McCartney Snubs Sting, The Boss Friday, February 10, 2006 By Roger Friedman
McCartney Snubs Sting, Bruce
Paul McCartney did not like losing Best Album to U2 on Grammy night.
After James Taylor and Bonnie Raitt announced that U2's "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" had beaten McCartney's "Chaos and Creation in the Back Yard," the ex-Beatle got up and left with his very arrogant bodyguard. They weren't exactly subtle about it, either.
If he'd stayed, like everyone else, McCartney would have seen Bruce Springsteen and Sam Moore's knockout tribute to the late Wilson Pickett on "In the Midnight Hour."
The pair was joined by The Edge and Elvis Costello, with Raitt on background vocals. Unfortunately, McCartney was long gone by then.
Backstage, McCartney was pretty much at loose ends. Occasionally he'd leave his dressing room and walk up the corridor looking for a little love and attention.
On one such trip, he walked right past Sting without saying hello, at the same time giving his royal wave to excited fans in the VIP area.
As usual, McCartney continues to be the worst judge of his own material. When I told him I thought that the experimental and genius song "At the Mercy" was one of the best tracks on the album, he replied, "That's Nigel's favorite one too," referring to producer Nigel Godrich.
"I like 'Jenny Wren,'" McCartney said of one of the two least interesting tracks on the CD (the other being something about the time).
Oh well. Backstage there were several grimaces when Paul insisted on performing "Helter Skelter."
One rock star said, "Why? What an awful choice."
Indeed, only crazed killer Charles Manson could have been overjoyed to hear his favorite song. But for McCartney, the most successful living pop songwriter, the choice remains bizarre.
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #4 on Feb 14, 2006, 8:27pm »
Quote:
As usual, McCartney continues to be the worst judge of his own material. When I told him I thought that the experimental and genius song "At the Mercy" was one of the best tracks on the album, he replied, "That's Nigel's favorite one too," referring to producer Nigel Godrich.
"I like 'Jenny Wren,'" McCartney said of one of the two least interesting tracks on the CD (the other being something about the time).
.
Yep... that confirms what I had suspected all along! Nigel had as much or more to do with the JPM feel of the cd than Bill. Probably much more..... Bill would be happy just doin' more fluff.
....and I don't care.... I think Helter Skelter's still a good song & I'm glad he played it.
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 706 Location: Los Angeles
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #5 on Feb 15, 2006, 3:36pm »
Heh heh. Damn it it, Sir Paul! At the Mercy is a fantastic song, while Jenny Wren is pretty much the only one I opt to skip over when listening to the album.
And yeah, Helter Skelter's great. I don't get why there would be grumblings about that. Truth be told, a lot of my friends with little to no exposure to the Beatles love that song. I guess you could say it's popular with the young folk.
The sun was shining on the sea, Shining with all his might: He did his very best to make The billows smooth and bright-- And this was odd, because it was The middle of the night.
The moon was shining sulkily, Because she thought the sun Had got no business to be there After the day was done-- "It's very rude of him," she said, "To come and spoil the fun!"
lili Guest
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #6 on Feb 16, 2006, 10:25am »
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #9 on Feb 17, 2006, 9:47am »
You're a better man than me, eyes. I think that you're aging more gracefully than I am I was listening to some of the music that my kids like yesterday. I liked alot of it, but when it came to the bands who shout instead of sing, I had to shut it off. It's just not for me, is all. I do like A Perfect Circle, and the group Deathcab for Cutie is ok too. My daughter had downloaded some of their songs. When I told her the connection to MMT, she was very surprised. Who knows, maybe there are clues in their songs about Paul & his replacement.
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #10 on Feb 17, 2006, 9:20pm »
Quote:
You're a better man than me, eyes. I think that you're aging more gracefully than I am I was listening to some of the music that my kids like yesterday. I liked alot of it, but when it came to the bands who shout instead of sing, I had to shut it off. It's just not for me, is all. I do like A Perfect Circle, and the group Deathcab for Cutie is ok too. My daughter had downloaded some of their songs. When I told her the connection to MMT, she was very surprised. Who knows, maybe there are clues in their songs about Paul & his replacement.
I dunno, I think I'm just an oddball... friends my age have raised a family by now & gone thru that whole thing..... kids... very little music...'specially crazy/loud music. So durin' that time... I went the punkrock band route instead.... Of Course!
