POLL: How do you rate Paul McCartney & Wings "Back To The Egg" album?

There are some nice songs on this album and I wish he would give a lot of solo stuff a chance in concert again. At this late point though I'm sure that isn't going to happen. I have grown tired of the Beatles jukebox shows.

 

He played "Getting Closer" during the UK tour in 1979. In 2012, Costelllo praised this very song, which I like so much!

 

Love it!

Although I take the needle off right after "The Broadcast"

 

In that era, "Wings Over America" should've been enough to stave off the "wimp label" for a while, methinks. Nothing wimpy about that album!

I don't think "Egg" was Macca's attempt to alter his alleged wimpy label - I think he was just rolling with the punk/New Wave times and trying to be current. The man put out a dance song and an intensely wimpy Christmas tune the same year - I think those make it tough to argue he was playing macho in 1979...

 

Lower tier for me. I voted that, read all of the posts and wavered for a second and then thought about how slickly packaged the album was when it came out and how utterly disappointed I was when I listened to it and stuck to my assessment. Yeah, it's got the handful of songs I like but rarely do I ever play them. A telling sign is that probably the only reason I own the cd version is that it had A Wonderful Christmas Time on it.

 

Good, but not an album I'd recommend. There aren't any revelations on this one. Paul rocks effectively in new-wave style on some tracks, and then presents some engaging low-key numbers that the Mills Brothers could have done justice to. I enjoy that, it's Paul at his versatile best. But the "Rockestra" songs are Paul at his most annoyingly self-important, and the lyrics overall aren't up the level he had established with London Town, another album that relies less on hit-making hooks than engaging melodies and production, albeit more successfully.

If you are a Paul fan like me, it's one you want and will probably enjoy as I do, but it's not something to use as Exhibit A in "this is why I love this guy's music...and you should, too."

 

A pretty solid effort in my opinion.

Lyrically, it could have used some input to beef it up a bit but that aside it's a McCartney album that has really grown on me since it was released. The Broadcast however I think is a waste of time and unnecessary. Daytime Nighttime Suffering in its' place would've helped a lot.

Get the UK vinyl!

 

This is the only McCartney/Wings album I have consistently played since release without tiring of it for some amount of time, or shelving permanently. That's not to say there aren't still two or three tracks I skip, like Arrow Thru Me. But by far this McCartney release has had more plays than any other, and I have them all.

 

Paul has ALWAYS been extremely versatile and even to this day he sort of seems unintentionally inspired by modern technology or trends. Critics always take this and twist it into "Paul was feeling like he better change his image so he did this." Although those are just critics assumptions. If Paul is that concerned about those sort of things, he probably wouldn't have taken all the twists, turns and chances he's been making his whole career. Or he would sit back, do nothing and just say "I'm Beatle Paul, I'm Awesome".

I always take those comments from people as "I don't like his music or he bothers me, so I'm going to assume he's super simple and is so worried about what everyone thinks" That's the image the general media/public like to paint of Paul.

We are saying what a rocking album Back to the Egg is, despite the fact that it has "We're Open Tonight", "Arrow Through Me", "The Broadcast", "After the Ball/Million Miles", "Baby's Request", "Love Awake" & "Winter Rose", that's an AWFUL lot of mellow ballads for such a rockin' record. I do agree that where it rocks, it really rocks, I don't see him trying to be 'more rocky' to seem less wimpy. If he was worried about being a wimp, none of those songs would have been on the album and especially not released as singles.

Personally, I love the album.

 

Better than London Town, which I rate "unlistenable - avoid at all costs" but still a sad distance from the highs of WOA or V&M. Lower tier.

 

I wish he did more albums like it. It's sort of the RAM of the Wings catalogue.

 

He's stoned, moody and magnificent on Ram. He's mostly just stoned on Back To The Egg.

 

I gave this a "pretty solid effort" and probably should've given it the highest rating. I got this record shortly after it came out on my 9th birthday. Personal nostalgia aside, I love it because, as McCartney describes the White Album, it's very varied. Some of it absolutely rocks, "Arrow Through Me" could've been on Michael Jackson's "Off the Wall" (which is the only complimentary thing I'll say about MJ as it relates to anything Beatles-related), and I was always fascinated by the medly. It's just a cool, underrated record. But Denny, Lawrence, and Steve's contributions cannot be overlooked. Not to mention the Rockestra.

 

I really like it, especially Getting Closer, Rockestra Theme, Old Siam Sir, and Arrow Through Me. I wouldn't try to convince anyone that they are top tier Macca songs, but when I hear them, I enjoy them.

 

Solid Effort.

 

I can't believe nobody mentioned "Spin It On"! I always loved that one.
Loved this album because I listened to it when it was played in its entirety the night before its release on the radio in '79, and I even got a copy of it after I made a crappy cassette recording of the radio broadcast

 

Agreed - if Paul wasn't still stuck with the 60's notion of non-LP singles and had that song plus Goodnight Tonight instead of the album filler, it would get moved up in the pecking order.

 

I gave it a solid effort... worth recommending. Glad to see it's getting highly appraised in this poll. Looking back on Paul's career, it is one of his best. It's also one of those albums that gets a bit of a cult following and soon all the young hip cool cats will be spinning "Spin It On" at their slumber parties.

 

This is an album that I feel has been underrated, but I love this Wings lineup. Also some good rockers from Paul here.

 

I think a lot of my vote (top tier) is nostalgia. I used to have to save up my allowance to buy records, and for London Town I think it lost out to Queen Jazz or Out of the Blue that year. (Maybe a Kiss album as well.) So this was the first McCartney album I bought, age 11. Getting Closer in particular I just loved.

Objectively, looking back, it is not really so strong. Closer, Rockestra, and Arrow are really the only outstanding tracks. But it's my sentimental favorite. (Band on the Run towers over it in reality.)

 

I put BACK TO THE EGG right in the middle of Paul's work. He's done plenty better, but also had a few that aren't as good as it.

 

A good album. Side one is nearly perfect except for the Denny song that I don't care for.

Side two isn't as good as side one and is kind of listless and boring.

 

It's my favorite Wings album.

 

Nice to see this is one of Paul's popular albums.

 

It may be my dark horse pick from Pauls catalog, although I really like Wildlife and Driving Rain also, which sets me apart from many here.

I can understand why some people don't care for Wildlife I guess, but like Driving Rain, I don't understand any dislike for Back To The Egg.
Back To the Egg still sounds fresh to me, with a nice variety of material . I even enjoy " The Broadcast" for what it is.
I will admit to being underwhelmed with "Rockestra Theme", then and now .

Next to Wildlife , I'm looking forward to the Back To The Egg archive issue, possibly because I never got it on CD, only the original album, so I haven't played it into the ground...or...off the ground.