Movie rating: 2 and half Star

Paul McCartney - Kisses on the Bottom

Paul McCartney's musical taste over the years has frequently bordered on obscure. Of course, a more kind word to categorise some of McCartney's output over the last 50 years would be "varied" but, in this reviewers mind at least, "obscure" is a word that has been carefully and deliberately chosen. Ample evidence of this can be seen in some of the early Beatles work, or on songs like 'Honey Pie' from The White Album,, and practically the majority of Wings. It was clear that McCartney's musical sensibilities have sprawled outwards from a narrow sphere of pop/rock, taking in more classical vocal-pop arrangements over time but it's only now that he's devoted a full album to this style, the dubiously-titled Kisses on the Bottom.

McCartney, it must be said, seems to feel at home in the ambling lazy vibe of the record, giving room for Macca's to gently croon his way through a series of songs from yesteryear like 'It's Only a Paper Moon', 'Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positives' and 'I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter', as well as two original compositions 'My Valentine' and 'Only Our Hearts', which features guest performances from Stevie Wonder and Eric Clapton.

The pace of the record, supplied by Dianna Krall's band, suits McCartney's voice now that it's not quite the tour-de-force that it used to be but, more than once, lulls the listener too close to boredom.

Review by John Balfe | 09:00 | Friday 10th February 2012 | Album Review

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