I tend to hang out with my stepdaughters friends, coz my friends have such boring tastes! At least her friends are intrigued instead of frightened
I most definately feel like grampaw dave when I go to a metal show.... overalls, beerbelly, & all.... I don't exactly look like a local punkrock pioneer! At least 10yrs ago I would run into Christy's friends & know somebody there but now they're the ones startin' families & now they never go to metal shows anymore!! JEEZ!
Ya... APC's an alright band. Bein' a huge Tool fan, I thought I'd like APC more but I dunno, they don't quite get there (IMO). "Judith" is the only song of theirs I really like. The other radio singles are fine, but not anything I'd wanna buy. Not real familiar with Deathcab for Cutie, but I sure do like that single bein' played... Body & Soul or somethin' like that.
I'm not big on a lot of the metal bands coz so many of them sound alike, but I tend to still be a fan of the bands that started 10-15yrs ago.... Korn, NIN, Manson, Soulfly, Tool... all that stuff. Metal bands that sound like every other metal band are pretty boring alright, but that's not always the case.
It doesn't have to be heavy but I just have to search out anything "different"
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #11 on Feb 17, 2006, 11:20pm »
Corporate muzik "Nine Inch Nails" Manson" "Death Cab for Cutie" [An MI6- Faul-as-Vivian Stanshall song in MMT] "Korn" "Tool" ... bands with smirking, arrogant in-your-face hatred, cruelty, sadism, violence and horror just in the names--the perfect storm dehumanizing "Clockwork Orange"-like soundtrack for fascism, for the current-day United Snakes and United Kingdom miserable warrior anti-democracies, the murder of innocents and children ...
It's the Hitlerian kraft of anti-music, the psycopath marching tunes .......
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #12 on Feb 18, 2006, 7:53am »
Quote:
... bands with smirking, arrogant in-your-face hatred, cruelty, sadism, violence and horror just in the names--the perfect storm dehumanizing "Clockwork Orange"-like soundtrack for fascism, for the current-day United Snakes and United Kingdom miserable warrior anti-democracies, the murder of innocents and children ...
Ohhh,,, so THAT's why those old cooters get so freaked out over a little noize!
Quote:
It's the Hitlerian kraft of anti-music, the psycopath marching tunes .......
That's good.... ya familiar with any of Mansons videos?
But I dunno..... when I think of anti-music, I think more down the lines of The Carpenters.
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #13 on Feb 18, 2006, 10:08am »
Just a couple of additional thoughts... I never have bothered reading so much into any particular genre of music. Remember all the rock/commie/satan/slave connections to rock & roll in the late 50's? To me... music is music is music & that is the only universal language. If it moves ya & ya can relate to it, then that's a good thing, regardless.
I may be totally wrapped up in the evil/dark metal noize for a while, but come back an hour later & ya might catch me playin' The Sons of The Pioneers, or Abba, or Mozart or somethin'. It's all just music to me.
We best keep this to ourselves and not tell any members of our inner posse...
Joined: Feb 2006 Gender: Female Posts: 534 Location: The Cosmic BusyBee Palace
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #14 on Feb 18, 2006, 10:18am »
Quote:
Just a couple of additional thoughts... I never have bothered reading so much into any particular genre of music. Remember all the rock/commie/satan/slave connections to rock & roll in the late 50's? To me... music is music is music & that is the only universal language. If it moves ya & ya can relate to it, then that's a good thing, regardless.
I may be totally wrapped up in the evil/dark metal noize for a while, but come back an hour later & ya might catch me playin' The Sons of The Pioneers, or Abba, or Mozart or somethin'. It's all just music to me.
I read an online article about an artist called John Denver. He was a pop/folk singer. I've heard some of his songs including "Sunshine On My Shoulders". Some people targeted it as a "drug culture" song. I've heard that song before while playing winamp.. it sounds pretty innocent to me.
People like certain different styles of music. It isn't wrong it wrong to listen to different kinds of musical. Music is a gift. Playing music is also a gift. It's funny how people can read into things in music that isn't there...
Should we be keeping a close watch on Celine Dion? She does love songs that include words like "Love will take you higher".
