I really think a lot of people missed the point of this album when it was released 40 years ago. And hindsight has not helped many others.
Ram marked an important step in McCartney's post-Beatles-divorce rehab. If the McCartney solo album marked Paul's first tentative steps back into the studio, Ram marked an important step forward. McCartney retreated, Linda in tow, to hippy life on the farm - "lookin' for life in the country" - and re-discovered the simple joys of living outside the bubble. Life revolved around family. You see it in the well-know accompanying photographs (some not as well known). This was Paul & Linda's album. While Linda's contributions to Paul's music may still be debatable (god rest her soul) there is no denying that her voice is as deeply embedded in our aural memories of this album as Paul's. Her singing in Admiral Halsey is nothing if not iconic at this point. In Ram, Paul discovered the joys of loosening up, not worrying about perfection, and frankly, not giving a damn what anyone else thoughts about his songs.
He also re-discovered his own roots: 3 chord 50s doo-wop based music. We hear this in songs like 3 Legs, Eat At Home, and Smile Away - pure 1950's fluff. It was as far from psychedelic Pepperland as he could get.
The songs were, and remain, thrilling pop. Too Many People, explains McCartney's reasons for his return to the farm, as well as the simplicity of the album. It was - and remains - a stunning album opener. Arena crowds were thrilled to hear it live during the 2009(?) tour. (Interestingly, Paul introduced it during the tour as being "...for all you Wings fans out there". Which was rather odd, as Wings hadn't yet formed.
UA/AH remains as timeless, and catchy - impossible to get out of your head really - as it did when it first dominated the AM/FM airwaves. I still see kids - my grandkids - dancing and laughing to the refrain. I mean really - who can resist smiling upon hearing Linda's "hands across the water"? Monkberry Moon Delight is, well delightful; a raucous, rocking ode to home brew. McCartney takes it a bit over the top at the end, but, that's McCartney. (And just humor me for a moment: imagine, if you will, in your mind's ear - Dylan singing Monkberry Moon Delight with the Travelling Wilburies!)
Dear Boy is one of those beautiful seamless melodies that McCartney seems able to lift out of the air. The "ba-ba-ba, ba-ba-ba" Serendipity Singers pseudo baroque background singing remains perfect. Backseat Of My Car continues to have a simple majesty that is inexplicably timeless, given the simple sentiment expressed in the song. What is ukelele based Ram On, if not the rhythmic precursor to the mandolin based Dance Tonight? And don't even get me started on Smile Away. I'm biased. My early garage band used it to warm up and sound check. Many fond memories there. ("A-yai-yai-yai-yai-yai-yai-yai - - "). Crank up Smile Away; just listen to the texture in that fuzz bass!
The remastering is brilliant; Paul's bass is not nearly as prominent as the Beatles remasters, and that's all for the good. The sound is more cohesive. The bonus disc (which seems to be garnering more than its fair share of attention from those desiring more or less or different, is 34 minutes of Paulie pleasure. I have always been a huge fan of the original Another Day/Woman, Oh Why single and it was great to hear the latter again. Just listen to the flexibility of McCartney's voice - both in WWOW, as well as the opening of Two Many People.
Ram continues to delight. It was a brilliant step up from "McCartney" (excepting Every Night and Maybe I'm Amazed), light ears away from the debacle of Wings' Wild Life, and a hook-laden foundation for McCartney's true shot of redemption - Band On The Run. As a snapshot of the artist during a very transitional period of his life, Ram has nothing to apologize for. It was, in Paul Simon's words, "a time of innocence/a time of consequences".
Indeed. Preserve your memories - they're all that's left you. (And memory's almost full).
Godspeed, Sir Paul! (from the guy who met you and Nancy on line for popcorn at the Zeigfeld Theater at the opening weekend of Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull)