Paul McCartney
Memory Almost Full

The early years of Paul McCartney's solo career were marked by the anticipation of an album that could hold its own against the Beatles' works. This need was satisfied with the release of Band on the Run (1973), and the following years saw critics eagerly seeking the successor to “Band on the Run”.

Many albums were able to boast this title.

“Tug of War” first of all, acclaimed by the public and critics (Rolling Stone wrote: “This is the masterpiece we knew Paul McCartney could create”). “Flowers in the Dirt”, praised as the album of Paul's comeback after the flops of the eighties. Finally, “Flaming Pie”, which marked the recovery of Beatlesque sounds, riding the success of the “Anthology” operation.
As the initial enthusiasms faded, it was always realized that these were indeed good albums, but certainly not the successors of “Band on the Run” (nor the grandeur of the Beatles). What the critics and the public had not realized was that when (and if) the masterpiece arrived, there would be no need to acclaim it: it would be evident to everyone.

And so it was for “Chaos and Creation in the Backyard” of 2005.

Four years of waiting after the disappointing “Driving Rain” resulted in the best work of solo McCartney together with the aforementioned “Band on the Run”.
Much of the credit should go to producer Nigel Godrich (already with Radiohead), who finally offered a valid support to Macca, ready to push him to the limit and criticize him harshly, if necessary. In this way, McCartney completed and perfected superior level compositions, entirely played by him and magnificently produced by Godrich.
Despite the lack of public success (McCartney is no longer very fashionable), the critics praised “Chaos” as it deserved, calling it his best album in thirty years.

As one might well understand, the well-founded hope of everyone was that McCartney would rely on the good Godrich again for his next album. Unfortunately, a few months ago it was learned that “Memory Almost Full”, due out in early June, would be produced by David Kahne, already the producer of the mediocre “Driving Rain”. Additionally, McCartney informed fans that the album's songs were partly written before “Chaos”, left incomplete, and later resumed. The fear was to face the scraps of “Driving Rain”, a sort of “Driving Rain 2”.

A piece of good news is the fact that Macca plays all the instruments alone in many of the songs, as in “Chaos”. Whenever McCartney relied on session men, the results have always been poor: at times “Driving Rain” was more of a backing band's album than McCartney's own.

During May, the first single was released, “Ever Present Past”, a rather lively pop-rock, which immediately introduces the theme of memory. The song is not bad, especially the middle eight. All in all, it's already a little disappointment compared to the splendid pieces of “Chaos”.

The album opens with “Dance Tonight”, which will have a video featuring Natalie Portman and is already circulating on the airwaves. A singalong song based on the mandolin, “Dance Tonight” is quite fun, but it is really difficult to consider it a masterpiece. Unfortunately, the mediocrity that has weighed down many McCartney albums seems already to be shaping up.
Mediocrity returns in “See your sunshine”, truly forgettable. From here, we notice that Kahne's production is not up to McCartney's: too sharp, too clear. Godrich's smoother and more refined production was a model to follow.

Fortunately, some pleasant notes also arrive.

“Only Mama Knows” is a truly successful track. A splendid orchestral intro leads to a determined and biting rock, with stunning instrumental passages. The song, almost moodily, shifts from a classic hard rock style “Back to the Egg”, to a tight bridge, to a sort of choral middle eight that somewhat recalls “Rubber Soul”. Wonderful, truly worth listening to.
“You Tell Me” is a very intense ballad, also focusing on the past. Very beautiful choirs, guitar parts, but especially the melody. Here Kahne's production works better than in other parts, although I would pay to hear “You Tell Me” produced by Godrich.
Concluding this magnificent sequence, we come to “Mr Bellamy”, once again opened by an instrumental part that strongly recalls “Love in the Open Air”. But there's no time to be lulled by the strings, a nervous piano phrase grabs us right away, introducing the story of a newly single man happy not to have anyone telling him what to do anymore. It's hard not to trace McCartney's happiness at being free from the inconvenient Heather Mills in the lyrics. Noteworthy melodic interludes, where Kahne's modern production fits perfectly. Surprising us once again, the piece stops and resumes with a delicate instrumental coda with McCartney calling “Come back, come back to me”.
A memorable triptych.

