Genres: Singer-Songwriter, Pop Rock, Baroque Pop, Folk Rock
The Musiquarium’s The Boys of Dungeon Lane Review Score: 7 out of 10
A year into my own residency within Liverpool, Paul McCartney had announced The Boys of Dungeon Lane, a nostalgic album that evokes the spirit of McCartney’s hometown, a place that I myself had fallen in love with — the cover instantly recognizable to me, as those street signs had decorated the streets I’d so often walk up and down. But, instead of the city that that I have come to know, the one that’s already adorned with the legacy and magic of The Beatles, Paul McCartney remembers it in a different way, back when it wasn’t the cultural powerhouse it has since become, but instead the working class, northern city that inspired one of the greatest songwriters of the 20th century to grow his wings.
Andrew Watt, who had previously worked as producer on the recent Iggy Pop, Rolling Stones, Ozzy Osbourne and Pearl Jam records, does a fab job here, allowing for McCartney’s music to sound refined, but still raw enough that it doesn’t sound over-produced either. Most of the album foregoes modern convention for something more vintage and stripped-down.
The opening track, As I Lie There, is carried by a somewhat dissonant guitar — it’s fairly typical of McCartney’s style, but feels like it’s slowly unravelling, as if he’s remembering something like it were only yesterday, only to come to the realization that it’s already been about 70 years. Home to Us features ex-Beatles bandmate Ringo Starr, who hasn’t collaborated with McCartney since the former’s cover of John Lennon’s Grow Old With Me in 2017. Salesman Saint sounds like Paul’s take on Lennon’s Working Class Hero.
While I don’t think that The Boys of Dungeon Lane is quite as strong as McCartney III was, it’s still an impressive work from the veteran rockstar.
For credit breakdowns and historic release details, view Paul McCartney on Discogs.
Back to the 2026 Album Reviews Guide or the Paul McCartney Album Reviews page.
Written by Brett Nippard
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