Mccartney II [Import]

That doesn't neccessarily mean it's bad. "Temporary Secretary" is probably one of of the funniest things anyone's ever made with an analog sequencer. The single "Coming Up" is catchy all the more because of its sped up chorus. "Bogey Music" is danceable features slowed down backup vocals. "Darkroom" is a funky little ditty, with hiccuping percussion and innuendo streaked lyrics.

Though despite all the weirdness, there are a few tracks that are pretty normal, albeit more lo-fi than Pauls proper studio albums. "Nobody Knows" is a straight up piece of gritty rock'n'roll, and "On the Way" is a slow bluesy haze, the sort of thing you'd expect to hear in a smoke-filled club.

When John Lennon heard this album, it's said, he made the comment that Paul sounded sad. It's true there is a melancholy streak on McCartney II. It's a resigned, tired, burnt out sadness. Can't really blame Paul, after all that had happened to him that year. "Waterfalls" is an aching ballad made all the more with it's low electronic backdrop. The plodding mellotron tune "Summer's Day Song" in some ways could be Paul expressing his need to escape the pressures of his life at the time. "Someone's sleeping through a bad dream/tomorrow it will be over". The subdued acoustic "One of These Days" also has a similar feel. "One of these days when the day just takes too long/I'm going to sing my song and see."

The two electronic instrumentals are fascinating, though not the sort of thing you'd expect a former Beatle to do. A very interesting. They sound of their time, and yet sound so set apart from it. The evocative "Front Parlour", even though it only consists of synths, sequencers and drum machines, sounds warm and human. "Frozen Jap", on the other hand is an icy march, driven by cold echoey snares, forced clapping and a monotone synth-bass lane. Even with it's cheery, vaguely Japanese melody on top, it sounds very uneasy and tense. Maybe it had something to do with Paul's arrest in Japan...

You get three bonus tracks with McCartney II, and a nice 10 seconds silence to seperate them from the rest of the album. "Check my Machine" is a goofy, dancable stomp, featuring samples of Loony Tunes cartoons and Paul jokingly singing in a Bee Gees style falsetto. "Secret Friend" is an hypnotic, piece, full of exotic rhythms, synths, sequencers and sudden but subtle changes in tape speeds. It's actually pretty amazing Paul managed to keep the track sounding as tight as it does the whole way through. "Goodnight Tonight" is Wings attempt disco single, and a pretty good one at that. It has a skittery rhythm, speedy Spanish style guitar, and some pretty goofy sound effects. It's good to have it attached to an album (Though the version on Wingspan is remastered a little better).

If you like your music a little retro, and a little quirky, you should like this. (Fans of Beck maybe) If you're into straight up McCartney love songs, you can afford to give this a miss.