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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Wildly uneven and bizarre--may put off even diehards, October 8, 2003
After Give Me Regards To Broadstreet, Paul McCartney went back to the studio and produced Press To Play. He has a plethora of studio musicians on this album. Guests include Pete Townshend Phil Collins, Anne Dudley and Tony Visconti, the latter doing orchestral arrangements. The sound isn't as poppy or radio friendly as Tug Of War or Pipes Of Peace, but sees Paul doing something experimental, with some bizarre, whimsical, and cryptic lyrics that might make one go, "Say what?"The second single, "Stranglehold" leans towards a blues sound, with a horn accompaniment before he sings the chorus. "Goodtimes Coming/Feel The Sun", which would have a New Wave feel if it had skippy synths, starts with backing vocalists singing the first title before Paul reminisces about a summer holiday. The second part of the song merely goes "Feel The Sun Shine In shine in feel the sun shine in on you." repeated. Carlos Alomar has a sizzling guitar solo here. "Footprints" is a sad acoustic song about a lonely man whose tears are hidden by the falling snow. "Only Love Remains" is a typical McCartney "My Love" ballad with a piano and guitar, and orchestra figuring prominently. The title track and first single, "Press" only got to #21 on the singles chart. It's catchy enough, with Collins' drums, snazzy keyboards and Carlos Alomar's trademark guitar gets a worthy solo here. The title verse says, "When you want me to love you/Just tell me to press." But "Oklahoma was never like this" gets a puzzled scratch on the head. "Pretty Little Head" was a weird choice for the third single. Paul's vocals are mixed in an echoing weird fashion here, which made me wonder if it was him or Roland Orzabal singing "Hillmen hillmen hillmen..." There is a reference to the Magi, of hillmen "carrying trinkets, silk and precious stones", with the words "Ursa Major...Ursa Minor..." sung inbetween verses. It's mostly keyboards and ambient sounds. The rocking "Move Over Busker" is of a struggling poet having conversations with Nell Gwynne and Mae West, yeah weird, I know, and they tell him the title words, followed by "your time will come" in reference to wanting to be experienced. "Angry" is a racing rebellious rocker reminiscent of 50's rock. It's from the POV of a youth who rails against his parents, telling them "What gives you the right to tell me what to do with my life/especially when you made a mess of every chance you had a chance." Paul's vocals are ragged, as when he does that high-pitched Little Richard-influenced scream. Pete Townshend does some guitar here. "However Absurd" sounds like an outtake from the Abbey Road album. The synth strings, pounding piano, and acoustic guitar is nothing compared to the weird lyrics: "Custom made dinosaurs, too late now, for a change/Everything is under the sun, but nothing is for keeps..." However absurd indeed! "Write Away" advises a girl who needs love to express it in writing. "Get it down, you'll feel better, send it now, write away" he says. With the piano, brushes, and sax, there is a lighter quality that nears mellow jazz. "It's Not True", begins the backing vocals, on this song, which is reminiscent of a typical McCartney 70's ballad and is in defense of a girl whom jealous others say she's crazy, a loser, and bad. Carlos Alomar's guitar snarls in time with the chorus. "Tough On A Tightrope" shows the patience needed in a relationship, even when he sings, "If you're tempted to tell a lie/don't get it wrong." "The brightest light that's shining in the skies is shining from your eyes" is typical McCartney romantic whimsy. Hugh Padgham, whose work includes the Police's Ghost In The Machine and Synchroncity albums, as well as Genesis' Invisible Touch and Phil Collins' classic No Jacket Required works with Paul on this album. The inner sleeves containing the lyrics also contain stereo drawings in colour to pinpoint the positions of the instruments. Not all the lyrics stand up to scratch, and some are downright bizarre. It's not bad, though, it's just McCartney experimenting with new styles and not always succeeding, but at least he tried. McCartney put out the stunning Flowers In The Dirt three years later, but those disillusioned with this uneven album may have deserted him as a result.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE MOST UNDERRATED ALBUM IN HISTORY!, February 23, 2006
