People love to off handily dismiss the solo work of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison and say that they were no good after The Beatles. And while it is true that they never quite reached the same level as The Beatles (but who has?) they really did release a number of great albums after “the greatest band of all time.”
In this article I highlight five such albums that I recommend you give an honest listen to. Are any of these albums a match for Revolver, The White Album, or Abbey Road? No, not in my opinion. But not many albums are in that league! While these albums may not be true classics, they are (in some cases) very close to that status.
Paul McCartney – McCartney (1970) – I love this album. I love it’s “homemade DIY” charm. It sounds like a great singer/songwriter/musician just recording for the fun of it rather than to really please anyone in particular. Some people see that as unfocused. I see it as charming. I think if a mostly unknown artist had recorded this same album it’d be considered a real “gem” by hipsters but since it’s Paul McCartney it’s too often overlooked.
John Lennon – Mind Games (1973) – A lot of people have heard the title track but I think the rest of the album is mostly unknown to people until they hear it. This makes it quite a “revelatory” experience to a Beatles fan in my opinion. It’s a good album and works really well as an album (rather than just a collection of songs.)
George Harrison – All Things Must Pass (1970) – This one was a huge revelation as showed what a prolific songwriter George was He had a lot of songs built up from his time with The Beatles that he wasn’t able to get onto Beatles albums thus this triple album came into being (the 3rd LP being instrumental jams.) Unfortunately he never came close to matching this album the rest of his career, in my opinion.
Paul McCartney & Wings – Band on the Run (1973) – This was Paul doing his “perfect album” thing (in the Sgt. Pepper / Abbey Road vein) and he does it very well. Of course it’s not as good as those legendary Beatles albums, but it’s still really really good. The title song is brilliant. But there’s a lot of other really good stuff on the album too including “Let Me Roll It” which is a real classic.
The Fireman – Rushes (1998) – This is Paul working with Youth under the name “The Fireman.” It’s an experimental electronic ambient album that you are either going to think is really interesting (like I do) or a complete snooze fest (this sort of cerebral music is definitely not for everyone.) But what it does show beyond a shadow of a doubt is that Paul McCartney is not the simple pop balladeer that so many uninformed people try to make him out to be.
Please note that these are just five of the best solo albums by John, Paul, & George. I am not saying that these are the best five, just five of the best. There are a lot of other solo albums by the former Fab Four that you should also check out.
