I always thought Juber was a great guitarist.........but maybe his style wasn't Paul's bag. That Glasgow show rocks intensely; some of the Egg songs sound 100% better.
It would’ve been great if the Juber/Holley Wings, along with Chris Thomas producing could’ve made a second album. Back to the Egg showed a lot of promise and it definitely had a grittier more updated sound. All it needed were some hits! Billy Joel would find success updating his sound with 1980’s Glass Houses. The hits this band did play on, Goodnight Tonight, Daytime Nighttime Suffering and Coming Up (live) are inventive, energetic, fun and well played. Wish we could’ve had more of that. Maybe Paul just lost interest….
You have a well-thought out argument here except John, George and Ringo never complained publically about any of the people they worked with - even John laughed off Phil Spector shooting a gun in studio. And on the other side, just about nobody had any complaints working with those. None of them were accused of stuff involving wages, contracts, control of the music, etc. I think Paul has been very kind in his comments about all the musicians he worked with-I don't think that is an issue - Linda once said musicians should pay Paul to play with him so I'm not suprised Linda standing up for Paul. The other way around is the real issue - that many musicians Paul worked with did complain about one thing or another eventually, whether in the Beatles, in Wings, or helping his solo career. Plenty of others loved working with Paul though so it's a mix.
The thing Paul missed in Wings wasn’t musicians with “chops.” It was the ability to make a song work. All the Beatles had that. They didn’t play what a session would guy would play. Paul always had John there. Their collaboration, which was overstated at the time, is now greatly underestimated. From whole sections of songs, like Michelle and We Can Work It Out and I’ve Got. Feeling, to lyrics for a verse, or an idea for the arrangement, Paul always had John Freaking Lennon there. Just like John had him. George was there as well, contributing ideas and parts that made songs work. And Ringo always played what a song needed. Ideas were crafted into something more by the Beatles. With Wings they were often left hanging as just ideas, unformed, incomplete. Maybe still pleasant or interesting, but too rarely fully formed. The same thing happened to John. As much as they are being “rediscovered” nowadays, albums like Wild Life and Red Rose Speedway and Back to the Egg are not fully formed. The songwriting is incomplete. The arrangements are often pedestrian. Paul sings the crap out of them. Speedway is beautifully produced. There are a lot of great moments and a lot of good ideas. But they aren’t really finished, they don’t come together like they should, That is what Paul was missing. Not a guy who can play a cool solo or a flashy drummer. He was missing guys who could help transform his ideas into finished product.
I like this comment from Paul, paraphrased but..: " I was just writing songs with my friend John, I didn't realize I was writing songs with John Lennon"
Agreed, agreed and agreed. The Beatles were four creative individuals whose instincts naturally melded into one another’s to form the perfect whole. This is why I often take a deep breath and try to walk away from heated discussions pertaining to their individual instrumental “virtuosity” or, more specifically, lack of.
But Paul had to let them be free with their opinions and be creative enough to explore different ideas. Doesn't really work with hired hands, generally.
Isn’t that why Henry left? In fact I think I remember reading or hearing at one point that there was a major difference of opinion as to how the main riff on Let Me Roll It should be played and that was the final straw (or among them).
My point earlier is that all of the musicians that played with McCartney were competent on their instruments, journeyman. However, the words great and genius are thrown around like candy, two words that should be used sparingly, if ever. In my view, none of the musicians that played in Wings even remotely approach greatness. Wings as a cohesive unit was merely capable of replicating songs note-for-note live, and too often, not even capable of doing that. With the exception of some of the guitar work on Ram, McCartney’s solo music wasn’t a fertile ground for inventive or interesting guitar work. Again, the guitar work is competent, but very rarely more than that. You may find something special about Laurence Juber, but I see nothing beyond a faceless studio musician. Competent to be sure, but nothing remarkable, and nowhere near greatness. The guitar work he did for McCartney was hardly noticeable. Part of the problem is that McCartney’s music went soft and limp after The Beatles . . . commercial. Thus, any noticeable guitar work generally snuck-in almost by accident.
If Jimmy McCullough is merely "competent", then you have much higher standards than me, friend. The solo in Junior's Farm is up there with the best.
I think Wings fell somewhere between our standard definition of a "real band" - ie, a fairly equal group of collaborators - and "The Paul McCartney Band". Wings had the bones of a "real band" - various members sang lead and wrote songs - but one member so heavily dominated that it wasn't a creative collaboration like most "real bands"...
I don’t think Paul allowed any of the guys in Wings to play to their fullest potential. And I don’t believe this was done purposely. He wanted them to play in the way which he felt best served the song. To any musician who wants to expand, this can be very frustrating.
A lot of Wings members had chops and session careers before and after. His comments are silly. The only one who sucked musically was Linda....
What both living gods McCartney and Lennon missed was someone they respected on their level. In a way you can't blame them from 1963 to 1968 Brian Wilson also from 1964 to 1966. Beatles solo albums were just like beatles albums. Each Beatles album 3 or 4 good Lennon songs or 3 or 4 good McCartney songs. The pattern remained constant through the solo years. I call it name brand worship. That concept includes many bands in these threads . Everything they do is great
Denny Laine wasn't John Lennon but was miles ahead instrumentally. Henry and Jimmy were great guitarists.... especially Jimmy. Henry played with Joe Cocker for years beforehand. Juber was fantastic and a respected session musician. There was nothing wrong with Joe's drumming.... it wasn't technical but neither was Ringo. Denny Seiwell and Steve Holley were very good drummers with session work under their belts. Silly comment.
One interesting assertion I read, either here on the boards or somewhere else I cannot recollect - was that the 'Wings' concept was really an avenue to allow Macca to get away with having Linda by his side for his musical ambitions after The Beatles.....by 'hiding' Linda within a 'band' so to speak, so as not to have her exposed so glaringly.
This thread is better than the football match I'm watching right now (Manchester United versus Villarral).
