PAUL McCARTNEY reveals the often-conflicted man behind the Fab Macca mask as his new album, Egypt Station, sees him re-scale the peak of his powers. Plus: fantastic intimate photo portfolio of McCartney At Home by his daughter, Mary McCartney (you HAVE to see his wallpaper!).

 

COVERMOUNT CD: MERSEY PARADISE 14 classics of Liverpudlian pop and rock, including tracks by Deaf School, The Coral, OMD, The La’s and The Liverpool Scene.

NILE RODGERS The R&B magician behind Chic, Daft Punk, Let’s Dance and more on Roxy, Aretha, and cleaning Frank Sinatra’s plane!

DAVID CROSBY How the angel voice of CSNY is on a roll. If he can just keep it zipped about his pals’ choice of girlfriends...

FATOUMATA DIAWARRA On the run from an arranged marriage in her native Mali, Africa’s newest superstar shreds like Hendrix, blends trad with mod.

MARIANNE FAITHFULL Love and loss are the big themes of the Diva of Dark’s 21st album. Kris Needs rides shotgun throughout its writing and recording.

THE BAND Fifty years since Music From Big Pink broke out of Woodstock to change music, its surviving players relive its creation.

PRIMAL SCREAM The indie-dance débauchés went to Memphis in 1993 on a soul pilgrimage. The LP they made emerges in its true colours at last.

REVIEWED Cat Power / Tom Petty / Paul Weller / Prince / Led Zeppelin / Harmony Rockets / The House Of Love / Low / Christine And The Queens / Pearl Jam / Spiritualized / Alice Coltrane / Mudhoney / Candace Springs / Richard Thompson / The Beta Band / Swamp Dogg / Bobbie Gentry / Hawkwind / Suede / Pixies / Tony Joe White

PLUS Secret Strummer! / Lonnie Holley saves the world / Aldous Harding swaps dog grooming for album making / Graham Parker sacks The Rumour / Ian Hunter rolls out the wisdom / remembering Richard Swift / How To Buy… Dinosaur Jr / The Goon Sax and Cedric Burnside are chips off the old block(s) / Billy Gibbons’ faucet bugbears / Chris Barber’s weird masterpiece / Hawkwind meet Mike Batt and… all back to Nana Mouskouri’s!