Es-Say #24- "Out There UK\Europe 2015" Pt 2- The Maccatastic Video Blog Special including actual photos snapped by this blog. (Pt 3- TBA)

ES-Say #23 "Goodnight Tonight" collection update

 As a reminder(or something I may not have mentioned before), this blog has somewhat of an unhealthy interest in the hit Wings 1979 single "Goodnight Tonight". Why? Several reasons but mostly I got hooked on trying to collect the vinyl based on the awesome photo session for the 12" Version. This is the picture that stood out among other Wings photo sessions I had previously seen-

 

 

 I first saw this photo about 20 years ago. In 2015, I think what I remember was the most memorable was nothing to really do with the 1930s theme, but rather that Paul convincingly looks asleep and Linda adds a bit of colour to the expression. As far as I'm aware, this is the only Wings(or McCartney) song to have marketed a "Disco Single". I never bought the pink labelled disco version but I used to literally "visit" a copy at least once in awhile for a couple of years in the 1990s. Vinyl Geeks United!!!!!!!

The rest of Wings seem to ruin the photo with doubtful glares, yet have a bookend effect if I'm being honest so airbrushing them away would be tragic. The rest of the photo session is nice to see, yet I will always be a fan of this artistic cover.

We got a song that is catchy and chart topping with McCartney forever praising the B-Side, Daytime Nightime Suffering. Look, I like the B-side but I just don't understand why Goodnight Tonight(the released hit) gets so much average attention. For example, It has been added to "All The Best" and "Wingspan" greatest hits CDs but the 1993 Holland CD version of "Back To The Egg" stuck "Daytime Nightime Suffering" and not the "A-side"(Goodnight Tonight). What is to be concluded when a promoted and successful Top 10 A-single in 1979 gets ignored for the B-side in more modern times? I really could guess at this point but I'm no McCartney expert and I'm just average fan...and I'm not "saying it" or "Not Saying Anything To Paul McCartney" (Note: Shameless Plug of this website/ "Goodnight Tonight" pun alert).

Now moving on to Collecting. I really don't collect much of the 12" version as I quickly found out the photo cover I like doesn't vary much. However, the alternative 45"picture sleeve I find a bit boring as it did not continue the 1930s theme(there is one 45" version of the 12" picture I think). It just has the band in normal 70s clothes hamming it up for a tightly squeezed together picture. What does make it special is the additional designs of titles and styles. The Spain version is issued as "Adios a La Noche" and the Argentina version "Buenas Noches Esta Noche". For another example, this is what the Portuguese version looks like.





  

 

 

I love peace! Peace is great, yet various covers of this with different styles of "Wings" can be considered a peaceful expression(and maybe finally spotting the full pattern of the musical note rug) as much as the peace sign. I don't really understand the last line I just wrote but this I do know- I started with the French 45" and didn't look back. My Paul McCartney 45" collection is rather funny now. It's like "One copy of 'Say Say Say'" "One copy of 'Take It Away'" "Fifteen Copies of Goodnight Tonight".

You get the picture and I probably only have 11 copies, but here's the old video of some of them

I now a few more copies since this was made and my French copy was "unavailable" at the time. I'm trying to get the Japan, Peru, Argentina, Ireland, Canada, USA, Australian versions but can enjoy the Portugal and Poland versions I recently got.

This song is nearly as old as me and I do remember a bit that it was played on the radio in the 80s. It's probably not my favourite Wings song (depending what day it is) but it is 100% my favourite Wings record.

The actual Goodnight Tonight Blog Update was the above Portugal has been added to the so-far-unnamed McCartney-record-collection-in-my-house(should I call it that?).

I have yet to consider a Goodnight Tonight tattoo...watch this space...

Es-Say #22- Consolation Prize

Mr, I mean, Sir Paul McCartney- what are you doing to me? I'm just mindlessly now traveling on trains on whims to find your vinyl releases. Just stop! I can't even blame Kanye West anymore for your PR ideas. Granted, these PR stunts are good..so good, that's why I'm sheepishly drawn to them. However, I'm going to have to think about if I really want to be in the "Paul McCartney Fun Club" or if I am just going to not care about these secret vinyl releases, multi-coloured glowing cubes, or the possibility that you might be at my local supermarket(stranger things have happened...).

