This week marked the fortieth anniversary of the release of Paul McCartney’s ‘Tug of War’ album. The album is filled with nostalgia for me, I was seventeen, and on my first tropical holiday when I purchased it at Tolmies record store in Burleigh Heads.
As with any music discussion, the enjoyment, understanding and appreciation is all subjective.
One mans ‘Hey Jude’ is another mans ‘Hey Hey’ (I’d actually like to see both those guys in the same room, at the same time).
Paul hadn’t released a studio album in just under two years at that point, a timeframe mostly unheard of for Paul and most artists of the time.
Like every Paul album I played it repeatedly. It was lush, it was beautifully produced, and it had a hit.
So, what are my thoughts now with forty years of hindsight?
It’s kind of more Tug, than War, if you know what I mean.
The two albums previously, ‘Back To The Egg’ and ‘McCartney II’ delivered mixed, if not challenging results and levels of success.
By the time Wings came to record ‘Back To The Egg’, the constraints and novelty of being in a band for Paul had set in, and definitely a sense of ‘Been there, done that’ must have been clouding him.
Though a fan favourite, to these ears, a level of tiredness had set in. Band members were wearing clogs on stage, some were almost vulnerable to a jacket with elbow patches. This version of Wings (and there were many) appeared more roll than rock, granted, ‘Back To The Egg’ had an edge missing from the folksy and overly long ‘London Town’ album, but I’ve never bought into the adage that this incarnation of Wings were the most rocking. Have a listen to ‘Soily’ on ‘Wings over America’, then we can talk. Personally, I had the feeling Paul’s heart just wasn’t in it anymore, and that he was starting to feel a little lost.
The pre-album single ‘Goodnight Tonight’ was a reasonable success, but the singles that followed from the album were moderate successes at best. A tour followed, again, a fan favourite due to the somewhat quirky set list, to me, in hindsight, it kind of fell short compared to what was going on in concerts by other artists at the time.
Paul had set the standard with ‘Rockshow’ in 1976, now in 1979 he was reduced to kicking a toy robot on stage for a laugh. The setlist was vastly shorter than the last time Paul had played British theatres, and nothing rocked and smoked like the last tour, the closest they got was Spin it on, even that didn’t sound totally convincing in a live setting.
Paul wasn’t happy with the final show of the 1979 tour, or others during the run of shows, he knew they were under rehearsed for the upcoming Japanese tour (which was going to add ‘Another Day’, ‘Live And Let Die’ and ‘Let ‘Em In’ to the set list). We all know what happened in Japan. It must have been a nightmare for Paul, but in hindsight, it was probably fortuitous. Try as I might, I can’t really imagine Wings limping along any further. A tour of Japan, then what, back to America? Nope, historically, I’m glad Paul got the jolt. He needed to think about where he was going, what he was doing, and with whom. Wings continued on through 1980, but only on minor projects, and overdubs on things like Kold Kuts. Tapes of rehearsals from late that year show they were a spent force.
Paul threw a curve ball in May 1980 when he released ‘McCartney II’, his second all solo album. This album featured the monster hit ‘Coming Up’, even earning a thumbs aloft from John Lennon. This single built up Paul’s stocks again, but, as the casual record buying public found, after the first single, and then Waterfalls, the rest of the album proved to be a little quirky and challenging. Though a hit album on the back of ‘Coming Up’ and Paul’s loyal fan base, this album quickly became one of Paul less popular and appreciated.
In time, this albums fortunes and standing would shift dramatically (Humble brag, I adored ‘Check My Machine’ from the first time I heard it).
1980 wasn’t finished with us yet. Nothing further needs to be written about the horror, emotional chaos and questioning that enveloped not only the Beatle fan world, but suddenly, after December, the whole world was focusing on, and judging the former Beatles (though, were they ever, are they ever, really ‘former’?).
1981 was a pretty quiet year for Paul. News had filtered out that he was working with George Martin.
Personally I was happy to hear this, because even with a small period of time passing, I knew the reception that had greeted Paul’s two previous albums needed to change for his next album, he was losing traction, and I knew it, and I’m betting Paul did as well. I sensed, and hoped, that George would get Paul into a studio that wasn’t a barn or a castle, that the arrangements would be well thought out, and all those marvellous, what I call ‘little brush strokes’ would be back, embellishing those always incredible melodies.
When ‘Tug of War’ was released in April 1982, it was welcomed with open arms. Hit singles, beautifully recorded, lush, complex backing vocals that wrapped their arms around the songs, and either comforted or exhilarated all who heard them. Paul has a habit of doing a One, Two, Three punch to open many of his albums, ‘Band On The Run’, ‘Jet’ and ‘Bluebird’ for example. Then you hold your breath to see if track four can continue the quality. In cases of albums like ‘Ram’, ‘Band On The Run’ and ‘Chaos and Creation in the Backyard’, those punches continue to the very last note.