We wake from the dream with “Gratitude”, a track where McCartney tries (with poor results) to tackle a very mannered pop-soul. Don't expect a new “Got to Get You into My Life”. To be quickly forgotten.
Then follows “Vintage Clothes”, again on the theme of the past, of which to be proud (“What we wear is vintage clothes”) but not to rely on exclusively (“Don’t live in the past, don’t hold on to something that’s changing fast”). A lively song, with strong Beatles echoes (Rubber Soul-like harmonies, Mellotron à la “Strawberry Fields Forever”). Not unforgettable, but not ugly at all.
“Vintage Clothes” flows directly into “That Was Me”, marking the start of the Long Medley, explicitly inspired by that of Abbey Road. A sly operation, perhaps even pretextual, since the concept that some would like to see is missing (the passage from the youth of “That Was Me” to the death of “End of the End”). All in all, however, it's a good way to close an album and to add points of interest to a work that is deficient in many aspects. Moreover, the recovery of the Long Medley does not clash with carefree past-seeking of Memory Almost Full.
Returning to “That Was Me”, we are on a vigorous acoustic side (“Mean Mr. Mustard”?), sprinkled with some electronic exuberance à la “McCartney II”. McCartney relates scattered anecdotes of his Liverpool youth. The impression is positive, the whole exudes great freshness.

The Medley continues in “Feet in the Clouds”, a melodic song that, while nothing special, grows with listens. Astounding, especially the electronic chorus (“I find it very very very very very very hard”), McCartney at 65 still manages to surprise. An energetic ending leads to the majestic stride of “House of Wax”: interesting at times (especially the guitar solo) but too long.
The following “End of the End” fascinates not so much for the melody (nothing new) but rather for the splendid lyrics (“On the day that I die I'd like jokes to be told, and stories of old to be rolled out like carpets that children have played on and laid on while listening to stories of old”). Death treated with tact and modesty, without a hint of rhetoric.
The album closes on a minor note with the pointless rock of “Nod Your Head”.

Before the final comment, it's worth noting that the promotion of Memory Almost Full deviates a lot from McCartney's previous experiences. It will be his first album available immediately in digital format.

The video for “Dance Tonight” will premiere online, on YouTube.

McCartney has also created a dedicated website for fans for Memory Almost Full (www.meyesight.com), with demos, lyrics, funny videos, and more. The album will be released in a standard version, limited (with a special booklet), and limited 2 CD (the bonus CD will contain an interview, and 3 additional songs: “In Private”, “Why So Blue”, “222”).

In essence, Memory Almost Full is an album that treads new paths as few Macca albums have done before. It is a moody product that jumps between different sounds and genres, sometimes within the same song. Classical, hard rock, orchestral pop, and acoustic melodies contribute to creating an impression of great variety.
The production is lively, fresh, but often too decisive. Some songs would have needed more refining, more care. If there was still any doubt, Kahne proves to be less skilled than Godrich.
But judging an album by style, genre, or mere production, in my opinion, is wrong. What really matters is the quality of the compositions. And the compositions of Memory Almost Full often do not captivate. Not that it's bad, quite the contrary, but few songs stick in your mind, and even fewer will withstand prolonged listening. The two songs chosen for promotion (“Dance Tonight” and “Ever Present Past”) are good, but far from the peaks of Chaos. The Long Medley is curious, but NONE of the songs present is truly memorable. The splendid sequence “Only Mama Knows”-“You Tell Me”-“Mr. Bellamy” remains to tell us what this Memory Almost Full could have been with a few years of preparation and more attentive production.

For fans, it is a valid product, certainly worth buying.

For everyone else, remember it will soon be available on Paul's site for download: download those 3 aforementioned tracks, and then decide if you're interested in continuing.