BACK TO THE EGG at 40

How do you follow being Fab?

For Paul McCartney, hard work was the key to his impressive run during the 1970s. Forming Wings was a deliberate attempt to start over, return to playing live and reignite the joy of being in a working band. Written off initially by critics, Paul and team would eventually turn negative notices for their inaugural effort, Wild Life, into glowing reviews with Band on the Run. During this time, group members came and went, with Denny Laine and Linda being the only constant fixtures throughout the journey. Following up with a string of hit singles/albums, culminating in the hugely successful Wings Over America tour and triple disc, document of these shows, Wings had become a veritable commercial force. Entering their seventh year, lineup changes once again entered the equation. With the departure of drummer Joe English and lead guitarist Jimmy McCulloch in 1978, it was left to Laine to recruit new members.

Enter Steve Holley and Laurence Juber.

Their skillsets as musicians are estimable. Bringing a new energy to the proceedings, this version of Wings would feature far more muscular playing than ever before. Reset button fully deployed, the quintet set to work on new material. The sessions for what would become Back to the Egg were ground out at multiple locations/recording facilities and lasted nearly a year. Chris Thomas was brought in to co-produce with McCartney. His presence would bring another perspective in terms of the approach to tracking and final mix.

DISCLAIMER

Before delving into the content, it's best to set expectations for those not familiar with this record. Upon release, it was subject to scathing reviews from rock scribes of that time. Some were mildly snarky, while others were pretty vicious. This set is much better than the notices it received. Next up is the talk track around McCartney wanting to capture the energy of punk and some of the premier "New Wave" acts that were coming to prominence during that era. Some of the tracks have a harder edge, which is a positive, though any evidence of trying to recreate the vibe of the Sex Pistols doesn't really stand out. (Try to imagine John Lydon wrapping his vocal chords around "Winter Rose"). Instead, certain selections are closer in feel to the pub rock/power pop movement. Far more Nick Lowe/Dave Edmunds than the Damned. Let's face facts: Punk was DIY, ragged-ass musicianship and pure adrenalin. None of those bands spent a year on their productions nor did any utilize a castle as a recording locale.

HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR EGGS?

Naturally divided into two listening experiences in its original vinyl format, side one is labeled as 'Sunny Side Up' while the flip (pun intended) is 'Over Easy'. It is the sunny side that gets the edge for consistency. Opening with the funky "Reception", it's all about the bass. Paul's line is tight and perfect, grooving accordingly. Nodding to his mid-sixties experiments with tape loops, spoken word snippets are threaded into the mix (excerpted from "The Poodle and the Pug") along with a shrill synth-guitar line. The effect is that of someone fiddling with a tuner dial on a radio, trying to pick up a clear signal. As this brief instrumental fades, "Getting Closer" crashes in with authority. Custom built with a fantastic hook and a powerful, vintage McCartney "screaming" vocal, it was an obvious choice for a single. The energy is amped up in the outro, propelled by Holley's precision percussive attack. First rate rock tune, it certainly deserved a higher chart ranking. "We're Open Tonight" is a short, delicate acoustic piece that serves as a clearing of the aural palate before the onslaught of "Spin It On", which is about as close as this set comes to Punk. It is hyper-caffeinated, though the rotating riff is pretty standard. Juber's fretwork is the star of the show on this one. Denny Laine's lone offering, "Again and Again and Again", raises the bar a notch higher. Reportedly a hybrid of two motifs that he had been working on, the bridge is spectacular with a very clever turnaround. A standout track with Laine delivering a pristine lead vocal, supported by McCartney's stellar harmony, it is power pop at its finest. Scoring again with a superbly heavy slab of guitar-centric madness is "Old Siam, Sir". This one apparently caused some friction in terms of credits for contribution of key parts, though the result is another contender for best in show on the disc. McCartney steps up with a tonsil-shredding lead, Juber and Laine execute fine harmonized guitar figures and Holley steers the arrangement with inventive fills. Linda's keyboard perfectly compliments the lyrical theme. Downshifting slightly, "Arrow Through Me" is a prime example of how seamlessly Paul adapts the stylistic elements of other genres, in this case funk/R & B through the lens of Stevie Wonder. Smooth vocal, leaping into falsetto territory, floats over a haunting melody and the horn section ices the cake. These last two cuts were also 45'ed, making it as far as the top 30. Both were worthy of higher placement and round out an ultimately solid first side of music.

ROCKESTRA

Conceptually, pulling together a virtual "dream team", comprised of some of the premier instrumentalists in rock, to play in unison on a song or two seems like a pretty interesting idea. McCartney brought these heavy friends into the studio to lay down the "Rockestra Theme" and "So Glad to See You Here".

Denny Laine, Laurence Juber, David Gilmour, Hank Marvin, Pete Townshend – guitars
Steve Holley, John Bonham, Kenney Jones – drums
Paul McCartney, John Paul Jones, Ronnie Lane, Bruce Thomas – basses
Paul McCartney, Gary Brooker, John Paul Jones – pianos
Linda McCartney, Tony Ashton – keyboards
Speedy Acquaye, Tony Carr, Ray Cooper, Morris Pert – percussion
Howie Casey, Tony Dorsey, Steve Howard, Thaddeus Richard – horns

The motif of the "Rockestra Theme" is quite basic, easily adapted by an expanded session crew and is concise. Not sure why they still hadn't had any dinner, though.

Feed the Rockestra, Macca or face their wrath...

Despite the cast of thousands approach, both worked out extremely well. The "Rockestra Theme" won a Grammy for best rock instrumental. One of the surprises amongst the pack on the 'Over Easy' side is "To You". Lyrically it deals with a similar theme as that of "Arrow Through Me" where the narrative is taken from the point of view of a jilted lover. The music that supports it pre-figures the sounds that would color eighties productions. It is quite different than anything that had come before it in the Wings catalog and pointed to a very promising sonic direction for them had they continued on as a unit.

Instead of carrying on down a more experimental avenue, Paul retreated into familiar territory, filling out the rest of the back nine with softer fare. To be blunt, "The Broadcast" is execrable and should have been elbowed in favor of something else from the sessions like "Cage" (which went unreleased) or perhaps another tune from Denny Laine. Taking song fragments and welding them together saw the inclusion of "After the Ball/Million Miles" and "Winter Rose/Love Awake". While boasting fetching melodies (Winter Rose is especially beautiful, taken on its own), they are a poor fit with the surrounding material. "Baby's Request" was chosen to close out the set, though that honor should have gone to "So Glad to See You Here", which includes a short, reggae-fied reprise of "We're Open Tonight" toward the end. Showcasing McCartney's versatility, this soft jazz number is about as close to Hoagy Carmichael as you can get. It's good yet really doesn't belong here, coming off as an anachronism that few contemporary consumers would truly connect with. The aforementioned songs diffused the finished product, likely resulting in the indisposition registered by the reviewers who gave it such a critical pasting.

The perspective of forty years has seen a revision of opinion concerning Back to the Egg. It is now seen as a creative step forward in some respects, with Chris Thomas helping to guide McCartney toward a cleaner production style. The infusion of new blood in the Wings camp also gave a meatier dimension to their overall sound. Desire to do something different with song structure is another plus. This incarnation was really just finding its feet as a live act (as bootlegs from the 1979 UK tour will attest). It's a pity that an unfortunate series of events (the pot bust in Japan being the major blow) conspired to permanently bring an end to Wings.

While it kicks off better than it finishes, it is well worth adding to your collection. Those of you who own a vinyl copy know what to do.

Spin it on, don't stop, take it back to the top...