Greetings, Glancers! We’re back with anutha! This time, it’s Paul ‘I’m not John Lennon’ McCartney and Red Rose Speedway. I can’t say that I know anything about this album, I don’t know if Red Rose Speedway is a real place, and I don’t know if I’ve ever heard any of the songs from this 1973 cut. Now, before we get into it, I should clarify that this was a Wings album, not a McCartney solo effort. Whether that makes a difference or not, whether his solo sound is different from what we would do with Wings, I don’t know. It’s too early to say. All I would like to say is that I hope it’s a good’un, and that by the time we get to the next sentence, I’ll have listened to the whole album multiple times.
‘Big Barn Bed’ gets us going, a typically McCartney sounding slow rocker. It has that old fashioned stomp, with Paul adopted some sort of Old Blues guy vocal for the verses, then reverting to standard Paul for the chorus. As solid as an opener as this song is, it also hints at one of the major problems of the album – repetition, and a reliance on jamming rather than completing songs. This song would be just as good, if not better, had it stopped around the two minute mark.
‘My Love’ is the album’s undoubted highlighted. It’s quite beautiful, tender, and crucially hits the mark melodically. It also features a lush arrangement. As lovely as the music is, it does feel a little similar to The Long And Winding Road. I don’t mind that much given that’s one of my favourite Beatles songs, but it is admittedly slight from a lyrical viewpoint. Again, I can dismiss the negativity because I love the music so much, and I can appreciate the simplicity and earnestness of the lyrics. Solid guitar solo in the middle too.
‘Get On The Right Thing’ is another solid, mid-tempo rocker. It builds nicely through its extended intro and continues to bop along with a lovely layered production. It’s the bets rocker on the whole album, but it’s a shame that none of the other songs attempt a quicker pace and are content to sit in the toe-tapping zone.
‘Little Lamb Dragonfly’ is good, not great. It has some of the best moments on the album, particularly those high notes Paul reaches, but elsewhere it could have been shaved down closer to the five minute mark. The verses aren’t the strongest, feeling more like something Harrison would have written, and they’re sung in that airy Harrison way which I’m not sure suits Paul. If the first verse had been the one which begins around the two minute mark, I think I’d class this as a great song. Regardless, it’s still one I’ll add to the playlist.
‘Single Pigeon’ is the first song which feels more like an incomplete idea, or something which would have been better suited in a medley if not expanded. Another shame, because it’s very catchy, especially when those ‘me toos’ begin. It’s not like the song needed another minute, just that the ending feels too abrupt and may have been bettered served with a fuller close-out, a few more ‘me toos’, and a repetition of part of the intro.
‘One More Kiss’ is as standard a McCartney song as you could wish for. A light tone, mid-tempo, inoffensive lyric and summery melody veering between major and minor, all while that sloppy beat trumps along. It’s fine, and is better in isolation rather than as part of a wider album.
‘When The Night’ comes close to the quality of Get On The Right Thing, while offering a different tone. It lies somewhere in the 50s rock ballad school of music – there’s not much rock guitar to speak of, but its pace and tone says it belongs in the rock category. Again, it’s a good song with good moments, but there’s something lacking, something preventing it from nudging into a higher tier.
‘Tragedy’ is very slight. It’s not terrible, it’s just uneventful. Nowhere near memorable enough to make an impact. It turns out (after reading about the album) that this was in fact a cover and doesn’t even appear on the original album release. Looks like I’ll need to be more diligent in checking out the true track list before listening and writing!
‘Loup’ is the final song I came to – it wasn’t even in the version of the album I listened to on Youtube numerous times. So it’s the song I’m least familiar with. It’s the song’s one ‘weird’ or overtly experimental moment. That doesn’t mean it’s some ground-breaking piece or mess of ideas, it’s more like the mantra approach to music which The Beatles did towards the end of their career. It has some interesting sounds and twinkles and is mostly instrumental. I prefer the first half to the second, but they’re distinct with the second adding the funk. It’s cool.
