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In this thread I rank my favorite post-Beatles Beatles songs: 291-1. (2 Viewers)

As promised, it's time for McCartney Minus McCartney Plus...McCartney

280.  Roger McGough and Mike McGear - So Much in Love (McCough & McGear, 1968)  Spotify  YouTube

279.  Mike McGear - What Do We Really Know? (McGear, 1974)  Spotify  YouTube

(Paul #136 and 137)

McGear is the second (and last) solo album put out by Mike McGear.  Who the heck is Mike McGear, the crowd demands?  It's the pseudonym of Paul's baby brother, Peter Michael McCartney, who took the name to try to avoid being seen as trading on Paul's fame.  "Gear," in Liverpool, is the equivalent of "fab."  Fine, the crowd admits, but what does that have to do with any of this?  Well, the McGear album includes not just Paul as a producer, songwriter (he wrote or co-wrote every non-cover on the record), and musician, but also features current or soon-to-be members of Wings - Linda, Jimmy McCulloch, Denny Seiwell, and Denny Laine.  Some people consider it a "hidden" Wings album, and to me it's better than one or two of the official Wings albums.

Mike is a damned interesting guy.  Before releasing any albums, he was part of the group The Scaffold, which had formed out of a group called The Liverpool One Fat Lady All Electric Show and was a blend of poetry, music and comedy that you really have to listen to to understand.  Actually, I listened to them, and I still don't understand.  Anyway, the group had several top ten singles in the UK, including their #1 hit Lily the Pink, and a hit children's TV show.  That video really must be viewed.

In 1968, Mike also released a separate album entitled McGough & McGear with one of his two compatriots in The Scaffold.  Why do we care about this album, which is mostly made up of comedy bits and spoken word poetry?  We care not only because of Paul's heavy participation in the album, contributing vocals, piano, and some of the songwriting, but because the first and last tracks on the album feature a guitarist that you might just recognize without my having to tell you who it is.  Take a listen to #280 up there and give it a shot.*

I enjoy quite a few songs on McGear but didn't want to muck up this list with too many not-purely-Paul entries.  If you like the one above, which I think is a great banger with that Wings support, check out "Leave It," which was recorded to be released as a single, but when Paul sent it to the in-laws for release, they suggested a whole album be put together instead.  "Givin' Grease A Ride" is a Gary-Numan-esque piece five years before "Cars," and I like "Norton" but understand it would not be for most people.

On McGough & McGear, definitely listen to the other song that features that pretty good guitarist, "Ex Art Student." 

*Guys, it's Jimi.

 
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Morton Muffley said:
So yes, my top 100 is just Paul songs... but I will likely build out a combined top 25 for the 4 of them (though I highly doubt that'll be sufficient to squeeze Ringo's It Don't Come Easy in...we'll see).
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Forgot to mention, hope you'll post these at some point.  Any point where you feel like they fit.

 
Given the McGear song, I thank God Jimi was a frontman, too. Not that the singing is bad, but Jimi's guitar deserves Jimi's voice, both of which are singular upon hearing. I can hear him singing this song. That and he sounds unsure what to do with his guitar when it comes to the drawn out sky-ayye-ayyye, which he wouldn't do. He'd let silence reign in certain areas where the spoken words come in. 

 
rockaction said:
Given the McGear song, I thank God Jimi was a frontman, too. Not that the singing is bad, but Jimi's guitar deserves Jimi's voice, both of which are singular upon hearing. I can hear him singing this song. That and he sounds unsure what to do with his guitar when it comes to the drawn out sky-ayye-ayyye, which he wouldn't do. He'd let silence reign in certain areas where the spoken words come in. 
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These are fantastic points.  And I love the shout-out to Jimi's singular voice.  I always feel like he is underappreciated as a vocalist.  

 
krista4 said:
These are fantastic points.  And I love the shout-out to Jimi's singular voice.  I always feel like he is underappreciated as a vocalist.  
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After hearing a million bad cover bands try to do Jimi (there's only been one band close that I've heard in my days) you realize this kind of by absence of greatness rather than hearing it in the positive. Not many people can do "Hey Joe" (hey, wikkid) and have it drip with foreboding like Jimi does both in his vocal tone and in the repetition and phrasing of the vocals. That's my humble opinion, or maybe I'm just on a Jimi kick. 

