http://www.time.com/time/magazine/pr...101569,00.html


Do We Still Need Him?
Paul McCartney is (almost) 64, but a surprising new album suggests his glory days aren't all behind him
By JOSH TYRANGIEL

If you want to scare a music critic, whisper these four words in his ear: new Paul McCartney album. In the 35 years since the Beatles broke up, McCartney has made 19 albums. Some have been good. Many have not. McCartney admits that he writes and records with varying degrees of seriousness, and the throngs who will pay any price to watch Sir Paul beep-beep his way through Drive My Car (he was the top-grossing live act in the world as recently as 2002) wouldn't think of holding that against him--nor would they think of declaring any of his recent work his best.

Luckily, the 20th Paul McCartney album, Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, out Sept. 13, makes matters easy. It took two years to record, in part because McCartney plays almost all the instruments on it (including drums, harmonium and flugelhorn) and in part because he actually cared. Chaos and Creation is adventurous, melodic and emotionally complicated--the first album in his post-Fab Four catalog that really matters. If it is not as dark or as brilliant as Time Out of Mind, Bob Dylan's "Hey, I can still do this!" album, it belongs on a shelf nearby. "Since the Beatles, I've approached making records every which way," says McCartney. "A lot of times it's a real casual thing. Do a few tracks a day, have a bit of fun. Normally I kind of say, 'I'd like to make a good album.' This time there was motivation, determination. 'I'm going to make a good album. I'm going to, and that's that.'"

For some reason, I've been optimistic about this album. I'll probably pick it up.

Earlier thread

Awesome. I have tics to see him next month and was hoping the new album wouldn't suck.

I've heard the same thing about at least three previous McCartney albums. I remain unconvinced.

I'll give it a listen, but I agree that I try not to get overly optimistic about early reviews. I sometimes wonder if the reviewers are paid. Metallica's St. Anger got a lot of great early reviews too.

2 songs:
http://www.buzztone.com/paulmccartney/

3 songs actually.

will this top ebony and ivory?

You're right. I'm blind.

Your views are intriguing and I would like to subscribe to your newsletter.

Gave them a listen, all are pretty good. Don't know about best since Beatles, but defintiely better than stuff since Flaming Pie.

You mean www.bearnews.com/updates/?

Sure, sign up!

I liked "Fine Line" and "Jenny Wren". Not bad at all...

If it's produced by Jeff Lynne, I'm in. If not...no thanks.

Is this a joke?

It's not.

George Harrison - R.I.P.


long live Roy Orbison!

No need to wait. Check out this sneek peek now. I'm very pleased with the album and can't wait for the Chicago show next month.

http://www.strippedmusic.com/cc-comm...expreview.html

I've always been a fan (well, except for a few Wings songs ) and it sounds good

While I appreciate him the ability and choice to play all the instruments (which he's done before), I've always thought he should leave the drumming to someone else.

It's funny that you should say that because he thought the same thing. I read an interview where he was planning to have Abe, his very talented current tour drummer, do it but producer Nigel Godrich wanted Paul to play drums himself.

I actually like Paul's drumming. Although he's not technically skilled he does have a certain feel to his playing. I've enjoyed it as far back as The Ballad of John & Yoko.

Looking forward to this. If you had said a few years back that both The Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney would release vital, meaningful albums in successive weeks in 2005, everyone would have laughed at you. But that's what happened.

As far as Time's claim that this is "the first album in his post-Fab Four catalog that really matters.", well they must have never listened to this:

Circuit City has this for $9.99 this week.

Yeah, I didn't quite get that part of the Time article. I've heard the new album and it is good. I think it'll take a few spins to sink in.

$9.88 at Meijer.

EW gave it a "B"

I've listened to it a few times and the Time Out of Mond comparison is a good one. It feels like a legendary artist dropping a lot of the burdens of audience expectations and just making music for himself. Not the best group of songs he's ever written but it has a flowing, natural feel that's hard to resist.