Paul McCartney
Egypt Station
Rating: *** 1/2 (or *** 3/4)
Nearly five decades after the Beatles’
split, Paul McCartney has had quite the career. Whether it be with his band
Wings or by himself, the man has delivered a somewhat consistent discography. When
it comes to his latest album, Egypt
Station, it’s another solid effort from Sir Paul. Not only is this
McCartney’s first album since 2013’s New,
it’s also his first album on Capitol Records since 2005’s Chaos and Creation in the Backyard. While it isn’t a perfect album,
there’s something for everyone here on Egypt
Station.
The
album follows a traveling theme, as seen on the album’s cover. From time to
time, you’ll hear some atmospheric tracks that make you feel like you’re at a
station of some sort. The album opens with the piano driven lead single “I
Don’t Know,” which sets the mood of the album nicely. Lyrically, the song fits
the travel and transportation theme going on, as McCartney wonders where his
life is headed. McCartney’s voice here, as well as the rest of the album,
sounds worn and tired at times. At 76 years old, McCartney isn’t getting any
younger. Like his peers, it shouldn’t matter what his voice sounds like if the
songwriting is good- which in this case it is. From there on, Egypt Station is a splendid road trip
with Sir Paul as he delivers some fine pop tunes here. The second lead single,
“Come On to Me,” sounds like a lost cut from the Ram album as it’s a nifty bopping rock tune. Musically, McCartney’s
backing band is in fine form throughout the album and “Come On to Me” is the
go-to track to prove that.
Like New before it, McCartney uses nostalgia
effectively here- with several of the songs here sounding like ones from
earlier in his career. While some listeners might see this as lack of
creativity, McCartney is able to pull this off. For example, “Happy With You”
has a “Mother Nature’s Son” vibe to it given it’s laid back approach while “Who
Cares” sounds like a rocker Wings could’ve churned out in the 1970s. While the
album has this loose theme of travel, there’s quite the number of love songs
here. This includes songs such as “Confidante” and “Hand in Hand.” The former tells
the sweet tale of an old flame while the latter is semi-autobiographical as
McCartney sings about “walking through life and making our plans.” At 76,
McCartney has been performing for six decades. Now being married to wife Nancy
Shevell since 2011, the song could be seen as McCartney thinking out the rest
of life and growing old with Nancy.
If
Egypt Station were a road trip, it
would have a few speed bumps along the way. At 57 minutes, Egypt Station is a fairly long album. While they aren’t bad, “Do It
Now” and “Caesar Rock” didn’t need to be on this album. The former is simply
plain while the latter is somewhat of a mess. Then there’s “Fuh You,” another
one of the singles from the album. Co-written with producer Ryan Tedder, it’s one
of the album’s weakest songs. While it is catchy, the song’s chorus of “I just
want it fuh you” is cringe-worthy alone as it sounds like McCartney is saying
something dirtier. Despite its weak spots, the album manages to save the best
for last with “Despite Repeated Warnings.” The mini-epic tells the story of a
sea captain’s blind leadership as he decides to sail near an iceberg. Lyrically,
the song is symbolic of politicians- most notably President Donald Trump. At
some seven minutes long, it is an epic that has to be heard.
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