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Paul McCartney: Back to the Egg

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s


Label: MPL Communications Inc.
Released: 1979.05.24
Time:
 51:02
Category: Pop/Rock
Producer(s): Paul McCartney, Chris Thomas
Rating: **........ (2/10)
Media type: CD
Web address: www.paulmccartney.com
Appears with: The Beatles
Purchase date: 2001.12.31
Price in €: 7,99



 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Reception (P.McCartney) - 1:07
[2] Getting Closer (P.McCartney) - 3:22
[3] We're Open Tonight (P.McCartney) - 1:28
[4] Spin It On (P.McCartney) - 2:13
[5] Again and Again and Again (D.Laine) - 3:34
[6] Old Siam, Sir (P.McCartney) - 4:11
[7] Arrow Through Me (P.McCartney) - 3:36
[8] Rockestra Theme (P.McCartney) - 2:35
[9] To You (P.McCartney) - 3:13
[10] After the Ball / Million Miles (P.McCartney) - 4:00
[11] Winter Rose / Love Awake (P.McCartney) - 4:58
[12] The Broadcast (P.McCartney) - 1:30
[13] So Glad to See You Here (P.McCartney) - 3:22
[14] Baby's Request (P.McCartney) - 2:50

Additional tracks only on CD:
[15] Daytime Nighttime Suffering (P.McCartney) - 3:21
[16] Wonderful Christmas Time (P.McCartney) - 3:48
[17] Rudolfph the Red-Nosed Reggae (J.Marks) - 1:50

Please note there will be a 10 second break between original and bonus tracks.

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


PAUL MCCARTNEY - Bass, Piano, Back Cover, Vocals
PETE TOWNSHEND - Guitar
GARY BROOKER - Piano
DENNY LAINE - Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
HANK MARVIN - Guitar
LAURENCE JUBER - Guitar
JOHN PAUL JONES - Bass, Piano
NEEMOI ACQUAYE - Percussion
OVIND ANDERSEN - Vocals
TONY ASHTON - Keyboards
JOHN BONHAM - Drums
TONY CARR - Percussion
HOWIE CASEY - Horn, Saxophone
RAY COOPER - Percussion
TONY DORSEY - Trombone, Horn
DAVID GILMOUR - Guitar
STEVE HOLLY - Drums
STEVE HOWARD - Horn
KEVIN JONES - Drums
RONNIE LANE - Bass
LINDA MCCARTNEY - Keyboards, Back Cover
MORRIS PERT - Percussion
THADEUS RICHARD - Horn, Wind
BRUCE THOMAS - Bass
KENNY JONES - Drums
SPEEDY ACQUAYE - Percussion

PHIL MCDONALD - Engineer
JOHN SHAW - Photography
MARK VIGARS - Assistant Engineer

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


1984 LP Columbia PC-36057
1989 CD Capitol C2-48200
1989 CS Capitol C4-48200
1998 CD EMI 89136
1996 CD Alliance 48200
1991 CS Alliance 48200
2000 CD EMI 65511
2001 CD Capitol 20222



Back to the Egg was Paul McCartney's attempt to get back to rock & roll after the soft-rock of London Town. Assembling a new lineup of Wings, McCartney led the group through a set of his most undistinguished songs, ranging from the forced arena-rock of "Old Siam Sir" to the formulaic adult contemporary pap of "Arrow Through Me" — and those are two of the more memorable cuts on the record. Part of the problem is the weak sound of the record and Wings' faceless performances, but the true problem is the songs, which have no spark whatsoever. On the basis of Back to the Egg, it's no wonder that McCartney returned to solo recordings after its relative failure.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All-Music Guide, © 1992 - 2001 AEC One Stop Group, Inc.



The promising career of this final edition of Wings was cut short in 1980 when Paul McCartney, perhaps just a bit too elated to be returning to Japan for his first performances since the Beatles' legendary visit 14 years earlier, was arrested by Japanese customs officials with a substantial stash of marijuana in his luggage. But though it's anchored by the muscular drumming of Steve Holly and the solid guitar work of the classically trained Laurence Juber (who's since carved out a comfortable niche as studio ace and innovative acoustic stylist), it's too often McCartney's songwriting that's the band's weakest link. Ostensibly upbeat numbers such as "Spin It On," "Getting Closer," and the big rock of "Old Siam, Sir" just can't overcome the MOR leanings of much of the rest, including "Arrow Through Me." The star-laden "Rockestra Theme" (featuring Pete Townshend, Ronnie Wood, John Bonham, John Paul Jones, Dave Gilmour, and Ronnie Lane) is rollicking fun, but still not enough to surmount the artistic Battle of the Two Pauls; the Little Richard-inspired rocker and the Manilow-esque balladeer who too often gets the upper hand here. This CD also features the strong B-side "Daytime Nighttime Suffering," a track which may unintentionally comment on the other two "bonus" cuts here, the misfired McCartney holiday singles "Wonderful Christmastime" and "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reggae."