 
Next up is going to be a Ringo song, and I suggest that anyone (such as wikkid) not enjoying the thread or here just to #### on it (see what I did there) go ahead and tap out for a while.  Maybe wait 100-150 songs and then try again and see if there's anything to your liking.  Might be, might not.

 
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Pip's Invitation said:
In the studio, Jimi had everyone leave the room when he recorded his vocals, because he was shy about his voice and thought it wasn't very good. Which is a shame. 
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Yes, definitely a shame.  I went to an exhibit on Jimi at the MoPop here a year or two ago, and they had some of his diaries and writings there.  I was struck with how sensitive and vulnerable he seemed in those writings, compared to the confidence and strength I'd expected.

 
krista4 said:
Second entry in McCartney Minus McCartney

285.  Kanye West - Only One (ft. Paul McCartney) (single, 2014)  Spotify  YouTube

(Paul #139)

Speaking of not diving deeply into the musical details, I wouldn't even know how to here anyway.  It's not music that I know well or could speak intelligently about, but in this case, I simply find it lovely.  It's a very sweet number that Kanye wrote for his daughter, and the lyrics are meant to be his mother (who has passed away) sending a message through Kanye to his daughter.  I think his voice sounds terrific despite all the Autotune, and the context and lyrics of the song are touching.

This is the song that the LA Times might have called the worst of Kanye's career.  When I was first looking into this song a few months ago, google brought me an article from the paper entitled something like "Kanye West's 'Only One' - His Worst Song Ever?"  It was behind a paywall, so I didn't get to find out what the verdict was, but with that headline, I kind of assume the answer was "yes."  I expect some of you guys to hate this one, too. 

I've ranked this a bit lower than the quality of the song would otherwise put it for me, because there's just not much Paul.  He plays the organ parts and composed those basically on the fly, and he contributes the backing vocals, but this is a Kanye song with just barely enough Paul to get it on my list.
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This is not worse than that godawful "ET" song he did with Katy Perry, which to my indignation was #1 on the Hot 100 the week that my son was born. 

I agree with most of what you said. It's a nice little thing that could benefit from less autotune but starts to teeter around the 2:00 mark. I would have had no idea Paul was on it if not for it being labeled as such. 

 
krista4 said:
Yes, definitely a shame.  I went to an exhibit on Jimi at the MoPop here a year or two ago, and they had some of his diaries and writings there.  I was struck with how sensitive and vulnerable he seemed in those writings, compared to the confidence and strength I'd expected.
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I don't know as much about him as I do Neil and some other contemporaries, but it seems like he was a pretty complex guy. 

 
krista4 said:
Next up is going to be a Ringo song, and I suggest that anyone (such as wikkid) not enjoying the thread or here just to #### on it (see what I did there) go ahead and tap out for a while.  Maybe wait 100-150 songs and then try again and see if there's anything to your liking.  Might be, might not.
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To be clear, if you don't like the songs, that's fine.  But to come in and say the thread itself is ####...that's not cool to me at all.

 
krista4 said:
Final McCartney Minus McCartney selection

284.  The Justice Collective - He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother (single, 2012)  YouTube (unavailable on Spotify)

(Paul #138)

The Justice Collective was a collection of musicians organized by Peter Hooten of the band, The Farm, to provide aid for victims of the previously mentioned Hillsborough disaster.  The group toured for a while and then in 2012 recorded this cover, which included Paul on lead guitar and singing the final lines of the song.  I have an embarrassing soft spot for this song, and a more embarrassing soft spot for this version with all the over-singing.  Since this isn't on Spotify, you have to watch it on YouTube, which I think is a good way to experience this song to see all the different artists on it (though most are not immediately identifiable).  

