The Beatles Remastered - Part II

[phanan]

I disagree. The entire Band On The Run album is a classic, along with RAM. The self-titled debut isn't far behind.

And it's quite easy putting together a list of classic McCartney songs.

Another Day
Every Night
Maybe I'm Amazed
That Would Be Something
Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey
Too Many People
Let Me Roll It
Band On The Run
Live And Let Die
Jet
Nineteen Hundred And Eighty-Five
Listen To What The Man Said
Take It Away
Mull Of Kintyre

McCartney does indeed have more clunkers than Lennon; there's no doubting that. But if Lennon had lived, I'm sure he would have had a lot more, based on Double Fantasy and Milk And Honey alone.

But again, the point I was making was that neither one of their solo careers comes close to their time together.

 

[LMP]

I disagree. The entire Band On The Run album is a classic, along with RAM. The self-titled debut isn't far behind.

And it's quite easy putting together a list of classic McCartney songs.

Another Day
Every Night
Maybe I'm Amazed
That Would Be Something
Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey
Too Many People
Let Me Roll It
Band On The Run
Live And Let Die
Jet
Nineteen Hundred And Eighty-Five
Listen To What The Man Said
Take It Away
Mull Of Kintyre

McCartney does indeed have more clunkers than Lennon; there's no doubting that. But if Lennon had lived, I'm sure he would have had a lot more, based on Double Fantasy and Milk And Honey alone.

But again, the point I was making was that neither one of their solo careers comes close to their time together.

I agree, and you've gotta put "Let 'Em In" up there, which I think is one of McCartney's finest post-Beatles tracks besides "Every Night." "Uncle Albert" is a track I used to love as a kid, but now, really the only part I can take away from it is the chorus.

Yeah, most definitely.

 

[phanan]

Yeah, that was off the top of my head. Let 'Em In is a good one.

And I agree with Uncle Albert; I love it for nostalgic reasons. That chorus is otherworldly though.

 

[MadForIt]

i like Pipes of peace as well

Lennon's solo stuff was alright
Instant Karma is amazing

 

[LMP]

Yeah, that was off the top of my head. Let 'Em In is a good one.

And I agree with Uncle Albert; I love it for nostalgic reasons. That chorus is otherworldly though.

I've always dug "Venus and Mars / Rock Show;" "Daytime Nighttime Suffering" is pretty underrated as well. Macca and Wings really hit a groove in the mid- to late-'70s, but his solo stuff goes back to some of the sugary pop that I've started to become a little averse to.

There's a really interesting article in my Pop Music textbook that talks about the solo Beatles careers that raised some interesting points about McCartney. Particularly how controlling he was of Wings and how self-conscious he was of his image, leading to him writing "Silly Love Songs" as a response to his criticisms. I didn't know he collaborated with Elvis Costello in the late '80s either.

 

[IWasBored]

I don't understand why people even consider Wild Honey Pie, as if it were meant to be anything other than a goof.

Saying Wild Honey Pie is terrible is a bit like saying John's ""'I Dig a Pygmy', by Charles Hawtrey and the Deaf Aids! Phase One, in which Doris gets her oats!"...is a bad intro.

Maybe people don't think it's funny but it's certainly not something that should be considered as anything resembling songcraft.

Now, 'Honey Pie'...yikes, that's just a turd.
Classic horrid Macca.

except that intro is just that--it's an intro. wild honey pie was given its own track demarkation, a start and a finish, as if it was an actual song.

or maybe it's just because i'm so used to hearing that intro as part of "two of us" and feel like it belongs there. it's great. it almost makes me forget all the personal shit that we've been discussing was going on with the band at the time. in fact, i think i must listen to it now.

 

[No spoken words]

I'm going to remaster someone's fucking face.

 

[IWasBored]

"Uncle Albert" is a track I used to love as a kid, but now, really the only part I can take away from it is the chorus.

same here.

 

[LMP]

except that intro is just that--it's an intro. wild honey pie was given its own track demarkation, a start and a finish, as if it was an actual song.

or maybe it's just because i'm so used to hearing that intro as part of "two of us" and feel like it belongs there. it's great. it almost makes me forget all the personal shit that we've been discussing was going on with the band at the time. in fact, i think i must listen to it now.

