Paul McCartney releases surprising new single 'Get Enough'...

In the song, it sounds like he's saying "I can't get it up, yo..."

When oh when will we say goodbye to the marvels of the auto-tune?

 

I think that's what I like about the song. It has a different structure compared to his other current songs, which I find mostly too predictable (although often with inspired moments that I enjoy very much).

 

No, he just tried to be cool with the political cause du jour instead...

 

Well, he *is* 76 years old...

 

I find it entertaining that he's being criticised for copying others' ideas. It's what he's ALWAYS done. The Beatles were all about taking ideas from places and adapting them for their own use.

A rock and roll bassline here, a string quartet there. Maybe make a song that sounds like Stax or, perhaps, the Beach Boys. Even the idea of having an album title with a big long name wasn't McCartney's. Sgt Pepper was just "jumping on the bandwagon" of all those silly-long album titles that were the rage back in the day.

The issue is whether or not McCartney was able to take his inspiration and use it in a creative and/or downright genius way. Very often he did, and still does. Here, though, I think he failed. But this isn't about him suddenly deciding to chase a fad; he likes to try things for himself. And, I think, he's earned the right to do that. Whether or not I like the result is, of course, a matter of my own personal taste.

 

I came to really enjoy the pure pop confection of "Fuh You"... initially none of the 3 singles did much for me- they were all slow growers & also, all songs that functioned much better & blossomed in the context of the album...

I'm not hearing this last one as having much potential as a slow grower.

I have a slight preference for John & George over Paul. Part of that involves their lesser works & mis-steps. I enjoy the higher points more & the over-riding lesser factors are less grating to me with "Sometime In New York City" or "Gone Troppo" or "Somewhere In England" than with "Press To Play", "McCartney II" or most especially "Pipes Of Peace". This last "single' has a real sub-basement, bottom of the barrel feel to it, more than a discarded also-ran.

 

Funny enough, some of my favourite John stuff is on Sometime ("Attica State", "Woman Is The...", "John Sinclair", "New York City"), Gone Troppo is my third-favourite George album, and I don't feel that Press To Play or McCartney II were lesser for Paul.
Good variety of opinions here, eh?

 

He’s Paul McCartney; he can work with anyone he chooses. Funny, though, how, when he works with a credible modern producer such as Nigel Godrich, he produces one of his best albums, and when he works with the guy from One Republic turned song-doctor-for-hire for Maroon 5 and Beyoncé, he produces Fuh You and The AutoTune Song.

 

I enjoyed Egypt Station.

This new single only resembles a McCartney track on the last 40 seconds. Then, it becomes amazing to me. Till then, it seems a Ryan Tedder track, and that puts me off. The autotune is grating a bit.

 

Do you think Paul really picks the singles these days, or is he perhaps listening to others (the producer or his manager/marketing or something) and letting them choose? Maybe since he knows he's not going to get a hit single, he lets his team pick?

 

As much as I don't care for the song, I strongly disagree with this.

"Being true to himself in terms of where he is in life" is a Paul McCartney antiphrasis. This guy can either be "true to himself" (which also means following trends, experimenting with any new style, any new collaborator, any new fancy of his, as he's always done, from day one) or be "true to where he is in life" (which would mean not being true to himself at all).

 

Well whoever it is it's baffling. He/she has literally picked all the worst (*known) songs from the Egypt Station sessions IMO.

 

Another project with Godrich would be really interesting, IMO, if Paul's mindset is to make something more experimental. Chaos was great, but it was 13 years ago. An attempt to make another version of that somber, moody and lush pop would be a mistake. I'd want them to approach things differently, more like a Fireman album or some of Radiohead's odder diversions.

Maybe get Jonny Greenwood to rip a guitar solo or two on the album.

 

Wait, what?

 

What about "Why Don't We Do It In The Road", "You Know My Name (Look Up The Number", "Kreen/Akrore", "Bip Bop", "Temporary Secretary"?

We're used to these songs, while the new song is a stranger.
It surely isn't worse than Kreen/Akrore.

 

For me, the highest points would be "Woman Is The n****r Of The World", "New York City" most of all & "John Sinclair", "Luck Of The Irish" as well... "Dream Away (Time Bandits Theme)" & "That's The Way It Goes" mostly & "Mystical One" & "Gone Troppo" as well...
On those Macca albums- "Summer's Day Song" & "Coming Up" primary & "One Of These Days" & "Waterfalls" as well... & ... "Footprints" & "Only Love Remains" more so and "Press" & "Good Times Coming/Feel The Sun" as well...

And diversity of opinion is always great

 

I doubt he gets too involved. But he still signs off on it. He needs to be aware in case he gets asked about one of the singles (or album cuts) by an interviewer.

 

Yeah, it's not "hating" to point out the obvious. Paul had a great run that for me ended with Flaming Pie. He has some later-day tracks from Chaos, Memory and New that are worthy cherries to pick, but I cant enjoy these albums in their entirety. This new single does not work for me either.

 

Certainly not a top tier Macca classic, now is it? I think, jeez I hope, the judicious auto tune was used as an effect... like the majority of pop these days, and not an attempt to "fix" his vocals. The singing on most of Egypt Station is far superior. My best guess is his handlers are trying to keep him hip and current so they quick-released this one. Not a very good choice at all.

Didn't he just issue a new single AND video a few weeks back? A good enough song, but hardly the best choice from that fine album? Trying to get a few more sales at Christmas I suppose. Oh well, Paul long ago deserved to release anything he so chooses. This choice just happens to be a head scratcher, at best. Even as a b-side it would hardly merit release. Ron

 

But is it bad that I agree with all that you're saying here ? (except I'd add Sunday Bloody Sunday to my favorites from Sometimes in NYC)

 

I bet in 1980 people were as WTF as we are now with this new song.

There are several, different MacCas.
This is the Weird MacCa. The same that gave us "Temporary Secretary" and other bizarre stuff that definitely wasn't what people expected from him. The difference is that we got used to those songs now.

"Get Enough" isn't his greatest song. But "Temporary Secretary" isn't either and I was totally underwhelmed by it on first listens just like I am to this new song now.

Time heals those things.

 

Thank you for a good laugh on my first working day of the year. It actually sounds incredibly dated already.

 

Mazzy, I understand your view but I disagree, and your examples are way off.
L. Cohen didn't "strip it down", his last record had a sleek ultra hip trendy production... You Want It Darker could be played at neo-goth raves.
The Stones didn't strip it down either, they just stopped releasing original material after A Bigger Bang (which, btw, was a weak effort and design to appeal the contemporary market). And Jagger himself released a couple of singles sometime ago and they had a fancy production as well.
Dylan never really tried a mainstream sound. Cash and Davies, I can't offer a comment.

I feel we should be more warm towards Paul's experiments with the trending music producers of our day. It doesnt mean we have to like everything he does with them.

 

I didn't realize Temporary Secretary has been reappraised and viewed as more than the experimental novelty tune it was considered to be in 1980.

 

Kreen/Akrore is a divisive track, and I get that, but it didn’t represent Paul jumping on a decade-old production trend in pop music. For better or for worse, it was a pretty original experiment in sound collage, or however you want to classify it. It was different even from the Beatles’ experiments in that area such as Revolution 9.