Fab

November 22, 2010
The accomplished biographer of Dylan and Bukowski delivers an engaging, set-the-record-straight biography of the benighted Beatles songster without showing much sympathy for his subject. Indeed, Sounes doesn't whitewash McCartney's Liverpudlian working-class upbringing, early promiscuity, or ongoing drug use. He effectively emphasizes how the death of McCartney's mother, when he was just 14, reverberated through his future relationships, as well as the ways in which his father's dance-hall music informed the tunes he favored, sometimes to John Lennon's chagrin. Sounes writes knowledgeably of the Beatles' close relationship with their tortured manager, Brian Epstein, the genius produced by George Martin, and the dismal details of the group's final falling out. Measured admiration is shown for Yoko Ono, a "catalyst for change" who shook up (and probably broke up) the band. Lennon's assassination is covered in a surprisingly cursory manner and Sounes's contempt for Linda McCartney's pursuits arrives undiluted. McCartney's musical accomplishments over the last 20 years are given solid weight and consideration, but McCartney himself comes across by turns arrogant, stingy, and manipulative; though Sounes packs in a lot, there's ultimately nothing so "intimate" that readers can't find elsewhere.

October 15, 2010

Biographer Sounes (Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan) conducted hundreds of new interviews and utilized various published sources to tackle perhaps the most commercially successful musician of the rock era. Because the focus is on McCartney's life, there is relatively little analysis of his songs and albums. As a biography, however, it is a probing work that examines McCartney's foibles to a much greater extent than, for example, Barry Miles's authorized Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now. That is not to say that Sounes focuses solely on the negative. He provides examples of little-known acts of generosity by the musician. Sounes is a strongly opinionated writer, and some aspects of McCartney's life receive less attention than perhaps they should as a result. For example, despite McCartney's practice of transcendental meditation, Sounes somewhat flippantly dismisses it as a spiritual practice. Likewise, in his discussion of sources, the author disregards every other biography of McCartney, save the Miles book. VERDICT There is a ton of engrossing, well-documented material here, but sometimes the casual style makes the book seem less authoritative than it may be. A worthwhile read for McCartney fans; recommended for all public libraries.--James E. Perone, Univ. of Mount Union, Alliance, OH

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 15, 2010

Solid addition to the ever-expanding library of books about the Beatle named Paul.

Like Peter Carlin's Paul McCartney: A Life (2009) and unlike Barry Miles' Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now, this biography by Sounes (The Wicked Game: Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and the Story of Modern Golf, 2004, etc.), a Londoner who has also written bios of Bob Dylan and Charles Bukowski, was neither sanctioned nor supported by McCartney. It includes interviews with friends, family, business associates and even groupies to round out the reliance on secondary material. Fab is nearly twice as long as Carlin's book, though it covers roughly the same period and events: McCartney's mostly happy childhood in working-class Liverpool, rapid rise to iconic stature as a rock star, bitter divorce from Heather Mills and triumphant return to a Liverpool stage during the city's reign as European Capital of Culture in 2008. The extra volume may be due to Sounes's obsessive research--more than 200 interviews--and no-nonsense attention to detail. The portrait of McCartney that emerges is not only that of a talented and occasionally visionary musician but of a brilliant and often lucky businessman. On the negative side, McCartney comes across as arrogant, controlling, intolerant of dissent, a mean and stingy boss, humorless when challenged or criticized, and too much of a pothead to care. Sounes doesn't hide his low opinion of McCartney's post-Beatles repertoire, particularly in the lyric department. His sources agree: McCartney was at his best given a partner who gave as good as he (or she) got--someone like John Lennon or George Martin. The result of being Lennonless was the indecisive overproduction and sappy songs of Wings and the solo period during the '80s. Family-centric living and superhuman wealth probably also inhibited the ex-Beatle's genius, but the pain of losing Lennon, his dear wife Linda and George Harrison--not to mention the humiliation of the Mills affair--seems to have reawakened the bard and decent bloke within.

Despite covering well-trodden ground, the graceful prose and superb storytelling create a riveting narrative.

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Starred review from October 15, 2010
Sounes has earned a well-deserved reputation for writing thoroughly researched, intricately detailed biographies. This comprehensive biography of McCartney is no exception. Sounes seems to have spoken to every living person with any connection to the former Beatle, from the singers neighbors near his Kintyre, Scotland, farm to the family veterinarian. Divided into two equally large sectionsWith the Beatles and After the BeatlesFab covers all the highlights of McCartneys life and long career: his early days in Liverpool; his meeting with John Lennon; the craziness of Beatlemania; his solo albums; the creation and collapse of his post-Beatles band, Wings; his marriage to Linda Eastman; his last meetings with Lennon; his drug bust in Japan; his forays into classical music; his disastrous second marriage to Heather Mills. This is by no means a hagiography. On the contrary, Sounes gives criticism when warranted, remarking on McCartneys flaws both as a musician (settling for the ordinary, or, worse, mediocre rather then putting in the extra effort to create something exceptional) and as a man (a streak of selfishness that could turn callous). Indeed, Sounes is often brutally honest, offering a full portraitwarts and allof one of the most famous men of the modern era. A must for Beatles and McCartney fans. HIGH-DEMAND BACK STORY: In spite of his persistent mega-fame, this is the first comprehensive, candid, and up-to-date portrait of Sir Paul McCartney, making it a magnet for boomers and serious music lovers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)