"Two of Us" could be one of the most bittersweet songs I've ever heard for that reason.

 

[phanan]

I've always dug "Venus and Mars / Rock Show;" "Daytime Nighttime Suffering" is pretty underrated as well. Macca and Wings really hit a groove in the mid- to late-'70s, but his solo stuff goes back to some of the sugary pop that I've started to become a little averse to.

There's a really interesting article in my Pop Music textbook that talks about the solo Beatles careers that raised some interesting points about McCartney. Particularly how controlling he was of Wings and how self-conscious he was of his image, leading to him writing "Silly Love Songs" as a response to his criticisms. I didn't know he collaborated with Elvis Costello in the late '80s either.

He may have hit a groove in the mid to late 70's in terms of churning out hits, but the albums they came from weren't that great. After Band On The Run, he really didn't have another good album until Tug Of War - just ignore the fact that Ebony And Ivory was on there.

His best stuff was the first two albums and Band On The Run. After that, some great individual songs from weak albums.

McCartney controlling and self-conscious? That would never happen...

The collaborations with Elvis Costello came on Flowers In The Dirt in 1989.

 

[IWasBored]

"Two of Us" could be one of the most bittersweet songs I've ever heard for that reason.

yeah. and you know what really compounds that for me is the only version of let it be i own right now (blasphemous statements upahead) is some ghetto-dubbed mp3s from my mom's vinyl record. i couldn't take the record player with me when i moved, so i left the records back home.

heh, meant to type just "home", but the song was playing "back home" as i was typing.

so what i'm listening to is a grainy-sounding, poor-ish quality (except i swear "across the universe" sounds better this way). and i'll be listening to the rest of the album now, because i'm not just going to shut the ipod off and go back to watching tv. anyway, what i was trying to say is sound-wise it time-warps me back to listening to this album as a kid more than listening to any other beatles. and since i didn't get hardcore into that album til i was about 12, elements of reliving 12-year-old-me...well, there's the emotional stuff we were talking about at the thread split. ramblebabblerabmle.

 

[LMP]

He may have hit a groove in the mid to late 70's in terms of churning out hits, but the albums they came from weren't that great. After Band On The Run, he really didn't have another fantastic album until Tug Of War - just ignore the fact that Ebony And Ivory was on there.

His best stuff was the first two albums and Band On The Run. After that, some great individual songs from weak albums.

McCartney controlling and self-conscious? That would never happen...

The collaborations with Elvis Costello came on Flowers In The Dirt in 1989.

Wild Life is a mess, and the middle of Band on the Run is pretty lame, I'm listening to it right now. I love McCartney though.

Interesting about Tug of War.

Yeah, it was just cool to read it in a textbook, which is more of a collection of editorials than anything else. Their chapter on the Beatles focuses on how they shaped the concept of a band and their pre-Sgt. Pepper work, which I'm less familiar with.

Is that album any good? Flaming Pie and Driving Rain are mixed bags, too, but I dug Chaos and Creation a fair amount when I first heard it.

 

[IWasBored]

He may have hit a groove in the mid to late 70's in terms of churning out hits, but the albums they came from weren't that great. After Band On The Run, he really didn't have another good album until Tug Of War - just ignore the fact that Ebony And Ivory was on there.

His best stuff was the first two albums and Band On The Run. After that, some great individual songs from weak albums.

McCartney controlling and self-conscious? That would never happen...

The collaborations with Elvis Costello came on Flowers In The Dirt in 1989.

i remember reading something about "silly love songs" to that affect...

didn't know about the collaboration with mr costello.

tug of war is good (minus the aforementioned pile o' crap)? the cover kind of scared me as a kid, so i always stayed away.

 

[IWasBored]

i loved flaming pie (minus last track), but haaaaaaated driving rain. not a huge fan of chaos & creation past the single. mccartney and his fucking singles...because that was what dragged me into that last album, and i ended up feeling pretty much the same way about the rest of the album as i had to the one before--bored.

you know what's awesome? run devil run. that was fun.

