Surrounded by nothing but the most abysmal, sickeningly safe and sterile pap that Paul McCartney ever put out, Tug of War is a beacon of hope in the sea of musical sewage that we call McCartney’s eighties catalogue. Even now, it’s hard to understand just how Paul managed to come up with something this impressive when everything around it found the once musical giant at his absolute worst. It may have something to do with the fact that he got legendary Beatles producer, George Martin to produce it but just one listen to Tug of War’s horrendous follow up, Pipes of Peace, should make it abundantly clear that great production is irrelevant if the actual material isn’t up to snuff. And ‘”up to snuff” this material certainly is. I’m sure it helped that several of the album’s tracks date back to the time period that resulted in the thoroughly enjoyable London Town album but in the end, it seems like Paul simply pooled all of his creative juices for one last hurrah before the rot set in. But enough with the negative because, as you may have gleaned from some of the above statements, I really quite love this album – eighties or no eighties, Tug of War easily ranks among Paul’s most impressive solo works. From the clear, lively production to the eminently catchy melodies to the meticulous arrangements, everything about Tug of War shines radiantly. Well, almost everything – it’s a great album, yes but it is hindered by some weaker tracks, hurting the overall flow of the album. Also, take note, if you want the more rocking side of Sir Paul, this album probably isn’t your best bet as there’s only one song on here that is within a stones throw of being a rocker – and even then, it’s more in the 50s swinging style than the grittier classic rock mode. What we have instead, is a collection of lavishly produced, skillfully arranged hook-filled and often quite breathtaking pop music diversified by a folky interlude and a touch of funky (and not so funky) R&B. In short, Tug of War is neither Paul’s most rocking album nor his most experimental effort but it is one of his more consistently entertaining and well thought out efforts and is a must for any real Macca fan.
Getting the worst out of the way first, there’s a particularly awful collaboration between Paul and the once-great Stevie Wonder. No, it’s not the generally well known but not generally well received, Ebony and Ivory because aside for some rather well meaning but ultimately obvious and banal lyrics that song does have an perfectly good melody and some nice vocal trade-offs between Paul and Stevie. No, the true wasted effort here is the (fortunately) much less known attempt at funk, What’s That You’re Doing? that easily ranks among both artists biggest embarrassments. The melody is completely forgettable and the performance is so bland and uninspired that it doesn’t even work as a throwaway dance track. Fortunately, nothing else comes close to being that bad but Dress Me Up As A Robber wouldn’t be missed if it was left off the album entirely but then this is Paul messing with poppy electronica again so that's hardly surprising. The last of the not-so-great tracks on this album is the very pleasant, rather charming but ultimately irrelevant ditty, Get It that finds Paul teaming up with Carl Perkins for the first and only time. It’s a nice enough song but as the only recorded meeting of these two legends, it does come of as a bit flat. I probably also should include Be What You See (Link) in this section of not such great tracks but it really is little more than an interlude – and a pleasant one at that, distinguished by some cool, spooky vocals. As for the rest of the album, well, excellence is the name of the game.
Of course, I like Ebony and Ivory so what the hell do I know?
Still, regardless of whether I have obliterated any and all credibility I once had, I can tell you that the rest of the album consists of a hefty selection of ballads, one up-tempo pop song, one swinging fifties-styled rocker and The Pound Is Sinking, a song so unique that I really couldn’t be bothered trying to classify it. The latter is actually the only song here that really lives up to some of Paul’s more off-center seventies work what with the stupidly excellent lyrics, sudden tempo changes, multiple melodies (all of which are excellent) and quirky vocal tricks. Sure, it’s basically a meaningless bit of silliness but then Paul has always been the go to guy for turning meaningless silliness into sublime genius. Paul has also always been the go-to-guy for top notch pop songs and Take It Away finds the master in fine form. Catchy, memorable, infectious and perfectly realized – this song is simply a typically excellent Macca pop song. More interesting is Ballroom Dancing, the above-mentioned fifties rocker that is as loosely swinging as it is tightly written and performed while being about as meaningful as it is menacing (not very). Paul has never been a very successfully aggressive rocker but excels at lighthearted yet very energetic “throw away” rock and roll and Ballroom Dancing is one of the finest examples of this.
As for the ballads, they are without fail as beautiful, as perfectly realized and as memorable as any that Paul has ever written. The title track stands out from the rest as it turns into a fairly successful rocker at the end but on the whole is an intriguingly structured, powerfully sung ballad that proves that Paul can actually tackle more socially conscious subjects successfully when he wants to. Still, Paul has always been better at the quieter, mellower ballads so while Somebody Who Cares and Here Today are less interesting than Tug of War, they resonate more emotionally with me. The former is a simple bit of optimism from Paul and seeing as how he’s always worked best in that particular mode, it's winning charm is inevitable. The melody is a beautiful as it could possibly be while the lyrics are direct and to the point working on a very universal yet somehow very personal level. The latter is perhaps even lovelier as it is Paul’s touching tribute to the recently assassinated John Lennon that not only works excellently in that context but as a general ode to a lost loved one as well. The melody is typically excellent but for once, it probably is the stark emotionalism that steals the show here. Lastly, we have my favourite song here, Wanderlust, a ballad that may well be meaningless lyrically but is simply spectacular on a musical level. The melody is flawless and Paul’s singing is beyond jaw-dropping but it’s the counter melody that rears its head at the end that makes the song for me. Yet another in a long line of underrated Paul McCartney album tracks.
In conclusion:
Best Song: Wanderlust
Worst Song: What’s That You’re Doing?
Most Overrated Song: Nothing really.
Most Overlooked song: Ebony and Ivory
Rating: A strong 4/5 (8/10 or 12/15)
Highly, if cautiously, recommended
NOTE: This is the first (hopefully of many) rewrites of my old reviews. Nothing major here but I fixed up some grammar mistakes so it should hopefully be a bit more readable by now.
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