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In this thread I rank my favorite post-Beatles Beatles songs: 291-1. (3 Viewers)
- Thread starter krista4
- Start date
krista4
Footballguy
59. Little Willow (Flaming Pie, 1997) Spotify YouTube
(Paul #24)
Paul wrote this song upon the death of Ringo's ex-wife Maureen, to express to her children how much their mom had meant to him: "I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her. For her and her kids. It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit."
Though born out of sadness, the lyrics are intended to be optimistic and comforting. And, as is so often the case with Paul, instead of writing of it as a personal experience (as John would), he couched in terms he hoped would be read more universally: "It’s the way I’ve developed as a songwriter. ... I know I was very affected by Maureen’s death, and again I remember just going into a room and putting those sentiments into that song. The sort of fragility of life is in that song. But...I always prefer to conjure up some story or tale or some bit of imagination around something, because then I can get my emotions out but it’s not quite as raw. And I think it makes it a little more available to people if you call it ‘Little Willow’. We’ve all got a Little Willow."
This is achingly beautiful, with all the Jeff Lynne tricks working to great effect in making the heavy instrumentation sound like a choir. I'm not kidding about heavy instrumentation - between the two of them, Paul and Lynne played acoustic guitar, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, Mellotron, piano, harpsichord, harmonium, electric spinet, various percussion, and probably whatever else Paul found lying around. Too bad there wasn't a tuba in the closet. It's a lot of sound for such a simple lyric and song structure, but it gives such a rich, warm feel that it can sometimes move me to the verge of tears. In the battle of the lullabies, that personal connection to the loss of a parent is more compelling to me personally than John's "Beautiful Boy" can necessarily be. I'd be happy to have either one sung to me as I try and fail to fall asleep, though.
It occurred to me that Paul was fabulous at writing songs for his bandmates' kids, given this and "Hey Jude." Sadly, this one could turn into a comforting elegy dedicated to Linda within a year after its release.
I've mentioned a couple of times the sequencing of Flaming Pie, and again I think this is an instance of how beautifully laid out the record is, as this song leads into "Really Love You," which is essentially just a big jam session between Paul and Ringo (and their first-ever shared writing credit). OH also complimented the feel of this song in the context of the whole album: "Very nice! Hell yeah. I liked it. It was a sweet lullaby. It’s a good album cut. It thematically it fits with the rest of the record but doesn’t quite sound like anything else on the record. It has an integrity all its own."
Paul songs with willow trees (running count): 4
UP NEXT: Written for a movie...
(Paul #24)
Paul wrote this song upon the death of Ringo's ex-wife Maureen, to express to her children how much their mom had meant to him: "I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her. For her and her kids. It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit."
Though born out of sadness, the lyrics are intended to be optimistic and comforting. And, as is so often the case with Paul, instead of writing of it as a personal experience (as John would), he couched in terms he hoped would be read more universally: "It’s the way I’ve developed as a songwriter. ... I know I was very affected by Maureen’s death, and again I remember just going into a room and putting those sentiments into that song. The sort of fragility of life is in that song. But...I always prefer to conjure up some story or tale or some bit of imagination around something, because then I can get my emotions out but it’s not quite as raw. And I think it makes it a little more available to people if you call it ‘Little Willow’. We’ve all got a Little Willow."This is achingly beautiful, with all the Jeff Lynne tricks working to great effect in making the heavy instrumentation sound like a choir. I'm not kidding about heavy instrumentation - between the two of them, Paul and Lynne played acoustic guitar, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, Mellotron, piano, harpsichord, harmonium, electric spinet, various percussion, and probably whatever else Paul found lying around. Too bad there wasn't a tuba in the closet. It's a lot of sound for such a simple lyric and song structure, but it gives such a rich, warm feel that it can sometimes move me to the verge of tears. In the battle of the lullabies, that personal connection to the loss of a parent is more compelling to me personally than John's "Beautiful Boy" can necessarily be. I'd be happy to have either one sung to me as I try and fail to fall asleep, though.
It occurred to me that Paul was fabulous at writing songs for his bandmates' kids, given this and "Hey Jude." Sadly, this one could turn into a comforting elegy dedicated to Linda within a year after its release.
