Paul Mccartney Favourite Albums

[Bonifacia Cramm]

TheBeatles, as with everything in their career, had some of the best album artwork of all time, ranging from the delightfully simplistic to some of the most gorgeously detailed frescos ever to grace the cardboard format. They are all equally iconic, except for maybe Beatles for Sale and Let It Be, by comparison no one really gives a shit about those ones, but yeah Paul had, like every other element of his career, set the bar extremely high for himself before he started his solo career. Fortunately for me McCartney has been churning out a hilariously large number of albums over the last 48 years so that means that a. there is more than enough for me to make into a list (though in all honesty I could have made two articles out of this to fudge the numbers but oh well) and b. it gives me a great breadth of quality to critique.

But this where you come in. What did you think of my list of the best and the worst Paul McCartney album covers? Was my list similar to how you would have ranked these covers, or would you have made significant changes? Which covers do you think I was too nice too or too harsh on? Leave and all comments down below, or contact me via Twitter, @McCartneypod, or drop us an email at paulmcca...@gmail.com, to let me know your thoughts.

Thank you so much for reading my poxy little, tin pot blog. Your constant support and kind words are always appreciated, and stick around for the next Paul or Nothing article just around the corner.

I agree with you completely on the beauty of the Wild Life album cover, I really want to get it in vinyl, both for the excellent (underrated) songs on the album, and the magnificent photo on the cover.

Never forget. This is a man who partied with Mick Jagger at the dawn of the 1960s, who met Elvis Presley, who has outlasted 15 British prime ministers and 13 American presidents, a man who has inspired everyone from Pete Townshend to Noel Gallagher, from Paul Weller to Ed Sheeran. McCartney was already famous when JFK was shot, already famous when men landed on the moon. This is a man who has lasted longer than Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, the Sex Pistols and Oasis, a man who at the age of 78 looks closer to 50.

McCartney is having a busy year, even if he has spent several months cocooned in his East Sussex farm. Current projects include High In The Clouds (an animation project that has been bought by Netflix), a special reissue of Flaming Pie and a 50th anniversary limited-edition release of his first solo album, McCartney.

The grounds of his farm in Sussex has been expanded somewhat since McCartney first bought it, with various ancillary buildings, outhouses, stable blocks and even a rotunda. Jacket by Paul Smith. paulsmith.com. Shirt by Balmain. balmain.com. Jeans by APC. apc.fr

We are very lucky these days in the music business because black artists, who have for so long been the backbone of good music, are recognised as such and consequently able to enjoy well-deserved success.

It was difficult when we first became vegetarian, because in those days it was easy to laugh at vegetarians, but it really makes me happy now to see the fantastic food available all over the world and the cool people who are adopting the lifestyle.

No one writes about the allure of domesticity with as much panache as McCartney. During lockdown his greatest pleasure was hiding away in a corner, putting the finishing touches on a new song. Jacket, shirt, trousers and shoes, all by Stella McCartney. stellamccartney.com

Can you confirm that the reason Lisa Simpson is a vegetarian is because you only agreed to star in The Simpsons if she stopped eating meat in perpetuity?

We were a bit worried that she would be a vegetarian for a week, then Homer would persuade her to eat a hot dog. The producers of the programme assured us that she would remain that way and they kept their word.

I often think of things like this, as there are a million of them. I remember making a guitar with George, going on hitchhiking holidays... I was a big hitchhiking fan, so I would persuade George and John, mainly, to come on holidays. So George and I hitchhiked one time to Wales. We went to Harlech and stayed in a little place there and played a little gig, just me and George. Then me and John went down to Reading, where my uncle had a pub. And we played a little gig there as The Nerk Twins. And then me and John hitchhiked to Paris... So all of these things, all these little things you might do as a kid, but when you start thinking about them in detail...

So fame nowadays is a big ballgame, where all of these issues come into play and I would not like to be trying to get more hits than Beyonc or more than Rihanna. I would not like to be playing that game.

Red Rose Speedway by Wings

I love Wings - so much. And on a recent dig through all the albums I retired my love of Band on the Run (still great, just a little too clean - and overplayed for me I guess) and decided to really focus in on this. Another sprawling mess of an album - but filled with glorious surprises. And after a slow start from Wings (on purpose - he was desperate to not make it a Beatles Part 2) this is where McCartney fully starts to feel out the voice of the new band. Writing for the band, as well as for himself. So bursting with ideas, some still so baffling. Brilliantly so.