Jerry McCulley, Amazon.com



As you may recall, the last time we came upon Paul McCartney, pilot of Wings, he'd fashioned a thirteen-song offering called London Town, whose mildly tuneful title track was the epitome of the now-familiar, latter-day McCartney style of songwriting.

People pass by me on my imaginary street
Ordinary people it's impossible to meet
Holding conversations that are always incomplete
Well, I don't know....

Gliding along on the wheels of a catchy little melody, we were scarcely into his pale narrative when McCartney began laying out the limitations of the tale he was to tell. Still, the melody was infectious and the possibilities sufficiently promising, so we went along for the ride on the odd chance of meeting one of those ordinary folks he was crooning about. And, at length, we did—sort of.

Out of work again the actor entertains his wife
With the same old stories of his ordinary life
Maybe be exaggerates the trouble and the strife
Well, I don't know....

Thus unfolded another thoroughly unsatisfying Paul McCartney song on the archetypal Wings LP. London Town was an irritating mélange of lyric fragments, squandered melodies and clever but half-assed arrangements, the whole unrealized mess packaged with a slick, unctuous flair that would have reduced an idea like "Eleanor Rigby" to a two-line roundelay.

Since his solo debut in 1970 with the casual, albeit totally original McCartney, this ex-Beatle has been lending his truly prodigious talents as a singer, songwriter, musician and producer to some of the laziest records in the history of rock & roll. With the exception of Band on the Run and some relatively cohesive material on Venus and Mars, McCartney's work with Wings has proven to be as scattershot as it is puerile, each abortive rock snippet and silly love song feeding the mounting bewilderment about his direction (or utter lack of it) as an artist. Who, one felt compelled to ask, is in charge here? Back to the Egg provides the final, obvious answer: no one.

After ten Capitol albums with wife Linda, stalwart Denny Laine and various incarnations of Wings, McCartney jumped to Columbia last year in a multimillion-dollar deal that many thought would represent a new era for him musically. Despite the addition of Steve Holly on drums and Laurence Juber on guitar, Back to the Egg is just about the sorriest grab bag of dreck in recent memory.

Herewith, a sample of the words from the single, "Getting Closer": "I'm getting closer, my Salamander/When will we be there? Oh no, don't answer." Mercifully, no lyric sheet is provided, but a throwaway scrap (what other kind of McCartney lyric is there?) from the above tune about a "radio playing a song with a point" sets an ironic tone for the entire LP. A veritable slide show of dead-end flights of fancy and yesterday's dross, Back to the Egg doesn't contain one cut that's the least bit fleshed out or brought to any logical conclusion. In place of well-framed songs, we get an irritating display of disjointed images and unfocused musical snapshots. Titles are abundant (fourteen in all), but the content is largely regurgitant. "We're Open Tonight" bears a strong resemblance to London Town's "I'm Carrying," while "Winter Rose/Love Awake" recalls "Power Cut" on Red Rose Speedway. "After the Ball/Million Miles" is the obligatory tip of the McCartney hat to English music-hall tradition, but it's vastly inferior to even such half-baked fluff as Venus and Mars' "You Gave Me the Answer."

The instrumentation on Back to the Egg is so scrambled that any serious criticism would be ridiculous, except to note that the much-heralded "Rockestra Theme" (featuring the playing of Pete Townshend, Ronnie Lane, Kenney Jones, John Bonham, Gary Brooker, David Gilmour, John Paul Jones, et al.) is a flat affair cooked up around one hackneyed riff. Likewise, the runaway bass that made the disco single, "Goodnight Tonight" (absent from the album), a curiosity is in ample supply here, but not nearly as inventive or powerful. Instead, McCartney just retraces his tired old patterns.

"Arrow through Me" illustrates why Paul McCartney's output is rarely covered anymore by other artists. At first pleasing to the ear, this love lament soon becomes so flaky that no other performer would dare stand naked with it. Indeed, the only track deserving of special mention is Denny Laine's "Again and Again and Again," a somewhat engaging rock segment that could have been built into a comprehensible song. The rest of the record sounds like a rude mixture of subbasement tapes and prose torn at random from the Yellow Pages, interspersed for no discernible reason with—no kidding—some spoken excerpts from John Galsworthy's The Little Man and Ian Hay's The Sport of Kings.

