Date: Dec 10, 1983
Weeks: 6
Wow. I guess it's superstar collaboration week this week. Today's article may have fewer stars than yesterday's, but their greater magnitude may make this collaboration even more significant. Too bad the result of that collaboration is so mediocre.
I guess it's not really that bad. I was disappointed the first time I listened to it. I guess I expected a collaboration between these two to be bigger and more significant. But after I listened a few times, I caught on to its appeal. A lot of song is a back and forth with McCartney and Jackson alternating verses. And while McCartney's part is disappointingly basic, Jackson's part is lively. This is just after his Thriller album, so he's in his prime here. And no matter how basic and simple the rest of the song is, Jackson saves it with his verses.
The music is an interesting melange of old-fashioned, with its harmonicas and brass, and dated 80s style, with its synthesized keyboard lead and bass. Overall, it's a decent effect, with the old and the new balancing out to create something with a timeless sound that could only have come from the early 80s, if that makes any sense. The only problem I have is that the song doesn't really have a traditional verse/chorus structure, so the music rarely feels like it's building to anything.
The lyrics are the pained rantings of unrequited love. "Go go go where you want, but don't leave me here forever." I'm not sure how it exactly makes sense with two singers. If we assume there's supposed to be one person telling this story, I have a hard time respecting his backbone. "Through the years" implies that this has gone on for a while now. Dude, she's not interested. Give it up and move on.
My verdict: Like it. I didn't like it the first time through, but repeat listens won me over. Nowhere near the best either of these guys can do, but not the worst, either. It's not a bad little listen.
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