I've mentioned a couple of times the sequencing of Flaming Pie, and again I think this is an instance of how beautifully laid out the record is, as this song leads into "Really Love You," which is essentially just a big jam session between Paul and Ringo (and their first-ever shared writing credit). OH also complimented the feel of this song in the context of the whole album: "Very nice! Hell yeah. I liked it. It was a sweet lullaby. It’s a good album cut. It thematically it fits with the rest of the record but doesn’t quite sound like anything else on the record. It has an integrity all its own."
Paul songs with willow trees (running count): 4
UP NEXT: Written for a movie...
Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
krista4
Footballguy
58. Cheer Down (Lethal Weapon 2: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 1989) YouTube (not available on Spotify)
(George #20)
I teased this as "written for a movie" hoping for some misdirection to "Live And Let Die," but I could also have teased it as a Tom Petty co-write to mislead into The Traveling Wilburys. So many ways for me to be ridiculously clever.
I also have to admit to a mistake: when I posted "Sally G" six or seven years ago, I mentioned it was the last song that wouldn't be available on Spotify, forgetting about this one. Why is this not on Spotify??? It has been included on a couple of George compilations, but those likewise aren't in print, though it is on his Live In Japan album, from which I hereby offer you the track. I used "hereby," as our President does, to make this legally binding.
George wrote the rhythm track for this during the Cloud Nine sessions, but didn't complete it at the time, later bringing in Tom Petty as a co-writer to assist with the lyrics. A year later, George offered it to Eric Clapton for his Journeyman album, but instead Clapton asked George to put it together for the Lethal Weapon 2 soundtrack that Clapton was working on. George brought in Jeff Lynne to produce so that this is 60% authentic Wilbury, and the song ended up being used for the closing credits of the movie.
I adore this song in pretty much every way, but three items stand out for me: (1) first and foremost the insanely amazing and varied slide guitar from George, ranging from an Indian sound to a country/bluesy sound - this could very well be George's best slide guitar performance in his catalog; (2) the descending piano chords, which always get me; and (3) because I am weird, I'm always bemused at how he holds the "shhhhhh" at the end of the word "crash."
UP NEXT: Scary giant mountain Yoko face...
(George #20)
I teased this as "written for a movie" hoping for some misdirection to "Live And Let Die," but I could also have teased it as a Tom Petty co-write to mislead into The Traveling Wilburys. So many ways for me to be ridiculously clever.
I also have to admit to a mistake: when I posted "Sally G" six or seven years ago, I mentioned it was the last song that wouldn't be available on Spotify, forgetting about this one. Why is this not on Spotify??? It has been included on a couple of George compilations, but those likewise aren't in print, though it is on his Live In Japan album, from which I hereby offer you the track. I used "hereby," as our President does, to make this legally binding.George wrote the rhythm track for this during the Cloud Nine sessions, but didn't complete it at the time, later bringing in Tom Petty as a co-writer to assist with the lyrics. A year later, George offered it to Eric Clapton for his Journeyman album, but instead Clapton asked George to put it together for the Lethal Weapon 2 soundtrack that Clapton was working on. George brought in Jeff Lynne to produce so that this is 60% authentic Wilbury, and the song ended up being used for the closing credits of the movie.
I adore this song in pretty much every way, but three items stand out for me: (1) first and foremost the insanely amazing and varied slide guitar from George, ranging from an Indian sound to a country/bluesy sound - this could very well be George's best slide guitar performance in his catalog; (2) the descending piano chords, which always get me; and (3) because I am weird, I'm always bemused at how he holds the "shhhhhh" at the end of the word "crash."
UP NEXT: Scary giant mountain Yoko face...
Last edited by a moderator:
krista4
Footballguy
Dr. Octopus
Footballguy
Like that Flaming Pie one as well. Loved the minimalistic approach.
krista4
Footballguy
I always think of you and prosopis when I post a Flaming Pie song and hope you'll enjoy it. Two more still to come.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
krista4
Footballguy
Yes, George offered him three songs for that - the two already mentioned plus "That Kind Of Woman," which Clapton ended up doing on the Nobody's Child charity album from which I've had a couple of songs on this list.
krista4
Footballguy
Since that was my penultimate movie song, and the final one shouldn't be a big secret, here are a few awful Paul movie songs that won't make it, with OH commentary.
