Paul McCartney: Chaos & Creation in the Backyard

[DudeAsInCool]

Paul McCartney, "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard"

Music critics were drooling in anticipation when Paul McCartney announced he would be working with avant-garde pop producer Nigel Godrich -- the man who helmed critically lauded and experimental albums by Radiohead and Beck -- on his next album. The result of their collaboration, McCartney's just-released "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," seems to be exactly what critics were hoping for, and working with Godrich proved to be exactly what McCartney's music needed. Together, according to Billboard, they've created McCartney's "most rounded and assured piece of work in many years." The New York Times says that "Godrich pushed him to deepen the songs, and he followed the advice," and applauds McCartney's decision to play all 13 instruments on his own, saying that he has found "his best backup band since the Beatles: himself." Going totally solo meant taking greater responsibility and thus greater risk, but as Entertainment Weeklynotes, he succeeds gracefully, creating an album that reflects "an artist honestly following his muse -- always a compelling event." McCartney appears liberated to not simply ape his former Beatles glory but try something unique, a solo album with, as the Guardian cheers, "a sense of purpose, lovely tunes in abundance, and charm." The Guardian gave it four stars, as did Rolling Stone, which raves that McCartney sounds as "wistful and full of yearning as ever, effortlessly lending these songs a rich sense of emotional conviction."

The track "Riding to Vanity Fair" comes in for special praise from a number of critics, with the Guardian calling it "bracing" and the Times saying it's "one of the most pensive songs he has ever recorded: a wounded response to a rejected friendship, with strings tugging downward as an undertow." The Los Angeles Times agrees, saying, "This is the intimate McCartney in the vein of his 1970 solo debut or 'London Town,' and the comfort allowed him to be as unguarded as he's ever been." The All Music Guidesays the vibrancy of the album also bodes well for things to come: "Spend some time with the record and it becomes clear that McCartney is far from spent as either a songwriter or record-maker."

-- Joe Charap

http://www.salon.com/ent/audiofile/index.html

[DudeAsInCool]

McCartney Gets Back, but Not for Nostalgia

There's a struggle on Paul McCartney's new album, "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," and it's one that pays off. On one side is Sir Paul's gift for easy, bubbly melody - tunes that are so shapely that in the past he has often settled for finishing them as harmless little ditties. On the other side is his urge to experiment with sounds and structures and to recognize some darker thoughts - a smaller, but still significant part of his song catalog. For this album, on Capitol, Sir Paul chose a producer who favored the experimental side: Nigel Godrich, who has worked with Radiohead and Beck. Sir Paul also lined up his best backup band since the Beatles: himself.

Except for some string-section arrangements, he plays nearly every instrument on the album. That's something he hasn't done to this extent since he made his first solo album, "McCartney," back in 1970, and it makes the songs more intimate and less conventional...

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/12/arts/music/12choi.html

[DudeAsInCool]

The premise of Paul Mccartney working with Nigel Godrich was clear from the start. McCartney wanted a producer who appreciated his storied past but at the same time believed that, at sixty-three, he has a vital future. For his part, Godrich -- who is best-known for his work with Radiohead and Beck -- had expressed interest in collaborating with an established artist whose reputation extended further back than the Nineties. A win-win, right?

Right. Chaos and Creation in the Backyard is the freshest-sounding McCartney album in years. It is as spare, in its way, as Driving Rain (2001), his most recent studio effort, but it's more daring, more assured and more surprising. For starters, Driving Rain was a band album, while this is a genuine solo album in that McCartney plays nearly all the instruments on it -- four of the album's thirteen tracks credit no other musicians. It's an approach that recalls McCartney, the homemade 1970 release that launched the singer's post-Beatles career. And as on that record, the tingling sense of a new beginning is palpable.

http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/...eregion=triple1

[moodyblue]

Picked this up today. Still have to listen to the whole thing, but so far it sounds great.

[Kooperman]

Picked this up today. Still have to listen to the whole thing, but so far it sounds great.

It's a magnificent album, one I didn't think he would ever do. McCartney has never been one to expose much of himself in his songs, relying instead on the strength of his seemingly endless supply of quality melodies to carry his work. Since the death of his first wife, Linda (Eastman) McCartney a few years ago he's begun to open up more and share his emotions with his fans. McCartney has always been known to internalize his traumas, presenting a detached exterior to the world, and it's made his music one-dimensional as well. Now, we're seeing music with both charm and depth, and it's outstanding. I don't know if that will equate to better sales....let's face it, he's 63 years old, and the 18-35 demographic group isn't likely to check him out...but his solid base of fans will appreciate him opening up to them.

By the way, try to find the bonus song included only on the Japanese pressings of the album. The title is She is So Beautiful and it's great.