You have to wonder how Paul McCartney ever had time to discover new music by his contemporaries while he was with The Beatles.
Considering how prolific the band were in the studio, and how many live performances they did up until they retired from touring in 1967, it was surprising that they ever had any free time to kick back and truly enjoy the other musical delights that were being released at the time. Releasing 12 studio albums in the space of eight years isn’t something that happens without hard work, and with McCartney being one of the two primary songwriters in the band, he would have been required to put in the extra effort.
However, if you were to ask McCartney about his favourite albums of all time, which a fan did in a question posted to his official website, he’ll tell you that the three unmatchable masterpieces that have remained a constant part of his life and source of inspiration all come from a period of six years, beginning in 1966 when the Beatles were at their peak, up until 1972, when he was embarking on the next chapter of his career as a solo artist and with Wings.
So, what are Paul McCartney’s three albums that he considers “classics”? After being posed the question, he took the time to respond thoughtfully, declaring: “My favourite albums by other people tend to be: Music from Big Pink by the Band, Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys, and Harvest by Neil Young. They are the three classics that I love to listen to, and they all remind me of certain times in my life.”
While these are all stunning records in their own right, and are all deserving of being regarded as classic albums, we’ve decided to take it upon ourselves to rank this trio of untouchable works, and while it wasn’t easy, we think there’s a few things that make some stand out more than others.
The three albums Paul McCartney called “classics”, ranked:
3.The Band – ‘Music from Big Pink’
While Bob Dylan was arguably The Band’s biggest cheerleader, McCartney was evidently a big fan of them from their earliest effort. A truly glorious album, and one that feels so warm with every element of it being played with immense feeling, Music from Big Pink is an album rich with ideas, and a refined sense of songwriting from some of North America’s greatest purveyors of folk rock
You can see why McCartney might enjoy an album like this, given how they were a band that switched between songwriters and leaders like the Beatles did, but it was never done in a copycat fashion. Songs like ‘The Weight’, ‘I Shall Be Released’ and ‘Long Black Veil’ are indicative of Robbie Robertson’s writing and song choices for covers, and highlight the range of different voices present in Rick Danko, Levon Helm and Richard Manuel. They were full to the brim with talent, and as debut statements go, this is one of the finest of the 1960s, and perhaps their finest as well.
2.Neil Young – ‘Harvest’
It says a lot about Neil Young’s ability that when he’s not even quite at his best, he’s still better than some bands are when they’re performing at the peak of their powers. On the Beach and After the Gold Rush may be the more outstanding efforts in his catalogue, but that doesn’t mean that Harvest isn’t full of wonders itself, and when it offers up ‘Heart of Gold’ and ‘Old Man’ among plenty of others, you know you’re in for a treat.
It’s likely that McCartney was enthralled by Young’s work on this record because of the arrangements, which were not only lavish but full of bombast on tracks like ‘A Man Needs A Maid’ and ‘There’s A Reason’. However, Young’s approach to storytelling, and the effortless way in which he weaves narratives is something else that would have been impressive for McCartney to look upon, and considering how much his work with Wings leaned towards orchestral and progressive arrangements, with more elaborate lyricism, you can see where his love of Young comes from.
3.The Beach Boys – ‘Pet Sounds’
There’s not much point in trying to deny the brilliance of Pet Sounds, because its brilliance is frankly undisputable from start to finish. Not only is it their masterpiece, or rather, Brian Wilson’s masterpiece, but perhaps the most important record that The Beatles ever heard during their time together as a group, leading them to up their game when working on Revolver and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Of course, Wilson had been influenced by The Beatles as well, claiming that he wanted to make a record better than Rubber Soul, but for all of the Beatles’ efforts to match their American counterparts, nothing they ever produced had the same magic and wonderment of Pet Sounds. It’s a glorious achievement in composition, melody, harmony, and inventive production, and while many artists have attempted to imitate it, nothing is quite like the experience of listening to this album and wrapping yourself up in all of its majesty.