Wings, 1975.
1975 - a curious year for pop music.
A Night at the Opera, Young Americans, Venus and Mars...
It was a little as though so many avenues had opened up, and the musicians had already begun to explore new and hitherto unknown addresses...
Paul McCartney would have been familiar already as a fearless sonic adventurer with his "other band", The Beatles.
We had already been treated to the medleyish psychedelia of Uncle Albert/Admiral Hornsby (sp?), and blown away by the song and album Band On the Run (also featuring a wide range of sonic worlds, not least the stonking rip-it-up power rocker we know as Jet).
In my history book, Venus and Mars catches McCartney and Wings on the cusp of stylistic success - the sweet songs have had sugar added to JUST the right level (witness the instrumentation on the opening track, with gloopy, syrupy, DELICIOUS synthesisings spread over it, or the almost-inane melodic catchiness of Listen To What the Man Said), and the rockers (e.g. Rock Show, Magneto and Titanium Man)are still wearing skin-tight leathers that don't look silly - all in all, a credible, inventive and delightful album...
Their next album, At The Speed of Sound, was a teaspoon of sugar too far for me, but look at the stuff McCartney's doing now! Still pushing his boundaries and writing great tunes - the lyrics don't quite equal the music, but as The Beatles had already proven MANY times, in pop music that ain't no sin!
Of course, 1976 was just round the corner, and we all know what dark and sinister musical monsters lay in wait, ready to trample on the likes of....well, anyone who had been successful in 1975, and especially Macca!
So, for an infusion of pure nostalgia, take a trip to Venus and Mars!
8/10
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