Tug of War

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Tug of War
CD on Amazon.com
Released: 1982, 26 April
Average rating: Based on DM and site visitor ratings
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Tracks

Average song rating Tug of War (4:22) Lyrics
Average song rating Take It Away (4:14) Lyrics
Average song rating Somebody Who Cares (3:19) Lyrics
Average song rating What's That You're Doing? (6:19) Lyrics
Average song rating Here Today (2:26) Lyrics
Average song rating Ballroom Dancing (4:07) Lyrics
Average song rating The Pound is Sinking (2:53) Lyrics
Average song rating Wanderlust (3:49) Lyrics
Average song rating Get It (2:28) Lyrics
Average song rating 10  Be What You See (Link) (0:33) Lyrics
Average song rating 11  Dress Me up As a Robber (2:41) Lyrics
Average song rating 12  Ebony and Ivory (3:42) Lyrics
All album lyrics on one page 

Credits

Producer: George Martin
Engineer: Geoff Emerick
Arrangments: Paul McCartney, George Martin

Paul McCartney - vocals, bass, piano, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, synthesisers, drums, spanish guitar, percussion, vocoder, background vocals
Linda McCartney - keyboards, background vocals
Ringo Starr - drums
Stevie Wonder - vocals, synthesisers, drums, percussion, electric piano, background vocals
Eric Stewart - guitar, background vocals
George Martin - electric piano
Stanley Clarke - bass
Steve Gadd - drums
Denny Laine - electric guitar, acoustic guitar, synthesiser,
Dave Mattacks - drums, percussion
Campbell Maloney - military snares
Adrain Brett - pan pipes
Andy McKay - lyricon
Jack Rothstein - violin
Bernard Partridge - violin
Ian Jewel - viola
Keith Harvey - cello
Jack Brymer - clarinet gliss
Peter Marshall - narration
Adrian Sheppard - drums, percussion
Phillip Jones - brass ensemble
Carl Perkins - vocal, electric guitar

Label: Columbia TC-37462

Reviews

Site visitor reviews
10/10 Roy Scoutz (July 8, 2012)
A really amazing album. I think the death Of John made Paul think about his own Mortality.
This Collection of tracks can stand side by side with a few Beatles Albums. Having George Martin in the room is whats been missing on some of Pauls other efforts. Even the cover is great.
9/10 Lafe Purcell (May 6, 2011)
I always felt that this album rather than Band On The Run was actually Paul McCartney's crowning achievement as a solo artist. That isn't meant to diminish the quality of Band On The Run by any means. It's just that this seems like such a great album from start to finish. I guess I am out of step with the modern world (and apparently even McCartney) because I STILL regard Ebony and Ivory as a great song. People can talk all they want about the maudlin or patronizing handling of race but is it really worse than 3 Dog Night's Black and White? They're very similar songs with similar messages. And really, 9 weeks at no. 1 must mean something.
8/10 Ronald (October 12, 2010)
A genius at work.A masterpiece for paul.Lyrically,paul is not as good as john but musically, he's better.This is one of the greatest.
10/10 Erika (June 8, 2007)
One of my favorite Macca albums. I love almost all the songs on here, it\'s hard to name favorites, but \"Wanderlust\" is beautiful and reminds me of \"Here There and Everywhere,\" \"Here Today\" is depressing and made me cry the first time I heard it (which means it\'s very well written), and \"Ballroom Dancing\" is tons of fun. The only song I skip on this album is \"Ebony and Ivory.\"
9/10 Bruce Beatlefan (July 5, 2006)
This album is great fun, and is pretty much acclaimed as a McCartney masterpiece even for those who otherwise disparage his work. As a fan who has greatly enjoyed Paul McCartney throughout his career and particularly the previous three albums (London Town, Back to the Egg, McCartney II) the sudden raves lathered on Tug of War (and emphatically withdrawn on subsequent albums) are striking and require some explanation...

Most notable about this album is Paul McCartney\'s reuniting with George Martin. Martin, who provoked such imaginative orchestration designed to maximize the work of the Beatles, performs the same magic in this album. Nearly every song on this album is given a unique sound to dramatize its emotional appeal (for example, think about the swinging big-band of \"Ballroom Dancing\", the mysterious echoes in \"Someone Who Cares\", the stirring horns of \"Wanderlust\", and the exciting change from cool jazzy verse to hard rocking chorus in \"Take it Away\"). Martin brings back another Beatles staple which had been downplayed in recent McCartney works, the effective use of backing vocals (the \"pushing and pulling\" in \"Tug of War\", the countermelody of \"Wanderlust\", the excitement you hear in \"What\'s That You\'re Doing\").

Paul McCartney brought some great songs to the table, but not significantly more than any of his other albums around this time. The success of this album was really due to the way George Martin\'s production which gives each song its distinct glory.
10/10 John (July 14, 2005)
An absolutely terrific album. Arguably Paul's best ever.
It starts out with Tug of War going into Take It Away. Great start, great songs.
Somebody Who Cares, is a little known McCartney gem.
What's That You're Doing, is McCartney getting funky with Stevie Wonder. Not for everyone but worth a listen and much better than Ebony and Ivory which is the only real stinker on the CD.
Ballroom Dancing, bouncy and catchy. Typical McCartney.
Do yourself a favor. If you don't have this. Go get it.
8/10 Maria (December 27, 2004)
Beautiful. Great. Macca rules.
7/10 Randy Andersson (October 15, 2004)
Good album. Not the best if you compare this to Paul's 70's afforts. But this album surely got some great songs. Title-track Tug of War, Ebony and Ivory, Wanderlust and Here Today is just fantastic songs. And George Martin does and excellent job in the prodcerchair.
5/10 Harry (May 27, 2004)
Too sterile by far for me. Still, there are some good tracks, Pound Is Sinking, Ballroom Dancing.

Don't play track 10. One of Macca's shockers.

If you know this album you can review it.

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