Album Reviews

It’s been heavily bootlegged over the years, and yet Paul McCartney & Wings’ One Hand Clapping is still something of a holy grail among fans. These 1974 live-in-the-studio recordings of the group, not long after the mega-success of November 1973’s Band on the Run and before its follow-up hit album, May 1975’s Venus and Mars, finds them firing on all cylinders — and then some. One Hand Clapping was actually released officially as a 52-minute film on the DVD in the November 2010 Band on the Run Archive Edition 3CD/1DVD box set from MPL/Hear Music/Concord, but the notion of an official” soundtrack” album has never properly materialized until now, even though it was apparently planned back in the day. In short, it’s been well worth the wait — and it’s now officially released today, June 14, 2024, by MPL/Capitol/UMe, in both standard 180g 2LP form and a web-exclusive version with an additional six-track 45.

Before I get into the nitty-gritties of why you might want to (nay, should!) add One Hand Clapping to your collection, let’s explore some of the nifty DNA behind its making. The original tracks for One Hand Clapping were recorded at Abbey Road Studios in October 1974 by Geoff Emerick, as assisted by Mark Vigars and John Barrett. Produced by Paul McCartney, the new 2024 mix was helmed by Steve Orchard at McCartney’s own Hog Hill Mill Studio (except for “All of You” and “I’ll Give You a Ring,” which were mixed by Emerick at Abbey Road Studios). The final album mastering and the cutting of the vinyl lacquers were done by Alex Wharton at Abbey Road Studios.

Though we haven’t yet found out exactly where the 180g vinyl was pressed, the sticker on the back cover does indicate this collection was “Made in Germany.” Happily, my Clapping pressings have been well-centered and quiet, so I have no issues on that front as far as the QC goes. Each LP comes in its own heavy stock, die-cut inner sleeve printed with custom, green-hued album graphics — although, alas, the sleeves are not plastic-lined. The package features original artwork as designed for the proposed album back in the day, plus a reproduction of the original TV sales brochure created for the project (which is also home for most of the new album’s production credits).

The standard 2LP edition has an SRP of $37.99. If you want to get the version of One Hand Clapping that contains the bonus 7-inch 45, you’ll have to procure that from McCartney’s official site for a very fair SRP of $45.98 (which you can do right here).

From Macca’s site, we learn the core Clapping tracks are newly mixed, including 12 of them that did not appear in the original film. The web-exclusive edition’s bonus 7-inch, ostensibly called The Backyard, features six previously unreleased solo tracks by McCartney accompanied only by his acoustic guitar, as literally recorded in the backyard at Abbey Road Studios.

As far as the music itself goes, one of the first things I noticed while listening to One Hand Clapping is just how hard it rocks! Part of that notion — at least from my vantage point — comes down to the presence of drummer Geoff Britton, who was only in Wings for about six months. In turn, he brought a somewhat harder, rawer garage-band feel to the band than prior and subsequent Wings drummers Denny Seiwell and Joe English, respectively.

Coupled with the addition of a then-young (and seen above) Jimmy McCullough (Thunderclap Newman, Stone The Crows) on guitar, the overall vibe of Wings here on Clapping is quite a bit edgier-sounding than they had arguably been on prior releases like the aforementioned Band on the Run (on which McCartney himself played all the drums), May 1973’s Red Rose Speedway, and even the feel of Paul and Linda McCartney’s May 1971 release, Ram (my favorite post-Beatles Macca album, by the way).

That edge jumped out at me almost immediately when I was listening to One Hand Clapping for the first time in higher-fidelity sound on this new 2LP set. The difference is distinct, and ultimately dramatic. Again, from my perspective, I think Britton gives great rockers like “Junior’s Farm” (Side 4, Track 1) that extra push. I almost wonder if ultimately he was pushing the band perhaps a bit harder than McCartney might have really wanted at that time, (Britton, seen below, exited the band for replacement Joe English midway through the recording of Venus and Mars.)

