Paul McCartney/Wings-song by song thread

Regarding 'The Girl Is Mine', it totally gets a pass. It was Michael's composition and actually has a very decent melody. If the song didn't end with the mock arguing I think it would have a less cheesy reputation, but I personally find it funny and don't care if it is schmaltzy or not. I also really enjoy Paul's vocals on the song.

 

The girl is mine is a fine piece of pop-music. Many people here sometimes forget that Michael Jackson was the king of pop at the time.
However it s not a part of Maccas discography so I won t bring it up here
But anyone who wanted to -please go ahead

 

There isn't a video because Paul died on November 9, 1966

 

Great, now your gonna make me listen to the LP again....

 

That King Of Pop mess didn't start until the early 90s.

 

"Take It Away" is the best song on the album.

It sounds like Ringo is either playing with another drummer or George Martin double-tracked him.

 

Steve Gadd.

 

I miss the days when people used two drummers. Now, you'd be lucky to find anyone using a real drummer at all, at least one that hasn't been sampled and corrected to death.

 

I think John's death -- not just the fact that he died but the sudden, completely insane way it happened -- shook Paul far more than he let on at the time. There's a lovely story related to that, which many on here have probably heard, but in case some haven't here it goes. This is from memory, so a few words are probably off here and there, but the gist of it is right:

In the early '80s, Carl Perkins was visiting with Paul and Linda, and at one point pulled out his guitar to play them a new song he'd written, called "My Old Friend." In the chorus, Perkins sings, "Don't forget me, my old friend," and when he got to that line Paul choked up and dashed out of the room, not wanting to cry in front of his guest.

Perkins was baffled. Linda looked at him and asked, "How did you know?"

Perkins had no idea what had just happened and said, "Know what?"

Linda then explained to him that "Don't forget me, my old friend," were the last words John had ever said to Paul.

 

Have you ever heard Polica? They are a band with two drummers, and you may enjoy songs like 'Lay Your Cards Out'.

I love the drums on 'Take It Away', it was such a good idea to have Ringo and Gadd together and with Paul's bass part it turns into a fantastic rhythm track.

 

I completely agree; Paul got bad press for his reaction, but I think he suffered as a result of John's death almost as much or equally as much as Ringo (I think George was also deeply hurt by it but his strong genuine faith seems to have helped him a lot after the murder took place). There is a reason why Paul still cries so often all these decades later when performing 'Here Today' and why he always does perform it now.

 

I think John’s death was profound in many ways for Paul. Not only did it hit him hard personally, and maybe made him realize how special and irreplaceable that relationship was - I think it shook him up creatively as well.

I really, truly, believe that John’s return to recording would have upped Paul’s game as an artist - a lot. And I think you can hear some of that in the Tug of War album. I can only surmise, obviously, but I have this idea that had John lived, he would’ve put together some great material. Double Fantasy was good, but, a bit tentative, John dipping his toes back into the game. There should’ve been so much more.

I’m not so sure they would have worked together again. Maybe. But once JL was gone, I think Paul lost his compass a bit (again).

Paul and John always needed each other. Even at their furthest apart. Aside from maybe 1974, 1980 was the best timeframe for the two to be on similar paths.

At its best, Tug of War reflects Paul’s newfound inspiration and determination. At its worst, it illustrates an artist searching for relevancy and currency in both idiosyncratic and disappointing ways.

What a fascinating period in the story of Paul McCartney solo artist. How would Paul respond moving forward?

 

Next one

Somebody who cares

Thirsd song from the album. Third winner. This time a brilliant semi-acoustic latin flavoured ballad with bittersweet lyrics. Lovely melody and arrangement and great singing. Also a fantastic Spanish guitar solo from Paul. Added back in London Pan Flute played by Adrian Brett.

In our fellow member Lucas brilliant book about McCartneys recording sessions Adrians experiences from the session makes a fun read. Apparently it was a hard time for him really understanding what Paul wanted since Paul doesn t read music. He made a few suggestions-some Paul liked and some he didn t and they had to play several solos before getting it the way Paul wanted. Adrian knew beforehand that Paul could be demanding-always knowing what he want s but lacking the theory to explain it to schooled musicians.

This great track makes the opening1,2,3 songs of Tug of war -arguably-the most impressive since Band on the run. A great run.

Song facts

“Somebody Who Cares” is a song from 1982 album “Tug Of War“.

From an interview with Newsweek, May 1982:

Did you have John Lennon in mind [when writing the Tug Of War album]?

No. But halfway through it, John was killed. I can’t believe it to this day, I can’t even say those words…But “Here Today” is the only song specifically about that. Obviously, “Tug of War” ties in…And so does “Somebody Who Cares.” I remember being aware of John’s death while writing it.

From an interview with Club Sandwich, 1982:

Andy Mackay – “Somebody Who Cares” – that beautiful song, I like that.

Paul – I wrote it out one Sunday afternoon. In Montserrat we used to take weekends off just to kinda have some holiday as well as recording, and this Sunday afternoon I was anticipating Steve Gadd’s arrival, and Steven and Stanley Clarke were coming in, and I liked the idea of writing something for them coming, you know, so it would be fresh for everyone.

