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Thanks A Bunch, Dad!; A Beatle reflects..
Topic Started: Jan 31 2012, 01:23 PM (136 Views)
Mobson
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The front of this week's ST Culture shows a photograph of Paul McCartney holding a gigantic bunch of tall, wild flowers taken by his daughter Mary. It's to promote a 'cheeky' new album for sure, Kisses on the Bottom, which will be released on 6th February but it's also to talk about how he was inspired by his dad's old music. In fact in the two page article inside, entitled 'Why the Beatles were a big band" he says how much he owes the Beatles sound to his father's taste in big bands.

The article tells the reason why he decided to call his new album "Kisses on the Bottom", a choice which was met with not only raised eyebrows, but in some quarters, panic. McCartney's motive was in part, he admits, to make mischief..."I like mischief - It's good for the soul, it's always good idea - if only because people think it's a bad idea" says the former Beatle.

The album sees McCartney backed by Diana Krall and her band on a set of interwar and post-war standards - classics by the likes of Harold Arlen, Frank Losser and Irving Berlin, including It's Only a Paper Moon, The Glory of Love, More I Cannot Wish You and Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive, not to mention where that provocative title came from, lifting a line from Fats Waller's 1935 hit "I'm Going to Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter which is the opening song.
They are type of songs that he says he grew up with hearing his band leader father, Jim, play. There are guest contributions from Stevie Wonder playing a 'mouth watering' harmonica solo and Eric Clapton.This is McCartney's 15th solo LP - his first for almost five years - and he says its one he always wanted to make with the Beatles comprising 12 cover versions plus 2 originals..

"My first musical memories comes from my dad - he would play the piano at home (Jim and his friend Freddie Rimmer worked at the cotton exchange in Liverpool as salesmen) and I would lie on the carpet listening to him play and I was hearing quite complex songs, which songs of that era were. He used to do a little thing called Stumbling a Zez Comfrey number and the syncopation there is interesting - its not four square". Dan Cairns, the interviewer says that McCarney spinetingllingly launches into the song and immediately hears an irrefutable link with Honey Pie on the White Album.

"I realise now that a lot of what informed the early writing I did with John was from that period, songs like When I'm Sixty Four, Martha My Dear, and the aforementioned Honey Pie. When you look now at the Beatles' body of work, it was sort of rock'n'roll informed by this back plot from a complete other era."

Finally, McCartney returns to the question of the album title - "The more I looked at it, the more serious about it I became and I thought well the very first time I had this reaction was when we told people the name of our group'
People freaked, McCartney laughs, "You know, Creepy crawly insects!"

See Paul holding his flowers and listen to the opening song and much more ....

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2012/jan/30/paul-mccartney-kisses-on-bottom-stream
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becky sharp
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He has chosen some lovely songs .....I'm listening to Inch Worm just now <ok>
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becky sharp
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There was a nice relaxed conversation between Jamie Cullun and Sir Paul on Jamie's Radio 2 programme this week where they were talking about the latest album...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01blgkl
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Mobson
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<ok> and another conversation this evening with the very affable John Wilson on Front Row....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01bmq39
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