One Hand Clapping is nonetheless a winning collection for any McCartney fan who still likes the power of pure rock & roll. This is especially poignant for those of us who always wanted to hear him reclaim the rock glories of certain aspects of his Beatles days with Wings by delivering a rhythmic pulse more akin to his work with Ringo Starr on drums. (It’s something I feel he more or less eventually achieved with his current live/studio band of the last 15-20 years — which is, in my mind, his finest backing group since The Beatles, with a rhythm section securely anchored by the great drummer Abe Laboriel Jr.)

I find this rhythmic edge palpable, compelling, and exciting. If I ever had a problem with some of Sir Paul’s work with Wings, it is that it sometimes felt like he was playing things a bit too safe, something that is oddly counterintuitive, given that some of those recordings were in part fairly experimental as far as pop music went at that time. This notion peaked several years later just as the punk and new-wave movements achieved prominence, at a time when Wings offered up the synth-heavy soft-rock of March 1978’s London Town. (But I digress.)

Among my favorite tracks on One Hand Clapping include the utterly jamming version of “Soily” (Side 1, Track 3), which I find much more appealing than the live version found on December 1976’s 3LP set Wings Over America (Side 6, Track 4). This Clapping take rocks so much harder, due at least in part to Britton, who drums it far more directly — and punkier — than English’s slightly more swinging, busier live interpretation. Britton drives a heavy kick drum and relentless hi-hat work that is near-Ringoesque, while on later live recordings, we hear how English keeps the pulse going via steady ride cymbals and then-fashionably complex, prog-rock-leaning fills and flourishes. This is a distinction worth noting, imo.

Some of the re-recorded tracks from Band on the Run fare very well here on One Hand Clapping. “Jet” (Side 1, Track 2), “Let Me Roll It” (Side 3, Track 1), and the ever-iconic title track (Side 2, Track 5) all rock like nobody’s business. From my vantage point, these tracks sound better than the Run originals, simply based on the strength of the live-in-the-studio full-band performance energy. The One Hand Clapping version of Wings’ hit single “Live and Let Die,” from the 1973 James Bond film of the same name (Side 2, Track 6), also rocks madly (to borrow a term often used by Duke Ellington).

Yet One Hand Clapping is not all in-your-face rawk from start to finish. Macca breaks up the really big show with solo bits and even some jaunty, jolly sounds from yesteryear, including a fun, full-on New Orleans-flavored take on the 1926 Tin Pan Alley classic “Babyface” (Side 2, Track 8). It’s worth noting that one of McCartney’s major early influences, Little Richard, had his biggest UK hit single in 1959 when his cover of this very tune reached the No. 2 spot on the British pop charts!

McCartney keeps the ’50s roots vibe going on LP2, with perhaps his best version of Elvis Presley’s early Sun Records hit “Blue Moon of Kentucky” (Side 3, Track 3). Yes, I think it’s even better than the great version of it that’s on June 1991’s Unplugged (The Official Bootleg), which was culled from the classic MTV series of yore. This is also a very cool echo to the October 1991 global release of CHOBA B CCCP (a.k.a. Back in the USSR), which features all manner of roots-rock cover tunes.

The near-gospel solo piano take of early Wings track “Tomorrow” (Side 4, Track 3) — a standout track from December 1971’s Wild Life LP — is a stunner. The full band take of the title track from that same album (Side 4, Track 5) is a smoker, which underscores how the song is every bit as strong as the other bluesy McCartney-penned jammer here, the Lennonesque Run scorcher, “Let Me Roll It” (Side 3, Track 1). Guitarist and backing singer, the late great Denny Laine (RIP), gets a lovely showcase via Wings’ fine cover of the signature tune from his days with the earliest incarnation of The Moody Blues — the No.1 1964 UK chart topper, “Go Now” (Side 4, Track 4).