Once Upon A Long Ago (recorded but not used for The Princess Bride)
OH: "No. The same reason I’ve hated all these last songs. It sounds like soundtrack for terrible 80s movies. Princess Bride being good said, no, we can’t use this, man."
Same Time, Next Year
OH: "That was boring, man. A movie soundtrack was implied."
Twice In A Lifetime
OH: "Sexy, sexy sax, man. [k4: Sax, man? Or saxman?] Saxman, the sexy saxman making saxophone noises. He’s right up there with John Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders on tenor sax. And the guy with the midi reverb tenor sax from every song in the 80s. That’s who I think of when I think of saxophonists."
Vanilla Sky
OH: "The chords are from 'Down by the Riverside.' The only thing funnier than how bad that was was that people were getting so super into it. Those people sounded ####### into it. Not like the polite applause where if some legend were farting onstage, but really into it. And Paul McCartney also sounded ####### into it. So I really think it’s a 'you gotta be there' thing, so I might have been really into it. So I’m reserving judgment, but for someone who wasn’t there, it sounded ####### ridiculous."
Spies Like Us - somehow this was Paul's last top 10 hit (hitting #7) for over 30 years, until "Only One" with Kanye in 2015
k4: Is it over now?
OH: [shakes head yes]
k4: Do you want to talk about it?
OH: [shakes head no]
Once Upon A Long Ago (recorded but not used for The Princess Bride)
OH: "No. The same reason I’ve hated all these last songs. It sounds like soundtrack for terrible 80s movies. Princess Bride being good said, no, we can’t use this, man."
Same Time, Next Year
OH: "That was boring, man. A movie soundtrack was implied."
Twice In A Lifetime
OH: "Sexy, sexy sax, man. [k4: Sax, man? Or saxman?] Saxman, the sexy saxman making saxophone noises. He’s right up there with John Coltrane and Pharoah Sanders on tenor sax. And the guy with the midi reverb tenor sax from every song in the 80s. That’s who I think of when I think of saxophonists."
Vanilla Sky
OH: "The chords are from 'Down by the Riverside.' The only thing funnier than how bad that was was that people were getting so super into it. Those people sounded ####### into it. Not like the polite applause where if some legend were farting onstage, but really into it. And Paul McCartney also sounded ####### into it. So I really think it’s a 'you gotta be there' thing, so I might have been really into it. So I’m reserving judgment, but for someone who wasn’t there, it sounded ####### ridiculous."
Spies Like Us - somehow this was Paul's last top 10 hit (hitting #7) for over 30 years, until "Only One" with Kanye in 2015
k4: Is it over now?
OH: [shakes head yes]
k4: Do you want to talk about it?
OH: [shakes head no]
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
OMG
You realize this is going to trigger Morton. (And prompt him to post a whole bunch of links that I'm not going to click.)
Morton Muffley
Footballguy
Love the George vocal guide and notice he did manage to put a "Hare Krishna" in there that sneaky devil!krista4 said:
Still love the Ringo version bit am interested to hear the top two before making my final proclamation. I'm no Binky after all. I can wait until ALL the votes are in! (too soon?)
Morton Muffley
Footballguy
krista4 said:
I know a trap when I see one!jwb said:
still alive!!
krista4
Footballguy
Yes on the bold!! Very sneaky.
I guess if my top two Ringo are within 0.5% of It Don't Come Easy, the thread can demand a recount.
Morton Muffley
Footballguy
Nice. I think I asked you how many "willows" in your Paul 25. Well done.krista4 said:59. Little Willow (Flaming Pie, 1997) Spotify YouTube
(Paul #24)
Paul wrote this song upon the death of Ringo's ex-wife Maureen, to express to her children how much their mom had meant to him: "I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her. For her and her kids. It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit."
This is achingly beautiful, with all the Jeff Lynne tricks working to great effect in making the heavy instrumentation sound like a choir. I'm not kidding about heavy instrumentation - between the two of them, Paul and Lynne played acoustic guitar, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, Mellotron, piano, harpsichord, harmonium, electric spinet, various percussion, and probably whatever else Paul found lying around. Too bad there wasn't a tuba in the closet. It's a lot of sound for such a simple lyric and song structure, but it gives such a rich, warm feel that it can sometimes move me to the verge of tears. In the battle of the lullabies, that personal connection to the loss of a parent is more compelling to me personally than John's "Beautiful Boy" can necessarily be. I'd be happy to have either one sung to me as I try and fail to fall asleep, though.