 

[LMP]

yeah. and you know what really compounds that for me is the only version of let it be i own right now (blasphemous statements upahead) is some ghetto-dubbed mp3s from my mom's vinyl record. i couldn't take the record player with me when i moved, so i left the records back home.

heh, meant to type just "home", but the song was playing "back home" as i was typing.

so what i'm listening to is a grainy-sounding, poor-ish quality (except i swear "across the universe" sounds better this way). and i'll be listening to the rest of the album now, because i'm not just going to shut the ipod off and go back to watching tv. anyway, what i was trying to say is sound-wise it time-warps me back to listening to this album as a kid more than listening to any other beatles. and since i didn't get hardcore into that album til i was about 12, elements of reliving 12-year-old-me...well, there's the emotional stuff we were talking about at the thread split. ramblebabblerabmle.

I get what you're saying. Reading about these personal experience is pretty enlightening, coming from almost a different era in terms of how music is heard, consumed, etc... Not only that, but neither of my parents are as big into music as I am, or at least beyond what was popular when they were younger, so it's cool to finally hear these landmark albums at an older age. I do feel that I lose something from not being of the moment, I guess. I'm sure people feel the same way in some respects.

It just got me thinking about recent albums that would go into that Pantheon of Albums That Shaped Me, and the list is pretty barren. Yoshimi? Funeral? In Rainbows? Slim pickings, to be sure.

 

[phanan]

Wild Life is a mess, and the middle of Band on the Run is pretty lame, I'm listening to it right now. I love McCartney though.

Interesting about Tug of War.

Yeah, it was just cool to read it in a textbook, which is more of a collection of editorials than anything else. Their chapter on the Beatles focuses on how they shaped the concept of a band and their pre-Sgt. Pepper work, which I'm less familiar with.

Is that album any good? Flaming Pie and Driving Rain are mixed bags, too, but I dug Chaos and Creation a fair amount when I first heard it.

What part of Band On The Run do you think is lame? I find the whole thing excellent.

Flowers In The Dirt is a mixed bag as well. It's certainly an improvement over his mid-80's crap, and has some good songs, but overall it's pretty ordinary.

 

[lazarus]

I always thought Band on the Run's title track was a bit cheesy. Like it's trying to sound epic and important. It's an eye-roller to me.

The lyrics are crap as well, for the most part. including this:

"Well, the rain exploded with a mighty crash as we fell into the sun,
And the first one said to the second one there I hope youre having fun."

Give me a break. Also, there's that point in the song where he sings REALLY LOUD for effect and his voice cracks and it's another example of Macca trying to come off so hard and sounding forced.

Live and Let Die is certainly fun, but a great song? I don't think so.

I really enjoy the Venus & Mars album, though.

 

[lazarus]

Beatles U.S. Sales for last week:

Abbey Road: 89,000 copies
Sgt. Pepper's: 74,000
The White Album: 60,000
Rubber Soul: 58,000
Revolver: 46,000
Help: 39,000
Let It Be: 32,000
Past Masters: 31,000
Magical Mystery Tour: 30,000
Hard Day's Night: 29,000
Beatles in Stereo (boxed set): 26,000
Please Please Me: 23,000
With the Beatles 22,000
Beatles for Sale: 21,000
Yellow Submartine: 14,000
Beatles in Mono (boxed set): 12,000

Although previously released albums aren't allowed to reenter the regular albums chart, there is a comprehensive album chart that combines sales for current and catalog titles, and the Top 10 includes Abbey Road at #3 under Jay-Z and Miley Cyrus, with Sgt. Pepper's placing at #5, The White Album at #7, Rubber Soul at #8, and Revolver at #10. On the catalog charts, the Beatles have 9 of the Top 10 spots.


NOT BAD.

 

[u2popmofo]

Then again, seeing Miley Cyrus' name above The Beatles is not pleasing to my eyes.

 

[lazarus]

I'd let her beat me for the #2 slot, if you get my ridiculously loaded with double-meanings reply.

