Extended plays of already-existing songs, recontextualised while there is time to do so, before it all gets so stale and ready for the anniversary pieces, is a nice tribute to fans. Paul McCartney makes the most of it with some earnest collections, repackaging his work with Wings and solo work following the end of the Linda McCartney and Denny Laine-featuring band. It is a way to recapture the madness and magic of songs written independently of one another, yet features similar themes. Such is the case for Home, a fluid and wider broach of a suggestion than Family, another EP from McCartney, which serves as a light and lovely listen. A domestic-loving compilation of six songs from McCartney’s deep backlog. It does not feature much reason beyond keeping people entertained during a miserable year. Nothing wrong with that, nor is there anything wrong with Home.
Where Family had some delightful rips, assertive and understandable deep dives into the Wings discography, Home plays it rather safe. From a Ram rip of Eat at Home, a song which, like the album, is sorely absent from the live shows, to the Wings at the Speed of Sound days following it up. Eat At Home remains one of many diamonds from Ram, though it is certainly overwhelmed by the bigger, bolder songs from that light rock masterclass. It sets up Home well, though. All that comes to an end with Cook of the House, a miserable song which lays bare the theme of Home a little too bluntly. These are domestic activities, an odd stop-off for McCartney given the depths of his sound when he steps out of the enviously calm life in Kintyre. Mull of Kintyre features, too, of course. We are lucky Home is limited to six songs; otherwise Give Ireland Back to the Irish may have featured after the light thrills of Heart of the Country.
Home feels somewhat autobiographical in its creation. These are moments which define McCartney as an at-home man who would like nothing more than to be off the road, away from the buzz, and noodling away in his at-home studio. Time is precious, and we are lucky to hear he did exactly that for decades. Those Kintyre-based recordings, the heavy reliance on Ram and the farmland as a place of influence on McCartney is brought to life here. Fun reflections on a life well-lived, that is what Home offers to the dedicated listeners who want a short and sweet playlist where theme means everything. Mull of Kintyre doesn’t sound as sickly-sweet here, not in the context of paying tribute to the slower way of living, the relaxation among loved ones.
Even then, it does not excuse the throwaway misery of Cook of the House or the lighter touch of a soppy song like Home Tonight. The latter is nice enough, a lesser-known song included on an EP set to introduce McCartney listeners to a few selections from his solo and Wings-based discography. Sweet moments are what McCartney rides, on and Home is an example of how the light and breezy atmosphere can cover up some of his whimsical shortcomings. He takes that style a tad too far sometimes, though those stretches of lighter-than-light material are brief and often enjoyable. They lack the balance of a fun punch of domestic sincerity and quality songwriting. Come On To Me would have made sense, but Every Night is an ample addition. Home is a delightfully light collection of McCartney songs for the listener wanting a taste of home, and at a time when that was sorely lacking across the globe, it highlights once more that McCartney has his fans in mind, always.
