Today, I am reviewing an album called "Venus And Mars" by Wings. I will tell you more about them after. I found it for a dollar!! I also want to show you this nice review banner that a cool lady named Roberta made for me!! She is in the Jimmy McCulloch fan page (Jimmy was in Wings!) Thanks, Roberta!!!
Away we go!!
1;"Venus and Mars": It is like a beautiful prelude to rock! You feel very much like you are in the stands of an arena, (as the song states) waiting for something beautiful to happen. Unfortunately, my record player gleefully skipped half the beginning of the record. I really think it likes that a little too much.
2: "Rock Show": Greatest rock song ever!! This is according to my Dad, it is so true. It is a real rocker. It really flies and has tons of intricate parts that make it special. It has a lot going on. "What's that man moving across the stage? Looks a lot like the one used by Jimmy Page" and "They was louder at the Rainbow", are my favorite lines!! I believe Jimmy was mentioned because Denny Laine played a double necked guitar in concert, just like Jimmy Page!! I've been listening to the live version for so long, I forgot about that spoken ending!
3: "Love In Song": It is so cool how these songs merge together. This song is new to me, it is very beautiful. Not only that, but it makes for lovely reading on the back cover! Very nice poetry. It pretty much starts our with just acoustic guitar, but it progresses with great procussion and strings!!
4: "You Gave Me The Answer": Oh, this is so so good. It has the effects put on it to sound almost like an old 78 record, like New Vaudeville Band did for "Winchester Cathedral"! It also reminds me of the old musicals.
5: Magneto and the Titanium Man": This is a really cool song. If I am hearing this right, the lyrics have a twist ending!! I like the live version a little better though. It rocks a little harder and it's more raw. But look at the title!! Gosh, isn't it so magnificent!! And any time Jimmy McCulloch plays a solo, you just have to freeze to take in the greatness of it.
6: "Letting Go": The most superior song about letting go, if ya know what I mean. More great Jimmy guitar and those horns. I found one thing that Jimmy and I had in common, we like a lot of brass!! "Ah, she looks like snow, I want to put her in a Broadway show", that is a groovy line.
7:"Venus And Mars Reprise": The echo on this is haunting. This is my first time hearing it. There is harp in this!! Wow! And what was that cool synth like sound? I think I like this better then the first one, it's like we as listeners are floating in space, with otherworldly vocals! Like the interlude to a play, it ends, we move right into:
8: "Spirits of Aincient Egypt": Denny Laine! People may think that Paul is the star of this unit (and most people see Wings only for Paul McCartney) But I listen mainly for Denny and Jimmy. You can hear Linda pretty good doing backups for this. She is not a bad singer! "You can take a pound of Love and put it in a stew" , beautiful. That was a cooking tip brought to you by Mister Denny Laine!! Here comes another good one.
9: "Medicine Jar":Jimmy McCulloch! This is one of my favorites. Jimmy is a great singer and this is a great showcase for him! We also get another great solo from Jimmy here. I remember seeing "Rock Show ", the concert movie on YouTube. I was a big Beatles fan. My Dad said "Raven, you have to see Rock Show." I was 9 then. So I checked it out. I was amazed by this Jimmy guy!! I wondered to myself, "Who is this guy who has more cool then anyone can handle?" Back then, there did not seem to be a lot of Jimmy stuff on YouTube. But now, you can find a ton!
10: "Call Me Back Again": This almost has a blues feeling. I think this is that tale of liking someone and them not liking you back. "I've called your name, every night since then, but I ain't never heard you calling me. Come on and call me back again". It's about that one sided lonely feeling. This is an excellent jam!! More gold!
11: "Listen To What The Man Said": Who is speaking at the beginning of this? I don't think it is on the radio version, because I've never heard that. This has never really been one of my favorite Wings songs, maybe because they play it a lot. But of course, it is still a great song. Now, reading the lyrics, I now know what the man says. I always get confused when Paul says "He said" and goes into instrumental. When I heard this when I was little I thought "Maybe it is like the grown ups on Snoopy! Maybe we are only supposed to hear the man in music, like the parents with the horns?" Crazy kid!
12: "Treat Her Gently-Two Lonely Old People": This is a gorgeous song, but it is also sad, it's making me tear up right now. It reminds me of my Abuelita (grandma in Spanish) who died of Alzheimers last year. "Treat Her gently, treat her kind, she doesn't even know her own mind". I miss her so much. The beat in this song kind of reminds me a little of "Go Now" by the Moody Blues. Denny was in the Moody Blues. He would play "Go Now" at Wings concerts, Linda liked that song a lot!!
13: "Crossroads Theme": Jimmy showcase!! It is really pretty and it shows off his talent, easily my favorite song here, I've played it thrice, it was too short!! It could go on for another 30 minutes, I wouldn't mind, and I know a lot of people who might just be feeling the same way. Jimmy McCulloch playing guitar against an orchestra, 1:01 mins of pure goodness. It fades out and someone (Paul?) Says "That's it, clear" and it is all over. This would be a perfect song to fly to. Sadly of course, you can't physically fly, but planes are the next best thing!! If they don't let you bring any kind of music playing device, just hum it and drive the person next to you CRAZY!!!
Wings consisted of Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney, Denny Laine, Jimmy McCulloch and Joe English. This is such a great record, I recommend giving it a listen. Wings is so much more then their radio hits!!
I really love the inside cover. The band is standing in the middle of the desert with mountains in the background. It does not look hot, they all wear jackets, Paul has a blanket around his shoulders (a rather nice blanket at that!!) Linda, Jimmy, Joe and Paul are engrossed in checking out some rocks and showing them to each other. Denny stands a distance away, looking on at them. Perhaps he is thinking "They've been looking at rocks for the last fifteen minutes. Let us just get back in the bus and find a place where they have good disco fries." Or whatever Denny wanted to eat that day!! How about you write some fun captions!
Have you ever listened to this album? Tell me what you think? What is your favorite song? How do you feel about Wings? Comment down below!!
I guess I'm really only familiar with their hit singles like "Band on the Run," "Live and Let Die," and "Silly Love Songs." But I do enjoy them very much.
ReplyDeleteThanks for introducing us to this album. :-)
No problem! They are all good. I've never been to big on "Live And Let Die", but I am really crazy about the other two, especially "Silly Love Songs"!!
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