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Roughly timed to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Beatlemania, The Art of McCartney is a lavish celebration of all things Paul. Weighing in at three discs and 42 tracks in its grandest incarnation, the set is 34 tracks at its slimmest. In both cases, that's plenty generous but it nevertheless only skims the surface of a very rich, very deep songbook that's developed over the decades. By and large, the featured performers -- mainly McCartney's peers, including his good friend Steve Miller, Billy Joel, Bob Dylan, Brian Wilson, Jeff Lynne, Roger Daltrey, and Willie Nelson, but also a handful of younger performers and old pros, too -- stick to both familiar tunes and familiar arrangements, which means The Art of McCartney often gets by on sheer enthusiasm. Certainly, Billy Joel -- who opens up the proceedings with "Maybe I'm Amazed" and later covers "Live and Let Die" -- throws himself into it and his cuts benefit from his full-bore roar, but some of the softer moments are equally nice; in particular, Corinne Bailey Rae slides into "Bluebird" with grace, while Jeff Lynne tackles the homespun "Junk" while resisting his urge to decorate. As with any tribute this size, there are the inevitable stumbles, but these aren't enough to prevent The Art of McCartney from being fun, particularly because they're overshadowed by moments of real delight: Bob Dylan growling his way through "Things We Said Today," Heart laying into the spooky heart of "Letting Go," Robert Smith embracing the oddness of "C Moon," Kiss camping it up on "Venus and Mars/Rock Show," Robin Zander and Rick Nielsen and, especially, Def Leppard finding the glittering bubblegum heart in "Helen Wheels" followed by Joe Elliott stomping "Hi Hi Hi" into submission." All that can be expected from a generous star-studded tribute like this are a few moments like this, and The Art of McCartney certainly delivers them.
Condition:NEW.
TRACK LISTINGS
Disc 1
1 Maybe I'm Amazed - Billy Joel (5:06)
2 Things We Said Today - Bob Dylan (3:01)
3 Band On The Run - Heart (5:14)
4 Junior's Farm - Steve Miller (4:17)
5 The Long And Winding Road - Yusuf (3:30)
6 My Love - Harry Connick Jr. (4:05)
7 Wanderlust - Brian Wilson (4:17)
8 Bluebird - Corinne Bailey Rae (3:24)
9 Yesterday - Willie Nelson (3:01)
10 Junk - Jeff Lynne (2:13)
11 When I'm 64 - Barry Gibb (2:40)
12 Every Night - Jamie Cullum (2:58)
13 Venus and Mars/Rock Show - Kiss (6:40)
14 Let Me Roll It - Paul Rodgers (4:32)
15 Helter Skelter - Roger Daltrey (4:02)
16 Helen Wheels - Def Leppard (3:50)
17 Hello Goodbye - James McCartney (4:01)
Disc 2
1 Live And Let Die - Billy Joel (3:08)
2 Let It Be - Chrissie Hynde (3:48)
3 Jet - Rick Nielsen (4:11)
4 Hi Hi Hi - Joe Elliott (3:10)
5 Letting Go - Heart (3:59)
6 Hey Jude - Steve Miller (5:14)
7 Listen To What The Man Said - Owl City (3:36)
8 Got To Get You Into My Life - Perry Farrell (2:41)
9 Drive My Car - Dion (2:52)
10 Lady Madonna - Allen Toussaint (2:15)
11 Let 'Em In - Dr. John (5:12)
12 So Bad - Smokey Robinson (3:19)
13 No More Lonely Nights - The Airborne Toxic Event (3:36)
14 Eleanor Rigby - Alice Cooper (2:08)
15 Come and Get It - Toots Hibbert (2:21)
16 On The Way - B.B. King (3:19)
17 Birthday - Sammy Hagar (2:38)
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