tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7621501513493185029.post693455073701279579..comments2024-03-27T12:50:36.135-04:00Comments on Everybody's Dummy: Paul McCartney 18: Flowers In The Dirtwardohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07825405583474881509noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7621501513493185029.post-6164705877705354642020-10-12T21:13:17.164-04:002020-10-12T21:13:17.164-04:00I saw the promotional video for this, called “Put ...I saw the promotional video for this, called “Put it There”, during a PBS pledge drive (obviously, I am a Boomer). It showed the band rehearsing songs for the tour. It worked on me. I was sold. This is the best Paul had done since “Band on the Run”.<br /><br /> I was surprised to read that different teams of producers worked on the songs. Unlike you, I think the album is remarkably cohesive. I don’t find it too “80’s”, unlike the previous two, since the electronics aren’t the central featuring, but added for coloring instead. The exceptions come at the end of the album. “Motor of Love”, the weakest track, comes with a sappy backing track you might expect of Paul’s wimpiest love songs, coupled with a clumsy theological metaphor about the Prime Mover being the Motor of Love. However, despite myself, I like “Ou est le Soleil?”, above average for an 80’s electronic jam.<br /><br />The rest of the songs are quite good. Paul, for the first time in ages, seems to be paying more attention to both music and lyrics. One would David Foster from his ruination of Chicago and Gordon Lightfoot, to cater to Paul’s most maudlin tendencies. Instead, “We Got Married” is actually nice. Elvis Costello bumps up the sophistication level quite a bit, most notably on “That Day is Done” and “My Brave Face” (although Paul was hardly “unaccustomed to the luxury life”). “This One” is nice and jaunty, “Rough Ride” a little spooky. “Distractions” was the only song not performed live in the PBS special. Instead, it got a music video, probably because its production was too elaborate. “Figure of Eight” borders on being a sort of “Ram”-ish throwaway lyrically, but it’s catchy. (However, “Party Party”, shown in rehearsal, is – a B-side, at best). The song that really sold me, however, is “Put it There”. The lyrics are more than serviceable – they are truly moving. Paul says so much with so little, both in words and music. This really turned me back into a fan. The whole album would make me pay more attention to McCartney from here on out. <br /><br />trfesokhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12631886869696528704noreply@blogger.com