Paul McCartney fans point to two ‘dated’ albums from The Beatles hitmaker that are ‘very of its time’

Fans of the legendary musician Paul McCartney believe two of his albums have aged poorly, with even The Beatles member susceptible to dated material.

McCartney has released dozens of albums as both a solo musician and as a member of both The Beatles and Wings. Despite the acclaim that comes with having your name on Abbey Road, Band on the Run, and Chaos and Creation in the Backyard, even the Academy Award-winning veteran has released a few albums which have not stood the test of time. Fans took to the r/PaulMcCartney subreddit and asked which of his albums was the most dated of all. Fans had plenty of options to choose from, and suggested that a Wings album and a solo release from the 1980s were particularly poor efforts from McCartney.

A fan asked: “Which is Paul/Wings’ most dated-sounding album? Not saying bad album, just not a timeless sound. Very of its time.” Fans were split on one suggestion, Press to Play, an album McCartney released in 1986. The top comment of the post suggests it, along with Wings album London Town, are two significantly dated releases from Macca.

Another fan replied: “Press to Play gets shit on so much by fans, but I’ve always thought it was one of his strongest post-wings albums. He went full 80’s, so what?” A third wrote: “’80s production was seen as cheesy and outdated for some time, but I think it’s great. I love how experimental it is for Paul, too.”

Other members of the subreddit suggested that London Town is far from dated. One fan wrote: “I would say Back To The Egg sounds more dated than London Town (as you said they’re still really good albums regardless of either of them being ‘dated’).”

Another added: “The main issue with London Town is that it is predominantly a European album. Fog, Synthesiser sound, ten years before the New Wave era. It is not a rock-and-roll or ballad album. It is a bit grim and melancholic, with the apex being Don’t Let It Bring You Down, a totally non-commercial song that speaks to the soul when listening at one in the morning.”

Others believe a more recent McCartney album will be dubbed a “dated” release in the years to come. They wrote: “Egypt Station will become dated pretty soon if it has not already. The overproduction and vocal effects scream 2010s to me.”

Another fan suggested: “I disagree. If you want dated, listen to Memory Almost Full. Paul sounds like he is being held hostage.”

A third wrote: “I don’t really get the word ‘dated.’ You can say that about a lot of music. It has the opposite effect on me. It’s refreshing. I may not have heard it in a while, and I reconnected with it. Why do old fogies like me still go to rock concerts?”