The Fireman - Sing The Changes

(Muso's Guide, December 13, 2008)

Single reviews

The term ‘ironic’ is overused, as can be evidenced by the Alanis Morrisette song of the same name. Oh yes, 12 years after the fact, there’s still mileage in that, and there will be until people stop using it for a catch-all term to denote something which is ‘a bit of a conicidence’.

What is truly ironic is that Paul McCartney - who is famed for his membership of one of the most creatively liberated bands in British music history - has resorted to recording under a pseudonym to secure himself creative liberation.

Album Electric Arguments is the third long player from The Fireman - a duo which brings together McCartney and producer Youth - and the most prominent to date.

‘Sing The Changes’ is the second single off it, and is a song which boasts such unfettered enthusiasm and verve, why it was not the lead release is a bit of a mystery.

The chiming guitar which leads the listener in is crisp and delightful, and from the off, McCartney’s voice is clear and melodious. The backing vocal motif which is repeated throughout lends the whole affair something of Bruce Springsteen with all the air of “Glory Days”.

The video shows a starry night sky which quickly gives way to footage of everyday life projected onto the face of Macca himself. After all this time, he still cannot resist using his hands as he sings, which is something of a drawback for a man determined to look ‘cool’. The ‘thumbs aloft’-style gestures coupled with the knees-bent bobbing up and down make his appearance pretty difficult to watch straight-faced, but it’d be churlish to suggest this matters a jot.

Traffic lights showing a number of Fireman symbols in red, amber and green and we are treated to some time-lapse photography of clouds, but it is all a lesser experience than actually listening to the song, all three minutes 48 seconds of its reverb-drenched glory.

At this point in his career, McCartney knows he can’t make more of a musical impact than he already has. But the grand implications of small gestures like ‘Sing The Changes’ should warm his heart, and ours - these gestures are testament to a man who retains his creativity and vision long after many of his contemporaries have bade their own farewell, under any name.