VARIOUS ARTISTS
''THE ART OF MCCARTNEY, DISC TWO''
NOVEMBER 18 2014
123:04
DISC ONE (66:14)
1 Billy Joel - Maybe I'm Amazed 05:03
2 Bob Dylan - Things We Said Today 02:58
3 Heart - Band On The Run 05:11
4 Steve Miller - Junior's Farm 04:15
5 YusufCat Stevens - The Long and Winding Road 03:27
6 Harry Connick Jr. - My Love 04:02
7 Brian Wilson - Wanderlust 04:14
8 Corinne Bailey Rae - Bluebird 03:22
9 Willie Nelson - Yesterday 02:58
10 Jeff Lynne - Junk 02:10
11 Barry Gibb - When I'm 64 02:39
12 Jamie Cullum - Every Night 02:55
13 Kiss - Venus and Mars Rock Show 06:36
14 Paul Rodgers - Let Me Roll It 04:30
15 Roger Daltrey - Helter Skelter 03:58
16 Def Leppard - Helen Wheels 03:46
17 The Cure (feat. James McCartney) - Hello Goodbye 04:00
DISC TWO (56:50)
1 Billy Joel - Live And Let Die 03:05
2 Chrissie Hynde - Let It Be 03:45
3 Robin Zander & Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick - Jet 04:09
4 Joe Elliott - Hi Hi Hi 03:08
5 Heart - Letting Go 03:55
6 Steve Miller - Hey Jude 05:09
7 Owl City - Listen To What The Man Said 03:33
8 Perry Farrell - Got To Get You Into My Life 02:38
9 Dion - Drive My Car 02:49
10 Allen Toussaint - Lady Madonna 02:13
11 Dr. John - Let 'Em In 05:10
12 Smokey Robinson - So Bad 03:17
13 The Airborne Toxic Event - No More Lonely Nights 03:33
14 Alice Cooper - Eleanor Rigby 02:05
15 Toots Hibbert with Sly & Robbie - Come And Get It 02:19
16 B.B. King - On The Way 03:17
17 Sammy Hagar - Birthday 02:37
REVIEW
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine (AllMusic)
Roughly timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania, The Art of McCartney is a lavish celebration of all things Paul. Weighing in at three discs and 42 tracks in its grandest incarnation, the set is 34 tracks at its slimmest. In both cases, that's plenty generous but it nevertheless only skims the surface of a very rich, very deep songbook that's developed over the decades. By and large, the featured performers -- mainly McCartney's peers, including his good friend Steve Miller, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Jeff Lynne, Roger Daltrey, and Willie Nelson, but also a handful of younger performers and old pros, too -- stick to both familiar tunes and familiar arrangements, which means The Art of McCartney often gets by on sheer enthusiasm. Certainly, Billy Joel -- who opens up the proceedings with "Maybe I'm Amazed" and later covers "Live and Let Die" -- throws himself into it and his cuts benefit from his full-bore roar, but some of the softer moments are equally nice; in particular, Corinne Bailey Rae slides into "Bluebird" with grace, while Jeff Lynne tackles the homespun "Junk" while resisting his urge to decorate. As with any tribute this size, there are the inevitable stumbles, ranging from a barely notable trip (Brian Wilson rendering "Wanderlust" too ornate, Alice Cooper hamming it up on "Eleanor Rigby," Barry Gibb inadvertently raising the ghost of Sgt. Peppers past with "When I'm Sixty Four") to outright face-plants (Steve Miller is unsuited for "Hey Jude," Harry Connick, Jr. smarms up "My Love," Owl City's rinky-dink plinks render "Listen to What the Man Said" into a weapon of twee irritation). Ultimately, these aren't enough to prevent The Art of McCartney from being fun, particularly because they're overshadowed by moments of real delight: Bob Dylan growling his way through "Things We Said Today," Heart laying into the spooky heart of "Letting Go," Robert Smith embracing the oddness of "C Moon," Kiss camping it up on "Venus and Mars/Rock Show," Robin Zander and Rick Nielsen and, especially, Def Leppard finding the glittering bubblegum heart in "Helen Wheels" followed by Joe Elliott stomping "Hi Hi Hi" into submission." All that can be expected from a generous star-studded tribute like this are a few moments like this, and The Art of McCartney certainly delivers them.