It occurred to me that Paul was fabulous at writing songs for his bandmates' kids, given this and "Hey Jude." Sadly, this one could turn into a comforting elegy dedicated to Linda within a year after its release.
I've mentioned a couple of times the sequencing of Flaming Pie, and again I think this is an instance of how beautifully laid out the record is, as this song leads into "Really Love You," which is essentially just a big jam session between Paul and Ringo (and their first-ever shared writing credit). OH also complimented the feel of this song in the context of the whole album: "Very nice! Hell yeah. I liked it. It was a sweet lullaby. It’s a good album cut. It thematically it fits with the rest of the record but doesn’t quite sound like anything else on the record. It has an integrity all its own."
Paul songs with willow trees (running count): 4
UP NEXT: Written for a movie...
Morton Muffley
Footballguy
I believe I promised you a one month moratorium. I am counting down the days and have already begun creating several aliases which will have substantive posting history by the time the moratorium ends. Good luck!
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
Morton Muffley
Footballguy
krista4
Footballguy
wikkidpissah
Footballguy
Loovlay. I always adore it when a notion so moves Paul that he forgets to go into cleverclever mode. The heart of what he does lies in growing up a boy that people just had to pat on the head (that's why his eyes are like that) and it found him specializing in giving folks reasons to pat him on the head and, later on, making people feel like he did when folks patted him on the head. It's his truest, purest beauty, so well used here.krista4 said:59. Little Willow (Flaming Pie, 1997) Spotify YouTube
(Paul #24)
Paul wrote this song upon the death of Ringo's ex-wife Maureen, to express to her children how much their mom had meant to him: "I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her. For her and her kids. It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit."
This is achingly beautiful, with all the Jeff Lynne tricks working to great effect in making the heavy instrumentation sound like a choir. I'm not kidding about heavy instrumentation - between the two of them, Paul and Lynne played acoustic guitar, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, Mellotron, piano, harpsichord, harmonium, electric spinet, various percussion, and probably whatever else Paul found lying around. Too bad there wasn't a tuba in the closet. It's a lot of sound for such a simple lyric and song structure, but it gives such a rich, warm feel that it can sometimes move me to the verge of tears. In the battle of the lullabies, that personal connection to the loss of a parent is more compelling to me personally than John's "Beautiful Boy" can necessarily be. I'd be happy to have either one sung to me as I try and fail to fall asleep, though.
It occurred to me that Paul was fabulous at writing songs for his bandmates' kids, given this and "Hey Jude." Sadly, this one could turn into a comforting elegy dedicated to Linda within a year after its release.
I've mentioned a couple of times the sequencing of Flaming Pie, and again I think this is an instance of how beautifully laid out the record is, as this song leads into "Really Love You," which is essentially just a big jam session between Paul and Ringo (and their first-ever shared writing credit). OH also complimented the feel of this song in the context of the whole album: "Very nice! Hell yeah. I liked it. It was a sweet lullaby. It’s a good album cut. It thematically it fits with the rest of the record but doesn’t quite sound like anything else on the record. It has an integrity all its own."
Paul songs with willow trees (running count): 4
UP NEXT: Written for a movie...
Last edited by a moderator:
wikkidpissah
Footballguy
krista4
Footballguy
57. Mind Games (Mind Games, 1973) Spotify YouTube
(John #13)
The title song for Scary Giant Yoko Mountain Head (or whatever Pip calls it
- sorry for the visual again) was begun in 1968 as a song called “Make Love, Not War” and later combined with the melody of a 1970 John song called “I Promise” to make an anti-war anthem: “It was originally called Make Love Not War, but that was such a cliché that you couldn’t say it anymore, so I wrote it obscurely, but it’s all the same story. …When this came out, in the early Seventies, everybody was starting to say the Sixties was a joke, it didn’t mean anything, those love-and-peaceniks were idiots. … And I was trying to say: ‘No, just keep doin’ it.’” By the time the song was finally recorded in 1973, John had rewritten some of the anti-war lyrics instead to follow the book, “Mind Games,” which I discussed earlier, and meld the song into a plea to push boundaries into a new realm of consciousness.
