Album Review: Paul McCartney and Wings Red Rose Speedway (1973)

Album cover for Red Rose Speedway by Paul McCartney and Wings, 1973.

Paul McCartney rocking the coolest sweater ever.

When the Beatles were tossing around ideas for the film and album that eventually became Let It Be, Paul McCartney put forth the suggestion that they should play some unannounced live gigs at small venues. None of the other Beatles were that enthusiastic about Paul’s suggestion, and eventually the recording sessions culminated with the famous “rooftop concert” on January 30, 1969. It was still a great ending to the sessions, but I can’t help but wonder what would have happened had the Beatles taken up Paul’s suggestion and hit the road for some gigs. It certainly would have provided the group with fantastic publicity—not that they were ever lacking for publicity. 

McCartney formed his band Wings in 1971, and the following year he did exactly what he had wanted the Beatles to do, packing the group up in a van and showing up unannounced at colleges and universities. Wings played 11 concerts in February of 1972, with nary a Beatles song to be heard. Although Paul did sing “Long Tall Sally,” which was a staple of the Beatles’ live repertoire, and was the last song they sang at Candlestick Park in 1966. Paul’s reluctance to play any Beatles songs shows that he wanted to establish his own identity outside of his former band. I suspect that if McCartney had played lots of Beatles songs in concert with Wings, it would have seemed to him to be a tacit admission that his best work was already behind him. 

Paul’s decision to not play any Beatles songs wasn’t unusual for solo performances by the former Beatles during the 1970’s. John Lennon only gave two full concerts during his lifetime, and the only Beatles song that he sang at those 1972 shows was “Come Together.” George Harrison sang four Beatles songs during his 1974 US tour, and one of those, “In My Life,” was a Lennon/McCartney song. (George got a lot of criticism for changing the lyrics of the song to “I love God more.”) 

Wings released three singles during 1972, but no albums. First was the political “Give Ireland Back to the Irish,” which is included as a bonus track on the 2018 reissue of Wild Life. This was followed by “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” Yep, that “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” While the single peaked at number 9 in the UK, it did nothing to assuage the growing critical consensus that McCartney’s music was trite and inconsequential. Much better was the third single of the year, the rocking “Hi Hi Hi” and the languid “C Moon.” “Hi Hi Hi” was predictably banned by the BBC for drug references and also for the lyric that the BBC heard as “get you ready for my body gun.” As McCartney has said, the actual lyric is “get you ready for my polygon.” So, there you go. 

Red Rose Speedway, released on April 30, 1973 in the US and on May 4^th in the UK, was more commercially successful than Wild Life, peaking at number 5 in the UK and topping the charts in the US. Wild Life and Red Rose Speedway were both reissued in December of 2018 as part of the ongoing Paul McCartney Archive Collection series. I’ll be reviewing the two-disc version of Red Rose Speedway.

I think Red Rose Speedway is a stronger record overall than Wild Life. The first track, “Big Barn Bed” is a slight song, but it has the polish that the songs on Wild Life lacked. The big hit single from Red Rose Speedway was Paul’s gushy ballad “My Love,” which topped the charts in the US. It’s a catchy song that sticks in your head, but for McCartney’s detractors it was the kind of big ballad that screamed “middle of the road” rather than “rock star.” “Get on the Right Thing” has a good groove and some excellent vocals from Paul. “One More Kiss” is a nice tune with a country feel. “Little Lamb Dragonfly” is an interesting song, although I’m not really sure what it’s about. Some people think it’s about Paul’s decision to become a vegetarian, and some people think it’s a message to John Lennon. I quite like “Single Pigeon,” even though it’s a silly title for a song. “When the Night” is one of my favorites from the album. Paul’s singing on it is great, and it has a New Orleans/Fats Domino vibe to it. Parts of the melody sound a bit like “Tomorrow,” from Wild Life. 

Like all of McCartney’s solo albums to this point, Red Rose Speedway still has some moments of weird idiosyncrasies, like “Loup (1st Indian on the Moon)” a four-minute long tune that mainly consists of chanting and some odd synths. 

