Macca's back pages: chapter 4

David Pascoe writes:

Exhibit D: Rudolph the Red Nose Reggae
AKA: Macca does country festive?

I won't detain you for long with this one. Officially, Wonderful Christmastime marked the resumption of McCartney's solo career. Now while "Ding dong/ding dong/ding dong" has become as much a part of Christmas as "Lo he abhors not the virgin's womb", Rudolph the Red Nose Reggae has gone pretty much unnoticed.

There's a good reason for that. Anyone expecting a festive C Moon rehash is quickly disappointed. Our 'reggae' consists of keyboard and country fiddle chocking out the famous Christmas song for about two minutes and...that's it. No lyrics, no variation, no surprise. Nothing. Certainly bugger all Jamaican about it.

The notes on Back to the Egg revealed that it was four years old, having been recorded in Nashville while Wings were making Venus and Mars. I think he was drunk on the success of recording the perfectly serviceable Sally G at the same time, surely the only pedal steel country tune to feature the refrain "Take it chaps".

Why should we be interested in it?
Only to reflect on a great lost opportunity. Had McCartney left this in the vaults and instead backed Wonderful Christmastime with the gorgeous double whammy of Winter Rose/Love Awake, he would have made the best two-sided Christmas single EVER!

FURTHER LISTENING
Where's Dick James when you need him?
"I never thought to ask her what the letter G stood for"