Me and Paul
Sitting here, 10:40, back hurting from Friday, and rain falling like it has most of the day. This week's skiing is not looking like a good bet, but I'll bet on it anyway, cause that's the kind of guy I am.
But all is not lost. I'm hanging out here in the living room with my old buddy Paul. Paul McCartney. Of course, he's on Great Performances on PBS, and I'm in my big blue chair, but we're hanging.
A few thoughts on Mac:
First, I'm always surprised at what a great musician he is. His sometimes sappy songs and forced rhymes obscure how fantastic his musicianship is. He's played bass, piano, melotron, drums, water glasses, and plenty of guitar tonight, and every bit sounds good. Of course, he's had plenty of time to practice, but still..... Geek alert: guitar-wise we're talking about his old slope-shouldered Epiphone with the pearl inlays and a really nice sounding Martin. The Epi sounds more like the Beatles.
Second, this guy is the history book. He's playing Heartbreak Hotel and 20-Flight Rock and the Missus says "He sounds like Elvis!" (I said, He always wanted to be Elvis!) Hey Paul, how did you record "Love Me Do"? Oh, like this. What was that sound on "Strawberry Fields Forever"? Oh, just this. How about the opening of "Band on the Run"? Well, then, that's the water glasses, isn't it? The newer songs aren't great (in spite of the gushing reviews) but they're still undeniably him.
Third, yeah, me and Paul have a history. The first album I ever bought (to go along with my dad's Johnny Cash records) was right after I heard this song on the radio - "8 Days A Week". I wasn't too old - probably about sixth grade - but right then I knew THAT was great music. EVERYTHING - the ringing guitars, the crescendos, perfect the harmonies, the youthful, optimistic lyrics, the final chord - EVERYTHING was right about it, and my bicycle took me down to a record store to see if I could find the song by this unknown group called the Beatles. (I wondered if the clerk had ever heard of them :-( He had.....) So what if John was singing the leads? I've still got my well-worn copy of The Beatles' Beat, imported from Germany on Odeon.
My first real concert (not to be confused with school bands or the Harvest Family Singers LIVE!!! at Pantano Baptist Church) was Wings. Me and my friend Tim Kiley rode our bikes to get tickets ($8) then, weeks later, walked down and caught the bus to the Tucson Community Center (mom and dad were going to pick us up). It was June 18, 1976, Paul's birthday. 8,000+ of us singing Happy Birthday to him. Lasers, fog, projection screens, man it was ROCK SHOW at the concertgebau! (google it). I was 14 and fully commited to becoming a rock star.
And then there was the famous "Sunday at Bayless" incident, when I met Mr. and Mrs. McCartney (and their kids) at the grocery store. He didn't seem to remember me from the concert, but was probably just playing it cool. Gave him a nod, he disappeared into canned goods, and when I got home no one believed me. They still don't. But Paul and I do.
Now that I'm old enough to know better, some of Mac's music sometimes grates on me. But hey, have YOU ever written a song as good as "Blackbird"?
Me neither.
OK, it's over and I need to go to bed. The show is called "Chaos and Creation at Abbey Road". Catch it if you can.
But all is not lost. I'm hanging out here in the living room with my old buddy Paul. Paul McCartney. Of course, he's on Great Performances on PBS, and I'm in my big blue chair, but we're hanging.
A few thoughts on Mac:
First, I'm always surprised at what a great musician he is. His sometimes sappy songs and forced rhymes obscure how fantastic his musicianship is. He's played bass, piano, melotron, drums, water glasses, and plenty of guitar tonight, and every bit sounds good. Of course, he's had plenty of time to practice, but still..... Geek alert: guitar-wise we're talking about his old slope-shouldered Epiphone with the pearl inlays and a really nice sounding Martin. The Epi sounds more like the Beatles.
Second, this guy is the history book. He's playing Heartbreak Hotel and 20-Flight Rock and the Missus says "He sounds like Elvis!" (I said, He always wanted to be Elvis!) Hey Paul, how did you record "Love Me Do"? Oh, like this. What was that sound on "Strawberry Fields Forever"? Oh, just this. How about the opening of "Band on the Run"? Well, then, that's the water glasses, isn't it? The newer songs aren't great (in spite of the gushing reviews) but they're still undeniably him.
Third, yeah, me and Paul have a history. The first album I ever bought (to go along with my dad's Johnny Cash records) was right after I heard this song on the radio - "8 Days A Week". I wasn't too old - probably about sixth grade - but right then I knew THAT was great music. EVERYTHING - the ringing guitars, the crescendos, perfect the harmonies, the youthful, optimistic lyrics, the final chord - EVERYTHING was right about it, and my bicycle took me down to a record store to see if I could find the song by this unknown group called the Beatles. (I wondered if the clerk had ever heard of them :-( He had.....) So what if John was singing the leads? I've still got my well-worn copy of The Beatles' Beat, imported from Germany on Odeon.
My first real concert (not to be confused with school bands or the Harvest Family Singers LIVE!!! at Pantano Baptist Church) was Wings. Me and my friend Tim Kiley rode our bikes to get tickets ($8) then, weeks later, walked down and caught the bus to the Tucson Community Center (mom and dad were going to pick us up). It was June 18, 1976, Paul's birthday. 8,000+ of us singing Happy Birthday to him. Lasers, fog, projection screens, man it was ROCK SHOW at the concertgebau! (google it). I was 14 and fully commited to becoming a rock star.
And then there was the famous "Sunday at Bayless" incident, when I met Mr. and Mrs. McCartney (and their kids) at the grocery store. He didn't seem to remember me from the concert, but was probably just playing it cool. Gave him a nod, he disappeared into canned goods, and when I got home no one believed me. They still don't. But Paul and I do.
Now that I'm old enough to know better, some of Mac's music sometimes grates on me. But hey, have YOU ever written a song as good as "Blackbird"?
Me neither.
OK, it's over and I need to go to bed. The show is called "Chaos and Creation at Abbey Road". Catch it if you can.
posted by David Hardesty | 9:47 PM
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