When I first heard this album in 1986 my first reaction was 'What is McCartney doing'?! But the more I listened to it, the more I realized the creative genius that PTP is all about. As it was released, in 1986, the original 10 songs on PTP are some of the most musically satisfying songs I have ever heard (with one exception). And though Paul usually excels more on the musical side, these songs include some of his strongest lyrics. STRANGLEHOLD is a classic rocker and the perfect way to start out the album. GOOD TIMES COMING/FEEL THE SUN is a catchy melody that brings back memories of warm sunny days and the warm fuzzy feelings that come with them. TALK MORE TALK is driven by a creative drum machine track and includes comments from his young son James. Who else but McCartney could successfully pull off a song about talk/conversaton? FOOTPRINTS is a stirringly emotional song about a man who has lost his true love and laments his loss privately. ONLY LOVE REMAINS is a classic McCartney love song. PRESS is a catchy rocker that should have been a bigger hit than it was. PRETTY LITTLE HEAD is a musical classic, very Bealtlesque in its creativity. MOVE OVER BUSKER tells a funny story and includes references to Nell Gwynne, Mae West, and Errol Flynn. Great guitar work and strong lyrics. One of my favorites. ANGRY is the only exception on the album. Although it includes Pete Townsend on guitar and Phil Collins on drums, the song lacks any kind of a signiture. There is a B-side version that Paul added horns to and it sounds great, it would have made the album a perfect 10. I think with Pete and Phil on the song Paul was afraid he would overproduce it and in the process he underproduced it. HOWEVER ABSURD is lyrically Pauls most Lennon like song. I love lines like 'It's a funny thing, half serious, With our hands on our ears./Living dreams with mouths ajar, Wide awake, we go to sleep'. and 'Something special between us, When we made love the game was over./I couldn't say the words, Words wouldn't get my feelings through, So I keep talking to you...'. Classic. It always reminded me of 'I am the Walrus'. I can't get enough of this album. In fact, I once listened to nothing else for 3 months. When I was in the car I listened to the tape, in the house I had the album on. If I was stranded on a desert island and could only have one album, this would be it. The extra tracks ruin the flow and continuity of the album and do not really belong, although it is nice to have CD versions of ONCE UPON A LONG AGO and SPIES LIKE US. IT'S NOT TRUE and TOUGH ON A TIGHTROPE have B-side mixes that are much better than the ones on this disk. I would listen to the extra tracks seperately from tracks 1-10. You may have to listen to it a few times, but once it hooks you, you won't be sorry you spent the time to discover this gem.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A solid, almost forgotten treat., September 20, 2005
Probably best described as "playful," this obscure album contains some rousing songs, in my opinion. "Press" and "Stranglehold" (no relation to Ted Nugent's version!!) are mid-tempo, pleasant rockers. They're love-songs, but have just a tiny bit of suggestiveness to them, particularly "Press." Not exactly racy, especially by today's standards, but more than we usually get from Paul. For a true rocker, tune in to "Angry" on which Pete Townsend contributes guitar. Typical lyric "What the hell gives you the right to tell me what to do with my life," or "I'm angry, just lookin' at you." Not deep stuff, but I seem to remember back when this came out, Paul saying he wanted to show he could still write a "hard" song...not a bad effort. Not exactly Motley Crue, but a lark nonetheless.
Of course, it wouldn't be Paul without some ballads. "Only Love Remains" is the prize-winner in this group, and it holds up very well after all these years as a great example of Paul's moody, bittersweet, romantic side. For good, tossed-off ditties (you know, something that sounds like it was written in the morning, recorded in the afternoon, much fun had by all, and not deeper meanings), look no further than "Write Away."
There are some oddities, some more enjoyable than others. "Your Pretty Little Head" and "However Absurd" show McCartney experimenting a bit, particularly with effects and other post-recording trickeries. Some of these tunes are annoying, particularly "Talk More Talk," which is just that...lots of talk, a little singing, and way too long! "Good Times Coming" sounds tired...no good times here!!
Overall, this is hardly a masterpiece. Few Paul albums are...it seems like he enjoys tossing off songs in a hurry. He'll take a little odd idea, write a song about it and move on. Probably comes from being able to play several instruments and being a natural born tunesmith. For a solo album that works very strongly from beginning to end, you probably need McCartney I or Flowers in the Dirt. But the great thing about Paul is that none of his albums are throwaways either. He always sounds great, the sound mix (usually) is crisp, clean and balanced. He's got a sense of humor, and a sense of romance that has no irony. I like PRESS TO PLAY, and over the years, I listen to it at least a couple of times a year. I recommend it.
(By the way, a couple of the tunes weren't on the original CD, which I own. SPIES LIKE US came from the movie...it's pretty bad. Don't know about the others.)
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