On May 17, 1971 Paul and Linda McCartney released Ram, recorded in New York City with session musicians including drummer Danny Seiwell who would later join Wings. It is brimming with great melodies as well as inspired playful filigree. Without embarrassment I admit it's my favorite of McCartney's solo recordings. I guess I like music that's "incredibly inconsequential" and "monumentally irrelevant" ( as Rolling Stone's Jon Landau reviewed it). "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey" will always take me back to the first Summer I recall listening to the radio, on a small sandy spot by the Marina Green in San Francisco. I can even taste the pink popcorn sold at the gazebo there.
Many of the songs on Ram were apparently written on the couple's farm , in the heart of the country, on the Mull of Kintyre.
There are some who wonder exactly how much input Linda had on the album, but whether she was a sounding board, an editor or simply a muse I take Paul at his word that he had a songwriting partner. His feud with Lennon shows up in a line from "Too Many People" (...preaching practices) "That was about John and Yoko telling people what to do,"McCartney admitted." I thought, Bollocks to that.").You might notice the way a pair of Beatles are treating each other below. That's from the back cover.
Radio stations received a rare promotional LP with Ram called “Brung To Ewe By”. It included fifteen radio spot ads with Paul singing “Now Hear This Song Of Mine” to be used by the station as intros for the tracks.
They're silly pastiches not at all consequential.
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