Vinyl Reports

How fortunate we are to live in a time when the music of a group as influential as The Beatles — and its four supremely talented individual musicians — continues to resonate for generations upon generations beyond their 1960s heyday. Today, here in 2026, and with nothing to prove to anyone but themselves, both surviving members of The Fab Four — Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney — have each released fine new solo albums that take different approaches toward reflecting on their respective long and winding careers.

While I’m sure it’s all coincidental, I can’t help but revel in the parallels taken by these two legendary artists. Ringo released his Long Long Road LP via UMe on April 24, 2026, while Sir Paul released The Boys of Dungeon Lane LP via MPL/Capitol a little more than a month later on May 29, 2026. Both albums feature exemplary production support from two of the top hit producers of our times, T Bone Burnett and Andrew Watt. Both albums revolve around street-themed titles. Heck, both albums even feature elegant, subdued beige cover artwork. Most importantly, both collections of music are strong from end to end, offering distinctive perspectives by way of the Americana-infused country-folk flavors for Ringo, and a full-bore rock & roll template for Sir Paul.

One of producer T Bone Burnett’s comments in his brief liner notes for Ringo’s LP really could apply to both artists: “I hear every mile of that road in his playing and in his singing. One of the most recognizable voices in the world telling you a story.” Indeed, both the voices of Ringo and Paul are immediately recognizable, even while wearing the seasoning of lives well-lived, looking ahead toward the future.

And with that, it’s time to review them all together now (so to speak) with Ringo going first, and Paul coming up second.

RINGO STARR
LONG LONG ROAD
1LP (UMe)

Long Long Road is another in a string of fine late-period releases from Ringo Starr, the followup to his acclaimed January 2025 release on UMe, Look Up. Like that album, Long Long Road was also produced by T Bone Burnett and features many great session players and celebrity guests including co-producer Daniel Tashian, Billy Strings, Rory Hoffman, St. Vincent, Molly Tuttle, and Paul Franklin, as well as Burnett himself.

Decoding the DNA underlying Long Long Road from the included one-sheet liner notes, we learn most of what we need to know. Given that the album was recorded at six different studios in Nashville and Los Angeles, it is a fair guess that the album was crafted in the digital realm — which is not a bad thing, honestly, if the content has been handled properly, as has been done with this release.

Mastering was handled by Gavin Lurssen and Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering in Burbank, California. The lacquers for pressing the vinyl were cut by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl in Nashville. The dark black, standard-weight (140g) LP comes housed in an audiophile-grade plastic inner sleeve, which we here at AP appreciate greatly.

You can purchase the Long Long Road LP at Music Direct for its SRP of $27.99, here, and/or via the MD link graphic ahead of the album’s tracklisting section at the end of the review. Long Long Road is also available on “ultraviolet dream color” vinyl from Ringo’s official site store here for $29.99. (Footnote 1) If MD happens to be sold out of the standard black edition, you can still order it from Ringo’s store.

Ringo’s album inevitably has a feel-good vibe underlying the reflective themes. Some folks have called Long Long Road a “country western” album — which would not be surprising, really, since Ringo’s second solo album on Apple, September 1970’s Beaucoups Of Blues, was in fact exactly that, pre-echoing the back-to-the-roots, country rock movement of the times.

However, Long Long Road is much more of an Americana-flavored album with songs that could easily sit side-by-side with other modern T Bone Burnett productions such as Robert Plant and Alison Krauss’ October 2007 Grammy-winning 2LP set Raising Sand and November 2024’s self-titled The Coward Brothers release, which reflected the name of Burnett and Elvis Costello’s brilliant, long-standing dual alias and their long-overdue full-length debut double album that I reviewed here on AP on December 18, 2024.

Semi-sidenote: By citing “Americana,” I am referring to an organic, rootsy front-porch sensibility that includes country-and-western aesthetics as much as it does folk, folk rock, and pop elements. The Americana designation is kind of that fine-line difference between recordings by The Band and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (arguably two of the prime architects of the form) as opposed to a pure vintage country/western release by the likes of Johnny Cash and George Jones — or even great pickers like bluegrass-adjacent guitarist and singer/songwriter Marty Stuart.