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #15 on Feb 18, 2006, 10:47am »
Music everywhere is constantly scrutinized for its social and political significance and influence on the public, by reviewers, social analysts, moms, Joe Six-Pack, politicians, the CIA, Charles Manson, "Marilyn Manson," you, Merle Haggard, governments, the media, political groups, religious groups, the MI6 cadres who wrote or co-wrote Faul and the Beatles song, everyone.
Like it or not, propaganda and social control has always been integrated with songwriting and the censorship/production of music, because music has a very powerful emotional and cognitive effect on people's minds, even going back to child nursery rhyme kind of songs.
As for that musically brilliant young woman Karen Carpenter, who died of anorexia, I don't know anyone personally who can write songs as good as "Top of the World" and "Rainy Days and Mondays" do you? It's not as cool nowadays in the bushes-aristocratic era to like Karen as it is to like a song like nirvana's "Rape Me" as Americans are busy raping Iraqi children they abducted in the Abu Ghraib prison and playing corporate-"punk"/ heavy metal muzik in the background.
No Carpenters, Joni Mitchell, reggae, folk, rhythm-and-blues allowed --no happy or soulful music.
What happened to the American celebrity singer-songwriter Phil Ochs? He started in the early 60s in a band called The Socialists and was a major influence on Bob Dylan. He wrote some intensely political, progressive songs. He was attacked by an unkown assailant who slashed his throat with a knife. A few years later he was found hanged in his apartment.
Music like this Phil Ochs song "white boots marching in a yellow land" make your powerful bosses VERY nervous. Heavy metal, punk and "alternative" (to what?) rock pro-heroin/torture rock does not, that's music to their ears.
White Boots Marching In A Yellow Land By Phil Ochs
E C#m A E The pilot's playing poker in the cockpit of the plane C#m A F#m The casualties arriving like the dropping of the rain E C#m A B And a mountain of machinery will fall before a man E G#m A B E When you're white boots marching in a yellow land
It's written in the ashes of the village towns we burn It's written in the empty bed of the fathers unreturned And the chocolate in the childrens eyes will never understand When you're white boots marching in a yellow land
C#m Red blow the bugles of the dawn B The morning has arrived you must be gone A B And the lost patrols chase their chartered souls E D Like old whores following tired armies
Train them well, the men who will be fighting by your side And never turn your back if the battle turns the tide For the colors of a civil war are louder than commands When you're white boots marching in a yellow land
Blow them from the forest and burn them from your sight Tie their hands behind their back and question through the night But when the firing squad is ready they'll be spitting where they stand At the white boots marching in a yellow land
Red blow the bugles of the dawn The morning has arrived you must be gone And the lost patrols chase their chartered souls Like old whores following tired armies
The comic and the beauty queen are dancing on the stage Raw recruits are lining up like coffins in a cage We're fighting in a war we lost before the war began We're the white boots marching in a yellow land
And the lost patrols chase their chartered souls like old whores following tired armies
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #16 on Feb 18, 2006, 3:08pm »
Excellent points all beatlies! I wasn't exactly arguin' with ya before, coz you are makin' a valid point for sure.
It's been my experience that the people who are always forcin' the appropriate image, & always surrounding themselves with lite happy sounds & happy colors & things......... These people tend to be the ones who are a raging cauldrin of hatred & tension underneath all the superficial fluff (faul records?) I use my (so-called) dad as an example here. A preacher with the carpenters always playin on the holidays etc etc...... the whole image...... The most soulless, dishonest person I've ever had the displeasure to know.
But the "hippies" & bikers I have grown up with around these parts are some of the best, purest & most honest people I've ever know. I've had a lot of the same friends for almost 40yrs & I could trust any of them with anything..... even if I do talk trash about their musical tastes!
So my experiences have left me with a rather unusual perspective on all this...... I'd trust a metalhead before I'd trust a baptist preacher playin' the Carpenters any day.
I love your site and witty humor, but the assumption that men have a higher sex drive is a problem.
Whoa, I don't think I said that. I linked the writing (or maybe the aggression) to testosterone and then noted that the songs get more tired and sappy as the testosterone wanes - at least that's what I meant to say
I would bet on some good tequila that the lack of females in rock music has litttle or nothing to do with biology, but everything to do with patriarchy. Why some of the classics aren't writing good music these days, maybe the music cooporations aren't putting forward or encouraging older musicians??? How many musicians on MTV are older than 30???
Keep up the site, its great! L.