I used to love blogging Top 10 lists. The great fun (and frustration) of a Top 10 list is that it\u2019s always as much about what you leave out as what you include. So here\u2019s the second attempt in a potential ongoing series. From time to time I\u2019m just going to jot down some of the albums I feel I could not live without. The ones that just absolutely wreck you; the records you want to both tell everyone about and keep entirely for yourself. The ones where you feel you\u2019re being let in on a secret. The records of your lifetime.

You might remember I shared a list of 10 albums I reckon I couldn\u2019t live without one other time.

Well, this time, I\u2019m going with a wee theme. The Beatles. But The Beatles AND their solo years. You get to hear them too. Linking to each album. And of course you should share your list, or the start of your list, or feedback around my list, in the comments below\u2026

Abbey Road by The Beatles

I wrote a bunch about the 2019 \u2018Super Deluxe\u2019 50th Anniversary edition, even a poem about the album turning 50. I Love This Record. It\u2019s quite possibly the album I\u2019ve listened to most in this lifetime. Easy contender, by virtue of it being the record I used when learning to play the drums. So there\u2019s that too. But this album just feels so accomplished, and correct - every damn time I hear it. They\u2019re all firing, on all cylinders. And there\u2019s all the backstory and weariness that we know from the docos too. This is the one that means the most to me.

Plastic Ono Band by John Lennon

It\u2019s a three-way tie for best solo album by a Beatle (sorry Ringo!) I\u2019ve been known to be a bit harsh about John Lennon when of course I love his contribution to 20th Century music. But I just can\u2019t quite get on board with all the hero-worship. Still, no issues with Plastic Ono Band being raved about. And some days, I\u2019m quite sure it\u2019s the very best of The Beatles-gone-solo. Bonus points too because Ringo is hugely involved, and his contribution is absolutely crucial.

George had something to prove - and boy did he nail the assignment. My Sweet Lord, Wah-Wah, Isn\u2019t It A Pity, and What Is Life, all in a row. Throw in the immaculate Dylan cover (If Not For You) and the moving title track. In terms of weilding a supergroup (and giving birth to another supergroup through the process - Derek and the Dominos essentially formed here) and issuing banger after banger this was a polite fuck-you to his former bandmates, especially the songwriters he was eventually in competition with; George was holding the middle finger up - even if he had the facade of preaching peace. He was saying \u2018get a load of these songs, many of them you didn\u2019t think were good enough\u2019. The album (a triple LP) is a beautiful monster record.

Ram by Paul & Linda McCartney

Paul and Linda\u2019s Ram is the third in the three-way tie, and sometimes it\u2019s my very favourite, and nearly my favourite album by anyone. I fell in love with this album as a kid, and then again in my first year away from home. Finding this in a chuckout bin on vinyl ($1 - can you believe it - still have that very copy, still plays a-okay!) was like finding a piece of home.

The Beatles (aka \u2018White Album\u2019) by The Beatles

I love the White Album for many reasons - and I love its sprawling messiness, as well as its announcement that the individuals within the group were already going their own way, off exploring within songs; no longer feeling like they were making anything for a stage ever, nor anything that needed to fit into a cohesive whole (as on the nearly-theme album, Sgt. Pepper). It\u2019s also the very best of the recent reissues, its enormous anniverary edition for the 50th Anniversary is the most compelling of the latest glut of Beatles re-prints - not just filled with the same song over and over again, but featuring interesting demos, all in one place finally. A real nice-to-have.

Revolver by The Beatles

Someone else would think I was crazy for only picking three Beatles albums - but these days I\u2019m far more taken with the 70s and 80s material that George and Paul offered, and the very best of John\u2019s output (which includes his very early 80s material, when you factor in some leftovers). But I can\u2019t not include Revolver. It is immaculate. So tight, and yet it goes all over the place too. The influence of Indian music, and Dylan, and drugs, and still the idea that some of these songs could live on a stage and morph and change - possibly. Not a single dud track. I dare you to find one.

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