If you decide to spring for the web-exclusive version of One Hand Clapping to get The Backyard, the bonus six-song, 7-inch 45rpm EP, know that it does sound very nice. But also know that, as mentioned earlier, this is just Sir Paul playing acoustic guitar in the garden outside of Abbey Road Studios (properly miked, of course), and not any sort of elaborate and/or band-oriented recordings. On the 7-inch, Macca runs though some vintage nuggets, including two Buddy Holly tunes (“Peggy Sue” and “I’m Gonna Love You Too,” Side 2, Tracks 2 and 3, respectively), both of which are especially wonderful. He also does Eddie Cochran’s “Twenty-Flight Rock” — titled here as “I’m Too Tired to Rock” (Side 2, Track 1) — which is notable and important for fans of early Beatle lore that led to the formation of the band in the first place. It’s a short piece, but it’s also sweet and joyous — which, in my book, makes it worth owning!

Overall, the mix on One Hand Clapping is really very good. It is simple and rocking, arguably showcasing Wings more as a powerhouse band than most live or studio recordings I have heard of this particular era of the group. McCartney’s bass is plenty audible but not dominating, so the full band aesthetic comes through loud and clear — from overdriven electric guitars to the tasteful synthesizer flourishes that at times emerge from the wings (if you will) of the soundstage at key moments.

While we’re not sure how this actual disc was made, we do know the recording was newly mixed from the (likely) 24-track multichannel analog master tapes as recorded at Abbey Road Studios back in 1974. It would not surprise me, however, if there was a digital stage involved in making this new 2LP set to enable modern restoration. That said, the album sounds really, really good! What more can we ask for?

If there is any minor disappointment here (besides those non-lined inner sleeves), it’s that the snippet of McCartney singing his still-then-unreleased song “Suicide” from the film is not here. For those not familiar with it, part of that melody was used as a musical tag at the end of “Hot as Sun / Glasses,” from his April 1970 debut solo LP McCartney (Side 1, Track 5). This song has some fascinating history. McCartney has explained (in numerous places you can find on the interwebs) that it was one of his earliest compositions dating back to his teens, written with Frank Sinatra in mind. Apparently, Macca eventually did send it to Sinatra, who sadly didn’t record it. But the mind boggles at what might have been created, had The Chairman of the Board connected with the tune,

Musically, I think One Hand Clapping deserves a 10 rating — and AP editor Mike Mettler agrees with me. In my heart of hearts, I’d like to give this one a 9 for Sound, but we’re bringing it down to a more realistic 8, given the decidedly underproduced aesthetic — something that, again, only has upsides, from my personal perspective.

The bottom line is, if you are a fan of Paul McCartney & Wings and want to hear them at their rock-out best, you will want to get the first-time official 2LP edition of One Hand Clapping. It’s essential, revelatory, and well worth you clapping both hands in accord.

Mark Smotroff is an avid vinyl collector who has also worked in marketing communications for decades. He has reviewed music for AudiophileReview.com, among others, and you can see more of his impressive C.V. at LinkedIn.

PAUL McCARTNEY & WINGS
ONE HAND CLAPPING
180g 2LP (MPL/Capitol/UMe)

Disc 1 / Side 1
1. One Hand Clapping
2. Jet
3. Soily
4. C Moon / Little Woman Love
5. Maybe I’m Amazed
6. My Love

Disc 1 / Side 2
1. Bluebird
2. Let’s Love
3. All Of You
4. I’ll Give You A Ring
5. Band On The Run
6. Live And Let Die
7. Nineteen Hundred And Eighty-Five
8. Baby Face

Disc 2 / Side 3
1. Let Me Roll It
2. Blue Moon Of Kentucky
3. Power Cut
4. Love My Baby
5. Let It Be
6. The Long and Winding Road / Lady Madonna

Disc 2 / Side 4
1. Junior’s Farm
2. Sally G
3. Tomorrow
4. Go Now
5. Wild Life
6. Hi, Hi, Hi

The Backyard
(bonus 7-inch 45 EP in web-exclusive edition only)

Side 1
1. Blackpool
2. Blackbird
3. Country Dreamer

Side 2
1. I’m Too Tired to Rock (a.k.a. Twenty Flight Rock)
2. Peggy Sue
3. I’m Gonna Love You Too