Driving Rain (2001) 

 


  1. Lonely Road
  2. From a Lover to a Friend
  3. She's Giving Up Talking
  4. Driving Rain
  5. I Do
  6. Tiny Bubble
  7. Magic
  8. Your Way
  9. Spinning on an Axis
  10.About You
  11.Heather
  12.Back in the Sunshine Again
  13.Your Loving Flame
  14.Riding into Jaipur
  15.Rince the Raindrops
  16.Freedom

 

By the early 2000s, it was becoming clear that McCartney had successfully put his wilderness years behind him. The misfires of the 1980s were a distant memory, and each new release was now met with genuine anticipation rather than polite skepticism. Driving Rain, released in late 2001, didn’t try to be a grand artistic statement or a sonic reinvention. Instead, it quietly positioned itself as something far more modest: a collection of solid, contemporary pop songs from a man who—finally—seemed at ease with where he was.

In some respects, it’s one of the most “normal” albums McCartney had released since Off the Ground nearly a decade earlier. At 67 minutes, it’s generously stuffed with unassuming mid-tempo rockers and earnest ballads. There’s no obvious concept, no genre-hopping theatrics, no desperate grabs for relevance. Just songs. Some great, some decent, a few forgettable—but all delivered with a quiet confidence that was beginning to define this latter phase of McCartney’s career.

Now, “unambitious” isn’t typically a compliment in the world of pop music, but here it works in Paul’s favor. Driving Rain is approachable, easy on the ears, and pleasant in that distinctly McCartney way. There’s a sameness to some of the middle tracks—enough so that a few blur together on first listen—but it never sinks into autopilot. That said, Spinning on an Axis probably could have been spun off the album entirely, and Heather feels like a demo that wandered onto the final cut by mistake. It starts in the middle, stays there, and never fully develops. Still, McCartney’s always had a soft spot for half-formed ideas, so no one should be too surprised.

The high points, though, are unmistakable. Lonely Road, Magic, and Tiny Bubble showcase McCartney’s uncanny ability to craft simple, effective pop songs that don’t try too hard to impress—and succeed all the more because of it. Romantic ballads like Your Loving Flame and From a Lover to a Friend offer the kind of heartfelt sincerity that’s long been one of Paul’s trademarks.

Things get more adventurous toward the end. Riding into Jaipur brings in some unexpected Eastern flavor, while the sprawling, ten-minute-plus Rinse the Raindrops feels like McCartney shaking off the last remnants of restraint and just jamming for the joy of it. The album’s surprise postscript, Freedom, was a late addition written in response to the September 11 attacks—a flag-waving anthem that, while a bit on-the-nose lyrically, added a timely emotional punch to later pressings of the record.

Driving Rain is not a perfect album. It may even be a few tracks too long. But it’s a reminder that McCartney, when relaxed and free from expectation, can still deliver the kind of smart, melodic, and endearing pop music that made him famous in the first place. Sometimes, plain and steady wins the race.

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