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Today, Paul McCartney fans everywhere have much to celebrate as the inimitable musician has announced the July 31st release of the latest volume in his ongoing Archives series - this one's a look back on Flaming Pie, an album that marked a sort of return to form upon its release in 1997. Inspired by the simpler, more immediate recording style that The Beatles used decades before, Paul McCartney returned to Abbey Road with some of his favorite collaborators, including Ringo Starr, George Martin, Jeff Lynne, and Steve Miller. Nearly 25 years later, the album remains a beloved high-water mark in McCartney's career.
Like previous editions in the series, Flaming Pie will arrive in a number of Archive Collection configurations. The mouth-watering, or perhaps - with a glance at the price - eye-watering deluxe box set features a whopping 5 CDs and 2 DVDs of content bringing together a new remaster of the album and 32 bonus tracks. Among them are unheard home recordings, alternate versions, rough mixes, B-sides, and plenty of audiovisual content.
Disc 1 of the deluxe box includes the album newly remastered. Fittingly, the new remaster was undertaken at Abbey Road Studios, and promises to be a dynamic and enjoyable listen. You can preview the new remaster on the new digital EP, Young Boy. This 4-song collection will be beamed to your preferred music downloading service if you pre-order the digital box set, or you can stream the EP on digital platforms everywhere. Anyway, back to the content...Disc 2 is a more stripped-down affair, presenting Paul's home recordings for 11 of the album's 14 songs, including "Calico Skies," "Little Willow," and a 1995 recording of "Beautiful Night." "Young Boy" is a particularly intimate and illuminating version, with Paul singing "Poor Boy" instead of the eventual title and trying out a different bridge for the song. This version is also featured on the Young Boy digital EP available now.
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CD 3 takes us into the studio with run-throughs, rough mixes, acoustic versions, and jams, most of them previously unreleased and unheard. Meanwhile, CD 4 collects the B-sides that came out with the original singles for "Young Boy," "The World Tonight," and "Beautiful Night." These include "Looking For You," "Broomstick," "Love Come Tumbling Down," and "Same Love." McCartney's collaboration with the poet Allen Ginsberg, called "The Ballad of the Skeletons," also features although it's unclear at the time of writing whether this will be the full, nearly 8-minute version, the 4-minute edit, or the censored mix.
Another highlight of the set is the complete six parts of Oobu Joobu, as released on those 1997 singles. Based on Paul's hour-long radio which he hosted for Westwood One in 1995, these roughly 10-minute sound collages are a different beast, with demos, live material, rehearsals and unreleased songs combined. You can hear "Oobu Joobu Pt. 1" with the sought-after David Gilmour collaboration, "I Love This House," on the Young Boy EP. (It's been reported that the Oobu Joobu segments have been slightly edited from their original single appearances, presumably to trim away the theme music from all but the first and last episodes. You can find a run-down of what tracks are included in each part in our track listing below.)
CD 5 features an audio documentary called "Flaming Pie At The Mill." While details are scarce at the moment, the official unboxing video describes it as "Paul's hour-long tour of his studio." No doubt interesting to the audio geeks in his fanbase.
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As for the DVDs, the first of two features a restored version of In the World Tonight. The long out-of-print, 75-minute film is an insightful look into the making of Flaming Pie. DVD 2 boasts a wealth of rare material, including music videos for "Beautiful Night" and "Little Willow," a "Making of Beautiful Night" featurette, four different music videos: a pair for "The World Tonight," and a pair of music videos for "Young Boy." One version of the "Young Boy" music video, directed by Geoff Wonfor, is available now from Paul McCartney's YouTube channel.
DVD 2 also takes us into the promotional tour for Flaming Pie with McCartney's appearance on TFI Friday , his interview with David Frost, and three electronic press kits. Producers have also unearthed footage of McCartney and his team conferring about the album artwork. Fans will no doubt enjoy these restored gems.
