Wild Life (1971)

Paul McCartney gets his first NSA! Wild Life is truly, and controversially, a No Skip Album. While the Deluxe Edition has a lot of extra home recordings and different variations of songs on the album, the original core record is exceptional.

Wild Life packs a punch right out the gate with Mumbo. Paul is not playing around anymore, and on this record, he means business. The self-titled track, Wild Life, has this drawn-out, epic arrangement with larger-than-life backing vocals that could only have been inspired by George Harrison. Wild Life is to Paul McCartney what Hear Me Lord is to George Harrison.

Paul brings attitude to Wild Life and he does not apologize for it, nor should he have to. The album is an absolute blast and McCartney shows no signs of slowing down. Some People Never Know is a melodic masterclass and a beautiful devotion of his love for Linda. Oh, to have what they had! Don’t you dare even think about skipping out on When The Wind Is Blowing from the Deluxe Edition. It is easily one of the most beautiful songs ever made.

Wild Life is spontaneous and it has this looseness to it that just feels like Paul is letting it all out. Like RAM, this album is raw, filled with emotion and passion from the man himself: Sir Paul McCartney.

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Highlight Songs:

• Love Is Strange

• Wild Life

• Some People Never Know

• When The Wind Is Blowing

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Own it, Stream it, Forget about it?

If there was ever an early Paul McCartney album to own, it would be this one! I know that is a controversial declaration right there and the lack of pop hooks may be off putting to the casual music listener, but this record is fantastic. Buy it, pray to it, tell it secrets, and hold it close to your heart.

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Overall Rating

4.5 Stars