Review

By Adam Hamill | 02/06/2026

Full transparency before you read this review; this will not be a balanced or fair telling of Paul McCartneys latest album. This will be the sycophantic waxing’s of somebody who is utterly obsessed with McCartney. That isn’t to say that I think the album isn’t a knock-out worth praising in its own right, what I’m saying is that I’m not capable of talking about Sir Paul in a way that is, to most people, normal. I’ve been a McCartney fan my whole life, from The Beatles to Wings (my favourite band) and his solo material the man’s body of work is second to none. No artist has fundamentally changed me like he has. I had the pleasure of seeing him in Manchester’s CO-OP arena in December of 2024 and, without sounding dramatic, it was the closest I’ve come to a truly religious experience, because that’s what he is to me, an otherworldly figure. Upon listening to his new album, “The Boys of Dungeon Lane”, it’s clear that this is McCartney, the most famous man alive, being human and tangible. He’s a man reflecting on his spectacular life but all the while looking forward. The lead single, “Days We Left Behind”, is a touching acoustic number dedicated to John Lennon, who of course needs no introduction. The running theme of this album is nostalgia, which Macca handles delicately and openly, with overt references to his parents, brother, a girl he fancied when he was a kid and of course John, George and Ringo. Ringo actually has his first official duet with Paul in “Home to Us”, a track dedicated to growing up in post-war Liverpool. The tune actually features backing vocals from Sharleen Spiteri and Chrissie Hynde. To think, we get two Beatles, a Texan and a Pretender on the same track, you can’t make this up folks! The album, while being entrenched in nostalgic motifs (even the title is a reference to an area near McCartney’s childhood home), echoes the cute Beatle’s entire discography. The ripping opening track “As You Lie There” crashes into a gutsy, shouty, rocky groove that isn’t dissimilar to the gusto heard on tracks like “Monkberry Moon Delight” from 1971s “RAM”, or “Helen Wheels” from 1973s “Band On The Run”. At 83 years old Macca’s putting younger vocalists to shame with his energy. The standout song for me is track four, “Ripples in a Pond”. The tune shows that McCartney knows how to write a really fun pop song. It’s his forte. The bassist channels all that Hofner energy in a really bouncy bassline which keeps the song steamrolling forward. Other standouts for me are the adventure on magic mushrooms (no, really) that is “Mountain Top” , the punchy “Come Inside” and the closing ballad, “Momma Gets By” which features the signature softness that McCartney conveys in his music so well. He’s a master storyteller. Although Paul may have been looking back when writing “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” the music in the album is anything but derivative, it’s new, it’s fresh, it’s bloody Paul McCartney! The elder statesmen of pop music has once again cemented his stature and legacy as one of the greats.