sound judgement

THE LATEST ALBUM RELEASES RATED AND REVIEWED

PAUL MCCARTNEY EGYPT STATION HHHHH

EVEN though Sir Paul McCartney has absolutely nothing to prove, on Egypt Station he sometimes sounds like an older musician eager to compete with the young bucks.

Fuh You, in particular, a shamelessly upbeat party-starter, wouldn’t sound out of place being delivered by George Ezra.

The album’s best moments, however, come when he sticks to what he knows best: the descending chord structure of Dominoes and wistful lyrics of Confidante are vintage Macca, and demonstrate his unparalleled ear for the sweetest of melodies.

But even when he does tend towards the self-indulgent, after 50-odd years as one of the most influential artists in the business he’s earned a little indulgence.

PAUL SIMON IN THE BLUE LIGHT HHHHH

PAUL Simon has breathed new life into 10 of his favourite songs from his extensive back catalogue.

Some of the new versions have such wildly different arrangements they take on new character traits and are almost new songs in their own right.

A comforting source of familiarity comes from Simon’s unmistakable, near-spoken vocals.

While still strong after all these years, they have subtly aged to add to the reflective mood of this album.

LENNY KRAVITZ RAISE VIBRATION HHHHH

CONTRARY to popular belief and medical science, David Bowie and Prince did not actually die in the Great Talent Cull of 2016.

They have, instead, been locked away in Lenny Kravitz’s basement to collaborate on Raise Vibration, his 11th full-length album.

The duo’s influence is no more keenly felt than on Who Really Are The Monsters?, a hybrid of their respective Fame and New Power Generation eras that sets the tone for the rest of the record.

Raise Vibration is classic Kravitz – funk, blues and power chords. There are a couple of dud turns (Here To Love and Johnny Cash do not sit kindly) but the record – all 60-plus minutes of it – will please those already familiar both with his work and that of Kravitz’s idols.