The song became a moderate hit, reaching #18 on the US charts, as one of the “poppier” songs from John during this time. It features a particularly beautiful dreamy melody and a rich, lush (but not overdone) sound that makes me feel warm, and John’s yearning (yet somewhat optimistic) vocal complements the lyrics perfectly. John has called the middle eight a reggae style. Honestly I can hardly locate a middle eight on this song, nor a verse nor a chorus, which lack of structure I like a lot, so I’ll take John’s word for it. There *is* something going on with the guitars that I can’t put my finger on but really enjoy, and maybe it is a reggae beat in a sense.
Fun fact: when John sings “Yes is the answer,” it’s a reference to the art installation where he first met Yoko.
UP NEXT: As long as I'm apologizing to Pip…
(John #13)
The title song for Scary Giant Yoko Mountain Head (or whatever Pip calls it
- sorry for the visual again) was begun in 1968 as a song called “Make Love, Not War” and later combined with the melody of a 1970 John song called “I Promise” to make an anti-war anthem: “It was originally called Make Love Not War, but that was such a cliché that you couldn’t say it anymore, so I wrote it obscurely, but it’s all the same story. …When this came out, in the early Seventies, everybody was starting to say the Sixties was a joke, it didn’t mean anything, those love-and-peaceniks were idiots. … And I was trying to say: ‘No, just keep doin’ it.’” By the time the song was finally recorded in 1973, John had rewritten some of the anti-war lyrics instead to follow the book, “Mind Games,” which I discussed earlier, and meld the song into a plea to push boundaries into a new realm of consciousness. The song became a moderate hit, reaching #18 on the US charts, as one of the “poppier” songs from John during this time. It features a particularly beautiful dreamy melody and a rich, lush (but not overdone) sound that makes me feel warm, and John’s yearning (yet somewhat optimistic) vocal complements the lyrics perfectly. John has called the middle eight a reggae style. Honestly I can hardly locate a middle eight on this song, nor a verse nor a chorus, which lack of structure I like a lot, so I’ll take John’s word for it. There *is* something going on with the guitars that I can’t put my finger on but really enjoy, and maybe it is a reggae beat in a sense.
Fun fact: when John sings “Yes is the answer,” it’s a reference to the art installation where he first met Yoko.
UP NEXT: As long as I'm apologizing to Pip…
krista4
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
I think I know what you’re going to take out. 
wikkidpissah
Footballguy
krista4
Footballguy
Difficult decisions have to be made.I think I know what you’re going to take out.
I'm going to post the next one in a few minutes as I'm heading out for several hours and am not sure how sober I'll be when I return.
krista4
Footballguy
56. I’d Have You Anytime (All Things Must Pass, 1970) Spotify YouTube
(George #19)
Idyllic. Lush. Laaaaaanguid. George and Dylan wrote this one in 1968 during George’s stay at Dylan’s Woodstock home, and I think the simple satisfaction of the bucolic atmosphere shines through into the song. It’s an interesting choice for the opening track of All Things Must Pass, as it doesn’t sound much like the rest of the record and isn’t establishing an atmosphere or tone. I like the bold choice. And everything else about the song, from Clapton’s tasteful guitar work to George’s warm vocal.
Sorry I don’t have that much to say, as I’m distracted by the world today. Maybe Pip can pipe up on this one (like I have to ask).
UP NEXT: Road Trip!
(George #19)
Idyllic. Lush. Laaaaaanguid. George and Dylan wrote this one in 1968 during George’s stay at Dylan’s Woodstock home, and I think the simple satisfaction of the bucolic atmosphere shines through into the song. It’s an interesting choice for the opening track of All Things Must Pass, as it doesn’t sound much like the rest of the record and isn’t establishing an atmosphere or tone. I like the bold choice. And everything else about the song, from Clapton’s tasteful guitar work to George’s warm vocal.
Sorry I don’t have that much to say, as I’m distracted by the world today. Maybe Pip can pipe up on this one (like I have to ask).
UP NEXT: Road Trip!
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
That was actually not the first one that came to mind, but after I posted my initial comment I thought of two others that it could be, and the one you picked was one of those.
krista4
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
The other secondary one was in the same category as this one. The initial one is one I've raved about throughout the thread.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
This also explains the "ho, hey ho" ending of Drink to Me. It was a theme (for some reason).
