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Post by Kapitan on Apr 11, 2022 20:53:40 GMT
I gave Egypt Station its first listen since we did the latter-day Macca review a year+ back. It's up and down, for sure, but I do think it's better than several of his other late albums. At 16 songs and almost an hour, though, it's definitely too long. (OK, there are two little intro/interlude things, but on the other hand, the last two proper songs are basically suites that last more than 13 minutes.)
No rating yet, I'll give it another listen and comment more--I suppose tomorrow, since we move along on Wednesday. But I'm guessing we're in solid 6 territory. There are a few things I think are quite nice, and you do have to credit Paul for being ambitious here.
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Post by kds on Apr 12, 2022 13:14:24 GMT
I agree that it's better than Paul's previous couple albums, but I still find Egypt Station to be pretty middling.
I've said before that Paul could really use a collaborator, or a producer, involved in the creative process. Maybe somebody to reel Paul in a little bit. That's very apparent to me on the back end of this album, which is a very incoherent (to me anyway) mix of ideas.
Plus, like Kap said, the album's too long. And, it's not good enough to be too long.
I'm giving this a five.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 12, 2022 16:36:09 GMT
I'm going with a just-barely-7, which is odd because I don't love anything on this album.
But I like several songs, and as I started ticking them off, I realized it's quite a few songs to enjoy for a 5 or 6. "Come On to Me," "I Don't Know," "Happy With You," "Who Cares," "Confidante," "Hand in Hand," "Do It Now," and "Despite Repeated Warnings" and "Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link." Well, that's an album that clocks in at just about 40 minutes and honestly might push for an 8, not because of anything spectacular but a lot of really solid stuff. That would easily be my favorite since Flaming Pie, and honestly one of his better albums in years before that, too. Not bad for a guy well into his 70s.
Several of the songs I left out, I actually enjoy somewhat, or find something to like.
What I hate is "Fuh You." It has the style of modern, mainstream, major-label pop-rock music, the kind of production that punches you over the head with every beat, where every instrument is trying to be louder than the other. Where there are annoying nonsense sounds in the background. Where it's always an anthem. I swear, this is a commercial for blue jeans or SUVs or insurance or something. I'll stick to the Greg Kurstin and pass on the Ryan Tedder (though the Kurstin produced stuff has its share of things I'm not big on, as well).
My favorites are either the relatively straightforward things ("Come On to Me," "Who Cares") and, surprisingly, the suites. I also do really think "Do It Now" is beautiful.
Yeah ... 7. Barely.
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Post by kds on Apr 12, 2022 16:40:09 GMT
I'm going with a just-barely-7, which is odd because I don't love anything on this album.
But I like several songs, and as I started ticking them off, I realized it's quite a few songs to enjoy for a 5 or 6. "Come On to Me," "I Don't Know," "Happy With You," "Who Cares," "Confidante," "Hand in Hand," "Do It Now," and "Despite Repeated Warnings" and "Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link." Well, that's an album that clocks in at just about 40 minutes and honestly might push for an 8, not because of anything spectacular but a lot of really solid stuff. That would easily be my favorite since Flaming Pie, and honestly one of his better albums in years before that, too. Not bad for a guy well into his 70s.
Several of the songs I left out, I actually enjoy somewhat, or find something to like.
What I hate is "Fuh You." It has the style of modern, mainstream, major-label pop-rock music, the kind of production that punches you over the head with every beat, where every instrument is trying to be louder than the other. Where there are annoying nonsense sounds in the background. Where it's always an anthem. I swear, this is a commercial for blue jeans or SUVs or insurance or something. I'll stick to the Greg Kurstin and pass on the Ryan Tedder (though the Kurstin produced stuff has its share of things I'm not big on, as well).
My favorites are either the relatively straightforward things ("Come On to Me," "Who Cares") and, surprisingly, the suites. I also do really think "Do It Now" is beautiful.
Yeah ... 7. Barely.
I hate Fuh You for the same reasons. For the most part, this album doesn't see Paul chasing those Top 40 ghosts like he did on New, but Fuh You is the exception.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 12, 2022 16:50:53 GMT
I was going to say, I wonder if Paul had a demo of "Fuh You" and what that sounded like. However, it was cowritten by Tedder. That doesn't mean Paul didn't originate and demo it, but I am guessing it was a written-in-the-studio kind of thing. Anyway, my point was, I could see Paul making it a perfectly enjoyable song, even though it's kind of stupid.