I hear you, but that's no reason why McCartney would write a song as bad as "Freedom." I swear, give me an hour of piano lessons and I could do better.
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #19 on Apr 26, 2006, 12:13pm »
I hear you, but that's no reason why McCartney would write a song as bad as "Freedom." I swear, give me an hour of piano lessons and I could do better.
Joined: Feb 2004 Posts: 19 Location: Here, There and Everywhere
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #20 on Apr 26, 2006, 5:08pm »
Quote:
I hear you, but that's no reason why McCartney would write a song as bad as "Freedom." I swear, give me an hour of piano lessons and I could do better.
Joined: Sept 2005 Gender: Male Posts: 1,648 Location: somewhere else
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #21 on Apr 26, 2006, 6:15pm »
I like Faul as everyone knows, but thats just an opinion, i wouldn't call it faul-bashing, but maybe that's because on this occasion I have to agree that it's a poor song, though written for a good reason.
Joined: Feb 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 2,737 Location: Odessa Texas
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #22 on Apr 26, 2006, 9:32pm »
Ya.... considerin' that Faul bashin' might be a bit of a stretch? The man's well known for releasin' years worth of fluff & that song is close to bein' the penticle.... or the pits... dependin' on which way yer goin' I guess.
I think this is more agreein' on a fact than anything like Faul bashin' .... or that's how I see it. And I'm definately a big fan of the guy... or guys.. whatever, but that song isn't worth defending.
Joined: May 2005 Gender: Male Posts: 3,896 Location: Reasonably close to a diatribe
Re: FAUL full of himself at Grammys « Reply #24 on Apr 26, 2006, 11:07pm »
Quote:
I hear you, but that's no reason why McCartney would write a song as bad as "Freedom." I swear, give me an hour of piano lessons and I could do better.
Comments?
Not really. I think that sounds about right.
Well, I think he was tailoring it to be a very easy for a crowd to pick up on kind of sing-a-long anthem. Remember "We Are the World"? We are the world was great and served its purpose marvelously. But try to sing it? Try to sing along with all the vocal runs and adlibs. The vocals are fine on it; I am not complaining. But a crowd can't match it, follow along singing it. You have to keep the melody straightforward and free of tricky embellishments. Which he did. But I much more enjoy his other vocals, where he tears loose with expressive ad libs. You know, like "My Love". That is a monster vocal. So is "Driving Rain", so is "Rinse the Raindrops", and so is "Jenny Wren", which is soft, yes, but requires a lot of control of the breath and pitch stability. Jenny Wren has difficult intervals making it hard for non-singers to find the notes. The writing choices in "Freedom"? Me suspects it was the Kumbayah approach, on purpose.
![[Home]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/home.gif "[Home]")
![[New Topics]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/topics.png "[New Topics]")
![[Help]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/help.gif "[Help]")
![[Search]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/search.gif "[Search]")
![[Login]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/login.gif "[Login]")
![[Register]](http://images.proboards.com/menu/register.gif "[Register]")
![[Search This Thread]](http://images.proboards.com/search2.gif "[Search This Thread]")
![[Share Topic]](http://images.proboards.com/new/buttons/share.png "[Share Topic]")
![[Print]](http://images.proboards.com/buttons/print.gif "[Print]")
Author
Logged![[avatar]](http://images.mirror.co.uk/upl/people2/feb2008/8/1/03202180-9039-2809-115933AC7D179002.jpg "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/CowboyPaul.jpg "[avatar]")
![[homepage]](http://images.proboards.com/buttons/www_sm.gif "[homepage]")
![[image]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/jsig.jpg "[image]")
![[image]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/psig.jpg "[image]")
![[image]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/ruddart.JPG "[image]")
![[image]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/george_sig.jpg "[image]")
![[image]](http://image.inkfrog.com/pix/eyesbleed/rsig.jpg "[image]")
![[avatar]](http://img360.imageshack.us/img360/1051/pleasepleasemetoramws8.jpg "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v295/spaceexpress/7ad7794e.gif "[avatar]")
![[image]](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v295/spaceexpress/et18sz.gif "[image]")
![[avatar]](http://img318.imageshack.us/img318/7232/admin9aa.jpg "[avatar]")
![[avatar]](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v97/DoctorRobert/RobertTUTS.jpg "[avatar]")