Paul McCartney
November 29, 2005
Los Angeles, CA
Most of my friends will tell you I’m about as big a Beatles fan as they know, and most of my friends are pretty big Beatles fans. From a very early age, The Beatles taught me basically everything I love about music. They’re even probably to blame for turning me into a bit of a music elitist. That’s because once I realized how incredible they were, I just held musicians and artists to a higher standard. For awhile in high school, I only listened to The Beatles…for almost 2 whole years…just The Beatles, nothing else. I spent hours making mixtapes- recording my favorite songs from CD’s to cassettes- since CD burners barely existed and iPods weren’t even fathomable. I made mixes of every possible kind: compiling my favorites written by each member, grouping songs based on instrumentation and how they made me feel, creating new track listings of their albums that included the singles written during the same recording session (imagine “Paperback Writer” and “Rain” on Revolver). My favorite part of going to church on Sunday mornings was getting the chance to listen to Breakfast with The Beatles on KLSX in the car. There also happened to be a Beatles only radio station in LA for a short while and I thought being a DJ for them might be the coolest job ever. When asked-for my first web bio- the four people dead or alive I would most want to have dinner with, I responded without hesitation. John. Paul. George. Ringo.
While my Beatles phase grew out of obsession into a more regular appreciation, it always saddened me that my favorite band was one that I never would be able to see live. Seeing that most of my favorite artists hold a special place in my heart mainly because of their live shows, the connection I’ve always held with The Beatles has been because of their timeless music and message. They have always been perfect to me, every song, and every album. Nowadays, when I put on a Beatles record, they seem as fresh as the first time I heard them- like it could have been written and recorded a month ago. Their sound and influence is present in everything I listen to, and their cultural relevance is everywhere. Still though, the feeling of seeing and hearing those songs performed in front of you isn’t really ever going to be possible. You can only catch glimmers of what it would be like, but in the case of seeing Paul McCartney live, that glimpse is everything you would ever hope for as a Beatles fan.
I did see Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band in 1997. As cool as it was to be in the same building as a Beatle, that show was as much a celebration of Ringo’s cohorts (Cream’s Jack Bruce and Peter Frampton to name a few) as it was of his own work. George Harrison, my favorite Beatle, hadn’t toured since the early ‘90s. I’ve seen countless Beatles tribute bands, some good, some not so good. McCartney was the Holy Grail then, but it always seemed like seeing him in concert was a pipedream- too expensive, too rare, too many other people with the same idea. I don’t remember exactly how we got them, an early Christmas present I suppose, but my parents came through with 3 tickets to see Paul at Staples Center in 2005. My Mom, ever gracious, let my Dad be the one to take my sister and I to the show. I remember thinking then that it was fitting I would see Paul for the first time with my family, since The Beatles were such a big part of growing up in my house.
