Paul McCartney - Live At The Cavern Club!

****

Reviewed by: Gabriella Trybalska

Foot-tapping, shoulder-shrugging, finger-snapping stuff.

Paul McCartney - Live At The Cavern Club! marks the return of the ex-Beatle to the music scene after a sabbatical following the death of his wife Linda.

Returning to the crowds at one of his most infamous haunts, McCartney and his hand-picked band wow with songs from the past (I Saw Her Standing There), present (Try Not To Cry) and, er, Elvis (All Shook Up).

His performance, which was broadcast live on the Internet to apparently 3.5 million viewers, is classic McCartney. Ardent followers will be best pleased as he belts out tunes, reminiscent of the early years, a theme reinforced by his decision to sing I Saw Her Standing There, the first track on Please Please Me way back in '63.

Paul is joined on stage by Pink Floyd guitarist, David Gilmour. Also on guitar is Mick Green, who has some excellent riffs on Honey Hush.

The set consists of 13 tracks, most of which appear on the Run Devil Run album (Q magazine gave it five stars). It is a varied repertoire of songs, with influences from Chuck Berry, Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly and Gene Vincent, signifying Sir Paul's desire to return to his rock-and-roll roots.

The only criticism is that Paul and his cronies look like the next Manfred Mann. But their talent and fresh vigour for the material soon make the old rocker image irrelevant.

A definite thumbs up.

Reviewed on: 26 Jul 2001
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Paul McCartney - Live At The Cavern Club! packshot
McCartney returns with a one-off band to the legendary haunt of The Beatles
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Director: Geoff Wonfor

Starring: Paul McCartney, David Gilmour, Ian Paice, Mick Green, Pete Wingfield

Year: 2000

Runtime: 85 minutes

Country: UK

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