So, yes, you’ll hear country elements like pedal-steel guitar on Ringo tunes like what’s on the autobiographical title track “Long Long Road” (Side Two, Track 5), and, at times, rich orchestral strings. Yet even the flavor of Ringo’s distinctive drumming gives the album just enough rock power to bridge over to that broader category.

Speaking of that title track, check out its wonderful, heartfelt video on YouTube, which has many Beatles-related Easter eggs built into it.

“Choose Love” (Side Two, Track 3), another personal favorite, is almost a nod to The Beatles, replete with psychedelic-era instrumentation such as a chamberlain (a sort-of proto-Mellotron, the tape-based keyboard that emerged in the late-’60s) and something newer called a Crypto Clav (a sort of keyboard-controlled zither) in addition to dobro, pedal steel, and string bass.

I love how, in conjunction with T Bone Burnett, Ringo has effectively bridged generations by working with special guest vocalists like the great Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle. Their presence and energy give the music here just enough modern vibrance to feel fresh and invigorating.

My black vinyl copy of the Long Long Road LP was quiet and well-centered, and its overall sound quality was quite excellent. As to the Ratings, I’m happy to give this new Ringo LP a solid 9 for the Music, and also a 9 for the Sound as well. Long Long Road a fine and positive Ringo record, and it is well worth picking up.

RINGO STARR
LONG LONG ROAD
1LP (UMe)
MUSIC: 9
SOUND: 9

Produced by T Bone Burnett
Co-produced by Daniel Tashian and Bruce Sugar
Additional engineering by Eddie Roberts, Karl Wingate, Michael Ford Jr.
Mixed by Michael Piersante at The Village Studio Z, Los Angeles, California
Mastered by Gavin Lurssen and Reuben Cohen at Lurssen Mastering, Burbank, California
Vinyl mastering by Jeff Powell at Take Out Vinyl

Side One
1. Returning Without Tears
2. Baby Don’t Go
3. I Don’t See Me In Your Eyes Anymore
4. It’s Been Too Long
5. Why

Side Two
1. You And I (Wave Of Love)
2. My Baby Don’t Want Nothing
3. Choose Love
4. She’s Gone
5. Long Long Road

PAUL McCARTNEY
THE BOYS OF DUNGEON LANE
1LP (MPL/Capitol)

Similar to Ringo’s LP, Paul McCartney’s The Boys of Dungeon Lane was also recorded across some six different studios between 2021 and 2025 — in his case, including Abbey Road and Metropolis in London. Co-produced by Andrew Watt, for the most part, this is effectively a pure McCartney solo album, wherein he plays most all of the instruments himself save for the orchestral parts that were arranged by Ben Foster and Giles Martin. There are also some special guests here including The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde, trumpeter Mike Davis, and even Ringo Starr himself!

The Boys of Dungeon Lane was mastered by Randy Merrill, while the vinyl lacquers were cut by Ryan K Smith; both processes occurred at Sterling Sound. The standard-weight black vinyl disc comes housed in a oaktag cardboard inner sleeve that features a wonderful collage of images from Sir Paul’s life that features his fellow Beatles and other inner-circle friends along the way, including The Fabs’ original manager, Brian Epstein. Also included is a 12-page lyric booklet and embossed cover artwork.

The black vinyl edition of The Boys of Dungeon Lane sports an SRP of $36.99, and it can be ordered via Music Direct here, and/or via the MD link graphic ahead of the Lane LP’s tracklisting section.

There are many variant editions of Dungeon Lane available out there that go beyond the scope of this review. As of presstime, the number of variants was clocked at 17, including a special gatefold edition, a white label edition with handwritten lyrics, a picture disc, and multiple color vinyl versions (green, blue, gold, yellow, and white among them), in addition to a standard CD and even a cassette! If you want to scout some of these options, Paul’s official site store offers a good number of them here.

