When reviewing a Paul McCartney album there are many lingering questions. Do you compare it to his work with The Beatles? His solo work? Wings? Or on its own merit?
If we start by examining “New” on its own merits, it is a great album. It is constructed like an album should be with a catchy opening number “Save Us,” a single buried in the middle “New” and a few ballads thrown in for good measure.
Now, I have to admit I didn’t fall in love with “New” the first time through, but by the third and fourth time I cycled through the album I really began to enjoy and appreciate what McCartney was trying to accomplish.
If we compare this to his solo work, it’s far better than his last solo album of original material, “Memory Almost Full” and at least as good as any of his solo albums. The reason is simple, Sir Paul is arguably the best writer of pop music ever, albeit the lion’s share of that work was written when he was in The Beatles.
And if you are a Beatles fan, you likely know that the group was always one step ahead of anyone else and had their finger on the pulse of popular music. “New” shows that Sir Paul has not lost that knack. This was evidenced earlier this year when “Wings Over America” was released and you could witness how Paul reflected the sound of the time, arena rock.
“New” is an exploration of sounds, old and new. The lyrics are reflective, and while I have read that some people think Paul’s voice isn’t what it used to be, I could not find enough evidence to support that statement, nor am I willing to say “he doesn’t sound bad for his age,” heck, he just sounds great and all of the material suits his voice perfectly.
On the whole, “New” is worth owning, and while David Bowie and Elton John are getting accolades for their latest works, Sir Paul has outdone them all. But isn’t that what we have come to expect?
