Band On The Run: 25th Anniversary Edition - Paul McCartney & Wings

James Paul McCartney will always be remembered for being the other half of the most inspirational song writing partnerships of the twentieth century rather than his involvement in vegetarianism, saving the seals, or for that matter… Wings. It could be said that the basis of his own music through Wings, was merely a back catalogue of all the styles of music that he wanted to have played whilst a member of The Beatles, but couldn’t due to the dominating forces of John Lennon. Being the ultimate pleaser, even as a child growing up after losing his mother very young, he was the do gooder of the band when Lennon’s short temper and head strong character would rise over the ...  Read the complete review

Band On The Run is often seen as the peak of Paul McCartney's post-Beatles recordings, which for the most part I would have to agree with, as I feel that at this point in his already glowing career he still had the drive and creative spark to create great songs. This tended to fall as the years went by, but then for me Paul was always best in a band situation, as he found himself in, to an extent, with the Wings. This I feel allowed him to bounce ideas around and gain a degree of input from other members, allowing him to have a greater focus on his role rather than simply playing every instrument on the record, as he did later on. Band On The Run was released ...  Read the complete review

When the Beatles split up, most people felt that Paul McCartney would be the one most likely to... He seemed to have the greatest pop sensibilities out of the four of them. Lennon was all hard and artistic and inaccessible, Harrison was all hippy dippy eastern mysticism and Ringo was just jolly old Ringo. However, Macca went badly off track in the first couple of years post Abbey Road and insisted doggedly that he was only one member of a working group, that wife Linda was a vital cog in the wheel, and that he wanted to be harder than before.... 'McCartney', 'Ram' and the absolutely dire 'Wild Life' were very ...  Read the complete review

Paul McCatney's finest hour (apart from the Beatles). Band On The Run has always been a favourite of mine, and the special edition, with its interview disk (released earlier this year) proves just how difficult it was to make. The result is some of McCartney's finest work, from the eclectic title track through the hectic 'Jet' and the comedy of 'Mrs. Vandebilt', to the pure rock of 'Nineteen Hundred And Eighty-Five.' This album just has a 'feel' about it which can't be defined. It may be nearly thirty years old, but it feels fresh to me, and it has pride of place in my CD collection. ...  Read the complete review

The title track is absolutely breathtaking, but the album is a little sparse and empty. Jet is a soaring track that will have everyone singing along, and Bluebird is chilled and enjoyable, but that is where the album starts to disintegrate, with tracks such as Mrs. Vandebilt and Picasso’s Last Words (inspired by a suggestion from Dustin Hoffmann) which aren’t the kind of sound that you are used to hearing from Wings. It has to be said that the album ends on a higher note with the track Nineteen Eighty Five, and quite why Helen Wheels was a single is beyond me. Not the best Wings album, but the title track is one of the greatest ever. ...  Read the complete review