Egypt Station: an album full of gems

I'll probably be the last one with a review of McCartney's newest album, Egypt Station, but I've taken the time to listen to it carefully. Beforehand Sir Paul promised us a "headphones-for-an-hour trip", and that is exactly what you get. In the last few days I’ve been enjoying this new piece of art a lot!

The first thing that strikes Egypt Station is the creativity that spins out of the album. It is full of surprising intros, hooks and twists, with small, unexpected sounds. Now and then you really wonder "what do I hear now?" It is almost baroque, without being pompous. 
I’ve heard stunning bass lines coming by, grooving guitar riffs and take, for example, the drum parts and the percussion: Where the drums attracted me the most in creativity, I actually assumed in advance that they were played by McCartney's regular drummer Abe Laboriel jr. Nothing proved to be less true; every time I was surprised by the drums and then looked up who the drummer was, it turned out to be Macca himself.



Egypt Station is in my opinion a lot more balanced than predecessor NEW, and I think that is because the sound of the whole is unequivocal. Remarkable, for example, is the large number of songs on which the harpsichord can be heard, I count as many as eight. And that is pretty much for such a rather unusual instrument. One of those songs with a harpsichord and creative drumming is the track People Want Peace, in my opinion one of the album’s highlights:

People Want Peace

Furthermore, the LP includes the typical McCartney mix, ranging from solid rock (Caesar Rock), to light guitar tunes (Happy With You), pop (Dominoes) and powerful ballads (I Don't Know). Not only that, McCartney also enters new paths. As with the beautiful Back in Brazil, a fun track with a mix of Latin and 1950s jazz: playful, smooth and groovy.

Back In Brazil

Other personal favorites are Who Cares, a rocker with a bit of a ZZ-Top-like guitar riff, suited to play while driving your car; The three singles I Do not Know, Come On To Me and Fuh You: I especially like the latter one, such a characteristic McCartney song that keeps playing in your head, even after listening to the whole CD. And this discussion about that pun, I just don’t care; I think it's funny. Another highlight that I find worth mentioning is the closing medley; one that only McCartney can make, containing three songs flowing seamlessly from rock to pop to an overwhelming blues on which McCartney plays a 2.5 minute long guitar solo that merges with a strings ensemble. A cello/guitar solo in a blues, I can’t remember I’ve heard anything like that before. Just amazing.

Hunt You Down/Naked/C-Link

Those who have the Deluxe CD, get a surprise with two excellent bonus tracks. In fact, Nothing For Free, the second song written with and produced by Ryan Tedder, is among the best in the entire album.

On the whole, McCartney has released again a wonderful CD. The only minus is his voice; it is really going backwards now and that just makes me a bit sad. But I also have to admit that after four days of listening, it does not really bother me anymore. Because Paul has absolutely not lost his gift for melodic music. The album is full of gems. Now there is only one song that I tend to skip and to me, that is a good score. That is why Egypt Station is absolutely in my top 10 of the 25 McCartney solo and Wings albums. But the honesty tells me to say that this applies to me every time he releases a new album. Time has to prove how strong Egypt Station really is.

Recent posts:

Paul Considers Live Brass Section On Tour
McCartney Rocks Grand Central Station
Egypt Station Quiz

André Homan

André Homan is a Dutch writer and journalist.

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