An eleven-minute long medley of four songs closes the album, inviting the inevitable comparisons to Abbey Road. The first song is called “Hold Me Tight,” but it bears no resemblance to the 1963 song of the same name that Paul sang on With the Beatles. The song finds Paul imploring someone to “hug-a me right,” which doesn’t exactly bring confidence in the lyrical content to follow. “Lazy Dynamite” isn’t much better. “Hands of Love” is at least a catchier song. “Power Cut” is fine, if unmemorable. There’s really no reason for these four songs to be strung together as a medley, and the segues between them aren’t that interesting. 

Red Rose Speedway is a more polished album than Wild Life, and I just enjoy listening to Red Rose Speedway more than Wild Life. The difference between the albums is highlighted in the CD packaging for the 2018 reissues, as Red Rose Speedway has a slick, glossy texture, whereas Wild Life has a low-key matte finish. The artwork in the booklet of Red Rose Speedway is very reminiscent of Pop Art, with Marilyn Monroe, missiles, and pin-ups vying for our attention—it looks like it could have come from a Roxy Music album. The back cover of the CD even reproduces the original LP’s Braille message of “We love ya baby,” apparently a message for Stevie Wonder. 

Red Rose Speedway was originally meant to be a double album, and many of those songs that didn’t make the cut are found on disc two. We also get the other 1972 singles, so you can hear “Mary Had a Little Lamb” for yourself. And then you can groove to “Hi Hi Hi” and “C Moon” and wonder how the same man who did a version of the simplest nursery rhyme could go from that to picking up a girl at the station with a bootleg in her hand. Also included is “Live and Let Die,” released just a month after Red Rose Speedway. There’s also a very cool alternate take of “Live and Let Die,” which is fun to hear. Another song of note is “I Lie Around” the B-side of “Live and Let Die,” which marks Denny Laine’s first lead vocal on a Wings recording. We also get to hear Linda McCartney sing on “Seaside Woman,” a song that was recorded during the sessions for Red Rose Speedway but not released until 1977, when it was released as a single credited to “Suzy and the Red Stripes.” Unlikely as it might seem, the song actually made it to number 59 in the US charts. “Mama’s Little Girl” is one of the better songs that was cut from the album. There’s also a cover version of a 1950’s song, “Tragedy,” which was a hit for Thomas Wayne and the DeLons and also the Fleetwoods. 

The Wings lineup for Red Rose Speedway was Paul, Linda, Denny Laine on guitar, Henry McCullough on lead guitar, and Denny Seiwall on drums. As the group was rehearsing new material during the summer of 1973, McCullough and Seiwall left the band. The trio of Paul, Linda, and Denny Laine went to Lagos, Nigeria, to record Wings’ most successful album: Band on the Run, released just seven months after Red Rose Speedway.

Album Review: Paul McCartney and Wings Wild Life (1971)

Album cover of Wild Life, by Wings, 1971.

Paul and Linda McCartney, 1971.

When the Beatles split up in 1970, expectations for Paul McCartney’s solo career were sky-high. But Paul and John Lennon both issued minimalist albums for their proper solo debuts: McCartney, and John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. It was left to George Harrison to issue the solo album that most fit the mood of the times: the epic, sprawling, triple-disc All Things Must Pass. 

Rock critics probably expected McCartney to make a solo album that was a major statement. What they got instead was the lo-fi weirdness of McCartney, Ram, and Wild Life. McCartney had been a homemade affair, with all the instruments played by Paul. Ram, credited to Paul and his wife Linda, featured a full band and a slightly more polished sound. McCartney’s third solo album, Wild Life, was released in December of 1971, less than seven months after Ram, and was credited to his new band, Wings.

Wait, Paul McCartney was starting a band? After he was just in the Beatles, the greatest band of all-time? Okay, weird. Who was in this new band? A group of rock superstars? Nope, guitarist Denny Laine, and Denny Seiwall on drums. Oh, and Paul’s wife Linda on keyboards and backing vocals. He’s starting a band with his wife? Well, John Lennon was doing the same thing. As I’ve said before, it took guts/stupidity to start a band with a spouse who’s not a professional musician, and Paul and Linda suffered the slings and arrows of the rock critics. 