In keeping with the fractured nature of Back to the Egg, I offer the reader a multiple-choice ending to this review, with the suggestion that he or she consider combining all of the following:

(A) This album is nothing more than a slipshod demo by an aimless band. If it had arrived unsolicited in the offices of Columbia, it would have been returned in the next mail with a terse "No thank you."

(B) I can think of few other prominent rock musicians who'd have signed their names to this kind of drivel. McCartney's gross indulgence is matched only by his shameless indolence, and Back to the Egg represents the public disintegration of a consistently disappointing talent.

(C) Paul McCartney (how does this man sleep?) has been plagiarizing his own material for years now, and he's finally run out of recycled ideas. With a few key word changes, the lyrics that began this piece could end it on an appropriately grim autobiographical note.

(D) Where have you gone, Emmitt Rhodes? A nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

TIMOTHY WHITE - RS 298
© Copyright 2001 RollingStone.com
 

 L y r i c s


GETTING CLOSER

Say You Don't Love Him, My Salamander.
Why Do You Need Him?
Oh No, Don't Answer, Oh No.
I'm Getting Closer,
I'm Getting Closer To Your Heart.

Keeping Ahead Of The Rain On The Road,
Watching My Windscreen Wipers.
Radio Play Me A Danceable Ode,
Cattle Beware Of Snipers.

When Will You See Me, My Salamander?
Now Don't Try To Tell Me
Oh No, Don't Answer, Oh No.

L'm Getting Closer,
I'm Getting Closer To Your Heart.

Hitting The Chisel And Making A Joint,
Glueing My Fingers Together.
Radio Play Me A Song With A Point,
Sailor Beware Of Weather.

L'm Getting Closer, My Salamander.
Well When Will We Be There?
Ah No, Don't Answer, Oh No.

L'm Getting Closer,
I'm Getting Closer To Your Heart.
I'm Getting Closer To Your Heart.
I'm Getting Closer To Your Heart.


WE'RE OPEN TONIGHT

We're open tonight for fun
So bring all your friends, come on.
We're open tonight, come one, come all.
We're opening all our doors,
We're clearing back all the floors.
We're open tonight, come one, come all.
Ooh. Whoo.
Come one, come all.
We're open tonight.


SPIN IT ON

(This is it)
Spin it on, don't stop. Take it back to the top.
'Cos I gotwhole lotta love for you
I wanna spin it on. Spin it on!
 
Off to the flicks with the piddle in her nicks, to the fair with her hair in curlers.
Their cousins didn't get all down to the pleasure dome
Their cousins didn't send their night in an aircraft hanger.
Memories . . .!
 

Spin it on, don't stop. Take it back to the top.
'Cos I got whole lotta love for you
That's why I wanna spin it on. Spin it on! Spin it on!

Spin it on!

Spin it on, don't stop. Take it back to the top
'Cos I got whole lotta love for you
That's why I wanna spin it on. Spin it on!

Off to the fields with a missionary's zeal for the life of the wife of the farmer
Their cousins didn't get all down to the billiard hall
Their cousins didn't spend their time on a pinball table.
Memories . . .!

Spin it on, don't stop. Take it back to the top
'Cos I got whole lotta love for you.
I wanna spin it on. Spin it on!
Spin it on! Spin it on! I wanna spin it on! I wanna spin it on!
Spin it on! Don't Stop! Take it back to the top!
'Cos I got a whole lotta for you!


AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN

Now you don't wanna be the little woman
No you don't want to be the little woman
I love. No, no, no, no. I love.
Now you don't wanna stay in my school
You don't wanna be the one that's cool.
You don't wanna be the little woman I love.
You're up all night and we can let it hang out right. (Yeah!)
I said good-bye to all my expectations the day you walked out of my life.

Winter time is coming now
Gimme a sign if you can somehow.
Make it clear where you're heading for
Will I see you someday at my door?
Taking it all into consideration
Love's a game I never win.
I've been in very simil'r situations,
Again and again and again.

Oh, no. Now you don't wanna be the little woman
No, you don't want to be the little woman
I love. No, no, no, no. I love.
Now you don't wanna stay in my home
You just wanna be on your own.
You don't wanna be the little woman I love.
Take it away!

