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DELUXE EDITION PACKAGE INCLUDES BONUS DIGITAL DOWNLOAD OF SELECTIONS FROM PAUL McCARTNEY'S PERFORMANCE AT CAPITOL STUDIOS, HOLLYWOOD, CA.
Kisses On The Bottom is a collection of standards Paul grew up listening to in his childhood as well as the two new McCartney compositions "My Valentine" and "Only Our Hearts." With the help of Grammy Award-winning producer Tommy LiPuma and Diana Krall and her band--as well as guest appearances from Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder, McCartney's new album is a deeply personal journey through classic American compositions that, in some cases, a young Paul first heard his father perform on piano at home. The full track listing reveals that Paul has been both reverent and adventurous in his song choices.
The phrase `Kisses On The Bottom,' comes from the album's opener `I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter'. Originally made a big hit by Fats Waller in 1935, the song opens with the lines "I'm gonna sit right down and write myself a letter and make believe it came from you. I'm gonna write words oh so sweet. They're gonna knock me off of my feet. A lot of kisses on the bottom, I'll be glad I got `em."
As authentic and daring a musical statement as he could make, this is the album Paul has been thinking about making for more than 20 years - and probably the last thing his fans are expecting. "In the end it was 'Look, if I don't do it now, I'll never do it'," he says. In short, Paul believes it is about time "the songs me and John based quite a few of our things on" received the recognition they deserve. Moreover, the record also features a couple of new original McCartney compositions in the spirit of those classics.
"When I kind of got into songwriting, I realized how well structured these songs were and I think I took a lot of my lessons from them," Paul explains. "I always thought artists like Fred Astaire were very cool. Writers like Harold Arlen, Cole Porter, all of those guys - I just thought the songs were magical. And then, as I got to be a songwriter I thought it's beautiful, the way they made those songs."
Determined to approach the record in a new and unique manner, Paul enlisted the help of LiPuma and Krall and her band-who delivered ultra-high quality musicianship and were completely in tune with Paul's restraint and feel for the music. In the studio, the recording of this album was also a new challenge for Paul who, for the first time ever, performed exclusively in the vocal booth without an instrument - no guitar, no bass, no piano - which led to a vocal performance like no other in his career.
He adds, "It was very spontaneous, kind of organic, which then reminded me of the way we'd work with The Beatles. We'd bring a song in, kick it around, when we found a way to do it we'd say 'Okay, let's do a take now' and by the time everyone kind of had an idea of what they were doing, we'd learnt the song. So that's what we did, we did the take live in the studio."
"It was important for me to keep away from the more obvious song choices so, many of the classic standards will be unfamiliar to some people. I hope they are in for a pleasant surprise."
The album was recorded at the legendary Capitol Studios in Los Angeles, New York and London throughout 2011.
Kisses on the Bottom Reviews
Kisses on the Bottom Reviews
| 103 of 113 people found the following review helpful  Macca Plays the Cocktail Lounge, This review is from: Kisses on the Bottom (Audio CD) Let's face it - these cover albums from veteran, heavily-moneyed legends of rock and pop are often pretty mundane, or at the very least inconsequential. In spite of this, Paul McCartney delivers quite well on "Kisses on the Bottom," with his iconic, velvety voice singing an eclectic, elaborate array of some of the best tunes ever written - as well as two extremely impressive new ones.The gorgeous, lilting "My Valentine" recalls a fond romantic memory without a trace of sap or sickly-sweetness. It is a damn solid McCartney original that, save for his now-huskier vocal range, would fit in well on one of the classic Beatles albums. "Only Our Hearts" is similar in its theme and melancholic edge, but better showcases McCartney's expressive, stirring lower register. Eric Clapton plays guitar on the latter while Stevie Wonder contributes harmonica on the former. It helps to have friends. This is not a Valentine's Day album, but it is very fortunately released in the... Read more 72 of 79 people found the following review helpful  DEAR MUSIC APPRECIATORS, By This review is from: Kisses on the Bottom (Audio CD) Dear Music Appreciators,If you've always wanted to get all up close and personal with "The Cute Beatle" then this may be the album for you. Notice Paul with his arms full of flowers on the cover of his new album - an album loaded with his close-mic vocals on old-fashioned romantic standards...released just a week before Valentines' Day...he might as well be saying "will you be my valentine?" Whether it's a calculated marketing ploy or just a coincidence of timing, this is certainly a good album. But it will probably divide some of McCartney's fans and may not win him many new ones outside of those who enjoy "the standards." If you're looking for an album full of Beatlesque singer-songwriter brilliance then you'd best look elsewhere. This is mostly jazzy, old-timey stuff from the 1920's and 30's that a young McCartney first heard from his father's piano. In the same way that many actors just want to direct, there are many singers who just want to... Read more 47 of 54 people found the following review helpful Intimate and understated, By Chicago Bookworm (Chicago) - See all my reviews Amazon Verified Purchase This review is from: Kisses on the Bottom (Audio CD) "Kisses on the Bottom" is personal, restrained, and moving. Many albums of standards are virtually interchangeable, as the singer "sells" each one through vocal gymnastics and splashy instrumentation. "Kisses on the Bottom" is, in contrast, an intimate and unpretentious affair. [The title is taken from a line in "I'm Going to Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter" and refers to putting XXXXXs on the bottom of a letter.]McCartney is turning 70 this year, and this album feels like a reckoning with both his past and future. These are (with the exception of the two originals, "My Valentine" and "Only Our Hearts"), the songs he grew up listening to, but he's singing them from a perspective that comes with age. He doesn't try to hide his voice's aging, and has said he was trying for a "small" voice effect, similar to Fred Astaire's. The spare arrangements by Diana Krall and her band complement his voice instead of overwhelming it, and the overall effect is spacious and... Read more |
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