Paul's future as a live performer

[mr h atom]

nuthin' wrong with seuss on the loose...

hey chris...someone will always complain were paul is concerned: have since the day the beatles broke up...and probably a bit before...

but we all know that

i think he needs a little time away from his lifelong passion simply so he does not do any permanent damage...'cause that would damage his soul, dontchathink ?

but i certainly do not think, even a much as i'd love some new music, that he should take 6 mo's, one year...or more off: last time he took off that much time from the regular, everyday preparation and actually doing it (live singing) was after wings '79-80 and before the FITD tour-ish

and those who saw him a the beginning of that round will well remind us that his voice was not that good at first...it took almost to the time he got around to the N.A. part of the tour before it really began to fully come back...and even then, it as many spotty moments then we're seeing now

my gut feeling is that, right now, he might be a bit under the weather and needs both a bit of body rest and vocal rest....but a long leave of absense might not be the best thing, at his age, if he wishes a full-on return to the big mega shows he's been known for, well, since the dawn of time

as for what to sing,..if he can take any song and give it the twist he gave 'lady madonna' in the chaos special ???

i, for one, wouldn't care what he sang...i'd be glad to see a more subdued, relaxed, more personal show

crowds/fans that don't want to see an all acoustic set that lasts 1.5 hrs, maybe a bit more, can just not go...more tickets for the rest of us who care

[cd1500rpm]

After reading all of the posts, nobody addressed this specific live performance:

SNL last winter, was he sick?

[Harrythebannister]

I haven't read all this thread so forgive me if I'm repeating what has been said already, but in my opinion, it isn't just age which has caused this decline. Nor is it just the lengthy live shows, but a combination of both. Yes 70 is old but there are other performers that still sound fine...even Ringo still has a good (or bad depending on whether you're a fan or not) singing voice at almost 72 but of course, he doesn't do the long live shows which Paul does.
He needs to cut back on the live shows or even retire completely. My concern is that he will do permanent damage and may lose his voice entirely otherwise and this would be an absolute disaster as he still has many great albums in him.
Vocally, at the Jubilee concert, he was poor. My girlfriend hadn't heard him sing for several years and was shocked by his voice. For many of us here, we have heard him sing regularly so the decline may not be so obvious but for the casual listener it is be far more obvious and I don't want to see Macca being rediculed by a younger casual audience but I'm afraid, that is starting to be the case.

[blmeanie]

I think people have off days, colds, etc. I saw U2's last tour and Bono sounded horrible, he either had a cold or is losing it...I'm betting on a cold.

He should do what he wants to do, period. I don't think at this point his legacy is in question so any new fans that might be lost, so what.

[EddieV]

It is amazing how he can play for instance Jet maybe for the 200th time and still have the same energi and enthausiastic. Sadly his voice is going down!

[blmeanie]

I take some comfort that the sister post on this topic (has his voice aged well) started in September 2009 and I know that I have heard great performances from him since those questions were asked.

[mr h atom]

true that, blue...in fact, it seems to me that most of the performances, even within these moments are, are pretty good, some strong, even...
i just worry, as do others, that when a sickness (or some form of momentarty debilitation) hits, that it might be better to hold off and get better, than risk doing some real damage now that will cost later.

i think of it like any athlete...he or she can recover far better and quicker if they take time off, whether they want to or not, than if they keep pushing on

and, similarily, the older they athlete gets, the more likely of a lesser recoverery if they do not take care of the problem properly the first time

i'm not on a bandwagon that says's the end is nigh...oh, no....not even...but i am of the mind that something is amiss lately and it might behoove the man to check-check-check it out !

[EwaldK]

I have to agree with the topic starter. His vocal capabilities are getting embarassing, unfortunately. Personally if I was Paul I would start going back to instrumental music, personally I wouldn't mind some more songs like "When the wind is blowing" or maybe seek partnerships with other artists/ singers.

[blmeanie]

His vocal capabilities are getting embarassing

Embarrassing? I don't think so. Unfortunate? Yes. If it were truly to the point of embarrassing don't you think Paul, of all people, would stop?

[mr h atom]

righto, again, blue !

hey, ewald...what would you think, considering 'riding to jaipur' ( a song i think is pretty cool ) if he did an album of original songs that were done with indian musicians and based largely on the use of the sitar...do it mostly instrumental, but with sparse lyrical input...we know he likes the stuff

if ry cooder can pull it off, so could paul