Meet You in the Falling Rain.


There’s something about the simplicity of this song that I can’t get enough of.

Macca’s first solo album is famed for its primitive sound and production, which came about as a result of it being mostly recorded at home with a very basic set-up. There's an honesty and directness that's striking compared to the intricately produced Abbey Road (or the over-the-top Let it Be). While there are still big moments - Maybe I’m Amazed is the most obvious - it’s the intimacy that comes across the most, of the kind McCartney didn’t revisit so consistently until 1997’s Flaming Pie or 2005’s Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, a good twenty-seven / thirty-five years later.

While Paul’s debut album got a tough press when it was released, which wasn't helped by the recent breakup of The Beatles and the subsequent sniping from John, George and Ringo, it’s a far more solid affair than you'd imagine when listened to in retrospect; yes, some of it's a little throwaway and half-finished, but this may have had something to do with Macca’s need to clear the decks and not take things too seriously when faced with such a difficult backdrop. The result is a straightforward uncluttered collection of songs of which That Will Be Something is a highlight. Even George spoke its praises contemporaneously, which is surprising considering his low regard for Paul at the time. I just love the he rhythm he builds with just an acoustic, bass and drums and the percussive sounds of his voice. He also does one of his best Presley-style vocal turns; what’s not to like?

Popular posts from this blog

Shakerpuppetmaker.

Image
Have Parker from Thunderbirds and Noel Gallagher ever been seen in the same room? The resemblance is uncanny. So much so, I think something’s afoot. If my suspicions are correct, I've stumbled across a secret that will blow the music and puppet industry wide apart. In the mid-60s / mid-90s at least. It doesn’t take long to see the signposts. There’s the similarity between the name of Oasis’ first single, Supersonic, and Supermarianation, Gerry Anderson’s puppetry technique. The Gallagher brothers would often wear Parkas . Live Forever was clearly a reference to Captain Scarlet and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants to the size difference between Noel and his bandmates. The more you think about it, the more brazen it gets. It’s fishier than Area 51, Paul is Dead and JFK's assassination put together. The only glitch to the theory is scale . According to Wikipedia, Anderson’s marionettes were 1’10” and Gallagher is 5’8”. How does he maintain an illusion of avera...
Read more

Stevenage: A (Tiny) River Runs Through it.

If ever a river was mis-sold, it’s the Roaring Meg in Stevenage. I just walked past it on my way to the retail park that has taken its name. They’re similarly uninspiring. The river is less of a roar and more of a dribble; cystitis sufferers produce greater flow. The retail park is soulless. What was once a thriving enterprise is nearly devoid of atmosphere, save an underlying essence of emptiness and despair. With a Toys R Us. When it was first built I was excited. Back then, the thought of a bowling alley, an ice rink, a Harvester and a Blockbuster Video within a small surface area was enticing. I celebrated many birthdays on site. There was an indoor cricket pitch there for a while where I once had a joint party with a friend. Why someone with an almost pathological fear of sport would agree to such a venture is beyond me, but I did it. Now, there’s very little at the Roaring Meg of note. The river would be a metaphor for the shopping ce...
Read more

Comedy That's Worth a Letch.

Today, I nipped to Letchworth to meet with illustrator (and one-time - two-time - comedy poet) Mushybees, to discuss an event Mostly Comedy will act as surrogate parents to as part of Letchworth’s Arts Takeover in a couple of weeks. Months ago he got into contact to see if we’d be up for co-organising a comedy stage as part of Letchworth’s weekend of arts-based attractions in July; something I’d provisionally said yes to, before things got hectic in the lead-up to Edinburgh and we didn’t take it any further. Despite not getting down to the nitty-gritty straight away, we managed to pull a line-up together in a back-and-forth of emails yesterday, leading to me getting Glyn’s blessing and us deciding we’d officially go ahead with it (whatever ‘officially’ means in this context). In reality, it’s not complicated: from 12pm until 6pm-ish on the 22 nd July, Glyn, Mushybees and I will host four Edinburgh previews from four acts (including me), before Nor...
Read more