Fifty years of Paul McCartney's "Band on the Run"
It was July 9, 2014. I was with my youngest daughter getting ready to walk into Chicago’s United Center to see Paul McCartney in concert. Before we got there we had this exchange, “Dad, does he play a lot of his solo music in concert?” I laughed and said he did play some songs. Her response was, “I don’t know those tunes.” I laughed again and told her, “It’s okay. There will be plenty of people here that don’t.”
When you think of Paul McCartney, you first go to The Beatles. That’s obvious! But when you move on to his post-Beatles work, what’s your first thought? Most likely it’s “Band on the Run.”
When The Beatles broke up, McCartney’s first solo works were blah. “McCartney” was interesting. I hated “Ram” and still do, although it’s received much better reviews as it has aged. Then he formed Wings and the band’s first two albums were nothing special. And then came “Band on the Run!” Bam! Finally, Paul McCartney made a record worthy of the talent we had been pining over since 1964.
If you look at the track list for the album, you’ll find nine excellent songs. No filler! Many of the tunes, such as the title track, “Jet’, and “Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five” are still part of his concert setlist. And surprisingly, or maybe not so much, the album still holds up today.
“Band on the Run” turned fifty last November. Today, McCartney dropped what is being called the “super deluxe” edition of the album. It has unreleased and unheard versions of the early mixes of the songs. I found it on Amazon for thirty-five dollars. But, you really don’t need this. Just break out your vinyl or CD version. If you can’t find that, go to wherever you listen to digital music and have a listen. I did that last night and it was a great way to spend forty minutes.
Here’s to a half-century of one of Sir Paul’s best efforts. And to my daughter, make sure you play this record with your children. Then they’ll be ready when we take them to the next McCartney concert.