At age 80, Paul McCartney has lived a charmed life. Even he can’t believe his fame and fortune, first as a Beatle—the one John Lennon credited for 75 percent of the band’s repertoire— and then McCartney’s next very successful band Wings. Back in the day, Paul was not my favorite Beatle; mine was George Harrison with Lennon a close second. Oh who am I kidding? I LOVE all The Beatles including Ringo Starr (who’s already 82).
One of the greatest highlights of my life was getting to see Paul McCartney live during his tour in 1990, the first time he included Beatles’ songs in his concerts since the band broke up. He opened with Live & Let Die, and each time he came to the refrain, explosions went off. After the first one, the stage was engulfed in smoke … and I thought, of course, “Oh my God, they killed Paul McCartney!” The explosions continued every time he sang the word ‘die.’ When the smoke cleared, McCartney and the band were still standing, playing the familiar riff after the refrain. Wow!! The concert continued with Jet and most of the stadium audience standing throughout the entire concert. Later he told us he wanted to go back to the 1960s, and we cheered in anticipation as he commenced to singing many of the original greats from The Beatles. His wife, Linda, was right there on stage with him doing a great job on keyboards, and his bandmates were top musicians. After a big finale, they bowed and left together, and we all remained, like under a spell. We didn’t know what to expect, but we weren’t going nowhere. Then sheepishly Paul returned to the dark stage, a spotlight shining on him. He was wearing a long night shirt and pointy night cap, holding a lamp, telling us “Shhhhhh!” We laughed and laughed. This was so unexpected. He left the stage, and a minute or so later, the entire band returned, wearing Dallas Cowboy jerseys, and presented the anticipated encore which concluded with McCartney’s compilation from Abbey Road, the one that begins with Golden Slumbers and ends with the lyrics: And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.
I left the concert walking on a cloud. McCartney looked particularly attractive with his feathered hair just starting to gray. A lot of us waited above the tunnel where we knew his limousine would drive out soon. We were hoping to get to see him wave at us.
And when I go away
I have to admit, the music of Paul McCartney, his voice and songs, were the soundtrack of my youth in the 1970s. His voice was so distinctive, so pleasant, even my mother knew it was him on the radio. I didn’t have any of his records with Wings, but I had a lot of The Beatles. I read Beatles’ magazines, that still existed long after they broke up, and tacked their posters on my bedroom walls, even a set of early Beatles’ headshots in my high school locker. They were the epitome of cool even if they were history and slightly before my time. I was aware the Beatles were just a couple years younger than my parents. But the Beatles were way cooler.
Through the decades, Paul has remained highly productive every year of his life: writing songs, recording albums, and touring the world. He is a big ham, and his fans are all right with it. Given his age, his voice has lowered and has lost the golden tones we are used to hearing our whole lives every day on rock and pop radio. Still, he insists on getting out there and performing. I don’t know of many people who seem to live life to its fullest, but Paul McCartney is one. He’s probably a beautiful person, too. I’ve heard in interviews, he goes out of his way to meet and greet, shake hands and chit chat with all around. Wow. What a guy.
I guess I’m saying given the reality of his age, I realize sadly Paul McCartney at some point won’t be here anymore to grace us with his presence. And I’m gonna miss that. He’s given the world some of the greatest songs ever written and sung with one of the most versatile, mesmerizing yet distinctive voices in pop music history.
But in the end, it’s McCartney’s songs, his body of work, that will remain eternal—his gift to the world. The greatest lyric ever written, I think, is from his song Hey Jude: Take a sad song, and make it better. The song My Love is one of my absolute favorites, an all-time great love song, along with Maybe I’m Amazed. Wow! As a true fan, I could go on and on.
As a songwriter, he’s the master. Singable melodies, easy to remember just like Mozart. Lyrics that are pure poetry, his advice to anyone trying to write a song. Ah, how McCartney can turn a phrase; his wordsmith rivals Lennon’s. But most importantly, the messages and meanings of a McCartney song are profound:
Blackbird singing in the dead of night,
Take these broken wings and learn to fly.
All your life, you were only waiting for this moment to arise.
A theory is he wrote the song about Blacks in America, who had to fight to achieve civil rights—which is also how we and history will remember the 1960s along with The Beatles and the Vietnam War.
And let us not forget, Paul McCartney can play, like, any instrument. His first solo album McCartney was all him on instruments and original songs. That alone makes him a fine entertainer, someone who deserves to be in show business.
Some years ago when I was a newspaper reporter, occasionally I dreamt I was interviewing Paul McCartney. I dreamt this for years every so often: Paul and I would be walking outdoors around his country estate in England or wherever it is, and I’d be asking him questions—and then he offers me a marijuana joint which I gladly partake. In the dream I say to myself and to Sir Paul, “I can’t believe I’m standing here smoking marijuana with Paul McCartney!” Then I’d wake up, but throughout the day I would hum and sing McCartney songs with a happy carefree demeanor. Wonder what that was all about? I guess the dreams may have been simply a stress reliever.
There was a time, too, when I almost got to interview the man himself. He was on tour again in the U.S., and as entertainment editor of a newspaper, I got his tour manager’s phone number. I called and left a quick message asking for an interview. I had my questions written out on a legal-size notepad kept in the top drawer of my desk. I was really trying to make this interview happen. (Beatles’ shriek!) But, alas, ’tweren’t meant to be.
There are singers we’ll remember … because of their songs. Paul McCartney is one worth remembering. So listen up nursing homes of the future: We’ll want to hear Beatles not Sinatra. Meanwhile, just glad Paul—who answered fans’ questions in an online video—is still with us here among the living and so cool and kind. And just one more thing. I think I’m in love with Paul McCartney.