I guess I should explain that mini-rant(yes, it was a mini one). Record Store Day is this Saturday April 18th. It is basically a promotional day for record companies to re-release or release new limited copies of Vinyl. It's quite a nice event that I just planned to not attend this year as I'm unable to make. I did look at the planned releases list and didn't see any Beatles or McCartney on the list so I didn't worry about not going.

WRONG! It's be revealed that the caped crusader will be releasing new mixes of "Hope For The Future" on white vinyl. This newly open "secret" became even stranger. Read the whole story about it here WogBlog- Secret RSD Release . So, upon reading all this, I decided to go find it....

One of the dumbest ideas I ever had, but it was worth getting out on the hottest day of the year(seriously, it's always cold in England) at least. I chose a favourite record store and couldn't find the vinyl on my own. I went to the counter and told the shop keeper all about it. He had no knowledge about it as the record label had not listed it as one of the RSD releases. One phone call confirmed most of what I had been explaining about the white vinyl. The only conflicting info seemed to be the actual amount of copies that would be or actually are "Out There". With some copies already on Ebay, I can't really reveal what I had been quoted only because a) It's a rumour that is probably wrong and will or could change by Saturday b) If you really want it, you will buy it from ebay anyway...who goes into record stores in 2015?(except me and a 1,000 65 year old men, but let's ignore that odd statistic for a moment).

Basically, as much as I think the RSD release of McCartney's is extremely clever, it's a bit too complicated to hunt down during the event and I'm pretty sure you'd need to be a major friend of someone who works in a store to just hand it directly to you, anyway. Since I don't want to participate this year and the fact I have few connected friends, I will just sulk, moan, and complain some more about it in my leisure (another unique thing about me, maybe? complaining about records? anyone?)

After I left the record store, I went to different one and spent £3($4.50) on a used copy of 2004 Black Friday's Beatles "Long Tall Sally" EP. It had some noticeable ring wear on the cover, a small tear, light scratches on the disc, etc- it seemed like a reasonable price. When I got home, I checked it online and looked at comparison photos. Turns out to be the 1st original uk pressing from 1964 and not last years reissue. If it was in mint condition, it could go for 10x what I paid for it, but it's actual condition knocks it down to what I paid. The 2014 version is more expensive to buy, but I'm much happier to have the original EP. Here's some information about my 51-year-old EP http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=568395

So, is there a point in this blog? Probably not, but sometimes collecting is more rewarding when you don't expect it to be. On the other hand, collecting is less rewarding when it's too complicated. RSD I'm looking straight at you!    

Es-Say #21- "Out There UK\Europe 2015" Pt 1- PreSale Hell Success

In the last post(#20), I said "I just want a decent ticket before 2016". Happily, I can report I got my wish during the pre-sale time on March 7 for the O2 concert on May 23rd. I think I might have gotten a ticket where I can see the actual front of the stage but this is not something to celebrate. The celebratory part is that I didn't break my computer.

Firstly, I spent several hours(yep, I'm an idiot) coming up with a buying strategy the night before. I actually wrote NOTES. I was ready with various methods to legally crack into the official pre-sale websites. This preparation was serious business. Anyone who tells you Paul McCartney is not popular anymore in the UK is a bigger idiot than I am...read on!
Pre-sale Saturday rolls around and I was awake two hours before to get the websites loaded on to the computer. I had another tablet device ready for reference use only and someone I live with was ready to surrender all computer use and disappear(probably in fear) for awhile.
Thirty minutes before the sale time, my internet service wasn't working. Perfect timing for modern technology to decide to be useless. It resolved itself in ten minutes and I stopped cussing long enough to stay focused.
When fans have to buy tickets, there is a slight problem- Supply and Demand. Supply(amount available) to purchase of tickets is actually lower than most of us think. I'm not going to get into the extent of this, but the Demand(customers) never usually matches availability in Arenas, especially with Paul. I don't know how open air festivals differ, but my choice to try for the 02 was the usually fair, but unbelievable, lottery system. I knew that 02 Employees, Band guests, Press, Industry people, Scalpers(?), and VIP Experience reserves would cut down this "supply". My realistic goal was for any ticket- nothing more, nothing less.

