Posted on 09/17/2005 8:52:10 AM PDT by rodomila
Paul Mcartney opened his US tour last night in Miami. I was there and I would heartily recommend it to my fellow Freepers, particularly those in my age range (I am 52). The show opened dubiously with a ten-minute video hagiography that should have embarrassed McCartney as much as it did the audience. Let's face it the man is obviously enamored with himself - playing with his dyed hair far more than a man should, waving to the crowd in phony humility after each song etc. etc. Having said all that I have to say that the show was SPECTACULAR! I was never a fan of post-Beatles McCartney but even those songs sounded great in the live setting. Beatlemaniacs will not be disappointed as the three-hour show includes mostly Beatles material and covers all the classics. Hey Jude, Yesterday, For No One, Got to Get You Into My Life, Get Back, Let It Be, Helter Skelter, I've Got a Feeling, Blackbird, Magical Mystery Tour, Eleanor Rigby, Back in the USSR, Maybe I'm Amazed, and many more. There were even super oldies like Please Please Me, Till There Was You and a thing they recorded when they were the Quarrymen. He moved effortlessly from piano, to bass, to guitar and played many songs solo. His band was first rate and very tight for the tour's first gig. By the end of the show I was willing to forgive him his narcissism (I guess 40 years of adulation changes a man), and was grateful for the opportunity to take my musician sons on such a wonderful trip to my musical past. The crowd was equally floored, demanding encore after encore, which he graciously gave. I felt compelled to write this review after reading the ridiculous review by Howard Cohen, which appeared in today's Miami Herald. Why should I be surprised ? The Herald lies about everything else too. I think he must have been having a bad drug trip or something as the show he reviewed bore absolutely no resemblance to the great show I saw that left a packed to the rafters arena of screaming fans on cloud nine. If the tour comes to your town, don't miss it.
Only too right, mate! Paul is to dogs what Stalin was to Russians.
really? I've seen some of Ringo's recorded concerts and he seemed to really enjoy it. Is it Ringo or his "guest stars" that make it so great. For Paul it's usually just him doing it, for Ringo it's usually an All Star lineup. I've always like Ringo myself and "it don't come easy" is one of my favorite solo Beatle songs.
She always sounded to me like a starter motor - I guess that's the beauty of art - we all have our unique interpretations.
Yep, but each recorded some pretty good albums nevertheless. The best solo Beatle effort, imo, was George Harrison's All Things Must Pass (1970), recorded immediately after the Beatles' breakup. George had tons of great songs saved up due to Lennon/McCartney's "one Harrison song per album" restriction on Beatles' records.
I shall always remember, fondly, "Imagine". (/sarcasm)
John Lennon sang "Twist & Shout", NOT Paul McCartney.
OK. Either way, one sang lead, the other sang backup, and then they both butchered "Twist & Shout"!
Thanks for the review... I haven't seen McCartney live, but would love to hear all those old songs.
The first album I ever bought was McCartney's "Ram" with "Uncle Albert." It is still one of my all-time faves, and by far his best solo effort.
Thanks for the review rodomila. I know what you mean about local reviews being off the mark. Cohen probably didn't get what he wanted back stage ;o) I saw Paul's half-time show at the Super Bowl and it absolutely rocked! The whole tour is probably close to sold out already but if I can...i'll try to make it. Thanks again for posting.
You've gotta be kidding me.
Is it Ringo or his "guest stars" that make it so great.
All of the above. In one concert I saw he had Jack Bruce and Steve Frampton (amoung others) and since Ginger Baker lives close to Denver he came on stage and the band played "White Room". It was incredible. Loud, crisp, and very tight and damn good. I really hated it when they stopped playing (local ordinance laws). Absolutely the best concert I've ever seen and I have seen a boatload of them.
"It Don't Come Easy" is a great song. For me, "Photographs" is one of the all time great love lost songs. I detect George Harrison big time in both of these songs.
That was the very first record I ever bought as a kid, a double album no less! I think I wore out the grooves on Magneto and Titanium Man.... hmmm, think I'll go out and find that to download!
A triple album, actually. ....and one of the best live records ever.
"Photograph" was written by both George and Ringo. "It don't come easy" has the riff that the first time I heard it I instantly thought it was George Harrison. He produced the song and chances are he played that riff. John wrote "I'm the greatest" and Paul wrote "Six O'Clock" ... all on the "Ringo" album. All the beatles played on that LP altough not on the same track.
Triple? Forgot about that... now I'm feeling a little older!
So this is the First Leg of the Tour ? :*)
"It don't come easy" has the riff that the first time I heard it I instantly thought it was George Harrison.
That was classic George. In one of Ringo's concerts he said that he had written "Photographs" and I had always thought at best it was a collaboration with George. That was about the time Eric Clapton ran off with George's wife.
I think "Ringo" was his best album easily. I still get a laugh out of George's one chord "Navy" song.
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