His first LP in five years is structured like a ride on the cosmic train, complete with silly sex songs and a plea for peace. The result is classic Paul.
By turns playful, honest and questing, Paul McCartney hitches empathy to experimentation on his urgent new album.
Egypt Station delights in defying the gravity of his own exalted station. It is the sound of an old rocker at full steam ahead, determined to keep on rolling for as long as he can.
Despite occasional misfires this one proves that, at 76, McCartney, socially and sonically, still has plenty to say.
On Egypt Station, McCartney is not a guy matching his autumn years with an autumnal record. He bashes about on this album as if he wants back in the game.
It’s an album of upbeat and winsome notes, and it’s simple and honest, as if one of the most famous people in the world has left his diary open for us to read.
Thankfully, McCartney appears to be grasping the nettle and squeezing the most out of life and his apparently never-ending songbook. A definite thumbs up.
Egypt Station ... fits snugly into his extensive discography: an ample mix of soaring love songs, personal and familial reflections, and lighthearted nostalgia.
More than 50 years since Beatlemania, the Cute One keeps on pushing himself, and it's a pleasure to see his creative fire burning bright.
‘Egypt Station’ feels like Paul McCartney having a blast being Macca, grasping his own identity, and relishing it – a fun, at times downright bold, return it’s something fans will cherish.
It’s sufficiently vibrant to justify its existence, and strong enough to ensure that McCartney can sprinkle three or four tracks into the set on his upcoming world tour without setting off any alarms.
Apart from "Fuh You" ... Egypt Station is a handsome and clever collection where Paul hits many familiar marks but the difference is, he gets there in a different fashion than before.
Paul’s latest offering is full of excited energy to be sure and hopeful messages, but he rarely brings the edge or distinct moments to make all this music memorable.
Paul McCartney's Egypt Station carries listeners on a conceptual journey through musical "stations" that admits experiences and teases experiments as only he could achieve and deliver.
Though he may never produce an essential late-career record like contemporaries Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, or even Neil Young, Paul McCartney continues to make music that takes far more chances than it has to. That fact alone should earn Egypt Station at least one spin.
Macca tries to keep up with the kids by recording with super-songwriter Ryan Tedder, but the strongest moments are when he embraces his own innate talent for melody – and his angst.
‘Egypt Station’ is a mixed bag ... Still, it’s hard to leave ‘Egypt Station’ without a grin. All aboard!
Egypt Station is easily one of the most forward-thinking records of McCartney’s later career and a surprisingly welcome return.
Once the initial shock of its melancholy moments—not to mention “Fuh You”—subsides, Egypt Station reveals itself to be another well-crafted collection of confections.
This is very much a Paul McCartney solo album: the uneven product of compulsive songwriting that includes several delightful songs, several terrible ones, and a lot in between.
It’s not quite as bad as some of the misbegotten experiments that have cluttered his discography over the years. However, it’s still a little sad to hear a songwriter with such a clear identity sacrifice that for a brief flirtation with modern rock radio.
With its contemporary production flourishes, weird genre experiments, and bouts of complete silliness, the album marks a clean break from the music McCartney has been making for the last 20 years or so.
An old man trying to establish some sort of connection with the younger audience he never really reached. What did you expect.
Acredito que a crítica tenha aliviado a mão pra esse álbum, quase que naquela perspectiva de: "Paul está velho, não podemos criticar uma lenda viva, então vamos fingir que esse álbum é maravilhoso." Mas não é. Pelo contrário, é um dos piores dele em vários pontos de vista. Primeiro que as letras são deprimentes. Não no sentido de tristes e sim de ruins. O mesmo cara que escreveu ... read more
Really good album from Paul. This album is not as focused thematically as others, but I guess the cover and everything makes it clear. You get some of Paul's more impressive and different songs such as "Back In Brazil" and "Despite Repeated Warnings", which I love. Also the melancholic piece "I Don't Know", that introduces the album so well. There are the electronic pop sounding songs (specially "Fuh You", which I enjoy but understand who don't as well). ... read more
1 | Opening Station 0:41 | 85 |
2 | I Don't Know 4:26 | 79 |
3 | Come on to Me 4:10 | 75 |
4 | Happy with You 3:34 | 76 |
5 | Who Cares 3:13 | 69 |
6 | Fuh You 3:23 | 47 |
7 | Confidante 3:04 | 74 |
8 | People Want Peace 2:59 | 67 |
9 | Hand In Hand 2:35 | 73 |
10 | Dominoes 5:02 | 77 |
11 | Back In Brazil 3:20 | 68 |
12 | Do It Now 3:17 | 73 |
13 | Caesar Rock 3:29 | 74 |
14 | Despite Repeated Warnings 6:57 | 77 |
15 | Station II 0:46 | 83 |
16 | Hunt You Down / Naked / C-Link 6:22 | 78 |
#6 | / | ABC News |
#11 | / | Rolling Stone |
#27 | / | MOJO |
#46 | / | Billboard |
/ | Radio X |