If its predecessor, Band on the Run, steadied Paul McCartney’s footing as a superstar solo artist in the mid-1970s, Venus and Mars essentially accomplished the same for his on-again ensemble, Wings. The 50^th anniversary of the album arrives in a half-speed mastered vinyl edition, assembled by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios, and it’s a stellar new issue. The mix remains true to the original, but Showell’s mastering- taken from 2014 digital hi-res files- is the integral piece missing from earlier pressings, allowing Macca and his wingmen to come to life like never before.

Venus and Mars was loaded up with capable material fueled by McCartney’s loose, almost madcap enthusiasm. The songs and their performances were fully spirited, musically engaging, and noticeably balanced between the band’s members. Plus, there’s the added influence of New Orleans- some of the sessions were in the Crescent City; culminating in the immortal bounce of “Listen To What The Man Said”- that only rolls the good times further into the grooves.

Whereas McCartney sounded liberated on Band on the Run, here he is almost giddy. And, while not a concept album, there are some themes on its dozen tracks that thread back to its higher than life, cosmic intimations, including comic book heroes and arena rock ruminations. In fact, there may not be a finer articulation of the latter than on “Rock Show,” replete with references to amp stacks, Jimmy Page, and scoring an ounce. Ole’!

As part of Showell’s ongoing series of half-speed revisits to the classic McCartney catalog, he’s done an exceptional job of revealing a wider and more inviting soundstage. It’s rather appropriate for the repertoire that not only debuted this more sonically layered incarnation of Wings, but also foreshadowed the arena-rock touring juggernaut it would become in the years to follow. Fifty years later, Wings returns to the stratosphere, traversing through the band’s most diverse and animated universe.