PAUL mCCARTnEY

Egypt Station

Surely none of us needs to hear 76-year-old Paul announcing that he wants to Fuh You, but that naive throwaway aside, this is a fine album from the rockstar grandpa, assisted by tightly focused production from the talented Greg Kirsten ( Fuh You being the one track he didn’t produce), who admittedly isn’t averse to a bit of dynamic compression, though always in the service of a song or its sound. Macca is getting ever more growly, but his songwriting supports this, and he has brought from his experimental Fireman albums a confidence in presenting pieces of sonic collage in addition to the main ditties, so that a gentle piano intro prefaces the first song, while bird song and harmonium set the scene for Back in Brazil, a highlight of beepy beaty sonic construction despite its curious chorus of the single Japanese word ‘ichiban’ group-shouted repeatedly. A senior moment, perhaps? Well, here’s to many more.