These were my notes when I first watched the video:  "Yeah, yeah.  That boy band guy who sounds like Paul Heaton.  Gerry.  Paul Heaton.  Glenn Tillbrook.   All the women.  #### yeah.  First 1:30 with Robbie Williams.  First guy's kinda like Paul Young.  Mark Zuckerberg guy.  Frankie Goes to Hollywood guy.  Eddie Vedder-looking guy in a Pizza Hut tablecloth.  Why does everyone get three words?  That one woman dropped in from Cyndi Lauper video.  There's Ally Sheedy in Breakfast Club.  Shane MacGowan just creeping everyone out."

I do especially love the part when Shane MacGowan suddenly pops in all sideways and weird and stuff.  Robbie Williams with one of the Spice Girls is the highlight for me, shockingly.

These are the actual names of the people performing, in order:

Andy Brown (of Lawson), Gerry Marsden (of Gerry and the Pacemakers), Paul Heaton (of The Beautiful South), Glenn Tilbrook (of Squeeze), John Power (of Cast and The La's), Robbie Williams (of Take That), Melanie C (of Spice Girls), Rebecca Ferguson, Holly Johnson (from Frankie Goes to Hollywood), Paloma Faith, Beverley Knight, Eliza Doolittle, Dave McCabe (of The Zutons), Peter Hooton (of The Farm), Ren Harvieu, Jon McClure (of Reverend and The Makers), Paul McCartney (of The Beatles), Shane MacGowan (of The Pogues), Bobby Elliott and Tony Hicks (both of The Hollies), Hollie Cook (from The Slits), LIPA Gospel Choir.
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I've never cared for this song. It's more Neil Diamond-in-Vegas than British Invasion to me. This version doesn't change my mind. But the Shane MacGowan drop-in is hilarious. 

 
Pip's Invitation said:
I've never cared for this song. It's more Neil Diamond-in-Vegas than British Invasion to me. This version doesn't change my mind. But the Shane MacGowan drop-in is hilarious. 
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This is all fair criticism.  I still love it, but I'm not proud of that.  But yeah, that Shane MacGowan bit...  :lmao:  

 
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krista4 said:
Forgot to mention, hope you'll post these at some point.  Any point where you feel like they fit.
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Very kind of you, but I wouldn't dare step on your thread like that.  I did it to force myself to commit to a ranking only so I could compare my preferences to your trained ear and thus see what I was missing.  I will say that I have lots of lesser known and later period songs in my top 25 than people would expect.  I don't think that's me engaging in counter-programming, nor do I think it's mere novelty....but I could be wrong and am open to hearing some of the hits anew.

Now, back to you: wow! Am so impressed that you are including McGear in your assessment.  I hope others here appreciate the exhaustiveness of the work you put into this simply to compile this list, much less to rank, research and write each entry! Do you sleep? Are you imprisoned somewhere? Come to think of it forced listening to EVERY Ringo record would constitute some type of cruel and unusual punishment.  I shall inform the Hague...but only after you submit your final entry. 

 
Morton Muffley said:
Very kind of you, but I wouldn't dare step on your thread like that.  I did it to force myself to commit to a ranking only so I could compare my preferences to your trained ear and thus see what I was missing.  I will say that I have lots of lesser known and later period songs in my top 25 than people would expect.  I don't think that's me engaging in counter-programming, nor do I think it's mere novelty....but I could be wrong and am open to hearing some of the hits anew.

Now, back to you: wow! Am so impressed that you are including McGear in your assessment.  I hope others here appreciate the exhaustiveness of the work you put into this simply to compile this list, much less to rank, research and write each entry! Do you sleep? Are you imprisoned somewhere? Come to think of it forced listening to EVERY Ringo record would constitute some type of cruel and unusual punishment.  I shall inform the Hague...but only after you submit your final entry. 
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Your posts are unbelievably kind in referring to my "ear," but I'm going to disappoint a lot in this endeavor.  My ear is not particularly trained, anyway.

