Paul McCartney & Wings - Red Rose Speedway (1973) [Full Album]

Red Rose Speedway is the second studio album by the English-American rock band Wings, although credited to "Paul McCartney and Wings". It was released through Apple Records on 4 May 1973, preceded by its lead single, the ballad "My Love". By including McCartney's name in the artist credit, the single and album broke with the tradition of Wings' previous records. The change was made in the belief that the public's unfamiliarity with the band had been responsible for the weak commercial performance of the group's 1971 debut album Wild Life.

Before recording the album, Wings recruited lead guitarist Henry McCullough and released their debut single, "Give Ireland Back to the Irish", which was banned by the BBC for its political message. Recording sessions for the album took place throughout 1972 at five recording studios in London. The group also recorded the non-album singles "Mary Had a Little Lamb", "Hi, Hi, Hi" and "Live and Let Die", the last of which was issued in June 1973. Originally planned as a double album, it was condensed into a single LP at the request of EMI. The company believed that the material was not of a sufficiently high standard and were mindful of the modest sales of Wild Life and Wings' first two singles. Members McCullough and Denny Laine later expressed disappointment in the choice of songs on the single album.

Red Rose Speedway peaked at number 5 on the UK Albums Chart and number 1 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart in the US, while "My Love" topped the US Billboard Hot 100. Although a commercial success, the album was given a mixed response by music critics, with several reviewers considering the songs to be inconsequential and mediocre. Decades later, it continues to receive mixed reviews.

Tracklist:
00:00 - Big Barn Bed
03:49 - My Love
07:55 - Get on the Right Thing
12:10 - One More Kiss
14:39 - Little Lamb Dragonfly
21:00 - Single Pigeon
22:52 - When the Night
26:27 - Loup (1st Indian on the Moon)
...start of a Medley...
30:50 - Hold Me Tight
33:13 - Lazy Dynamite
36:02 - Hands of Love
38:15 - Power Cut

Wings
Paul McCartney – lead vocals, bass, piano, guitars, electric piano, Mellotron, celeste, Moog synthesiser, ocarina
Linda McCartney – vocals, piano, organ, electric piano, electric harpsichord, percussion
Denny Laine – vocals, guitars, bass, harmonica
Henry McCullough – lead guitars, backing vocals, percussion
Denny Seiwell – drums, percussion

Additional personnel
Hugh McCracken – guitar on "Little Lamb Dragonfly"
David Spinozza – guitar on "Get on the Right Thing"
Alan Parsons – engineer
Dixon Van Winkle – engineer on "Get on the Right Thing", "Little Lamb Dragonfly"
Richard Hewson – orchestral arrangement, conducting
Unnamed session players – strings, brass

+++ Description, Tracklist and Timecodes by Alex4Rock +++