McCartney's Tribute to Lennon on SNL

[DavidE]

He was certainly entitled to the 4 segments. He's earned them. And Lorne never got his Beatles reunion for $3,000, but he got George and Paul. Too bad Ringo didn't join him on Get Back.

I've seen this band twice and they sounded much better both times. I didn't think Macca's vocals were that bad, but the backing harmonies got way off. The opposite of what I saw in big venues. Of course they were using BIG gear on a small stage. Same as they use in big venues. That couldn't have helped. And I'm guessing Abe hits his drums hard too.

Overall, they weren't at their best, but it was cool.

 

[Bob C]

Edited some typos in my last post (#18).

 

[Bob C]

Yeah, I have a Paul live in Russia DVD. The backup vocals are good, but not perfect. I love that. It's a real live band cranking it out.

 

[mccartneyman]

Paul has done the Day in the Life/Give Peace A Chance medley in concert for at least two years -- a Lennon tribute, but not just for SNL. In concert, he was on piano and Brian Ray was on bass. Brian Ray plays bass through the Ashdown. McCartney goes through the Mesa and I always thought they put an SM57 on it, but the 57 is on the Vox cab, according to an interview with his sound man, Pablo Boothroyd. Invalid Link Removed So I guess he splits between the Mesa and the Vox. Live sound is superb -- heard him in DC at FedEx Field and in Pittsburgh at the new Consol arena and the mix was the best I've ever heard in 45 years of attending rock shows. I sometimes think the background vocals are mixed too low, though, and Paul's voice can be raw. But he's 68, fellas.

 

[Red Planet]

Imagine no possessions - while I get into my Limo.

 

[StereoPlayer]

Strange. For me (and my wife) the mix was so bad, and what one could hear of the vocals so dry, that we bailed 30 seconds into the second song once we verified that it was just as hosed as the first. I know it's not my stereo, and it's hard to envision how Verizon could get a different mix from other providers.
I also can't imagine that the rest of you could have such low standards, so I guess it'll have to remain a mystery, for now.

I watched on Tivo...me and the wife thought all of the vocals were kinda lame....off key somtimes.

I liked his song choices tho, but seen him and the band do better.
IMO

Like I'm any better tho.

 

[FrenchAK]

Thanks for alerting me, with our three-hour delay I had plenty of time to get ready to watch.
We've got a local cable provider, and it sounded *alright*. The vocal performance left something to be desired.
They certainly made a big deal about Sir Paul being on the show, who does four songs? And, if I remember correctly, I think it was the third song that seemed to go on forever. I enjoyed it, though.
Anyway, it was one of the funniest episodes of SNL in a long time.

 

[pjmuck]

Typical SNL crap mix. Come on, man! You've been doing this for over 35 years already, and still you haven't figured out how to mix bands as well as just about any other late night show? :scowl:

I have every reason to believe Paul and Co. were fighting bad stage levels or monitor mixes. I don't think Paul has ever resorted to in-ears yet, but when floor wedges aren't pumping enough vocal level it can be hard to hear what you're doing or get on top of your notes. You end up singing under the notes and fighting to reach them. It seemed pretty obvious to me when the entire backing vocals in one song (I forget which one) were all off by a half step. Bad, loud stage mixes can often result in hearing weird funky overtones, making it hard to find the key sometimes.

 

[Floyd Eye]

The mix sucked. The harmonies ( especially on Jet) were terrible and as a massive Beatles fan, I have to say it saddens me deeply to see one of my all time heroes reduced to a caricature of himself, ala Dylan.

 

[Batmensch]

Edited some tyos in my last post (#18).

Missed one.

 

[Batmensch]

I didn't have any problems with Paul's vocals, but I also thought the backup vocals were pretty bad.

 

[Bob C]

Missed one.

Just when I'm out, they keep pulling me back in! Ouch!

 

[videomagician]

Listening to the PM live concert on sirius right now and mix is much much better than it was on snl.

 

[plangentmusic]

Pick up the DVD on the Citifield show. The band rocked and the vocals were balls-on.

 

[fesem]

I did not see the SNL gig but I did see Paul this summer in Hyde Park and he played for just under 3 hours, never left the stage, and his vocals and playing were superb whatever his age.

 

[Jim Dep]

The mix sucked. The harmonies ( especially on Jet) were terrible and as a massive Beatles fan, I have to say it saddens me deeply to see one of my all time heroes reduced to a caricature of himself, ala Dylan.

Me too. I used fake being sick in elementary school so I could stay home and secretly spin my Beatles records....however

I haven't been influenced by Paul Mac's material since his first solo album. I guess it's been a while eh?

 

[Stick_Player]

Both of these men are 68 years-old.

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[mccartneyman]

All those complaining about how Paul sounds at 68, wait till you're 68, then post some MP3s of you singing for us.

 

[mccartneyman]

Quick answer from Brian Ray via his Facebook Page: "Vox is for guitar, Mesa for his bass, thx."

I think they set up everything for SNL, not knowing exactly what songs they'd play.

Brian is very accessible, BTW. He has answered me several times about recording & equipment things.

 

[mwesth]

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