I am extremely interested in your top 25, even moreso based on this post.  Dammit, I don't want to wait.  I'd say 50% of my top 10 Paul are lesser known, or at least not ones you hear all the time on the Beatles channel.  I'm glad to hear I'm not on an island there, though I wouldn't be surprised if we didn't have much overlap in those.  I know you've referenced a couple of lesser-knowns that will rank highly for me.  It's certainly not novelty but the fact of Paul's incredible output.

As to Ringo, ahhhhh, his albums are rarely horrible to listen to, but also rarely something I want to repeat.  They're amiable, unassuming, and usually quite warm.  I did come across a few underappreciated gems along the way.  A few.

 
krista4 said:
---INTERLUDE AND THE FIRST OH APPEARANCE---

Paul confuses me.  He has a squillion dollars (or pounds, I suppose) and seems generous with his time and money, but he doesn't seem ever to have had one particular cause that he's poured himself into.  I have a vague recollection of his being involved in land-mine-removal stuff when he was married to that awful person (more on her later), and I know he and Linda are/were vegans and did a little on that. 

It seems like someone with Paul's money and his following could have a cause where he could make a significant difference, but he hasn't had that focus.  Instead he pops up on what seems like every song for charity, no matter what it is.  In that way, he's quite admirable, as he seems to be game to help anyone who asks.  I feel like if I needed, say, a new roof, I could text my GB Paul and he'd pop out a fundraising song for me in a couple of hours.  I wish he used his huge platform in a more focused and meaningful fashion, though.

This all brings me to the final McCartney Minus McCartney song, which is one of these random charitable endeavors that he did, as was "Cut Me Some Slack" above.  I'll post the song next, but first I wanted to mention a few that won't be on my list (YouTube links included).

Ferry Cross the Mersey - Paul joined Holly Johnson, The Christians, Gerry Marsden, and others for this cover, to help the victims of the Hillsborough disaster.  This isn't a bad version of the song, but I just never liked it.  OH was less generous about this one:  "Sounded like when they have really good singers record children’s music at Christmastime, and none of them can just sing it, they all have to sell it.  Running the scales, like Froooooostty."

Children in Need - For the charity Children in Need.  As you can see, this one's really hard to find!  And it's a shame that I found it.  OH:  "This is like a Save the Africa thing.  WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN?  It makes me think of the Simpsons."

Let It Be - Version recorded for Ferry Aid, to help victims of the Zeebrugge disaster.  I don't object to this version - Kate Bush is particularly good - but didn't include it since I'm not including covers of Beatles songs.

Live Aid - We all know this stuff.  Paul shows up three minutes in.  Bono's mullet is on point.

Come Together - Version by "supergroup" Smokin' Mojo Filters, which includes Paul, to benefit the War Child charity, which aids people in Bosnia.

Love Song to the Earth - To raise funds to combat climate change.

And many others.  
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I actually like Ferry better as a song than Heavy, but it's not a favorite or anything. I thought this version was kind of dull until the vocal arrangement got spiced up around 3:00. 

Children in Need is '80s cheese. Paul was no stranger to that. (3:20) OF COURSE there's a children's chorus.

1987 was a bad year to re-record classics from earlier decades, Let It Be is no exception. Is that Jeff Beck and Mark Knopfler trading guitar solos? It does get better in the second half. 

Do They Know It's Christmas is 10 times better than We Are the World and I don't get tired of it when it reappears on the radio during the holidays. I also don't hate Wonderful Christmastime so maybe I'm weird. Also, my favorite part of the video is Roger Daltrey looking at the lyric sheet all confused. 

I enjoyed the Come Together cover, but I am likely to rate highly anything Paul Weller is involved with (late-period Style Council excepted). '90s Paul Weller especially. 