The beginning of this reminds me of You Never Give Me Your Money for some reason, and the guitar interlude around 2:00 is totally Abbey Road.
It's not an accident that I'm referencing Beatles work, this strikes me as very much the kind of thing that would have been on a Beatles album in 1973 had they still existed. It's got the stellar bass and sax that was very much a thing on the charts in 1973, but has a lot of elements of their 1968-70 work as well.
I prefer "ho, hey ho" to "ob-la-di, ob-la-da," but that's not saying much. I prefer most Geddy Lee dentist drill vocals to ob-la-di.
krista4
Footballguy
55. Paul McCartney and Wings - Helen Wheels (Band On The Run, 1973) Spotify YouTube
(Paul #23)
Paul wrote this about his and Linda's Land Rover, which they called "Helen," and which they used for a portion of their inaugural Wings crazy-insane college tour I described earlier. Almost everything about this song is fantastic. The guitar licks, the drums, the bass line...oh, the bass line! It's only the shrieky, nearly Yoko-like vocals on the refrain that hold me back. Otherwise, a pumped up, euphoric, excellent rock song. It's amazing to me that three people could make so much pleasing rock noise.
I dedicate this song today to #45: "Say, bye bye!"
UP NEXT: The final four before we get to the top 50...in other words, not quite sure yet.
(Paul #23)
Paul wrote this about his and Linda's Land Rover, which they called "Helen," and which they used for a portion of their inaugural Wings crazy-insane college tour I described earlier. Almost everything about this song is fantastic. The guitar licks, the drums, the bass line...oh, the bass line! It's only the shrieky, nearly Yoko-like vocals on the refrain that hold me back. Otherwise, a pumped up, euphoric, excellent rock song. It's amazing to me that three people could make so much pleasing rock noise.
I dedicate this song today to #45: "Say, bye bye!"
UP NEXT: The final four before we get to the top 50...in other words, not quite sure yet.
krista4
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
You can also apologize to me for this one because it's my personal #1 Ringo, by a lot. And in my top 10 solo Beatles, maybe even top 5.krista4 said:
The "woo woo" in the middle of the guitar solo is just the best.
The melody and momentum on this song are top notch and it's the kind of song that makes you want to turn up the radio as soon as it comes on. In fact I should probably take it if the Road Trip category comes up again in the Genrepalooza channels draft.
Ringo's vocal doesn't bother me at all. I find it endearing and like how it bounces along with the momentum of the arrangement. I feel the same way about his vocal on With a Little Help from My Friends.
The George version is great too, though the hare krishna part is silly. But his vocal seems to have a little less energy than Ringo's, maybe because it was just a guide vocal, but maybe because, as was said, George doesn't have any yell in him.
krista4
Footballguy
Interesting you mention momentum, because one of the downsides to me of the song is I find it a bit draggy. I didn't mention since we're in the homestretch where I love the songs, but there you go.
Where does "With A Little Help From My Friends" rank on your Beatles list - knowing, of course, that you wouldn't have been silly enough to make an actual, thoughtful ranking? I actually find his vocal there much more pleasing, btw.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
There's definitely a subdued Hey Jude vibe going on here. "Ornate but not ridiculously notable as such" was a strength of Lynne's best work with ELO, and it's nice to see he still had that touch. Great stuff.krista4 said:59. Little Willow (Flaming Pie, 1997) Spotify YouTube
(Paul #24)
Paul wrote this song upon the death of Ringo's ex-wife Maureen, to express to her children how much their mom had meant to him: "I wanted to somehow convey how much I thought of her. For her and her kids. It certainly is heartfelt, and I hope it will help a bit."
This is achingly beautiful, with all the Jeff Lynne tricks working to great effect in making the heavy instrumentation sound like a choir. I'm not kidding about heavy instrumentation - between the two of them, Paul and Lynne played acoustic guitar, Spanish guitar, electric guitar, bass, Mellotron, piano, harpsichord, harmonium, electric spinet, various percussion, and probably whatever else Paul found lying around. Too bad there wasn't a tuba in the closet. It's a lot of sound for such a simple lyric and song structure, but it gives such a rich, warm feel that it can sometimes move me to the verge of tears. In the battle of the lullabies, that personal connection to the loss of a parent is more compelling to me personally than John's "Beautiful Boy" can necessarily be. I'd be happy to have either one sung to me as I try and fail to fall asleep, though.
