Every Friday on Left of the Dial 7-11pm, Paul Carruba, in for Music Director Rick McNulty shares the best thing he heard that week.
Around the time of Wing’s dissolution in 1981, Paul McCartney released among his most loathed records, McCartney II. Rolling Stone subtitled their review: “McCartney hits new low–again,” describing it as “an album of aural doodles designed for the amusement of very young children.”
However, Paul Carruba proves that many famously loathed and divisive records are due for a critical reevaluation. I mean, even Neil Young’s Trans had its moment of resurgence!
The Best Thing I Heard Last Week was also the weirdest. It’s a dub-y, groovy track called “Check My Machine.” Paul recorded it during the McCartney II sessions in 1979, but it didn’t make it onto the final track list. It’s got all the hallmarks of a great B-side: samples (yes, samples), space-y studio trickery, Paul’s oddball falsetto and a languid, bass-heavy riddim.
-Paul Carrubba