‘Medley’ is a bit of a mess. It doesn’t flow together and it’s too long, making us feel drained by the time we get to the end. Once again, there are good moments but those are pushed to the side in favour of pushing the weaker moments. The Hold Me Tight section starts off well, but descends into inane, plodding repetition. Lazy Dynamite feels like an extension of the worst parts of Hold Me Tight, except with different lyrics, yet it has a stronger middle. Take the two good halves of those songs and either mash those together or let them be separate things! Hands Of Love drops in abruptly, and feels like any number of previous McCartney songs. It’s slight enough that it suits being in a medley, and it has plenty of funny parts – it’s not great, but I can’t hate it. Power Cut is by the numbers McCartney – same beat, same rhythm and vibe, and it better suited to being a brief minute long ending rather than stretching out for three or four minutes.
‘I Lie Around’ is not what the album needed after the dragged out Medley. It’s another plodding, by the numbers McCartney number. I can tolerate it on its own, but at this point in the album it feels like an added insult. It’s not Paul singing, right? The backing vocals and arrangement are fine it’s too long, to repetitive.
‘Country Dreamer’ would have been the better choice to follow Medley, or replace it completely. It’s not great by any stretch and is yet another uppy downy copy paste McCartney effort. At least it has a slightly different sound, and the chorus isn’t bad.
‘Night Out’ could have made up part of Medley if they’d taken out the crap stuff. This isn’t strong enough to warrant its own place, but it’s the only raucous moment on the album, and a minute or so spliced into Medley would have improved matters.
‘Seaside Woman’ has a different vibe, and thankfully a different rhythm from the rest of the album. I’m not sure if there’s some appropriation of Jamaican culture or something going here, but it doesn’t feel quite right. Good guitar in places.
‘Mama’s Little Girl’ is… well, when you can sing Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport to the same rhythm, I’m not sure if that’s a good thing. It doesn’t work as a complete song, another which feels like an unfinished ida.
‘I Would Only Smile’ closes us out. It’s not Paul with the lead vocal again. I like the riff, and this would have been a better closer than Medley in the original cut of the album. It’s nothing special, but it works as a closer and it doesn’t have the plodding nature of much of the rest of the album.
One of the things I find most interesting about these posts – posts where I’m both unfamiliar with the album and with its reception, is checking out how critics and fans view the album, and seeing if they align with my own feelings. While I feel that overall this is quite a lightweight album musically, thematically and lacks the melodic chops of McCartney’s other work, it’s the sort of album which would act as the soundtrack to some modern idyllic countryside escape; it’s there, wafting in the background as you have a family picnic, steal a kiss with the wife, and frolic about in a stream with the kids. You won’t remember the music, but you’ll remember the day and the fact that there was music. There’s only two or three songs I’d choose to listen to completely again, and the remaining songs have moments of goodness, wrapped up in mediocrity. I appreciate that Paul was at the point, deservedly so, that he could do whatever the hell he wanted, leading to this batch of ‘The Farmer Had A Wife’ ditties, but when he had a stronger song-writing partner, both would keep each other in check and force the tendency towards dross to be kicked out. With this album, Paul cemented that sound of his – you could easily lampoon that sound based of this album alone given the same old beat and rhythm used throughout.
It seems like critics were mixed on the album, but mostly dismissive, with many feelings the bulk of the songs were average and that it either needed trimming or alternate tracks completely. In my first listens, I wasn’t aware of all of the different versions of the album and simply listened to what Youtube told me. This meant that my version of the album continued past Medley. While that song is a chore to get through, and a weird choice to close the album, in retrospect the album is better without all the songs which came after it. It becomes too long, too repetitive. I’d replace medley with a couple of the songs which followed it, and it would be such a drag. I think I’d have a more positive view of the album had I simply followed the original tracklist.
I wish I’d simply read about the ‘correct’ original version before listening, and only listened to those songs. I don’t think it’s as bad as critics have made it sound, or as my closing remarks make it sound. There’s good stuff in here, but if a few songs had been switched around, or trimmed, or indeed been built upon, I think it would be a very good album. Paul is on top vocal form in places, and in those moments where the melodies do shine, we’re reminded of what a potent songwriter he is. There’s just not enough of those songs, not enough of those moment. Let us know in the comments what you think of Red Rose Speedway!
Nightman’s Playlist Picks: My Love. Little Lamb Dragonfly. Get On The Right Thing. Big Barn Red.
The Spac Hole 