| London Town | 
 enlarge | Artist: Paul Mccartney
Label: EMI
Category: Music
List Price: $14.49
Buy New: $6.76
You Save: $7.73 (53%)
New (40) Used (9) Collectible (3) from $6.56
Avg. Customer Rating:  36 reviews
Sales Rank: 15615
Format: Extra Tracks, Import, Original Recording Remastered
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 89265
UPC: 766484408922
EAN: 0077778926528
ASIN: B00000721I
Release Date: June 8, 1993
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Tracks:
| • | London Town - Paul McCartney, Laine, Denny | | • | Cafe on the Left Bank - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | I'm Carrying - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Backwards Traveller - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Cuff Link - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Children Children - Paul McCartney, Laine, Denny | | • | Girlfriend - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | I've Had Enough - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | With a Little Luck - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Famous Groupies - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Deliver Your Children - Paul McCartney, Laine, Denny | | • | Name and Address - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Don't Let It Bring You Down - Paul McCartney, Laine, Denny | | • | Morse Moose and the Grey Goose - Paul McCartney, Laine, Denny | | • | Girls' School - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul | | • | Mull of Kintyre - Paul McCartney, McCartney, Paul |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Album Description
Digitally remastered reissue of their hit 1978 album, which stayed at #2 for six weeks in a row! Features the #1 smash 'With A Little Luck', plus the title hit & the top 30 'I've Had Enough', along with two bonus tracks: 'Mull Of Kintyre' & 'Girls' School'. 16 tracks total. 1993 EMI release. The original was released on EMI/ Parlophone.
Album Details
Digitally Remastered Reissue of the Original Album with London Town / with a Little Luck / I've Had Enough and More, plus Two Bonus Tracks Added: Girl's School and Mull of Kintyre.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 31 more reviews...
From The Other Side Of The Pond June 26, 2005
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
On London Town, Wings was again back down to a trio. The album is a definite step up from Wings At The Speed Of Sound and it contains some excellent songs. "With A Little Luck" is a synth-laden song that is what Mr. McCartney does best; simple pop songs with great vocals and catchy hooks. This one is as infectious as anything he's ever recorded and became his sixth number one single in the spring of 1978. "I'm Carrying" is a pretty acoustic ballad and "Cafe On The Left Bank" is a pulsating rocker. "Backwards Traveler" is an interesting song, "Girlfriend" is done much better by Michael Jackson, "I've Had Enough" is a good rocker and "Name & Address" is an attempt at rockabilly. London Town is a solid, well-made effort. The bonus tracks are the hard rocking "Girls School" and the elegant "Mull Of Kintyre". The latter was a major hit in England in 1977, staying at number one for nine weeks and become the UK's biggest selling single of all-time at the time (it's currently number four all-time) and the first to sell over two million copies. In the US it was regulated to the b-side of "Girl's School" which peaked at number 33 in early 1978.
McCartney - Nothing Left To Prove November 9, 2005
13 out of 17 found this review helpful
Bubba the illiterate redneck, who "reviewed" this album earlier, obviously knows nothing about British music. In the midst of the punk revolution Britain didn't quite go "ga-ga" over Mull Of Kintyre, as he claims - true, it was bought by a record 2-million and spent months at No 1, but just as many hated it with a passion, and on some levels it dealt another blow to his rock credibility. We Brits tend to go ga-ga not over Scritti Politti (where on earth did he get that?) but over cutting-edge music that more conservative Americans mostly don't get (think T-Rex, Jam, Bowie, Oasis, even Beatles before 1964) rather than the bland but beautiful (Mariah Carey, Captain & Tenille, Milli Vanilli, Michael Bolton, Kenny G, New Kids etc).
When London Town came out in 1978 Paul McCartney finally had nothing left to prove. He had sold more records than John, George and Ringo combined, had recently finished the triumphant world tour (with live triple album Wings Over America hitting No 1), had earlier that year topped the UK charts for months with the biggest selling British single ever up to that point (Mull of Kintyre) and was one of the richest and most famous men on the planet. True, he still confused and confounded the music hacks by refusing to play to their rules, but McCartney must have felt that he could ease off, drop down a gear, and relax. So, for the first year since the Beatles had broken up, 1977 had gone by without a new McCartney album, and by 1978 London Town was eagerly awaited. The break had proven too much for Jimmy McCulloch and Joe English however, and Wings had been reduced to a trio again, for the first time since Band On The Run.
London Town has always had an "acoustic" feel to me, with McCartney moving away from the great stadium rockers and the attendant showmanship to a more intimate, personal level. The songs themselves are amazingly diverse, and McCartney seems to have fun introducing the synthesiser to his songs. The opening trio of songs - London Town, Cafe On The Left Bank and I'm Carrying rank amongst his finest, but are followed by the weakest track on the album, Backwards Traveller/Cuff Link. Bearing in mind the album contains a bumper 13 songs (15 including the bonus tracks) I feel this should have been left for a b-side. I've Had Enough shows Paul assimilating the punk influence, Girlfriend has a disco feel, and Name And Address sounds like an Elvis (circa 1956) tribute - he having died the year before. With A Little Luck rocks and pops in equal measures and has a wonderful vibe, and the humour of Famous Groupies demonstrates music can still be fun. Denny's two excellent compositions Children, Children and Deliver Your Children largely contribute to the acoustic mood, and I love how this album ends with Don't Let It Bring You Down and Morse Moose And The Grey Goose, the latter surely one of Paul's most extraordinary songs. Only McCartney would attempt this, and only McCartney could pull it off.