It occurred to me that Paul was fabulous at writing songs for his bandmates' kids, given this and "Hey Jude." Sadly, this one could turn into a comforting elegy dedicated to Linda within a year after its release.
I've mentioned a couple of times the sequencing of Flaming Pie, and again I think this is an instance of how beautifully laid out the record is, as this song leads into "Really Love You," which is essentially just a big jam session between Paul and Ringo (and their first-ever shared writing credit). OH also complimented the feel of this song in the context of the whole album: "Very nice! Hell yeah. I liked it. It was a sweet lullaby. It’s a good album cut. It thematically it fits with the rest of the record but doesn’t quite sound like anything else on the record. It has an integrity all its own."
Paul songs with willow trees (running count): 4
UP NEXT: Written for a movie...
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
Top 25-ish. Probably #2 or #3 from Sgt. Pepper and #1 for Ringo vocals. I took it in the Beatles/solo Beatles draft.
krista4
Footballguy
That's pretty close to where I feel it, too. Definitely #1 Ringo for me. I heard it on the radio today and was reminded how much I love love love it.
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
I remember this from Live in Japan. And yes, this is very Wilbury. I probably would have guessed it was an outtake from Vol. 1 if you hadn't provided the background. This has all the charms of the best stuff from that record. I personally wouldn't have relegated it to a movie soundtrack, but what do I know.58. Cheer Down (Lethal Weapon 2: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, 1989) YouTube (not available on Spotify)
(George #20)
I teased this as "written for a movie" hoping for some misdirection to "Live And Let Die," but I could also have teased it as a Tom Petty co-write to mislead into The Traveling Wilburys. So many ways for me to be ridiculously clever.
George wrote the rhythm track for this during the Cloud Nine sessions, but didn't complete it at the time, later bringing in Tom Petty as a co-writer to assist with the lyrics. A year later, George offered it to Eric Clapton for his Journeyman album, but instead Clapton asked George to put it together for the Lethal Weapon 2 soundtrack that Clapton was working on. George brought in Jeff Lynne to produce so that this is 60% authentic Wilbury, and the song ended up being used for the closing credits of the movie.
I adore this song in pretty much every way, but three items stand out for me: (1) first and foremost the insanely amazing and varied slide guitar from George, ranging from an Indian sound to a country/bluesy sound - this could very well be George's best slide guitar performance in his catalog; (2) the descending piano chords, which always get me; and (3) because I am weird, I'm always bemused at how he holds the "shhhhhh" at the end of the word "crash."
UP NEXT: Scary giant mountain Yoko face...
I don't think this would have worked nearly as well with a Clapton lead vocal.
krista4
Footballguy
Pip's Invitation
Footballguy
I think I called it "Creepy Giant Yoko Mountain Head," but same idea.57. Mind Games (Mind Games, 1973) Spotify YouTube
(John #13)
The title song for Scary Giant Yoko Mountain Head (or whatever Pip calls it
The song became a moderate hit, reaching #18 on the US charts, as one of the “poppier” songs from John during this time. It features a particularly beautiful dreamy melody and a rich, lush (but not overdone) sound that makes me feel warm, and John’s yearning (yet somewhat optimistic) vocal complements the lyrics perfectly. John has called the middle eight a reggae style. Honestly I can hardly locate a middle eight on this song, nor a verse nor a chorus, which lack of structure I like a lot, so I’ll take John’s word for it. There *is* something going on with the guitars that I can’t put my finger on but really enjoy, and maybe it is a reggae beat in a sense.
Fun fact: when John sings “Yes is the answer,” it’s a reference to the art installation where he first met Yoko.
UP NEXT: As long as I'm apologizing to Pip…
I had no idea this was originally an anti-war song. In fact I never paid much attention to the lyrics except for "we've all been playing these mind games forever." It's all about the dreamy melody, as you said. It just makes me float on, as those Modest Mouse guys say.
I always figured the "love is the answer/yes is the answer" parts were the choruses, but I'm not a musician.
I don't hear even a hint of reggae in this either.
#13 for John solo sounds about right to me.
