At least this one didn’t clash with the release of The Beatles recordings. Paul McCartney may have landed himself in hot water with fellow bandmates on the release of McCartney, but his kooky powerhouse was a welcome change of pace, a homebrewed and intimate concoction which delighted. McCartney II had a slicker edge to it, a broader sense but a commitment to the charms of home recording and independent musicianship from a master of the craft. Christmas hits, booming singles and an out-there slate of instrumental choices made McCartney II a rich piece of work, a post-Wings work which follows the same steps of the first McCartney record. Twice now has McCartney been propelled by the dissolution of a successful band, and recording this just before the demise of Wings has flickers of McCartney before Let it Be.
Ever the experimenter, McCartney utilises a whole new sound for the likes of Coming Up and Temporary Secretary. It is a mixed bag of joyful tunes like Wonderful Christmastime and deeper reflections on his career and influences with Coming Up. A fun experiment of McCartney’s which feels unpolished, unclear and ultimately unsure of itself. Exactly the point. These were pieces never meant for public consumption but there is something within the parts which comprise McCartney II worth hearing. The blinkered notes and synth pushes on Temporary Secretary are an unnerving treat and link not one bit to hit opener Coming Up but feel like a necessary punch of sinister, spoken-word material. Heartwarming material on Waterfall uses the blasts of cold water to reflect emotional maturity from McCartney, holed up in his Scotland-based home with his loved ones. The flow of his unwavering love can be heard rather clearly.
Charmed instrumentals soon follow with The Magic Roundabout-like Front Parlour more just an example of what a synthesizer could do at the time. McCartney finds his footing with a new tool to play with and the results are expectedly fun and relatively light. All we can do is trod through old pockets of history and hear the potential for new material to spawn here. It is more about pushing the technology of the time to its limit than anything else, and McCartney II gives it a needed workout ahead of using it in future projects. The rest of the album is a test of instrumental quality. A few standout pieces but it blurs together in a similar style to the ends of Abbey Road. Not as influential, but just as fun. A light-hearted ride through an artist of great stature coming to terms with a future sound.
Like the first McCartney album, much of it is based on how interesting you find the creation of sound and the risks taken to get there. A few solid songs became inevitabilities in his setlist and the rest is playing around. Good fun and a light listen still, with some flickers of instrumental quality to burn through. Bogey Music feels slightly ahead of the rest more for its guitar additions than anything, and ultimately McCartney II is almost entirely dependent on the Christmas song, the two hits at the start and Waterfalls. But that is the point of a project like this. Enjoy those latter moments for what they are and pull out the singles, which are certainly the best parts of this record.
Discover more from Cult Following
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
