Ram – Paul and Linda McCartney

The MARK’S VINTAGE VINYL page features something from Mark’s collection of recordings from over the years. Most of it is on vinyl – hence the name – though there will be a few entries from his CDs (remember those?).

Ram, by Paul and Linda McCartney

• Second studio album by Paul McCartney, released in 1971. It is the only Paul McCartney album that credited Linda McCartney as a co-artist.
• The end of the Beatles was a big deal in the early 70s. Fans were upset, but the boys definitely were done – tired of touring, the death of their manager Brian Epstein, and differences in artistic vision doomed them. In September 1969, John Lennon privately told his band mates that he was leaving, but no public announcement was made until April 1970, when McCartney announced that he was leaving.
• Lennon began releasing solo albums in 1968, as did George Harrison. Ringo Starr’s debut solo album was in March 1970. McCartney’s first solo album was released 1 week after he announced he was leaving the Beatles – the last of the Beatles to release a solo album.
• I remember hearing McCartney’s song Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey, the first single released from the Ram album, and I immediately liked its quirkiness, with various sound effects like rain, thunder, seabirds, wind, and a telephone. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and it won a Grammy award for Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocals.
• While I loved the music, I didn’t get around to buying the record until college, when I grabbed it at my favorite used record store. The store’s name was Plastic Fantastic in Bryn Mawr Pennsylvania – every week, I would walk the 1 mile from my dorm to the store and explore. I almost always bought something, and frequently would pick up 4 or 5 records – price was around 3 bucks, and they were guaranteed not to skip (and never did). A quick internet search reveals that it is still there today, now named Gold Million Records. Their website is super cool – check it out – http://goldmillionrecords.com/
• Here’s something from YouTube on Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey. Enjoy!