Paul McCartney – Family Review

A series of retroactive extended plays is never a good sign. Pink Floyd did it over the last few years, more a practice of pairing David Gilmour‘s works together to construct new projects from rubble than anything useful. At least with Paul McCartney, there are few corners cut. Omitting his work with The Beatles and focusing on his solo projects and Wings efforts, Family is one of the welcome, light EPs where thematic similarity is the driving force. Snipping a few Wings songs and fitting them in with Flaming Pie pieces is a heartwarming idea, and though it may not have been a McCartney idea on paper, the team behind these thematic redressings have their heart in the right place. Rarely does the record label ever manage this earnestness. Long may it continue, and it most assuredly will continue in the coming years.

Had it included those works from The Beatles, then Let it Be and Hey Jude would be obvious inclusions. The latter, perhaps a bit more contentious, but the mother Mary references made on Let it Be are definitive, family-driven arcs. Family is filled with songs about the past, and yet the reflective nature of these songs never overcomes the hopes for a bright future. Between looking back on the past and hoping it makes for a better future, McCartney finds some tremendously loving and open songs relating to his father and other loved ones. The Lovely Linda is omitted perhaps for the same reason Let it Be is also not featured, it is too on the nose and literal in its relationship with a loved one. Instead, Wings cuts like Mama’s Little Girl and Deliver Your Children feature. The latter feels like the more surprising of the two, given McCartney’s aversion to Wings’ last two albums.  

But fitting inclusions overtake the distaste for this song or that. Family is a very thoughtfully put together piece of work, even as just a compilation of moments in a long career it has a heart to it. Put it There from Flowers in the Dirt is a gentle ode to McCartney Sr., and the overt positivity is backed by those soppy pop notions. McCartney had, at this point in his career, perfected the populist sound. Heaven on a Sunday is a tremendous piece, too, one of many songs made in tribute to Linda McCartney. Jeff Lynne’s production takes a step back, which is a surprise given his forthright ear for pop sounds. His work here, though, is a chance for McCartney to take the lead and see where his heart guides those instrumental selections. A stripped-back standout from McCartney which, in the context of Family, proves to be the backbone of the release. 

Shine a light on the lesser-known songs. That is what Family does. An EP where the obvious choices are swerved, and rightly so. McCartney has ample material praising his family, piecing together his wonderful experiences with them. Bip Bop may feel a strange choice but the Linda McCartney-featuring vocals are a showcase not of messages but of collaboration. Work in the studio is as important as the aim of the message. Family may feel a tad closed-off from loved ones like John Lennon, but the context of literal, by law family members, is what this EP hopes to showcase. Additions like Tug of War would have made sense but there is only so much space before a compilation becomes its own project. Family is a nicely pieced together collection which adds some lighter context to releases from the depths of McCartney’s discography.