Andy Mackay – The theme, in as much as I can work out a theme, is the one you have dealt with in quite a lot of songs, isn’t it, sort of resignation and optimism, sort of somewhere mixed up.

Paul – Somewhere there is someone who is going to take care of things, do you mean? I can’t think where I have used it before; I’m sure I have, though.

Andy Mackay – “Let It Be” is the same, that sort of line of thought.

Paul – That’s right, faith I suppose you’d call it.

Last updated on December 26, 2019

Lyrics

When your body is coming
Apart at the seams
And the whole thing's feeling low
You're convincing yourself
That there's nobody there, I know
I know how you feel

Like somebody has taken
The wheels off your car
When you had somewhere to go
Well it's annoying
Not going to get very far
I know
But somebody cares

There's always someone, somewhere
You should know by now
Always somebody who cares
It's happening day in, day out
Well you know by now
Always somebody who cares

If you don't know it
How will it find you?
How will we know your whereabouts?
But I know how you feel

I know how you feel

Like somebody has taken
The wheels off your car
When you had somewhere to go
Well it's frustrating
Not going to get very far
I know
But somebody cares

There's always someone, somewhere
You should know by now
Always somebody who cares
It's happening day in, day out
Well you know by now
Always somebody who cares

If you don't know it
How will it find you?
How will we know your whereabouts?
But I know how you feel

 

Somebody Who Cares:
Not sure if it makes for his greatest ‘1-2-3’ punch (I believe more in an ‘ebb-and-flow’ kinda thing where compositions might not be necessarily better than what’s on offer here, but can possibly make for a better opening salvo), but this really is like a lovely, hidden gem, almost unassuming in it’s mood, yet hitting the exact right button with a combination of taste, pure craftmanship and an unwavering pop sensibility.

 

Pure craftmanship is a very good way of describing much of Tug of war. An album like Band on the run might have been former out of inspiration and circumstances. Tug of war-were Paul re-unites with George Martin nog course have some creative inspiration behandling it -but also pure craftmanship from seasoned professionals.

 

Take It Away 5/5
The best song on the album. I always understood it as a sentimental journey to the fab-four's early days. The backing vocals by Linda and Eric are fantastic. A superb single release with the great "I'll Give You A Ring" as b-side.

Somebody Who Cares 4.5/5
Fantastic acoustic guitar playing here ... is that Paul?

 

It s Paul who delivers the Spanish guitar. Our man is some musician

 

Oh yes ... I love that intro and the solo

Also crystal clear in the mix thanks to George Martin

 

For me, Somebody Who Cares is a very enjoyable song that holds its own nicely in the middle of what is one of Paul's strongest LP sides.

 

Sorry, apparently I am too dumb to edit and quote properly....

 

No worries.
I once posted the same thing ten times thinking it hadn't gone through properly.

 

Somebody Who Cares

A beautiful mix of sounds with great arrangement, production, performance and an exquisite solo by Paul. The lyrics are telling us, no matter what, somebody will be a support in the complications of life because that person cares...

Lyrics:

When your body is coming
Apart at the seams
And the whole thing's feeling low
You're convincing yourself
That there's nobody there, I know
I know how you feel

Like somebody has taken
The wheels off your car
When you had somewhere to go
Well it's annoying
Not going to get very far
I know
But somebody cares

There's always someone, somewhere
You should know by now
Always somebody who cares
It's happening day in, day out
Well you know by now
Always somebody who cares

If you don't know it
How will it find you?
How will we know your whereabouts?
But I know how you feel

I know how you feel

Like somebody has taken
The wheels off your car
When you had somewhere to go
Well it's frustrating
Not going to get very far
I know
But somebody cares

There's always someone, somewhere
You should know by now
Always somebody who cares
It's happening day in, day out
Well you know by now
Always somebody who cares

If you don't know it
How will it find you?
How will we know your whereabouts?
But I know how you feel

Credits:

Produced by George Martin
Written by Paul McCartney
Acoustic Guitar, Arrangement, Backing Vocals, Spanish Guitar, Vocal by Paul McCartney
Backing Vocals by Linda McCartney
Electric Guitar, Synthesizer by Denny Laine
Bass by Stanley Clarke
Backing Vocals by Eric Stewart
Arrangements by George Martin
Drums, Percussion by Steve Gadd
Pan Pipes by Adrian Brett
Label: Parlophone
Release Date: April 26, 1982
Recorded at AIR Studios, Montserrat / AIR Studios, London
Length: 3:19 minutes

Paul's own words:

Andy Peebles BBC Radio 1 Interview (Starting at 10:53):



From the press kit, Paul McCartney in conversation with Stuart Grundy & Alexis Korner (starting at 6:00 minutes)

 

I completely understand why he couldn't tour, and I am sure I wouldn't have been able to in such a situation either. I think all three of them were genuinely stunned and deeply affected, it must have been one of the most awful events in their lives, if not the worst in many ways.

Paul obviously did what he needed to do and waited a decade to return to touring; it's just a shame that the fallout from that is that a lot of great music was never returned to (only a Beatle with that catalogue could almost ignore an album like 'Tug Of War' in live settings, with the exception of two songs).[/QUOTE]

I believe the decision not to tour was also down to family matters.

 

It's nice, but, the song means nothing to me.