Love Song to the Earth sounds like one of those things that was focus-grouped to death. It's not good, and it's not "so-bad-it's-amusing" like Wyclef's Haiti benefit song. It's just blah. 

 
krista4 said:
Second entry in McCartney Minus McCartney

285.  Kanye West - Only One (ft. Paul McCartney) (single, 2014)  Spotify  YouTube

(Paul #139)

Speaking of not diving deeply into the musical details, I wouldn't even know how to here anyway.  It's not music that I know well or could speak intelligently about, but in this case, I simply find it lovely.  It's a very sweet number that Kanye wrote for his daughter, and the lyrics are meant to be his mother (who has passed away) sending a message through Kanye to his daughter.  I think his voice sounds terrific despite all the Autotune, and the context and lyrics of the song are touching.

This is the song that the LA Times might have called the worst of Kanye's career.  When I was first looking into this song a few months ago, google brought me an article from the paper entitled something like "Kanye West's 'Only One' - His Worst Song Ever?"  It was behind a paywall, so I didn't get to find out what the verdict was, but with that headline, I kind of assume the answer was "yes."  I expect some of you guys to hate this one, too. 

I've ranked this a bit lower than the quality of the song would otherwise put it for me, because there's just not much Paul.  He plays the organ parts and composed those basically on the fly, and he contributes the backing vocals, but this is a Kanye song with just barely enough Paul to get it on my list.
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Oh boy

 
Pip's Invitation said:
OF COURSE there's a children's chorus.

Also, my favorite part of the video is Roger Daltrey looking at the lyric sheet all confused. 
 
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:lmao:  on these parts.

The problem with that version of Come Together was the drums.  The song is a damn RINGO SHOWCASE and they lost the best part.  Oh, and also lost the great bass line.  Wtf.

 
283.  Traveling Wilburys - Where Were You Last Night?  (Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, 1990)  Spotify  YouTube

282.  Traveling Wilburys - Inside Out  (Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, 1990)  Spotify  YouTube
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I do enjoy Vol. 3, though it's not in the same league as Vol. 1. One of its weaknesses is that there aren't enough George vocals. Where Were You Last Night is one of my favorites from it and is one of the few from the record that you can tell George had a lot of input into. Inside Out is the one that most sounds like it could have been on Vol. 1. In fact, there have been times where I've Mandela-effected myself into thinking it was. It was clearly written to be "Handle with Care part 2" and is almost as good as the real thing. It was taken in the Tom Petty song draft on my other sports/music geek board. 

 
krista4 said:
:lmao:  on these parts.

The problem with that version of Come Together was the drums.  The song is a damn RINGO SHOWCASE and they lost the best part.  Oh, and also lost the great bass line.  Wtf.
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Well, they used people from Oasis, so there ya go. I like it for Paul W. and the guitars. 

 
rockaction said:
Promise I'm laughing when I say this.

I would have given you a well played if you said they used people from Oasis, after all...

you're my wonderwall. 
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That would have required me to actively remember Oasis, which I generally try not to do. Also I'm tired, as should have been evident when I said a song was focus-grouped. 😃

 
krista4 said:
As promised, it's time for McCartney Minus McCartney Plus...McCartney

280.  Roger McGough and Mike McGear - So Much in Love (McCough & McGear, 1968)  Spotify  YouTube

279.  Mike McGear - What Do We Really Know? (McGear, 1974)  Spotify  YouTube
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trippy ...it is most definitely of it's time.  

all I could picture was a grainy "B" movie with European looking dudes and girls with mini-skirts and white eye make up.  

 
krista4 said:
281.  George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, Neil Young, and Roger McGuinn - My Back Pages  (The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration, 1992)  Spotify  YouTube

The third song in this Harrison Minus Harrison list is a live performance of Dylan's "My Back Pages" from Dylan's 30th anniversary (as a recording artist) celebration at Madison Square Garden, which song was later released on The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration album.  It features even less George than the other two above, with his vocal finally coming around 3:40.  So why is it ranked higher than the other two?  Because it's a ####### great song.  And have you checked out that lineup?  Sheesh.  C'mon.
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I need to go to bed but I can't resist listening to and commenting further on something from Bobfest.

