ALBUM REVIEW: Paul McCartney - McCartney

    4,659 days after John met Paul, it was 9 April 1970, and advance copies of McCartney were landing on the desk of media outlets across the UK, along with a questionnaire filled with details about the album, Apple, and Paul's future in music. In the questionnaire, Paul made disparaging comments about The Beatles, their new manager Allen Klein, his assertion that no future Beatles records were planned, and an assertion that Lennon/McCartney would not be an active songwriting duo again in the future. When Daily Mirror journalist Don Short leaked the contents of the questionnaire the next day, the headline did the work for him: PAUL QUITS THE BEATLES was the cover story of the year. The Beatles had broken up. But of course, The Beatles themselves had known that for more than half a year - this album was recorded after Lennon privately announced he was quitting, and after Paul had gone through a depressive phase where he was unsure of his future. With a little help from his wife Linda (both with singing and encouragement), McCartney pushed out an entire album all on his own, and with its release just a week after The Beatles' split became public knowledge, it seems like the only fitting way to move on from the powerhouse that was The Beatles. Let it be known that McCartney is not a lavish or expansive album that can compete with Abbey Road, but what it certainly is is a cozy and comforting release from the pop genius, and one that was likely much needed after the shock of The Fab Four's scattering to the wind.

    McCartney is really a solo album in the most true sense of the word - Paul McCartney wrote, played, and produced everything on this album across three different studios (a good chunk was recorded at his home, even). Because of this self-produced atmosphere, it isn't as lavish as either future McCartney offerings or even other releases from The Beatles in 1970, but what it lacks in scale is made up for in feel and attitude. In that same questionnaire, Paul described the album in three words as "home, family, love", and it's this warmth that comes across brilliantly in the music. Everything about the album, even its more downbeat moments like "That Would Be Something" or the improvised instrumentals such as "Momma Miss America" carries an inviting feel and loving atmosphere, which feels even more apparent on the album's more realized and complete moments such as sweet pop cut "Every Night" or the broken-hearted jubilee on "Junk" carry a compassion in their sound, with Paul wearing his heart on his sleeve and in his voice. For a self-made album, it all sounds very good, too - you can certainly tell it's a self-made product, but everything flows well and comes together sweetly, whether Paul is rocking on "Oo You" or simply taking it easy on a song like "The Lovely Linda". More than anything, it helps McCartney sound like a very assured album, confident enough in its scale and in itself to not be a disappointment.

    Then of course there's the songs themselves, which keep up that feeling of "home, family, love". Granted, you could argue it's a bit padded out; an instrumental version of "Junk" doesn't serve much purpose other than to add an extra two-and-a-half minutes to the second half of the album, and some of the other improvised instrumentals don't excite nearly as much as Paul's realized tracks, but all of them serve to meet the same ends for McCartney. Even a subdued song like "The Lovely Linda" feels purposeful in the context of the album, and the instrumental songs do a good job at being at least somewhat entertaining, although "Hot as Sun/Glasses" and the almost epic "Kreen-Akrore" at the end of the album take home the gold in that department. McCartney's other songs, this time with vocals, are almost guaranteed to please. We have some Beatles leftovers here with "Junk" and the light-hearted but sweet "Teddy Boy", the latter of which finally has a decent rendition after the triteness of the Get Back recording. "Man We Was Lonely" makes a solid enough side closer while also containing a frankly lovely bridge from Paul and Linda. "Oo You" and its improvised lyrics are a fun rock number, and the climactic power of "Maybe I'm Amazed" makes for a rightfully powerful love song from Paul, up there with "Instant Karma!" as one of the first truly excellent post-Beatles songs.

    Sure, there were a handful of other side projects and solo albums before this one, but McCartney is the first solo album AB - After Beatles. McCartney would spent the first few years of his solo career in the critical bin, and it wouldn't be until Band on the Run that he climbed out of it, but time has been kind to albums like McCartney, and in more ways than one. Not only has this album been seen as a precursor to indie rock, but the cozy atmosphere and catchy pop numbers on this release have been acknowledged more and more as years pass. McCartney isn't a grand statement, but I frankly can't think of a better way for The Beatles' solo years to begin, nor can I think of a better debut outing from Macca.

RATING: ✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯✯

Listen to McCartney.