MACCA

What Paul McCartney Has To Do To Recapture His Greatness
By the Record Doctor

I’m not really a doctor but I play one in the newsletter. I just heard Paul’s latest single, "Hope and Deliverance" off his upcoming Off the Ground album which put me in my most philosophical mood (look out!) The song was another pleasant McCartney dittie backed by a (and pardon my Latin, which means Spanish in this case) nice little carumba rhythm section. So I decided what I would do is prescribe for Paul what he has to accomplish on this next album to re-establish some of his tarnished reputation.

Diagnosis #1: He could be murdered by a deranged fan (who will receive plenty of exposure on ABC’s "20/20") and thus become a martyr for all those leftover 60’s people or:

Diagnosis #2: Follow up his best studio album in years ("Flowers in the Dirt") with less Beatlesque material. Sure a rival St. Paul merchant declared "Flowers" to be the best album of the 80’s, but frankly what Paul needs to do is get back to a more personal style of writing. I have in mind efforts like "Dear Friend", "Little Lamb Dragonfly", and "Here Today" (his of so elegant tribute to Mr. Lennon) where he let down his increasingly annoying flip side to show some genuine deep felt feelings. Heck it wasn’t that long ago he wrote that confessional line, "I’m often accused of giving too little, it’s got me confused, I’m split down the middle." But it’s been way too long since he wrote the equally appropriate, "What’s the use of worrying? (No use)." How does it feel to survive the latest world tour without restoring yourself to former greatness? How does it feel to be the richest entertainer ever" But more importantly how does it feel to be with the lovely Linda, and how has that endured for 23 years? How does it feel to be fifty? What goes on in that hemp infested mind?

WHAT WE MOST LIKELY WILL GET: Another album of silly love songs. But that’s ok, I’d rather hear that than 1/3 of the pap Lennon produced and I’d for sure rather hear that than the stuff former mates Wiblury George (the fifth ELO?) and Ringo are doing. No one can top Paul in writing those haunting melodies, and his partnership with Elvis Costello seems in retrospect a good idea. But how about some of the charm of "McCartney" (which did pop up in his appearance on "Unplugged")? or the experimentation of "Ram" and "Press to Play" (or "Sgt Pepper" for that matter)? How about some of the cocky sure handedness of "Red Rose Speedway" and "Band on the Run"? or some of the maturity of "Tug of War"?

The sun rises again on February 9 and the proper fork will be chosen, by all, by that time.