Description
Label Review.
1997 album remastered on two discs. Half-speed master. Also available on 2CD, 3LP & Deluxe Box.
Our Overview.
‘Flaming Pie’ is the tenth solo studio album by Paul McCartney, first released in 1997 and is the 13th album by Paul to receive induction into his long running ‘Archive Collection’. Having been heavily involved in The Beatles’ ‘Anthology’ project in the mid-1990s, Paul had time to reflect on the standards he and his bandmates had set during their career, and applied these to what would become his first album in four years. Made in a much more spontaneous style, with songs recorded here and there, mostly on holiday, it’s an album that luxuriates in its own sense of fun.
‘Flaming Pie’ is equal parts a masterclass in songcraft and a sustained burst of joyful spontaneity. With highlights ranging from the uplifting and inspirational opener “The Song We Were Singing” to the raucous title track to the pensive “Calico Skies”, and featuring singles “Young Boy”, “The World Tonight” and “Beautiful Night”, ‘Flaming Pie’ would represent yet another pinnacle in Paul’s solo catalogue: Released to rapturous reviews, the album would be Paul’s most commercially successful release of the ‘90s, achieving his highest chart positions since the ‘80s and would receive gold certifications in the US, UK, Japan and more.
Featuring producers George Martin and Jeff Lynne, as well as musicians including Steve Miller, Ringo Starr and his son, James McCartney, ‘Flaming Pie’ remains one of his career highlights. Sales were brisk, with the album only kept from the Number 1 slot on both sides of the Atlantic by the cultural phenomenon that was the Spice Girls’ ‘Spice’ album. The album’s title is a reference to an anecdote that John Lennon told in a humorous story published in Mersey Beat in 1961 about the origin of the Beatles’ name: “It came in a vision – a man appeared on a flaming pie and said unto them, ‘from this day on you are Beatles with an A.’”
Tracklisting:
The Song We Were Singing / The World Tonight / If You Wanna / Somedays / Young Boy / Calico Skies / Flaming Pie / Heaven On A Sunday / Used To Be Bad / Souvenir / Little Willow / Really Love You / Beautiful Night / Great Day