 

[LMP]

What part of Band On The Run do you think is lame? I find the whole thing excellent.

Flowers In The Dirt is a mixed bag as well. It's certainly an improvement over his mid-80's crap, and has some good songs, but overall it's pretty ordinary.

"Bluebird," "Mrs. Vanderbilt," "Mamunia" (!!!) "No Words." I'm iffy on "Let Me Roll It," but the version on the Back in the US live album is pretty solid.

"Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five" is my favorite track, by far.

 

[IWasBored]

I get what you're saying. Reading about these personal experience is pretty enlightening, coming from almost a different era in terms of how music is heard, consumed, etc... Not only that, but neither of my parents are as big into music as I am, or at least beyond what was popular when they were younger, so it's cool to finally hear these landmark albums at an older age. I do feel that I lose something from not being of the moment, I guess. I'm sure people feel the same way in some respects.

It just got me thinking about recent albums that would go into that Pantheon of Albums That Shaped Me, and the list is pretty barren. Yoshimi? Funeral? In Rainbows? Slim pickings, to be sure.

yeah, i know what you mean about missing out on some of it by not actually being there when it came out. i think my mom, even though it seems she's like your folks in terms of never being as into music as i am (actually, it's kind of funny now. she listens to a lot of what i tell her i think she'd like, and she really digs the shins, decembrists, billy bragg, social distortion, and some other kind of strange things you wouldn't think someone in their mid-50s would be discovering with no background outside what's popular), in many respects thinks she's got one up on me as far as being a beatles fan because she did see them on the ed sullivan show, she bought the albums when they came out, remembers when john lennon was shot, etc. nevermind that she couldn't tell you which album "baby you're a rich man" was on, hell, i don't even think she knows about the medleys on abbey road.

slim pickings, indeed, for current stuff that has been just as influential on my life as the beatles' albums. actually, i think the only other thing that's made as much as an impact on me is punk rock, and that's a whole friggin genre of music (with countless sub-genres within itself).

 

[LMP]

yeah, i know what you mean about missing out on some of it by not actually being there when it came out. i think my mom, even though it seems she's like your folks in terms of never being as into music as i am (actually, it's kind of funny now. she listens to a lot of what i tell her i think she'd like, and she really digs the shins, decembrists, billy bragg, social distortion, and some other kind of strange things you wouldn't think someone in their mid-50s would be discovering with no background outside what's popular), in many respects thinks she's got one up on me as far as being a beatles fan because she did see them on the ed sullivan show, she bought the albums when they came out, remembers when john lennon was shot, etc. nevermind that she couldn't tell you which album "baby you're a rich man" was on, hell, i don't even think she knows about the medleys on abbey road.

slim pickings, indeed, for current stuff that has been just as influential on my life as the beatles' albums. actually, i think the only other thing that's made as much as an impact on me is punk rock, and that's a whole friggin genre of music (with countless sub-genres within itself).

In addition to that, being 5 years removed from something, like Yoshimi, is almost after the fact. That's part of what make In Rainbows and Arcade Fire's two albums resonate with me, in a sense, besides a deep connection to the music itself.

Same with my mother, actually. I'd burn her mixes of newer music for the car and she really digs them. I can't even relate my Beatles love to her because she stopped listening to them around the time Sgt. Pepper came out (mostly due to John saying they were "bigger than Jesus," yadda yadda). And she'll only talk about Paul and Ringo, so there's that.

Interesting. Most of that genre, aside from the late '70s New Wave/Punk group, I have a hard time getting into. That and metal. Especially black metal, but not metal made by black people. I hope someone gets that reference.

 

[impy13]

impy is so funny
He should have presented the VMA's...

Please show me where I was trying to be funny in the post you quoted. It was pointing out a pretty egregious error. Even if it was an intended joke, it wasn't any worse than this "presented the VMA's" sarcastic bullshit.

Seriously, man. Not everyone's out to get you. I know you probably feel like a victim because we all make fun of Oasis, and you're probably feeling like shit since they broke up and you can't mindlessly fellate them anymore. But come the fuck on.