The bonus tracks are excellent. Everyone (outside USA it appears) knows Mull Of Kintyre, so well in fact many are still sick of it. Girls School is an excellent, overlooked rocker that should have been a concert staple for many years. After this album Paul would rebuild Wings one last time and for one last album, but the enthusiasm was starting to wane. He'd not only been there and done that, he owned the t-shirt factory, and after his final tour for over a decade he would turn to a third solo career.
Different versions, different sound October 28, 2005
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
For some reason, most of the 1970-1990 McCartney/Wings catalogue is now available in two versions: the Capitol CDs and the British remastered "McCartney Collection".
The British CD's offer, in many cases, more bonus tracks than the Capitol CD's, some of which are very welcome: London Town adds 'Mull of Kintyre' to its B-side 'Girls School'.
The remastering of the British series is, to my ears, NOT a bonus. The signal has been compressed in such a way, that the average level is louder than on the Capitol CD's, although the peaks are not. Especially the low frequencies have been boosted, resulting in a somewhat muddy sound and a less focused midrange. This has also affected the stereo image. To me, the Capitol CDs are sonically superior and closer to the original LPs.
This is very noticable on orchestral and acoustic songs in particular. The difference between 'Mull of Kintyre' on the London Town CD, and the track on 'All the best' is also striking!
I liked this album -- I'm not sure why September 26, 2001
10 out of 18 found this review helpful
The songs on this album have a nice, dreamy quality, e.g. London Town, With a Little Luck, Deliver Your Children. A good mix of acoustic and synthesizer stuff. Even the filler songs (all too common on a McCartney album) are pretty good, with the exception of Morse Moose and the Grey Goose. In my opinion this is McCartney's best, with the exception of Band on the Run (the only "five star" McCartney album). The bonus tracks -- Girl's School and Mull of Kintyre-- are great.
Long Time No See, Baby January 8, 2004
9 out of 10 found this review helpful
In February 1986, I placed an ad in the now defunct Beatles Book Monthly asking for Wings/Beatles Mad Penpals. You'll note that I was a bigger Wings fan than Beatles fan at that time (an impressionable 16 year old) and I got a great response from the ad, including some from the United States.One of my favourite Macca/Wings albums was - and still is - London Town. I thinks it's got a light, relaxed mood, far removed from the tensions of Band on the Run or the trying-too-hard-to-be-commercial At The Speed of Sound. The first thing that struck me on first hearing it (I bought it in 1985) was that it was a very acoustic album, hence its lightness and air of happiness! Linda had her critics, but the title track would not be the same without her and Denny Laine's wonderful harmonies. I rate these harmonies as among the best on any McCartney album. It is a beautifully produced album. I too like Cafe on the Left Bank, particularly the line where Paul's vocal is single-tracked as opposed to double-tracked as on the rest of the song. A typical McCartney ballad follows, but any musicians among you will probably note that it is more Harrison than McCartney. I'm Carrying contains a very Harrison key change, from E major to a diminished chord. Harrison was king of diminished chords. A lovely song. As one other Amazonn reviewer noted, Backward Traveller by itself could be a great song. Why then the two minutes of snyth rubbish tagged onto it? Sometimes this is McCartney's biggest problem: Self-indulgence. No Lennon to say 'That's not going on the album.' I've always loved With a Little Luck, containing a great rock vocal toward the end. It's a good mix of late seventies rock and synthesiser. I like this extended version. Deliver Your Children sees Denny Laine in the vocal spotlight and this is a great song to play on the acoustic guitar. I don't know if such sexist lyrics would go down so well these days, though! Girlfriend sees McCartney using his So Bad falsetto and he would give this song to Michael Jackson. To me it's just a pleasant track with nice keyboard work toward the end. The album soes contain a couple of knocked-off songs: Name and Address and Famous Groupies. The former is memorable only for its production and lead guitar solo, possibly the last thing Jimmy McCulloch contributed to this album? The latter is, well, not really memorable for anything..., One of my favourite tracks is the lachrymose Don't Let It Get You Down, a beautiful slow track with Paul stooping the lower depths of his vocal register. The flanged twelve-string guitars really cut through the speakers. And - on the original release - the last track is Morse Moose and the Grey Goose, an idea that doesn't quite come off. It's interesting but quickly grates. Maybe the album should have closed with Don't Let It Bring You Down? Still, I do enjoy this album, and although I'd recommend it to everyone, I reckon if you are wanting to get into Paul's solo catalogue, I wouldn't buy this one first. Try Band on the Run or Venus and Mars. Or better still, the fabulous Flowers in the Dirt!
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