My Northeastern classmate and 1970s Northeastern News stalwart Marc Myers has written a wonderful essay for The Wall Street Journal about Paul McCartney’s album “Band on the Run,” which came out 50 years ago in December. I always thought of it as the last Beatles album, and the second best of the band’s solo albums after George Harrison’s “All Things Must Pass.” This is a free link.
Leave a comment | Read comments
Discover more from Media Nation
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Bill Peregoy
This album changed my life as a 12 year old. I was a bit too young to have experienced the Beatles in any visceral way but Red Rose Speedway followed by this really cemented my love for music.
I was lucky enough to see Denny Laine perform this album front to back a few years ago. I know it wasn’t really Wings but it was still amazing.
Benjamin Lowengard
They were essentially a singles band? No. They were at first – as was everybody else – but when they quit touring – They became an Album Band. I have all sorts of collections (on eight track and Bootleg) and the ability to hear different mixes of songs and naked production is nice – but the albums are quite well ordered and mixed (if not missing some songs ) – especially after Revolver – My eight track of Abbey Road is “out of order”(her majesty is after Oh Darling) in order to not have a splice split up a song and it sounds weird. The White Album might be the worst album in sequencing. My favorite release is actually Past Masters Vol 2. which I think works very well sequence-wise and indeed is an a-side/B-side album. But the post revolver stuff is part of a Painting, each song an Eye, ear or a Mona Lisa Smile. Anyhow, I think Wings is pretty different than the Beatles, plenty of Wings songs wouldn’t have passed John’s approval and George would have walked out. I do like the stuff, but that walrus IS Paul.
Dan Kennedy
I thought Marc’s assertion that the Beatles never made a coherent album was a bold assertion, but an interesting one, surely affected by the different ideas that John and Paul were developing. Personally, I’d rather listen to “All Things Must Pass” or “Band on the Run” than any Beatles album, probably because they seem rather dated at this point.
Bill Peregoy
Dan, give another listen to “Revolver” and “Rubber Soul”. I’d definitely rank them above any Beatles solo record. I actually think “All Thing Must Pass” would be a much better album if it was a bit shorter.
Dan Kennedy
Bill, I don’t especially like “Rubber Soul.” “Revolver” has some of John’s best songs, and Ringo comes up huge on two of them — “She Said She Said” and “Tomorrow Never Knows.” Most Paul’s songs leave me cold, though. You may know I’ve always been more of a Stones guy.