As it is, the word that comes to my mind is "boxy." Square. (I suppose the jangly piano-on-every-beat doesn't help.) It just seems formulaic in a lot of ways. Generic. The melody isn't awful, but it feels very, well, boxy. I don't think that makes sense outside my own head, though--sorry about that!
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Post by kds on Apr 12, 2022 17:00:32 GMT
Speaking of Paul's attempts to remain relevant in the 2010s, I don't think the single Four Five Seconds has been brought up. Released in 2015, it's Paul's most streamed song on Spotify with over 870M streams. Of course, it's not quite what one would expect from Paul McCartney, given that Rihanna and Kanye West handle the vocals. The song is credited to Paul, Rihanna, West, and about four or five other people. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FourFiveSeconds
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 12, 2022 17:40:39 GMT
I actually liked "FourFiveSeconds." I'm not at all a Kanye fan--one of my least favorite annointed pop geniuses ever, even before it was obvious he was also mentally unwell--and my appreciation for Rihanna is minimal-to-moderate at best. But that song really did connect with me.
That said, I'd be curious as to the composition process.
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Post by kds on Apr 12, 2022 17:49:05 GMT
I found Four Five Seconds to be OK at best. I actually disliked it a lot more back in 2015. Probably due to my initial reaction of "why the fuck is Paul McCartney lowering himself to playing some acoustic guitar for Rihanna and Kanye West?" Now, I'd say my reaction is more indifferent. Maybe it's because pop has gotten much worse IMO since the release of this song (I once declared Rihanna's own "Work" as a low point in popular music).
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Post by B.E. on Apr 13, 2022 0:15:53 GMT
Count me as another in the "just-barely-7" camp. My favorite songs (in order) are "Who Cares", "Caesar Rock", "Come On To Me", "Dominoes", "Happy With You", "Hand In Hand", and "Do It Now". And most of the rest is fine, but I agree the album is too long. The only track that I could really do without, though, is "Back In Brazil". As always, there's some real fine bass playing from Paul. Being as he's my favorite bass player of all-time, that goes a long way for me.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 13, 2022 11:29:05 GMT
Five voters rated Paul McCartney's Egypt Station an average of 6.6.
I'll update the first post and we will move on shortly. Thanks for participating. Just two albums to go!
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 13, 2022 11:45:07 GMT
Ringo Starr, What's My Name (2019)
It's fitting that we appear to be concluding our review of Ringo Starr's catalogue with what he has indicated likely will be his final LP: in 2021, Starr told Esquire "I feel like I've finished making whole albums ... maybe now I'll be the EP man."
Should that turn out to be the case, What's My Name, released in October 2019, will turn out to be his final LP. Its story is familiar. Starr, who produced the album, also co-wrote most of the tracks with both his regular collaborators and famous friends. Those friends also contributed musically, meaning Starr again secured performances by Dave Stewart, Joe Walsh, Benmont Tench, Steve Lukather. Edgar Winter, and yes, Paul McCartney.
The latter contributes bass and backing vocals to Starr's cover of John Lennon's "Grow Old With Me." The arrangement also incorporates part of George Harrison's "Here Comes the Sun," giving some contribution from each Beatle to the song.
The album also featured Starr's move from professional recording studios to his home studio, which he has continued to use on subsequent recordings, saying he'd "had enough of the big glass wall and the separation."
What's My Name just cracked the Top 100 in the UK, reaching #99. In the US it peaked at #127.
Please listen to, discuss, and rate Ringo Starr's (final?) album, What's My Name. It will be up through Saturday, April 16.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 13, 2022 13:37:31 GMT
Just began this. Joe Walsh raps in the opener. Oh my.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 13, 2022 13:54:56 GMT
And "Money"!? There has never been a more egregious use of autotune. I mean, obviously it's not meant to be a secret. It is RoboRingo.
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Post by Kapitan on Apr 13, 2022 14:21:46 GMT
I'd like to thank Ringo for keeping this album to 10 songs and 34 minutes. I'm not sure I could have endured a whole lot more. I'm also not sure I'll bother listening again to get a precise rating: it's just not very good, even by Ringo standards. Not the worst, thankfully! But not as good as some of his recent albums, much less his best ones. He really did adopt autotune vocals, didn't he? And he went all-in...
There are a few nice enough tunes, but it's mostly mediocre or worse.
4, probably?
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Post by kds on Apr 14, 2022 13:46:36 GMT
Between the autotune on the cover of the song that The Beatles covered, and the many self references on previous albums, one has to wonder if Mike and Ringo are buddies. I really had no idea there were so many parallels.
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