CoronaVinyl Day 61 (Second Act): Band on the Run by Wings

For an explanation of CoronaVinyl, click here.

When I added today's CoronaVinyl category -- second act -- it was done with the intention of highlighting a band that included at least one member who had big success in a prior band.  Wings featured two such members.  Denny Laine was a founding member of The Moody Blues and had also been in Ginger Baker's Air Force.

Once upon a time, Paul McCartney was in a band that, during a ten-year span, had 23 Top 40 songs, 14 Top 10 songs, 6 #1 songs, 9 Top 10 albums, and 5 #1 albums. Before that, he was in The Beatles.  His second act was more successful than most first acts.

Recorded in Lagos -- where the band was held at knifepoint and their demos and lyrics to several songs were stolen -- 1973's Band on the Run is considered Wings's signature album.  As if that wasn't enough, two of the band's members quit right before the album was recorded, so Paul, Linda McCartney, and Laine handled all the instruments on the album.  Whatever they did, it worked, as the album went to #1 in the U.S., UK, and various other countries, ended up as the #1 album on the 1974 year-end chart for Australia and Canada, #2 on the UK year-end chart, and #3 on the Billboard year-end chart.  In addition, the title track hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Jet" went to #7.  Not bad for a Liverpudlian lad, his photographer wife, and a guy named Denny.

Favorite song from Side 1:  "Let Me Roll It"
"Let Me Roll It" is my favorite post-Beatles Paul song.  It's slow and soulful, kind of with a doo wop feel at the beginning, until a crunchy guitar let's you know it's a rock and roll song.

Favorite song from Side 2:  "Helen Wheels"
Because "Hell on Wheels" just would have been too risque, wouldn't it?  Anyway, this is a fun-loving, rollicking rock song about a woman named Helen with an unfortunate last name.