And there's no shortage of ephemera in the deluxe box. Inside the cloth-wrapped clamshell box (recalling the RAM Archive Collection), you'll find replicas of Paul McCartney's handwritten notes and lyrics, a facsimile of the promotional newspaper Flame, a handful of glossy photos from the recording sessions, a replica of John Hammel's studio notes, a Flaming Pie guitar pick evoking the similar promo item from 1997, a replica issue of the Paul McCartney Fan Club's Club Sandwich Magazine, and even a book of Linda McCartney's pie recipes. A further 128-page book contains previously unreleased photos by Linda McCartney, expanded album artwork using archival materials, track-by-track annotations, and interviews with the key players on the album including Paul, Jeff Lynne, Steve Miller, and Ringo Starr. The box also has a download code to access 24bit/96kHz high resolution audio of the music. In all, this deluxe box - available wherever fine music is sold - promises to be a tasty treat for all the senses.
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For those who prefer their pies sliced more manageably, the Archive Edition will also be available as a 2CD set that dips fairly evenly into many of the most enticing tracks from the deluxe edition box. As expected, CD 1 features the remastered album. CD 2 features all the home recordings - the entire program of the second disc in the box - and adds on the acoustic versions of "Calico Skies" and "Great Day," plus the demo of "If You Wanna," the run-through version of "Beautiful Night," the cassette demo for "Heaven on a Sunday," the "C'mon Down, C'mon Baby" jam, and four single B-sides.
If you're a vinyl fan, you'll also have a choice of configurations. First up, a special, half-speed mastered 2-LP edition cut at Abbey Road Studios. In a note accompanying the set, mastering engineer Miles Showell concedes that the album could have been squeezed onto one disc (as was the case with original pressings), but to spread out the 53 minutes of music over two discs allows for better audio quality.
A limited-edition 3-LP box set will also available, essentially a bundle of the 2-LP set plus a third LP with a selection of demos and home recordings that make up an "alternate" Flaming Pie. It's all housed in a handsome slipcase with liner notes and lyrics, all a very deluxe affair for the vinyl enthusiast!
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Finally, if you're a massive Macca fan who just needs everything, get ready to shell out for the Super Deluxe Collector's Edition configuration, available exclusively from Paul McCartney's online shop. The cloth-wrapped two-piece box will be numbered and limited to only 3,000 copies. Inside is all the content from the "regular deluxe" box, plus an exclusive marbled portfolio housing 6 Linda McCartney art prints, and there's also plenty of vinyl: 4LPs total. The 2-LP half-speed mastered set here is presented with slightly different "deconstructed artwork" (the main difference: no text on the cover). The "Home Recordings" LP boasts individually hand-stamped vinyl. Another Collector's Edition exclusive is The Ballad of the Skeletons, a 1996 collaboration with Allen Ginsberg with Philip Glass and Lenny Kaye. Here, the track is pressed on vinyl for the first time ever with a skeleton-themed etching on the B-side and a lyrics poster.
Whether you go all-in with the super-deluxe set, opt for a more digestible option, or choose the byte-sized digital configuration, the Archive Edition of Flaming Pie promises to be a tasty treat. You can find all the details and place your orders with the links below. And, why not whet your appetite with an unboxing video, or check out the newly released Young Boy EP and the restored "Young Boy" music videos. Go ahead, have a vision!
Paul McCartney, Flaming Pie: Archive Edition [2CD] (MPL/Capitol, 2020) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Qobuz Link TBD [all tracks minus CD 5]/ Your Local Record Shop)
CD 1 Flaming Pie remastered:
- The Song We Were Singing
- The World Tonight
- If You Wanna
- Somedays
- Young Boy
- Calico Skies
- Flaming Pie
- Heaven on a Sunday
- Used to Be Bad (ft. Steve Miller)
- Souvenir
- Little Willow
- Really Love You
- Beautiful Night
- Great Day
CD 2 Bonus Tracks:
- The Song We Were Singing (Home Recording)
- The World Tonight (Home Recording)
- If You Wanna (Home Recording)
- Somedays (Home Recording)
- Young Boy (Home Recording)
- Calico Skies (Home Recording)
- Flaming Pie (Home Recording)
- Souvenir (Home Recording)
- Little Willow (Home Recording)
- Beautiful Night (1995 Demo)
- Great Day (Home Recording)
- Beautiful Night (Run Through)
- Whole Life (ft. David A. Stewart) (Rough Mix)
- Heaven on a Sunday (Rude Cassette)
- Great Day (Acoustic)
