12/23/2023 0 Comments Paul mccartney twitterThankfully the cod-reggae style morphed into the full-band version, showcasing that The Beatles best songs weren’t all just Lennon-McCartney creations. There were two additional moments where Paul wistfully recalled his former bandmates, starting with a ukulele-driven version of “Something” where McCartney was playing a uke given to him by Harrison himself. Utterly sublime, up on a telescoping platform all by himself with the sold-out crowd completely enthralled. ![]() “1985” was a Wings song that brought the energy level up high, Paul’s insistent piano lines pushing it along into that glorious chorus, while a solo reading of “Blackbird” showed just how beautiful his songwriting can be. There was also a funny story that involved Jimi’s Bigsby whammy bar and Eric Clapton but let’s not get bogged down in minutiae. McCartney swapped over to a brightly decorated Les Paul for “Let Me Roll It” and peeled off that signature riff, ending with an outro of “Foxy Lady.” Afterwards he relayed why they played it that way two days after “Sgt Peppers” came out, Jimi Hendrix learned the song and played it at his show, so this was Paul’s way of extending the professional courtesy. “Can’t Buy Me Love” was a safe choice as an opener, the sunny melody careening around the park while Paul’s trusty Hofner bass provided the bounce and mentally we all filled in the screams of girls from the Ed Sullivan show. His crack band been with him for a while now and played and sang in complete synchronicity with Paul for the entire set in particular drummer Abe Laboriel Jr was a key component with expert time-keeping and harmonies. I’m not going to lie and say his voice is the same as it was in the 70s and some of the higher register notes were a challenge but no shade here at all. For a guy who’s a handful of days away from trying to blow out eighty candles, his voice sounded good and his energy level was up to par to play 37 songs, and that was on top of the baker’s dozen plus one that he did as part of the VIP package. Before playing “Here Today,” McCartney mentioned that he’d been conditioned to never say “I love you” to his male friends and so this heart-wrenching song to John Lennon about an imagined conversation was a surprisingly emotional highpoint of the evening. The backdrop showed the accompanying video starring Natalie Portman and Johnnie Depp, with Portman providing ASL services and Depp’s be-ringed fingers playing acoustic guitar. “My Valentine” was a poignant love letter to his wife Nancy Shevell, in the tin pan alley style. But we don’t care! We’re gonna do them anyway.” Of course people across all generational lines were most eager to hear the Beatles tracks and then the Wings tracks but it’s not like Paul’s been sitting on his hands the last few decades and a couple of the ‘newer’ songs (four of the sixteen solo records he’s released have been over the last 15 years) resonated. When we do a new song, it’s like a black hole. ![]() “When we play a Beatles song, everyone has their phones out and it looks like a galaxy. All Rights Photos All Reserved / © Tim Bugbee
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