Elevate your shit talking or don't do it. It's that simple. Step up your weak game or don't fuck with the big boys.

 

[phanan]

I always thought Band on the Run's title track was a bit cheesy. Like it's trying to sound epic and important. It's an eye-roller to me.

The lyrics are crap as well, for the most part. including this:

"Well, the rain exploded with a mighty crash as we fell into the sun,
And the first one said to the second one there I hope youre having fun."

Give me a break. Also, there's that point in the song where he sings REALLY LOUD for effect and his voice cracks and it's another example of Macca trying to come off so hard and sounding forced.

Live and Let Die is certainly fun, but a great song? I don't think so.

I really enjoy the Venus & Mars album, though.

It's not like some of Lennon's greatest songs don't have average lyrics either; "we all shine on like the moon and the stars and the sun" isn't exactly reaching new heights.

Venus & Mars is decent.

 

[phanan]

"Bluebird," "Mrs. Vanderbilt," "Mamunia" (!!!) "No Words." I'm iffy on "Let Me Roll It," but the version on the Back in the US live album is pretty solid.

"Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five" is my favorite track, by far.

Interesting. I really dig those, especially No Words.

Agreed on Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five; it's the best one on there.

 

[the tourist]

On Band On The Run, I could do without Bluebird, Mrs. Vanderbilt, and Mamunia as well. Ram is my favourite McCartney solo effort.

 

[IWasBored]

In addition to that, being 5 years removed from something, like Yoshimi, is almost after the fact. That's part of what make In Rainbows and Arcade Fire's two albums resonate with me, in a sense, besides a deep connection to the music itself.

Same with my mother, actually. I'd burn her mixes of newer music for the car and she really digs them. I can't even relate my Beatles love to her because she stopped listening to them around the time Sgt. Pepper came out (mostly due to John saying they were "bigger than Jesus," yadda yadda). And she'll only talk about Paul and Ringo, so there's that.

Interesting. Most of that genre, aside from the late '70s New Wave/Punk group, I have a hard time getting into. That and metal. Especially black metal, but not metal made by black people. I hope someone gets that reference.

all pretentiousness and indie/punk cred-whoring aside, i do think a big reason i love random-ass bands like the street dogs or far from finished so much (nevermind the incredibly catchy, sing-along-y punk rock stuff that they are) is because i heard them at the beginning, before both bands' first albums came out. and i've seen them both live a bunch of times over the last several years. are they as good as other bands, whether we're talking classic accepted fundamental-to-music's-evolution good, or simply better-music-making contemporary equivalents, who's to say? but i'll take savin hill or east side of nowhere over zeppelin I, II, III, and IV any day just because i've got that extra attatchment from being around and being a fan from day one. but it also could be a load of bullshit. i might just be saying this so i can rack up the punk points for when i go to hot topic later.


outside of slayer, motorhead, and old metallica, i've always had trouble with metal. that european operatic stuff is kind of fun for a couple songs every so often, but otherwise...i just don't get it.

 

[MadForIt]

Please show me where I was trying to be funny in the post you quoted. It was pointing out a pretty egregious error. Even if it was an intended joke, it wasn't any worse than this "presented the VMA's" sarcastic bullshit.

Seriously, man. Not everyone's out to get you. I know you probably feel like a victim because we all make fun of Oasis, and you're probably feeling like shit since they broke up and you can't mindlessly fellate them anymore. But come the fuck on.

Elevate your shit talking or don't do it. It's that simple. Step up your weak game or don't fuck with the big boys.

You, a big boy
Your as big as Walsall Football Club

(I was referring to your crappy posts at the start of this thread, and your style of posts in general, where you and your homeboys think your being funny, but as your american, the chances are your not)

 

[IWasBored]

i'm angry at myself for not ghetto-dubbing* the solo mccartney and ram to my computer. how did i forget to do this?



*rigging what was a higher-end stereo circa 1988 when it was purchased (but quite a piece of crap when i copied all my vinyl in 2004) to my computer and using some freeware sound editing software to make myself some wav files that were then converted to mp3s...