At the pre-sale times, I managed to not understand the official Paul McCartney website ordering page and clicked out of the entire process. When I got back in after a minute or two, I was offered row U in the first tier next to the stage. Meanwhile, I was on another popular pre-sale website which was quickly counting down another first tier seat that was not 21 rows up from the floor but further back. Decisions, Decisions...it felt like "Beat The Clock" (note: game show reference) where you have a very limited amount of time to get something right.
In the end, I went with what I considered a better view for money. I posted on the official message board where people were discussing which tickets they had gotten. I could understand the frustration of others gaining not great or odd seats in a presale. In 2009, I was unable to get any pre-sale tickets. I didn't understand it was the same as a General Public sale date and tried too late. I managed to get my ticket with General Sale, and sat in the back of the top tier(Paul looked more like an Ant than a Beatle).
I'd love to hear how this current General Sale goes, but its still a shock to be successful purchasing a ticket to one of his shows. It really is impressive to sell tickets out so quickly but improvements with the allocation need to be forthcoming. I really can take another reason to start cussing!

Es-Say #20 Happy "NEW" Year?

Here we are in January 2015 and the blog hasn't been updated since last summer. It's not really a surprise to me. I was busy but I have been keeping track on all (or most of) the latest Paul news. I caved in an bought the Venus And Mars remaster and received the Wings at the Speed of Sound remaster as a gift. If you read my august blog post I wasn't too pleased with spending my hard earned money right away on these releases. Maybe ignore my previous rant because I spent a bunch of hard earned money on old releases I really didn't need. A majority of my spending happened on the day I met Beatles biographer Hunter Davis last year at a signing. I won't be complaining about new record label prices anytime soon as I suspect I'm buying up 50 years of past merchandise.
As I write those words, I'm going to shift to discussing the last five months of McCartney song releases. I can only really recommend the Venus and Mars remaster 2 CD set because a) I opened it, and B) it was awesome. I love the whole set but I find myself humming "my carnival" at odd times. Since I haven't dared to open the plastic on either Speed Of Sound or NEW (collector's edition), I have nothing to say, but I can't figure out why I now own three copies of NEW(...back catalogue, ain't it a biotch).
The Art Of McCartney has been of no interest. I simply don't care for tribute albums. Hope For The Future was beginning to grow on me but I'm a bit lost with the video and I don't think it was as great as the video for Appreciate. I'm not understanding the time and effort Macca spent promoting one NEW video after the other, do the same with Hope For The Future, and then...
...and then....
...HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Here's a Kayne West single featuring Paul McCartney!!!! Hooray! (I think).
The response to the song is ridiculous because people prejudged it would either be awful or West had no business being on a song with McCartney to begin with. I've listened to it once and thought the autotune was distracting to the obviously sentimental lyrics. I can't really remember those lyrics or sadly, the contribution of McCartney. I could identify that he had a keyboard solo but it sounded familiar. If you told me that this was an extra track on The Art Of McCartney called "Let It Be Reimagined For Kayne West" it's completely believable.
Funny enough, somebody "broke the internet" this week by posting a status update implying McCartney was not as well known West. Weither this person is legit or a troll, they have gotten 15 minutes of fame. McCartney may be asked about this newsmaker and the PR continues. I just want a decent concert ticket before 2016. Here's some of the prizes for my pacience I suppose...

Es-say #19 All this remaster veggie bologna and cheese

Guess what? Well, you can't, so I'll tell you. I am highly annoyed about the upcoming September re-releases of Venus and Mars, and Wings At The Speed Of Sound. I am stomping my left foot. I am stomping my right foot (I am referencing Help! to just make my anger even more silly).
 Yes, this is not world politics or anything of great importance. However, this is what my blog deals with often if you haven't read enough of it- My complaining about how dear sweet Sir Paul McCartney has gone and done something that has affected me personally in some way. I also value many things that McCartney has brought into my life- Music, Vegetarianism, Peace, Joy, etc. Today, I have to get this CD-re-release-mega-expensive-and-wino-junk-stuff-I-don't-want.

Firstly, I love the now defunct 1993 Holland releases of his albums (see an example above). But, I have the 1987 CD version of Venus and Mars. I'd like to spend my money on all the 1993 albums. Thanks to all the new releases(which seem to have an odd release date pattern), it will cost me more money to track down and purchase the ones I want. I can't really complain about At The Speed Of Sound being available as I don't own it, but I'm not impressed with an expanded version costing as much as a budget hotel room rate. A bit of math for you. I will save enough money not buying any of these re-releases box sets to go buy a decent McCartney ticket whenever the moment arrives. It's easily over 150 USD on two albums that are available in other formats(like uploaded online to popular free websites, for example).