''THE ART OF MCCARTNEY, DISC TWO''
NOVEMBER 18 2014
123:04
DISC ONE (66:14)
1 Billy Joel - Maybe I'm Amazed 05:03
2 Bob Dylan - Things We Said Today 02:58
3 Heart - Band On The Run 05:11
4 Steve Miller - Junior's Farm 04:15
5 YusufCat Stevens - The Long and Winding Road 03:27
6 Harry Connick Jr. - My Love 04:02
7 Brian Wilson - Wanderlust 04:14
8 Corinne Bailey Rae - Bluebird 03:22
9 Willie Nelson - Yesterday 02:58
10 Jeff Lynne - Junk 02:10
11 Barry Gibb - When I'm 64 02:39
12 Jamie Cullum - Every Night 02:55
13 Kiss - Venus and Mars Rock Show 06:36
14 Paul Rodgers - Let Me Roll It 04:30
15 Roger Daltrey - Helter Skelter 03:58
16 Def Leppard - Helen Wheels 03:46
17 The Cure (feat. James McCartney) - Hello Goodbye 04:00
DISC TWO (56:50)
1 Billy Joel - Live And Let Die 03:05
2 Chrissie Hynde - Let It Be 03:45
3 Robin Zander & Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick - Jet 04:09
4 Joe Elliott - Hi Hi Hi 03:08
5 Heart - Letting Go 03:55
6 Steve Miller - Hey Jude 05:09
7 Owl City - Listen To What The Man Said 03:33
8 Perry Farrell - Got To Get You Into My Life 02:38
9 Dion - Drive My Car 02:49
10 Allen Toussaint - Lady Madonna 02:13
11 Dr. John - Let 'Em In 05:10
12 Smokey Robinson - So Bad 03:17
13 The Airborne Toxic Event - No More Lonely Nights 03:33
14 Alice Cooper - Eleanor Rigby 02:05
15 Toots Hibbert with Sly & Robbie - Come And Get It 02:19
16 B.B. King - On The Way 03:17
17 Sammy Hagar - Birthday 02:37
REVIEW
by Stephen Thomas Erlewine (AllMusic)
Roughly timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania, The Art of McCartney is a lavish celebration of all things Paul. Weighing in at three discs and 42 tracks in its grandest incarnation, the set is 34 tracks at its slimmest. In both cases, that's plenty generous but it nevertheless only skims the surface of a very rich, very deep songbook that's developed over the decades. By and large, the featured performers -- mainly McCartney's peers, including his good friend Steve Miller, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Jeff Lynne, Roger Daltrey, and Willie Nelson, but also a handful of younger performers and old pros, too -- stick to both familiar tunes and familiar arrangements, which means The Art of McCartney often gets by on sheer enthusiasm. Certainly, Billy Joel -- who opens up the proceedings with "Maybe I'm Amazed" and later covers "Live and Let Die" -- throws himself into it and his cuts benefit from his full-bore roar, but some of the softer moments are equally nice; in particular, Corinne Bailey Rae slides into "Bluebird" with grace, while Jeff Lynne tackles the homespun "Junk" while resisting his urge to decorate. As with any tribute this size, there are the inevitable stumbles, ranging from a barely notable trip (Brian Wilson rendering "Wanderlust" too ornate, Alice Cooper hamming it up on "Eleanor Rigby," Barry Gibb inadvertently raising the ghost of Sgt. Peppers past with "When I'm Sixty Four") to outright face-plants (Steve Miller is unsuited for "Hey Jude," Harry Connick, Jr. smarms up "My Love," Owl City's rinky-dink plinks render "Listen to What the Man Said" into a weapon of twee irritation). Ultimately, these aren't enough to prevent The Art of McCartney from being fun, particularly because they're overshadowed by moments of real delight: Bob Dylan growling his way through "Things We Said Today," Heart laying into the spooky heart of "Letting Go," Robert Smith embracing the oddness of "C Moon," Kiss camping it up on "Venus and Mars/Rock Show," Robin Zander and Rick Nielsen and, especially, Def Leppard finding the glittering bubblegum heart in "Helen Wheels" followed by Joe Elliott stomping "Hi Hi Hi" into submission." All that can be expected from a generous star-studded tribute like this are a few moments like this, and The Art of McCartney certainly delivers them.