It’s clear from interviews that it was important to McCartney’s identity to be in a band, rather than just be Paul McCartney, solo artist. Of course, to some degree Wings would inevitably always be “Paul McCartney’s backing band,” but I suspect that being in a band lessened the psychological pressure on McCartney to live up to the huge expectations of making music after the Beatles. 

Wild Life and Red Rose Speedway were both reissued in December of 2018 as part of the ongoing Paul McCartney Archive Collection series. I’ll be reviewing the two-disc version of Wild Life.

Wild Life was a pretty inauspicious debut for Wings, and in my opinion it’s a much weaker album than the superb Ram. Part of the charm of Ram is that even the tossed-off songs, like “Monkberry Moon Delight,” are still awesome, whereas on Wild Life the tossed-off songs just sound, well, tossed-off. Wild Life is a pretty slight album, starting off with the jam “Mumbo” and the repetitive “Bip Bop.” Then we get a cover of “Love is Strange.” While Paul has issued cover albums, it’s extremely rare for him to feature covers in the middle of an album of original material. Like the rest of the album, “Love is Strange” is loose and jammy. 

My two favorite songs on Wild Life are “Tomorrow” and “Dear Friend,” on side two of the album. “Tomorrow” is a very simple song, but it’s catchy as hell, and would be my pick for a single, had one been issued to support Wild Life. (Some copies of “Love is Strange” were issued as a promo single, but the single was never actually released.) “Tomorrow” is a great example of Paul McCartney’s melodic genius, how he can take clichéd lyrics and still turn them into a catchy pop ditty, seemingly at a moment’s notice. 

“Dear Friend” is a stark, haunting piano ballad. Most critics interpreted it at the time as being a response to John Lennon’s venomous song about Paul, “How Do You Sleep?” issued on his Imagine album in September of 1971. However, “Dear Friend” was actually recorded during the Ram sessions, before “How Do You Sleep?” was released. “Dear Friend” has just two verses, and no real chorus or bridge, and it clocks in just shy of six minutes. It’s another example of a song being simple, but still very effective, and quite emotional. “Dear Friend” also features superb vocals from Paul. 

The second disc of Wild Life collects a bunch of previously unreleased home recordings, as well as assorted and sundry rarities. For me, the most interesting home recordings were the two versions of “Dear Friend.” Also of interest is Wings’ 1972 single “Give Ireland Back to the Irish,” which was never issued on an album at the time. The song is McCartney’s response to the events of Bloody Sunday, when British soldiers killed 13 protestors during a march. The song is a rare example of a direct political statement from McCartney. The song was duly banned by the BBC. You can compare and contrast “Give Ireland Back to the Irish” with John Lennon’s own song about Bloody Sunday, “The Luck of the Irish,” which appeared on his 1972 album Some Time in New York City. (Be warned: Yoko sings on it.) 

In my next review, I’ll examine Paul McCartney’s next album, 1973’s Red Rose Speedway.

Movie Review: Paul McCartney's "Rockshow"

Paul McCartney in "Rockshow," 1976.

Paul and Linda McCartney in "Rockshow," 1976.

Paul McCartney’s concert movie “Rockshow” was recently re-released in theaters, as the movie and the live album “Wings Over America” are both getting re-released as part of McCartney’s ongoing Archives reissue series. “Rockshow” was filmed during Wings’ 1976 North American concert tour, which would prove to be the only time that Wings toured North America. The “Wings Over America” tour was the first time McCartney had played live in the United States since The Beatles’ 1966 tour, and Macca didn’t tour the States again until his 1989 world tour. Most of “Rockshow” was filmed in Seattle at the Kingdome, on June 10, 1976. However, during the concert Paul makes comments about it being “the last night of the tour,” which means some songs could be from the Los Angeles concert on June 23^rd. The “Wings Over America” album was culled from several shows on the tour, and features the same set list as “Rockshow.” Curiously enough, while “Wings Over America” was released in December, 1976, just in time for Christmas and while people still remembered the tour, “Rockshow” didn’t premiere in movie theaters until November, 1980, by which time Wings had broken up. 