I need to switch tack now and look back with forty years of hindsight. In 1982 people were just SO happy to have ‘A’ Beatle release a solo album that critical evaluation was difficult, especially from fans such as myself. I’d hazard a guess the high praise from the Rolling Stone reviewer may have been tinged with relief and gratitude that we at least still had Paul here, and also, the fact that ‘Tug of War’ really did shine sonically and arrangement wise when compared to Paul’s two previous album releases.
Side one.
The opening track ‘Tug of War’ is a masterpiece, played, sung and arranged beautifully. The sentiment and lyrics are pure McCartney, and the purest McCartney is always perfection.
In years to come they may discover
What the air we breathe and the life we lead
Are all about
But it won’t be soon enough
Soon enough for me
No it won’t be soon enough
Soon enough for me.
Track two is ‘Take It Away’. A slice of perfect Macca pop. Slathered with glorious 10cc-esque backing vocals with Eric Stewart stepping into the role of backing vocalist after Denny Laine’s departure. Eric slotted in perfectly, and his vocal blend with Paul, and especially Linda, was a highlight and would feature on all Pauls albums up to, and including, Press To Play (that album won’t be afforded such a wordy review, in fact, I could get it down to five succinct words).
Track three ‘Somebody Who Cares’. The punches keep coming. Top shelf Macca, this song highlights the fidelity of this album. The recording of Paul’s acoustic guitar solo brings out even more emotion on top of Pauls vocals.
Track four ‘What’s That You’re Doing’. What indeed Paul. Just because you record a jam with Stevie Wonder, isn’t a guarantee that it’s a good idea to release it. Strangely, the remix/mash of this song on Pauls side project ‘Twin Freaks’ in 2005, is one of the highlights of that album, and deserves to be sought out.
Track five ‘Here Today’. No words.
Side two.
Track one ‘Ballroom Dancing’. A fun look back to old times, all the essential elements are there, production, arrangement, vocal arrangement . . but.
Track two ‘The Pound Is Sinking’. Paul doing his old trick of making a song by adding sections of different songs he’s written, and putting them together. Works a treat, this song is SO Paul.
Track three ‘Wanderlust’. The most ‘Wings’ sounding song on the album for me. Only Paul could write a song about the threat of being busted for drugs sound so lovely, so regal.
Track four ‘Get It’. It’s at this point what I call a ‘Macca malaise’ starts to creep in. It happens on many of his albums, on side two, he starts to run out of steam. It happens on ‘Pipes of Peace’, the album after this (which could have been repaired easily, with spectacular results, stay tuned), it happens on ‘Flowers
in the Dirt’ as well. Here we have a fun little song, a duet with the incredible Carl Perkins. Like I said, it’s fun. End of.
Track five ‘Be What You See (Link)’ A link track to the next. Basically vocals with a vocoder. I think any album with vocoder vocals on them should be crushed with an industrial pulveriser, but hey, that’s just me. Did I mention I find this album runs out of steam on side two?
Track six ‘Dress Me Up As a Robber’. Inoffensive yacht rock, but yacht rock none the less. Though, it does have all the essential ingredients present that stops me from ever being close to disliking a Macca song.
Track seven ‘Ebony and Ivory’. I have never understood the dislike of this song. Perhaps overfamiliarity fatigue from hearing it endlessly on the radio, but it’s a great song, wonderful, simplistic but perfect sentiment, well recorded, full of hooks. Like ‘Through Our Love’ on ‘Pipes of Peace’, ‘Ebony and Ivory’ redeems the ending of this album (alas, the same can’t be said for ‘Motor of Love’ on ‘Flowers in the Dirt’).
Before ‘Tug of War’, Paul was fast running out of ‘Fab Free Pass Credits’ and laurels to rest on. ‘Tug of War’ gave him a shot in the arm, his fan base now had hopes for good time coming (sorry, not sorry), the critics were brought to heel … and then, Paul decided to make a movie.
In a short period of time, Paul lost a lot of those gains and good will. He was absent from the concert stage (I don’t blame him) and the general public had moved on from vanity projects. In 1984-88 Paul would find out just how depleted those stocks of goodwill were. A whacky thumbs aloft just wasn’t going to cut it.
When Paul gets cornered, and suffers a critical, and especially commercial smack down, that’s when he comes out fighting, and that’s when he delivers some of his best work.
Happy birthday ‘Tug Of War, you’re fantastic, you’re still better than most anything ever written and recorded by anyone (as is most everything Paul has released), but, don’t get too big for your britches. You’re the first born of what I call the ‘Paul Era’, which is post Wings, but unbeknownst to us, better, much better was to come.
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