- Calico Skies (Acoustic)
- C'mon Down C'mon Baby
- Looking For You
- Broomstick
- Love Come Tumbling Down
- Same Love
Paul McCartney, Flaming Pie: Archive Edition [5CD/2DVD] (MPL/Capitol, 2020)
Deluxe 5CD/2DVD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Your Local Record Shop
Super Deluxe Box Set: Paul McCartney Online Shop
CD 1 Flaming Pie remastered:
- The Song We Were Singing
- The World Tonight
- If You Wanna
- Somedays
- Young Boy
- Calico Skies
- Flaming Pie
- Heaven On A Sunday
- Used To Be Bad
- Souvenir
- Little Willow
- Really Love You
- Beautiful Night
- Great Day
CD 2 Demos & Home Recordings:
- The Song We Were Singing [Home Recording]
- The World Tonight [Home Recording)
- If You Wanna [Home Recording]
- Somedays [Home Recording]
- Young Boy [Home Recording]
- Calico Skies [Home Recording]
- Flaming Pie [Home Recording]
- Souvenir [Home Recording]
- Little Willow [Home Recording]
- Beautiful Night [1995 Demo]
- Great Day [Home Recording]
CD 3 Studio Tracks:
- Great Day [Acoustic]
- Calico Skies [Acoustic]
- C'mon Down C'mon Baby
- If You Wanna [Demo]
- Beautiful Night [Run Through]
- The Song We Were Singing [Rough Mix]
- The World Tonight [Rough Mix]
- Little Willow [Rough Mix]
- Whole Life [Rough Mix]
- Heaven On A Sunday [Rude Cassette]
CD 4 B-Sides:
- The Ballad Of The Skeletons
- Looking For You
- Broomstick
- Love Come Tumbling Down
- Same Love
- Oobu Joobu Part 1
- Some Folks Say Oobu
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Fun Packed Radio Show
- I Love This House
- Clock Work
- Paul talks about "Young Boy"
- Oobu Joobu We Love You
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu Part 2
- Wide Screen Radio
- Oobu Joobu We Love You
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Brilliant, What's Next
- Atlantic Ocean
- Paul Reminisces
- Bouree
- Oobu Joobu We Love You
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu Part 3
- Intro Chat
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Squid
- Paul Talks About "The World Tonight"
- Link
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu Part 4
- Intro chat
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Link
- Don't Break The Promise
- Paul talks about reggae
- Link
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu Part 5
- And Now
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Beautiful Night Chat
- Paul and Ringo talk about "Beautiful Night"
- Ringo Chat
- Beautiful Night (Flaming Pie Mix)
- Beautiful Night (Original Version)
- Goodbyes
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu Part 6
- This One (jingle)
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
- Oobu Joobu We Love You
- Paul talks about Abbey Road
- Strawberry Fields Forever (Paul solo)
- Paul talks about Abbey Road
- Come on Baby
- Paul talks about Abbey Road
- Come on Baby (contd.)
- Paul ends chat about Abbey Road
- Okay are You Ready (jingle)
- Love Mix
- Widescreen Radio (jingle)
- Goodbye
- Oobu Joobu Main Theme
CD 5:
- Flaming Pie At The Mill (Spoken Word)
DVD 1:
- In The World Tonight (Documentary)
DVD 2:
- Beautiful Night
- Making of Beautiful Night
- Little Willow
- The World Tonight version 1 [dir. Alistair Donald)
- The World Tonight version 2 [dir. Geoff Wonfor)
- Young Boy version 1 [dir. Alistair Donald]
- Young Boy version 2 [dir. Geoff Wonfor]
- Flaming Pie EPK 1
- Flaming Pie EPK 2
- In The World Tonight EPK
- Flaming Pie Album Artwork Meeting
- TFI Friday Performances
- David Frost Interview
Paul McCartney, Flaming Pie: Archive Collection [2LP] (MPL/Capitol, 2020) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Your Local Record Shop)
LP 1 Flaming Pie remastered:
- The Song We Were Singing
- The World Tonight
- If You Wanna
- Somedays
- Young Boy
- Calico Skies
- Flaming Pie
LP 2:
- Heaven On A Sunday
- Used To Be Bad
- Souvenir
- Little Willow
- Really Love You
- Beautiful Night
- Great Day
Paul McCartney, Flaming Pie: Archive Edition [3LP box set] (MPL/Capitol, 2020) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Your Local Record Shop)
LP 1 Flaming Pie remastered:
- The Song We Were Singing
- The World Tonight
- If You Wanna
- Somedays
- Young Boy
- Calico Skies
- Flaming Pie
LP 2:
- Heaven On A Sunday
- Used To Be Bad
- Souvenir
- Little Willow
- Really Love You
- Beautiful Night
- Great Day
LP 3 Demos & Home Recordings:
- The Song We Were Singing [Demo]
- The World Tonight [Demo]
- If You Wanna [Demo]
- Somedays [Demo]
- Young Boy [Demo]
- Calico Skies [Home Recording]
- Flaming Pie [Demo]
- Souvenir [Demo]
- Little Willow [Demo]
- Beautiful Night [Studio Demo]
- Great Day [Home Recording]
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The prices on the bigger sets are OUTRAGEOUS. Plenty of unhappy folks over at the Steve Hoffman Forums.