- guitar solo -

Ah, yeah!
Well things were fine all the summer long
Then things changed, so where did we go wrong?
We can run but we cannot hide
In the greener grass on the other side.
Taking it all into consideraton,
Love's a game I never win.
I've been in very simil'r situations,
Again and again and again.

* repeat until fade * Again and again and again...


OLD SIAM SIR

In a village in Old Siam, sir, there's a lady who's lost her way.
In an effort to find a man, sir, she found herself in the old UK.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.
In a village in old east end, sir, she mea fellow who made her real.
Took her rushes to show, this man, sir,
He met her dad at the wedding meal.
- guitar solo -

In a letter from Old Siam, sir, came an awful tale of woe.
She decided the only answer was to get off a pile of dough.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.
When a relative told her man, sir, he directed her not to stay.
In a village in Old Siam, sir, there's a lady who'se lost her way.

- guitar solo -

In a village in Old Siam, sir, there's a lady who'se lost her way.
In an effort to find a man, sir, she found herself in the old UK.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.
She waited 'round in Walthamstowe, she skated 'round in Scarborough.

+ repeat first two lines of last verse, then repeat until fade:
Walthamstowe . . . Scarborough . . .


ARROW THROUGH ME

Ooh, baby, you couldn't have done a worse thing to me
If you'da taken an arrow and run it right through me. ooh.
Ooh baby, a bird in the hand is worth two flyin'
But when it came to love, I'd knew you'd be lyin'.
It could have been a finer thing,
Would have been a major attraction
With no other thing: offering a note of distraction.
come on, get up, get under way, bring your love.
Ooh baby, you wouldn't have found a more down hero
If you'da started at nothing and counted to ze-e-ro.
oo-oo-oo.
Ooh baby, you couldn't have done a worse thing to me
If you'da taken an arrow and run it right through me.
It could have been a finer thing
Would have been amajor attraction
If no other thing than offering a no love distraction
Come on, get up, get under way, bring your love.
Ooh baby, you wouldn't have found a more down hero
If you'da started at nothing and counted the ze-e-ro.


ROCKESTRA THEME

With a bird in the hand he says: why no dinner?


TO YOU

Well if the same thing happened to you
Would you still put me through what you put me through?
If it happened to you. What if it happened to you?
What if it happened a man kept shaking you down
But you can't get a ride to his side of town?
If it happened to you. What if it happened to you?

What if happened to you? Keep it out of my shoes.
And if you're stepping on toes, keep it outta my nose.

'Cos if the same thing happened to me
Well, it won't be as bad as it used to be.
If it happened toyou. What if it happened to you?
What if it happened to you?
What if it happened to you?
What if it happened to you, too?

What if it happens to you?
What if it happens to you?

What if happens to you? Keep it out of my shoes.
and if you're stepping on toes, keep it outta my nose.
 

'Cos if the same thing happened to me
Well, it won't be as bad as it used to be.
If it happened to you. What if it happened to you?
What if it happened to you?
What am I going to do?
What if it happened to you?
Well, what if happened to you?

* repeat until fade: What if happened to you?


AFTER THE BALL/MILLION MILES

After the ball, after the ball, you were the one out in the hall
You were the one, the one who would love me, after the ball.
After the ball, after the ball, you were the one out in the hall
You were the one, the one who would love me, after the ball.
 
Well, I arrived, looked around but the room was full of strangers
Nowhere was a freindly face to be found.
Later on, I awoke, but the party it was over
There you were waiting to bring me 'round.

How many million miles, day-oh?
How many million miles, day-oh?
When I get up, up, up in the morning, whoa! Lord I know.
When I look up, up, up in the morning, whoa! Lord I know.
How many million miles, day-oh?
How many million miles, day-oh?
How many million miles, day-oh?


WINTER ROSE/LOVE AWAKE

All through the summer I have followed you around
Bringing a rose for the winter that's coming
Now the snow is on the ground.
Winter rose. Winter rose.
Shine your light in the air.
Winter rose. Winter rose.
Skine your light everywhere.
Love awake. Toll the bell.
Tell the world how glad you are.
Love awake to the day
When we can make our love awake.

Lord knows we need it any time we can get it.
But if we forget it every now and then.
But if you don't feel it, later on you'll regret it.
And if we let it we could set it free, you and me.

Love awake. Tone the bell.
Tell the world how glad you are.
Love awake to the day
When we can make our love awake.