The box sets show all this physical material that really doesn't interest me as a collector. I don't want reprints of original posters, lyrics, stickers....I just want the three CDs. How much can you take off the price for that? I remember when Wingsspan came out on CD. I got the 2 CDs, a Wings Necklace, and Mini Poster from Virgin Mega Store for like £15.99 tops. I taped the TV special on video and that was the end of it. I'm sure there were more Wingsspan tie-ins but I honestly, hand over heart, remember telling someone "Wow, that CD set was a good price!" The CDs track selections were impressive and I remembered that the most. I'm not trying to knock any of the studio albums at all, but with a double disc available with these new re-releases eliminating the DVD on the higher priced box sets, I do feel I'm getting less of what I should be.

Maybe in a few years, i'll buy them, but definitely not right away. This is the most interesting thing about collecting. Getting good deals when the iron isn't hot. It just doesn't make me too happy when the iron is scalding and I'm not getting burnt financially...wait, that's a good thing...

ES-Say #18 Let's Go See The Stars...

The 1st week of July was a time of celebration, not only was it America's Birthday, but the place where they broke away from (Britain) had to acknowledge the anniversary of one of their very own greatest films(directed by an American). That's right, it's officially fifty years since A Hard Day's Night was released and I can't begin to express how happy it was to see this re-released to UK Cinemas. I was able to break the self-imposed, subconscious refusal to watch the film since the late 1990s.  The British Film Institute had announced a few months ago they would screen the film. Not being a BFI member, I could not get tickets for the Richard Lester introduced screening. The general public(ie. myself) had 2nd dibs to these tickets which had sold out by the time I had tried to get them in June.

I attended a non-Lester introduced BFI screening a few days ago and this was my fourth of July. First one in the theatre, I plopped my rear in my reserved center row, center seat. Wearing a Union Jack t-shirt with Hey Jude on it, I threw all my bags under my seat and relaxed as the cinema played early Beatles hits. Oddly, I started to get annoyed at minor things. Why was the theatre playing Beatles songs that might also be in the movie about to start? Why is there so many empty seats? I didn't even like the people that were there in my closest view- a hippie and a quiet old couple.

All of my initial grumbling got thrown out the window the minute a faceless couple sat directly behind me. If I could sue them for "Peanut Gallery Offences", I would. The movie ads started, they didn't stop talking. The movie started, as the familiar guitar opening of the title song began, John Lennon and 1/2 of the couple behind me are the only two singing lead vocals. The movie gets to the first "Who's That Little Old Man?" and the couple begin to chuckle at everything said in this first train car scene. I can't be for certain, but it felt like they had both be drinking and never seen this film. However, with the rest of the audience dead silent, I was able to block out any further exchanges between the two whom eventually quieted down.

Is that to say this movie isn't funny, no it's screamingly funny and witty. the little decision to film the movie in black and white was the most daring and successful move director Richard Lester made. If you want to be transported back to 1964, this movie sticks you right there. Seeing Paul McCartney on the big screen singing "And I Love Her" makes me want to plead with Jane Asher. Ms. Asher can you strongly suggest to your boyfriend that you want him to go out with me instead? The restoration of 4K Digital Screen Remastering may have had something to do with the fact I was eventually able to feel gripped into awe with the film.

The first half of the movie, I remembered almost everything and enjoyed it. Then it felt like there were completely new bits to make me feel that the old PBS VHS copy I had watched over a decade ago had edited parts out completely. I will try and make these spoilers as general as possible.

1. Right before the press interview scene, sitting in the lobby seats
2. Ringo's solo excursion (much longer than I remember, especially the pub scene)
3. Let's Split up and find Ringo(don't follow me)
4. Paul's Batman Sound Effects(and most of the whole scene involving playing around with costume hair in the crowded dressing room)

I'm not really talking about forgetting as I did that Lesley Jackson was the name of the Magician character that Grandad encounters. I was honestly thinking "what did I just see?!??!?!?"

Walking around the lobby, I had seen a display of Richard Lester donated items from his films to the BFI. To me, to see a shooting script entitled for "Beatles Two" and original A Hard Day's Night posters were the highlights. Here's a tiny film I made of the area.

After the screening, I went to find out when I could view it again, but I couldn't attend the next available screenings. If I was honest, what will stay with me from the big screen until another 50 years have passed is the fire escape scene as it's about The Beatles how I always want to remember them- as a pure joy.