If I get this at all, I will stick to the two-disc set, which is reasonable Wouldn’t have minded having Disc 3, but I’ll pass. None of the other discs, beyond Disc 3, really hold much interest to me.
Now that this is finally announced, can we get some news on “Let It Be 50?”? Word of a “All Things Must Pass 50” box set would be great too.
Agreed. I haven't been able to afford any of the big sets, but at least the 2-CD appears to be a full bonus disc. Still gonna be weird buying an expanded CD edition of an album I bought on CD on its release date.
Agreed. The “home recordings” might be pretty cool though, and “Broomstick” is a fine track. I will likely snag that.
Just can’t believe how the prices for these Macca sets have exploded, compared to the early ones. Paul claims he quit smoking pot. He needs to go back, since he may not have been paying attention to the more reasonable prices back then.
Oh, and I just read the “Get Back” movie just got pushed back to AUGUST 2021. Ugh. Hope that doesn’t affect a Let It Be 50 box set, which I figured was a given for the holidays.
Me again... Should be noted that people have figured out CDs 2 and 3 come out to a combined time of under 70 minutes.
In other words, the contents of both could’ve fit on ONE CD.
Ugh. Sorry, Paul, but that’s really irresponsible and not fan-friendly at all.
Bet McCArtney and other big-time artists never imaged that one day every burp and fart they recorded would be put for sale.
But in these cases, he’s curating those bumps and farts...and selling them quite willingly.
Bare Naked Ladies did back in their song "Box Set."
Wake me up when he finally gets around to London Town and Back to the Egg.
London Town definitely. I lean more towards Press to Play than Back to the Egg, but to each their own. 🙂
To each their own, indeed. I don’t like any of those three albums!
Sorry, folks.
For me, Flowers in the Dirt was the start of a return to form after more than a decade of mediocrity. Flaming Pie, like FITD, had its flaw but generally quite strong. It was Chaos and Creation, Memory Almost Full, Electric Arguments, and finally New, that saw a true McCartney renaissance IMO.
*”Flaws,” not “flaw.”
Not gonna argue your choices but seems to me that the ones you list (heck, even Flaming Pie) are a bit new to be getting Archive releases yet. Let's get caught up on some of the older stuff first. 🙂
Agreed. Flowers eclipsed most of his work to that date, with only a couple exceptions. Flaming Pie might be my favorite of his. Chaos is up there.
His most recent doesn't do much for me though.
The videos are all blocked, fyi.
The pricey greed of the Elders of yesterday's counterculture, freaks and hippies still startles me. Concert tickets, back when concerts were a happening thing, are in high Earth orbit, and these pricey sets with small content on the extra CDs, well, I feel rather slighted. They'd sell more at a lower price and still make as much bread.
I've had second thoughts about my first comment on the pricey reissues. That there are several packages and pricing is OK. A fan can spring for top tier and get the works all in one, but the smaller sets and lesser prices work, too. All wallets and buyers can be happy. But the limited content on the extra CDs is a drag, I'd say "Fill 'er up." Concert tickets, if we ever have concerts again, are another matter. I paid $7.00 to see the Doors in '68, the Deal of the Century.
One thing will always be true about Pink Floyd and McCartney...they never met a fan they didn’t mind price gauging. The music they withhold for the extremely overpriced deluxe set is obscene. So many acts that have way less sales or bank accounts manage to produce affordable, all inclusive sets at reasonable prices, Jethro Tull’s recent reissue campaign is a great example of doing it right. McCartney either doesn’t care or is completely oblivious.