Disco de Paul McCartney: “Wild Life”

Most people don't even know this album exists. Even among diehard Beatles fans this album is little known. This is a Bloody Shame! This is the rawest you will ever hear Paul McCartney! This may be his best album. It's main competitors being Red Rose Speedway and McCartney. Before I continue to wax poetically about how much I love this album let me clear up one thing. The song SOME PEOPLE NEVER KNOW is Paul's nicely versed answer to John Lennon's vitriolic HOW DO YOU SLEEP? not DEAR FRIEND. A close inspection of the lyrics will bear this out. Also the original album ends at DEAR FRIEND. The bonus tracks do not detract from it for me, though. Why do I love this album? Musically it's a tour de force. Wings, in all it's incarnations, has never sounded better. Lyrically McCartney is at the top of his form. Yes, I even mean MUMBO and BIP BOP. Paul's singing is exquisite. Linda sings better than she ever has here, too! Mostly, though I love this album because it is fun. Rock'n'Roll is supposed to be fun, not pretentious. This album is definitely not pretentious. And it definitely is fun!

I fully realize that Wings Wild Life is generally dismissed and one of the least liked McCartney/Wings efforts. Yet after all these years I continue to find it a fascinating, raw, adventurous, and top notch album. This album comes right after Paul's RAM album (billed to Paul & Linda), and was recorded in very little time (anywhere between 3 days and 2 weeks, depending on who you believe).

The opening track "Mumbo" sets the stage: the band unleashes an energy that pops out at you, with few (and hard to understand anyway) lyrics. Ditto for "Bip Bop". "Love is Strange" is reggae-influenced, and irresistable. The title track (concluding Side 1 of the album) is Paul and Linda's earliest environmentally themed song. The best songs are yet to come!! "Some People Never Know" may be Paul at its very best, period. Linda delivers "I Am Your Singer", a sweet 2'15" track that flows well in the scheme of things. "Tomorrow" is the most commercial track of the album. "Dear Friend" closes out, with Paul on the piano, supposedly addressing John Lennon.

If you are thinking of buying this excellent album, by all means AVOID this domestic pressing, and instead buy the "import" version (also available on Amazon) which is remastered AND has better bonus tracks: "Give Ireland Back to the Irish", "Mary Had a Little Lamb", "Little Woman Love" and "Mama's Little Girl".

If your idea of Paul at his best is "My Love" or "With a Little Luck", avoid this album. If on the other hand you've always wished for Paul to think "outside the box" musically, he most certainly did on Wings Wild Life. You won't be dissapointed.

....I'm a big fan of post-Beatles Macca, have been for years. While this did not produce any burning up the charts singles like "Jet" did a year or so later, it has some great sounding McCartney styled pop-rock. And that probably was the idea. No saving the world, no deep messages, no "Save Ireland" styled tunes. Near flawless. Was he conceding to his partner in high crime Lennon as far as who was the best record maker overall (their friendly competition was legendary) with these accessible pop ditties? ("Dear Friend") I dunno. But I would say that just because something is obscure and veddy, veddy European doesn't neccesarily make it great...James Joyce notwithstanding. So Paul did a great set of pop tunes on this one. My favorite here is the rendering of the oldie "Love is Strange" with that funky neo-Jamaician beat. "Wild Life" may have been a McCartney take on his Beatlemania years, but with that (follow me, now) Abbey Road "Oh, Darlin'" cigarette ravaged, gruffed up lead vocalising, more than likely he was just having some studio fun. "You Are My Singer" may have been a Paul lovesong to Linda/a Linda lovesong to Paul and, it, to me, just sounds great. In fact, even the wordless tunes are good on the ears. Regardless of a lil rawness here and there, "Wild Life" is a great recording. Get it for your collection.

Back in the early 70's, McCartneys output was unfairly criticised because he was seen as the man who broke up the Beatles, and then spent his life being a happy family man, instead of a headline grabbing world trotter like Lennon. Due to this, his early albums (up and including Red Rose...) were unfairly attacked. This is still seen in the critisism of his early records today. Allthough it must be said that 'Ram' has gotten a lot of positive press in later years. As Lennon turned out to be an uninspired solo artist, Harrison kept making the same album over and over, and Ringo, well, the novelty wore off, McCartney finally conqoured the World in his own right, again, with Band On The Run.

The prevailing sense of what was hip and what was not in 1971/72 should not keep us from enjoying, in 2007, what is an album of fine, and at times great pop songs. If nothing else, this is a historical first recording, of one of the 70's greatest bands, The Wings.

Let's face it, Dear Friend and Tomorrow could be slipped into just about any Beatles album and they would have been applauded. Once you get past the slight and rather annoyingly cute, Bip Bop, the album takes off.

This record should start with Mumbo..a hard driving rocker. Some People Never Know skewers Lennon and Wildlife is raw and painful.

Give this one a chance...