms
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PAUL MCCARTNEY & WINGS One Hand Clapping
( MPL / Capitol / UMe )
This long-bootlegged set gets the refresh and release it has long deserved . The 2xLP vinyl set contains 26 Wings tracks circa the band ’ s 1974 heyday between Band on the Run and Venus and Mars . The material was recorded live over four days at Abbey Road Studios in London , and Paul McCartney ’ s comfort level with the environment is evident in the sounds of spontaneity and high spirits . One Hand Clapping was captured as Band on the Run was enjoying its seventh consecutive week at the top of the charts . The sessions were intended for use as a live album and documentary that went unreleased until the film was included in 2010 ’ s Paul McCartney Archive Collection reissue box celebrating Band on the Run . Five songs appear from Band on the Run including a rowdy “ Jet ,” the John Lennon-esque riffrocker “ Let Me Roll It ,” a sublime “ Bluebird ” ( with Howie Casey ’ s saxophone ), the bombastic piano-fueled pop of “ Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five ,” and a bristling version of the expansive title track . The set features “ Junior ’ s Farm ,” a fresh song at the time . Although replete with inconsequential lyrics , the euphoric rocker would soon see its studio-recorded counterpart released as a popular nonalbum single . The energized “ Soily ” is another highlight borrowed from Wings ’ concert set lists . The song ’ s meaning may be as inscrutable as “ Junior ’ s Farm ,” but the version boasts a feral McCartney vocal that intertwines with Denny Laine ’ s melodic guitar licks . “ Maybe I ’ m Amazed ” leads with McCartney ’ s electric piano and is augmented by understated orchestral strings . Paul McCartney ’ s vibrant and youthful vocal performance is framed dramatically by spacious reverb . The orchestration returns for an emotive take on sentimental Red Rose Speedway standout “ My Love .” A
caffeinated performance of the 1973 James Bond theme song “ Live and Let Die ” makes maximum use of Del Newman ’ s orchestral arrangements . The band takes a loopy Dixieland-styled romp with the Tuxedo Brass Band through Tin Pan Alley favorite “ Baby Face ,” reminiscent of Ray Davies ’ diversions into Americana and British music hall styles with the Kinks circa Arthur and Muswell Hillbillies . McCartney plays and sings the cabaret-styled “ All of You ” and eventual TugofWarsong “ I ’ ll Give You a Ring ” as solo pieces at the piano . McCartney continues his solo piano sampler while revisiting a couple of latter-era Beatles favorites , including the ballad “ The Long and Winding Road ” and the rollicking , Fats Domino-styled “ Lady Madonna .” McCartney sings a verse and chorus of “ Let It Be ” while playing a pump organ . The full band digs into guitarist Laine ’ s history with the Moody Blues , playing “ Go Now .” Laine plays muscular riffs in tandem with new Wings guitarist Jimmy McCulloch during the loping “ Let Me Roll It .” “ You ’ re giving me funny looks , Geoff ,” says McCartney to engineer Geoff Emerick while kicking off a romp through Bill Monroe ’ s bluegrass raveup “ Blue Moon of Kentucky .” The song is driven by new Wings drummer Geoff Britton ’ s two-step beat and is spiced with Laine ’ s wailing harmonica and McCulloch ’ s chicken-picked guitar solo . The set includes a few brief trifles like “ Power Cut ,” featuring McCartney alone at the organ while offering long-distance dedications to listeners in Scottish radioland . “ Love My Baby ” is a brief blues performed on a twinkling celeste . The set finishes strong with a bristling version of “ Hi , Hi , Hi .” As an encore of sorts , the 2xLP set includes a bonus 7 ” EP of songs performed solo by McCartney with his acoustic guitar in Abbey Road ’ s backyard on the final day of recording . The six songs begin with the late-arriving official release of the bluesy “ Blackpool ,” which was once planned as the B-side to Pipes of Peace single “ The Man .” McCartney introduces his sparkling civil rights anthem “ Blackbird ” with a gentle joke , saying it ’ s a song called “ How I ’ d Fix Your Camera .” After a pair of false starts , McCartney remembers the words to the winsome “ Helen Wheels ” B-side “ Country Dreamer .” He digs into Eddie Cochran ’ s “ Twenty Flight Rock ,” the song that McCartney famously played at age 15 for John Lennon when auditioning for the Quarrymen . Macca then covers “ Peggy Sue ” and “ I ’ m
16 illinoisentertainer . com july 2024
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