In popular music circles, the premise of a new Paul McCartney recording is still widely considered an event. For me, as a lifelong fan, it certainly is a moment to be celebrated. On his first album of all-new music since December 2020’s experimental McCartney III, the sound of The Boys of Dungeon Lane feels very much a part of the continuum that is Sir Paul’s music across the 21st century.

I am reminded of Frank Zappa’s view on his life’s work as a unified whole, linked with what he termed “conceptual continuity.” While there is no doubt connective tissue between Macca’s entire catalog, I find it useful to employ the turn of the millennium as a dividing line between his past — i.e., post-Beatles, post-Wings, and, post his beloved first wife Linda McCartney, who sadly passed away in 1998 — and present. McCartney’s music since that point has arguably embraced a compelling, searching quality by exploring new sounds and perspectives while inevitably maintaining his own unique persona.

Still, Paul McCartney will always sound like Paul McCartney, despite any “new” twists and turns. His new music always sounds nothing exactly like what he’s done before, while also somehow feeling incredibly familiar.

For example, the harpsichord parts in “Mountain Top” (Side A, Track 4) loosely recall the psychedelic experiments of The Beatles’ June 1967 masterwork Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (see: “She’s Leaving Home”) by way of Wings’ July 1973 masterpiece single, “Live and Let Die.” The flute solo on “Never Know” (Side B, Track 2) recalls Macca’s “Fool on the Hill” from that same era on November 1967’s Magical Mystery Tour (Side 1, Track 2 on the U.S. LP edition).

Even a subtle special effect, like the rewinding tape machine sound at the end of “We Two” (Side A, Track 7), reminded me of the opening moments of a very different themed track on November 2001’s Driving Rain, “She’s Given Up Talking” (LP1, Side A, Track 3 of that now-rare 2LP set).

“First Star of the Night” (Side B, Track 5) is quite interesting, as it starts with a double-tracked acoustic guitar signature that, for the briefest of moments, hints at John Lennon’s “Dear Prudence” (LP1, Side 1, Track 2 from November 1968’s The Beatles), yet oddly also reminds me of an artist who was massively influenced by McCartney — the late, great Emitt Rhodes.

“Come Inside” (Side B, Track 1) feels like it could have easily been on one of my favorite 21st century Macca albums, October 2013’s excellent New. “Home to Us” (Side B, Track 3) may be one the best songs on The Boys of Dungeon Lane, again echoing McCartney’s past while still sounding fresh and not like anything he’s put out previously. And speaking of pushing boundaries, “Salesman Saint” (Side B, Track 6) is super-sweet, with its big-band swing section built in at the end.

This might be a good time to again underscore that The Boys of Dungeon Lane is mostly played entirely by Sir Paul, a process that he’s perfected in the many decades since drawing a post-Beatles line in the sand with his first solo album on Apple, April 1970’s McCartney. That said, I can’t wait to hear how this music comes together live with his longstanding backing band — if they choose to add any of them into his upcoming setlists, that is.

I intentionally purchased the black vinyl version of The Boys of Dungeon Lane, hoping to avoid the pitfalls of surface noise often inherent on the multitude of color vinyl incarnations. While the standard-weight vinyl of my copy was well-centered, I unfortunately found some annoying surface noise toward the end of Side A on “We Two” (Track 7). There was also some brief noise at a point on the flipside with “First Star of the Night” (Side B, Track 5) as well.

Looking at the vinyl itself for anomalies, I noticed a strange sort of rainbow effect refracting in the light from the black vinyl, making me wonder if some sort of oil remnant or improper vinyl formulation mixing had entered into the process somehow for this particular LP. I returned the album to the Bay Area Amoeba locale where I bought it, but the second copy had the exact same issue. Hmm.

At this point, I have decided to just accept it for what it is, until perhaps a better deluxe pressing might emerge. I’m not thrilled, to be honest, but I guess I can live with those briefest of noises for now — or I may just return it for the pink vinyl variant instead.