First of all, why is GE Smith there? All six vocalists play guitar, and Steve Cropper is there as part of the house band with the MGs. Did we really need an eighth guitar?

George's final verse is a good one, he's clearly singing with emotion there. 

It is not possible to have two lead guitarists that play as differently as Eric Clapton and Neil Young. Here, the solos are brief and far apart so it's not very noticeable, but on the other all-star collaboration from this show, the contrast is wild. 

I enjoyed all of George's contributions to Bobfest and it will be interesting to see if any of the others show up. I know one will, but that's because George recorded it himself. 

 
Pip's Invitation said:
First of all, why is GE Smith there?

I enjoyed all of George's contributions to Bobfest and it will be interesting to see if any of the others show up. I know one will, but that's because George recorded it himself. 
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:lol:   I considered mentioning GE Smith and how ####### distracting he was to me.  Even when George starts singing and I thought, "Yay, George," there was Smith mugging as always.  Even setting aside whether they needed another guitar, he's just pointless to me.

Yes, I'm not giving away anything major by saying that there will be one more song from Bobfest, but it will be a while before we get there.

 
krista4 said:
:lol:   I considered mentioning GE Smith and how ####### distracting he was to me.  Even when George starts singing and I thought, "Yay, George," there was Smith mugging as always.  Even setting aside whether they needed another guitar, he's just pointless to me.

Yes, I'm not giving away anything major by saying that there will be one more song from Bobfest, but it will be a while before we get there.
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He was such a mainstay of early Hall and Oates and he always struck me as so odd looking ...and then Saturday Night Live.

I understand he's a well respected guitarist and has played with a ton of people

There is a series of interviews with him on youtube floating around - and he seems like a genuinely nice and cool person.

ETA:  here's one on him meeting and touring with Dylan

 
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Binky The Doormat said:
He was such a mainstay of early Hall and Oates and he always struck me as so odd looking ...and then Saturday Night Live.

I understand he's a well respected guitarist and has played with a ton of people

There is a series of interviews with him on youtube floating around - and he seems like a genuinely nice and cool person.
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See, now this is not OK.  It's like when OH was mad about that Rush documentary because it made him like Rush as people.  I need my disdain for GE Smith in my life; I don't want to like him.

 
Pip's Invitation said:
He was briefly married to Gilda Radner. You can blame him for the divorce? 
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Wow, I had no idea.  Just looked this up and didn't realize that she also dated the entirety of SNL.  I thought of her and Gene Wilder (whom I loved) as long-time soulmates, but they were only married five years.

 
I'm just gonna go ahead and punish you guys with another Ringo.

278.  Fading In Fading Out (Choose Love, 2005)  Spotify  YouTube

(Ringo #28)

This song is from Ringo’s 14th – 14th! – studio album, Choose Love, released in 2005.  We’re going to be skipping around a bit on albums from all the guys, which isn’t ideal, but I’ll try to work the history in as best I can.  Following several commercial failures, Ringo had some moderate success with his “comeback” albums Vertical Man and Ringo Rama, and here he once again partnered with Mark Hudson and a couple of moderate or major stars on a perfectly nice and friendly (though possibly unspectacular) record.  This one, however, did not see any commercial success despite good reviews for a Ringo album, or as one review put it, not just a good Ringo record but a flat-out good record. 

Of the lesser-known Ringos, this is a satisfying album, as usual featuring Ringo’s effortless good cheer and in this case a couple of strong-ish songs that just missed my countdown:  “Give Me Back the Beat” (which I originally had slotted in this spot, so let me know if I made a mistake with my last-minute switcheroo) and “Satisfied”.   One of the other most notable songs is his duet with Chrissie Hynde, “Don’t Hang Up,” which I might not favor only because I don’t dig her much (with apologies to @Bracie Smathers).  The song I did choose to feature is just a jovial little Ringo-ism, nothing that’s going to rock your world, but a nice toe-tapper with a good nature that showcases a lesser-known Ringo album that doesn’t deserve to be completely overlooked, so I'm giving it one slot here.

 
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