Albums I Dig...Tug of War

Paul McCartney is my favorite musician of all time.

It really is as simple as that.  It can never be overstated what he has done for music, and his effect on pop culture.  He came into the music scene right when the world needed him, John, George and Ringo.  And it was with those 3 band mates that he reshaped how we listen to and perceive music forever.  I can't imagine what would have happened to music if John had never met Paul...

But as everyone knows when the 60's came to an end, so did The Beatles, and for the first time, all 4 Beatles went on their own...a refreshing, but also scary challenge for all of them.  Me being a McCartney fan I dove into his post-Beatles career the furthest and enjoyed gems such as his debut McCartney (in which he played every single instrument), Ram, Red Rose Speedway and Band on the Run (the latter two with his band Wings).

Paul McCartney & Wings

The great thing about McCartney's solo career is that he is always reinventing himself.  After the Beatles he released a real deal solo album (McCartney), then decided to start another band...Wings.  He proved that lightening could in fact strike twice, and was awarded hit single after hit single throughout the 70s.  As well as recording one of the greatest albums of the 70s, Band on the Run.

McCartney & Wings' Masterpiece

But what interested me most was how he reacted professionally to the death of his best friend John Lennon.  I say professionally in the sense as a musician...he disbanded Wings and spent his time on his first official solo release after the death of his friend and his band...

1982's Tug of War.

Possibly McCartney's greatest solo album sans-Wings.  Immediately the front cover sparked something in me, the colors and the look of concentration on McCartney's face, completely in tune with the music coming from the headphones.  One thing I also wasn't a huge fan of in the 80's music was...well 80's music.  I believe that McCartney did a great job of not making the album just an "80's album".  Sure there are some 80's sounding beats and synthesizer here and there, but it is McCartney's melody that changes everything...his strongest weapon.

The album literally starts in a tug of war, and then gently slips into McCartney on an acoustic guitar crooning away.  The title song Tug of War is his introduction to a new decade and he has never sounded more confident.  You can feel that the song is about to explode at any moment, and he masterfully holds back just a little longer then you'd think.  When all the instruments finally come in, you know that McCartney is back and ready to reclaim the top of the charts.  Another weapon that McCartney also had at his disposal was the legendary producer George Martin, who always orchestrates brilliant string arragements, and this song is no different, nodding in and bowing out in with complete grace throughout the song.

The second track (Take It Away) takes no time at all to start and begins with another legendary McCartney bass riff and soon slips into a full on McCartney master class in melody.  If this song doesn't have you tapping your foot and singing some kind of backing vocal, you have no soul and might want to get your hearing checked.  It never ceases to amaze me how McCartney seems to so easily write what seem like simple beautiful little melodies, and then you try and deconstruct them and realize this is a genius at work.  Everyone's favorite drummer Ringo comes back and lays down another great "lets get down to business" drum part.  Again this song surprises with a nice horn section at the end that brings to mind Got To Get You Into My Life off of The Beatles' Revolver.

The next track (Somebody Who Cares) starts with a beautiful acoustic guitar and again takes the album in another direction reminiscint of Band on the Run.  This song has again those classic lyrics that are meant to inspire and comfort, which is another weapon that McCartney uses masterfully.  He was never one to slip into the "rock n roll" attitude of needing to shock and disgust or put on a persona of not caring, being loud and crude.  It was this refusal to conform to a rock n roll lifestyle that in itself is quite bad ass.  He knew the power of family and love were stronger then anything else could ever be.  This song only further proves this point.  Keep an ear out for a beautiful acoustic guitar solo...

The next track is one of my favorites on this album...the beautifully funky duet between McCartney and Stevie Wonder (and not the last on the album) that is What's That You're Doing.  A six minute plus all out jam that has Wonder and McCartney trading vocal riffs and scat scaling brilliance.  This is a song to turn up and go crazy too.  This song only further proves McCartney's genius at crafting songs with so many different styles and attitudes.

Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder

Let's just recap the first four tracks...
Tug Of War-Arena rocker
Take It Away-Sing-a-long pop song
Somebody Who Cares-Acoustic ballad
What's That You're Doing-All out funk rocker

...and that is just the first four tracks.

Onward.

Next is a song that wouldn't be easy for anyone to write, not even the great McCartney.

Here Today is Paul McCartney's moving tribute to his friend John Lennon.  It is simple in its chord structure and melody, but far from simple when it comes to being able to sing it.  Whenever McCartney sings this song live he always seems to get a lump in his throat, which is moving for two reasons, one that you are seeing a man sad about the loss of his friend, and two that it still upsets him 30 years later.  This is vintage McCartney, and one of his most profound songs.

Lennon/McCartney

The mood is quickly shifted with the next track called Ballroom Dancing.  This is a song that showcases McCartney's often overlooked vocal ability.  He is EVERYWHERE on this song, multiple harmonies, screaming, crooning, everything.  It is an interesting idea for a song, that "ballroom dancing" made the narrator of the song, the man that he is today...but just as you think you are starting to understand the idea of the song, at 2:26 the song changes the tempo and melody at a breakneck shift.  Where that riff came from I'll never know, but it is just another nod to McCartney being able to craft an awesomely complex pop song.

The Pound Is Sinking is somewhat of a look at the money issues of the times (1982) but it also a stand out on the album.  The guitars swirl along with McCartney's double tracked voiced (at times) and again McCartney changes tempos, and melodies at will and with great ease.  McCartney's grasp on pop music is astounding.  He throws everything in this song, whether its a waltz infused verse, or an all out scream vocal avalanche that would make Queen blush.  But he always ends where he begins, and this song ends just as strong as it begins.

Ah Wanderlust...probably my favorite track on the album, and what George Martin called probably his favorite McCartney vocal of all time (Beatles or solo).  It starts with something almost Billy Joel-esque, which is cool since Joel is a monster Beatles fan, but then goes into a complete master class on vocal ability and some of the most precious melodies this world has ever heard.  If anyone ever doubted McCartney's talent after The Beatles, this is one of the first songs you need to have them sit down to and let sweep them away.  This song is magical.  This song is perfect.

Get It sounds very much like a track from his debut solo album McCartney.  Carl Perkins lends his vocal to this nice little country inspired duet.  A toe-tapping delight of a song.  McCartney uses his voice as percussion again reminiscint of his early solo days, and the guitars tangle together in a beautiful little melody.

Be What You See (Link) is a gorgeous and haunting little vocal piece, that I wish lasted longer.  McCartney is always experimenting and this piece is truly beautiful.  After that little intro of sorts the band kicks into full force with Dress Me Up Like a Robber.  A nice jam that has every instrument going full force and standing out in different little moments.  Again McCartney's voice is all over the place and the riff the band lays down cuts right to the chase.  Another classic spin on the love song courtesy of Paul McCartney.  Here is the full song...Be What You See (Link) + Dress Me Up Like a Robber.

The final track is probably the most famous that the album produced, as well as its biggest hit, Ebony And Ivory.  Stevie Wonder joins McCartney again, but this time on a ballad.  These two should really write an album together, because their voices complement each other really well, at times it is hard to tell who is who, and that is quite impressive, seeing how both of these musicians have astoundingly good voices.

This album put McCartney back on the radar for most critics and fans alike.  This was another rebirth and renewal in the life and music of Paul McCartney.  I like to think that Paul McCartney channeled his love for his dear friend John Lennon throughout the album.  It is brilliant to think that McCartney turned tragedy into love and took all that he learned from his experiences as a musician into one of his best albums.