Snowfalls in the winter,
Spring brings the rain.
But it's never to long before the summer comes again.
It always comes again!
Love awake.


THE BROADCAST

We're got a chance and we'll take it;
We may win or we may lose;
We may even have to cut and run for it.
Well, it won't be the first time I've run
And it won't be the first time I've been caught.
It's the game that matters.
Brother, I am proud to know you.
This is one of the greatest moments I have ever experienced.
I think I sense the situation when we can all esteem it, and honour,
To breathe the rather inferior atmosphere in this station
Here along with our little friend.

I guess we should all go home and treasure the memory of his face
As the whitest thing in our museum of recollection.
And, perhaps, this good woman will also go home
And wash the face of our little brother here.

I'm inspired with a new faith in mankind.
Ladies and gentlemen, I wish to present to you
A sure enough saint only one a halo to be transferred.
Stand right on.


SO GLAD TO SEE YOU HERE

Someone's got a home tonight.
Someone's got a road tonight.
Someone's got a wad, action will be red,
You you wanna worry?
Oo, you're gonna knock 'em dead.
Someone's got a show tonight.
Someone's gotta go tonight.
Someone's doing rhyme, someone turn your mind.
Someone to lift your eyes up
Leanin' toward the light.

So glad to see you here, so glad you could come. (Yeah!)
So glad to see you here. Carry on. Carry on.

Yeah, yeah!
Oh, we're going up tonight.
Well in time to make a flight.
The airplane's standing on the runway
Engine nervously waiting for something to bite.

Got to roll tonight.
You got to roll tonight.
Some have got it bad, some have got to do it,
You got it better, and there's nothing to it. No no no no.

So glad to see you here, so glad you could come. Yeah!
So glad to see you here. Carry on. Carry on!

* repeat first verse, then say: "Ya, oh no no no no, yeah."
Repeat until end: "We're open tonight for fun".


BABY'S REQUEST

When the moon lays his head on a pillow
And the stars settle down for a rest,
Just do me one small favour, I beg you,
Please play me my baby's request.
It's the song that we heard when we started.
Now the birds have all flown from our nest,
But you could bring back mem'ries departed
By playing my baby's request.
My baby said that she knows how it goes
But you're the one who really knows,
So go ahead, just one more time and then we'll go to bed.
- solo -

But you could bring back mem'ries departed
By playing my baby's request.
My baby says she knows how it goes but you're the one that really knows.
So go ahead, just one more time and then we'll go to bed.
When the moon lays his head on a pillow
And the star settles down for a rest,
Just do me one small favour, I beg you,
Please play me baby's request.
Mh-hm, play me baby's request.
Please! Play me my baby's request -- one more time.


DAYTIME NIGHTIME SUFFERING

What does she get for all the love she gave you
There on the ladder of regrets?
Mighty river, give her all she gets.
What does she get for all the love she gave you
There on the ladder of regrets?
Daytime nightime suffering is all she gets.

Where all the prizes for the games she entered
With little chance of much success?
Daytime nightime suffering is all she gets.

Come on, river, all the flow
Let your love of you people show.
Come on, river, flow through me,
Let your love of you people be.
You are the river, I am the stream.
Flow mighty river through me.

What does it pay to play the leading lady
When the like the damsel in distress
Daytime nightime suffering is all she gets?

No less (no less), no more (no more)
No sea (no sea), no shore (no shore)
No sand (no sand), no pail (no pail)
No fairy tale anymore.

Come on, river, flow through me
Don't be stopped by insanity.
Come on, river, overflow,
Let your love for your neighbours show.
You are the river, I am the stream.
Flget it.
But if we forget it every now and then.
But if you don't feel it, later on you'll regret it.
And if we let it we could set it free, you and me.


WONDERFUL CHRISTMASTIME

The moon is right
The spirits up
We're here tonight
And that's enough
Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

The party's on
The feelin's here
That only comes
This time of year

Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

The choir of children sing their song
Ding dong, ding dong
Ding dong, ding Ohhhh
Ohhhhhhh

Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

The word is out
About the town
To lift a glass
Ahhh don't look down

Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

The choir of children sing their song
They practiced all year long
Ding dong, ding dong
Ding dong, ding dong
Ding dong, ding dong

The party's on
The spirits up
We're here tonight
And that's enough

Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

The moon is right
The spirits up
We're here tonight
And that's enough

Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime
Simply having a wonderful christmastime

ohhhhhhhh
Christmastime ...


RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSE REGGAE

Instrumental

 M P 3   S a m p l e s


Currently no Samples available!