As to the Ratings, I am happy to give the Music of The Boys of Dungeon Lane a solid 9. I don’t consider the album necessarily any sort of “return to form,” as I have enjoyed many of the albums Sir Paul has issued in the last 30 years. No, this album is simply yet another fine release from an artist who has given us many lifetimes of great music to enjoy. As for the Sound of it, I will have to ding the fidelity a bit down to an 8 overall, mainly due to the issues I mentioned above.

So, with all that said: Thank you, Sir Paul. We appreciate you and all these new songs and stories you have shared with us.

Author bio: Mark Smotroff is an avid vinyl collector who has also worked in marketing communications for decades. He has reviewed music for eCoustics, among others, and you can see more of his impressive C.V. at LinkedIn.

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Footnote 1: AP editor Mike Mettler adds: I decided to go the color route for both of the Ringo and Macca LPs, and thus purchased the “ultra violet dream” option (a.k.a. purple) for the former direct from Ringo’s site, and I went with white for the latter (via Amazon), because that felt like the better option to align thematically with the LP sleeve’s color scheme. I’m happy to report that I experienced no pops or clicks whatsoever with Ringo’s LP, not even in the runout grooves.

As for Macca, I did experience some limited surface noise during the last track on Side A, “We Two,” right on into the runout groove. I also heard a few in the runout groove on Side B, though none of it during any of the music. Not a dealbreaker, but worth noting nonetheless.

My Ratings essentially parallel Mark’s. Ringo gets: Music: 9; Sound: 9. Long Long Road is indeed a marvel to listen to, benefiting greatly from T Bone Burnett’s A-level production. The album has that distinct “Burnett soundscape style,” but it’s still Ringo. I also feel the Ringo LP’s soundstage is much wider and fuller than that of Sir Paul’s The Boys of Dungeon Lane — and that may be due in part to the intention of his co-producer Andrew Watt, or perhaps it was a somewhat conscious decision to have things sound more “contained” within the stereo field based on the intimacy of the subject matter and Paul’s essential one-man-band approach to it. Paul’s ratings: Music: 9; Sound: 8.

On Long Long Road, “Baby Don’t Go” (Side One, Track 2) has that quintessential TBV — T Bone Vibe — and like Mark, I too am also quite enamored with the headier, revamped take on “Choose Love” (Side Two, Track 3), which updates the title track to Ringo’s June 2005 album on Koch that was only available on CD until earlier this year when Friday Music dropped an ostensible 20th anniversary 2LP version of it on ruby red vinyl. (Still gotta pick that one up at some point!)

As for Dungeon Lane, my favorite track remains “Mountain Top” (Side A, Track 5), with that special shift into overdrive in its back half, followed by the acoustified “Down South” (Side A, Track 6) and its mix of foundational history — ditto the latter looking back permeating “Home to Us” (Side B, Track 3) that features his lifelong mate Ringo on vocals. Finally, “Salesman Saint” (Side B, Track 6) rolls by like a fine waltz with lovely horns to boot, the kind of track that would most likely have become an FM favorite if FM radio was still a thing.

Bottom line: Both of these LPs are worth investing your time and money in. Both show the continued creative vitality of a pair of artists who, again like Mark said at the outset, have nothing to prove. That said, my added take on that point is that maybe they still feel like they do have something to prove, in a way, since they’re among a select few artistes (spelling intentional) who have been there since the beginning of the rock era — and neither of them are quite ready to hang it up just yet. More power to you both, Starkey and McCartney!

PAUL McCARTNEY
THE BOYS OF DUNGEON LANE
1LP (MPL/Capitol)
MUSIC: 9
SOUND: 8

Produced by Paul McCartney and Andrew Watt
Recorded by Paul LaMalfa and Steve Orchard, assisted by Keith Smith and Marco Sonzini
Mixed by Paul LaMalfa and Steve Orchard
Mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound
Vinyl cut by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound

Side A
1. As You Lie There
2. Lost Horizon
3. Days We Left Behind
4. Ripples In A Pond
5. Mountain Top
6. Down South
7. We Two

Side B
1. Come Inside
2. Never Know
3. Home To Us
4. Life Can Be Hard
5. First Star Of The Night
6. Salesman Saint
7. Momma Gets By