“Rockshow” is a rocking romp through some 28 songs, ranging from Beatles classics to many songs from Wings’ then-current album, “Wings at the Speed of Sound.” McCartney is at full throttle for the entire show, and the concert shows the full range of his talents. The film doesn’t capture Paul’s best hair day, but his almost-mullet was in perfect keeping with rock and roll style in 1976. Throughout the concert, Paul displays his signature charm, bantering with the audience, goofing off between songs, and having a grand time. 

What struck me most about “Rockshow” was how good Wings were as a band. This lineup of Wings featured Denny Laine on guitar, bass, and backing vocals, Jimmy McCulloch on lead guitar and Joe English on drums.  Laine, McCulloch, and English were all very talented musicians, and they all get an opportunity to shine during “Rockshow.” Sure, I know that for all the pretenses of democracy surrounding the band, “Wings” was always really going to be “Paul McCartney and the rest of the group.” Or, to be more accurate, “Paul, Linda, and Denny Laine plus the rest of the group.” (Laine was the only member of Wings besides Paul and Linda who was in the band from beginning to end.) But watching and listening to “Rockshow,” you can hear how good this version of Wings was as a touring band. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves and playing great music together. Paul had wanted very much to be in another band after the Beatles, and be able to tour again, and now he had his wish. 

I also left “Rockshow” really impressed with Linda McCartney. It took guts/stupidity to put your musically untrained wife in the band that you formed after the greatest band ever, but Macca did it, and Linda was a trouper for going along with it. Yes, she wasn’t very polished, but she did the best she could, which is pretty admirable, considering how much flak she and Paul took for having her be in the band. And during “Rockshow” she looks really into it, performing with great enthusiasm. From what I’ve heard, Linda didn’t especially want to be in Wings, but Paul made her join the band so she could be with him on the road. It was a difficult situation for her to be thrust into, and to her credit she embraced it. While on the records it might be hard to discern what Linda was contributing to the music, on screen in “Rockshow” you can see and hear it-a synth line here, a harmony vocal there. It’s also really neat to see Paul and Linda just feet away from each other as he performs love songs that he wrote for her like “Maybe I’m Amazed” and “My Love.” 

Since this tour was Paul’s first in the United States since 1966, he could have easily just traded on Beatles nostalgia and performed a set comprised only of Beatles oldies. But Paul very much downplayed his Beatle past, including only 5 Beatles songs in the set list. He was making it clear that he was more than just the Beatles. Songs from “Venus and Mars” and “Wings at the Speed of Sound” are heavily featured, as those were Wings’ two most recent albums. Wings’ lineup for the tour also featured a 4-man horn section, which greatly added to songs like “Silly Love Songs” and “Let ‘Em In.” The concert begins with the rocking medley “Venus and Mars/Rock Show,” which goes straight into “Jet,” still a McCartney concert favorite in 2013, and one of his best rockers. Other highlights include a great version of “Maybe I’m Amazed,” and a scorching rendition of “Call Me Back Again,” on which Paul tears his voice apart. One of my favorite songs from the concert was “The Long and Winding Road.” It isn’t my favorite Beatles song, but Paul does a great version of it, and the whole song is presented from just one camera angle focusing on Paul at the piano, with hardly any breaks or edits, which really made the emotion of the song come across very strongly. 

Throughout the concert, Paul switches effortlessly from bass to piano to acoustic guitar, highlighting his skill on each instrument. Paul’s bass playing is amazing. His bass is very high in the mix on both “Wings Over America” and “Rockshow,” as though he wanted to prove how great his bass playing is. I’ve long wondered if Paul’s amazing gift for melodies, and that fact that he played piano and guitar before ever picking up a bass led to his gorgeous, melodic bass lines. 

Other highlights of the concert for me included a lovely, jazzy version of “Bluebird,” a rare airing of “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” a rendition of “Listen to What the Man Said” that is in a more New Orleans/Fats Domino style, a great bass-heavy version of “Silly Love Songs,” and the closing few rockers, “Beware My Love,” “Letting Go,” “Hi Hi Hi,” and the obscure finale “Soily,” which was never released in a studio version. 

“Rockshow” is a great concert film that shows how good Wings could be as a band, and what a gifted performer McCartney is. It made me even more excited to see Paul in concert in Milwaukee this summer!