Hi-Fi News & Record Review, April 1993

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Hi-Fi News & Record Review

UK & Ireland magazines

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The Juliet Letters

Elvis Costello / The Brodsky Quartet

Ken Kessler

Macca see, Macca do. Like his fab mentor, EC is a closet classical freak, a respectability wannabee. So much for the one who implored us to pump it up, go to Chelsea, etc. Turns out that he and the Brodskys are members of a mutual admiration society. So how to handle the marriage? A two-disc epic à la McCartney’s Oratorio? Nope. Instead, Elvis found inspiration in an obscure news item about an Italian answering letters to Romeo’s Juliet. It’s a Daddy Longlegs Meets the Bard concept disc, sonically on a par with every other rock-into-the-classics excursion. Sadly, it emphasises Costello’s limitations as a vocalist. Moments of his lyrical brilliance shine through; melodically, it’s more a case of Brodsky Beat.

[A:2]


Still the same old Macca?


Johnny Black, Fred Dellar and Ken Kessler

Paul McCartney
Off The Ground

1993-04-00 Hi-Fi News & Record Review page 81.jpg

Word filtering out before release promised a rockier McCartney than we've heard in a while. Hmmm. Well, yes, the band choogles, but they rarely cut loose. "Biker Like An Icon," for example, manages a laid-back JJ Cale-ish strut, while "Get Out Of My Way" has a tight horn section plus dynamic guitar and bass. His last release, the orchestral Liverpool Oratorio was, to put it mildly, a change of direction, so now he's presumably hoping to reassure his wider public that he's still the same old Macca, Mr Thumbs Aloft, reliable tunesmith and master of the pleasant ballad. "Peace In The Neighbourhood" has a hypnotic flow and layered harmonies, not far removed from "Hope Of Deliverance" in feel; "Golden Earth Girl" is tailor-made for Radio Two and "Winedark Open Sea" is beautifully crafted with haunting synths and a genuinely emotional vocal performance. Of his collaborations with Elvis Costello, "Lovers That Never Were" surges powerfully, while "Mistress And Maid," about love gone sour from neglect, is right on the nail. The animal rights raver "Looking For Changes" even finds Macca sounding genuinely angry, and the band responding in kind. He's a multi-millionaire family man, and knocking on a bit, so Nirvana freaks should look elsewhere but, as a middle-aged McCartney album, it's all you can realistically hope for.

— Johnny Black


The original Big Mac (albeit of the vegetarian kind) is at peace with the world these days. He's into golden sunsets, sea breezes and kissing in the street. He admits as much during Off The Ground, his only real hatred being reserved for those who butcher bunnies and chainsmoke chimps in the name of research ("every time the monkey started to cough / the bastard laughed his head off") He looks back and remembers the old days of sitars and pot haze ("Cosmically Conscious," penned during the 1968 trip to India) and, given a gentle shove, can still rock a smidgen or two ("Get Out Of My Way"). For McCartney, life is a Constable painting and it's a miracle that he can still touch base as poignantly as he does on "Mistress And Maid," a waltz into partnered loneliness, fashioned with the aid of Elvis Costello. It's easily the most memorable song on the set, and though "Peace In The Neighbourhood" is of perfect pop construction and "C'Mon People" sloganises in best "Give Peace A Chance" fashion, it suggests that a few more liaisons wouldn't go amiss if McCartney is to regain a real edge.

— Fred Dellar


Will you still need me... when I'm 64? Not if this is what you're doing at 50. For whatever reasons, McCartney still feels the need to issue an annual release even though he's the most successful song writer of all time, wealthy beyond imagination, looks ten years younger than he should and could probably pull any bird on the planet over the age of 35. Does he need reassurance? If you get the impression that Off The Ground left me firmly attached to terra firma, that's because his last couple of studio releases showed glimpses of youthful fire and Unplugged was a joy. This set? Lyrics like "She loved the biker like an icon" don't rank alongside even "Love, love me do." This album is hook-free territory, the melodies are weak, and the lyrics... Let's put it another way: after the tape ended — I was listening in the car — I switched to radio. Out came "I'll Keep You Satisfied" by Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas, written by Paul (and John) when he was too young even to buy a drink in the USA. It still sounded great. Off the ground? More like under it. This was one hard review for a Beatles casualty to write.

— Ken Kessler


Tags: The Brodsky QuartetThe Juliet LettersPaul McCartneyWilliam ShakespearePaul McCartney: Off The GroundThe Lovers That Never WereMistress And MaidJohn LennonThe Beatles


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Hi-Fi News & Record Review, April 1993


Ken Kessler reviews The Juliet Letters


Johnny Black, Fred Dellar and Ken Kessler review Paul McCartney's Off The Ground.

Images

1993-04-00 Hi-Fi News & Record Review page 82 clipping composite.jpg
Clipping composite.


Cover and page scan.
1993-04-00 Hi-Fi News & Record Review cover.jpg 1993-04-00 Hi-Fi News & Record Review page 82.jpg

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