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Paul McCartney: A Giant Among Rock Immortals

4/23/07, 3:27 pm EST

Paul McCartney talks to Rolling Stone about the 40th anniversary of Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club BandFor our fortieth anniversary, the editors of Rolling Stone interviewed twenty artists and leaders who helped shape our time. Over the next four weeks, every day, we’ll be debuting exclusive audio clips from the Q&As, giving you unparalleled access to some of the most important personalities in history.

It’s been almost forty years ago today since Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play, and we’re marking the occasion (as well as our own 40th anniversary) by bringing you this interview with Sir Paul McCartney. As one half of the greatest songwriting tandem ever, McCartney helped shape the entire course of rock & roll music. He’s widely considered the most successful artist in pop music history; his “Yesterday” is the most covered song ever; he refuses to sit on leather chairs. Speaking to Anthony DeCurtis, McCartney reminisces about the circumstances that surrounded the recording of the 1967 masterpiece, why everyone still loves the Beatles, his philosophy for saving the world, as well as his memories of John and George. Listen to five highlights from the conversation, and for the magazine’s definitive profile, pick up your own iridescent copy of our Fortieth Anniversary issue, on newsstands now.

  • Nearly four decades years after Sgt. Pepper’s release, Macca discusses the album’s key influences and ponders why it’’s still so influential: “The ideas were coming fast and thick. All sorts of new ideas — artistic, political, musical. We started writing stuff that was different because we were talking and thinking and feeling different…”
  • Paul speaks candidly about the loss of fellow Beatles John and George: “I’d known John intimately for so long. I used the word ‘privileged’ before, but I always marvel at the fact that I was the guy who sat down with John to write all that stuff. It was just me and him in a room. That’s pretty special. So to lose that guy was horrific…”
  • Macca gets scientific about why the Beatles are so enduring: “There is such a thing as magic, and the Beatles were magic. It depends on what you believe life is. Life is an energy field, a bunch of molecules. And these particular molecules formed to make these four guys, who then formed into this band called the Beatles and did all that work…”
  • In today’s tumultuous political climate, “All You Need Is Love” just doesn’t cut it anymore. Or does it?: “What’s needed is the same old thing: peace and love. Not to be frivolous, but that is still the great aim. Well, and you guys probably need a new leader! I mean, that would help…”
  • As the man who wrote “When I’m 64″ forty years ago, McCartney, now 64, thinks about his legacy: “I’d like for people to understand what I did and to think that there was great strength in it. There’s an awful lot of it, and it’s still coming…”

Check back tomorrow for the next installment of our twenty-part audio interviews, featuring some of the most iconic and influential pop culture figures of the last 40 years. Want a hint at tomorrow’s interviewee? He told us this:

Nixon, Reagan, Bush I, Bush II — combined, they’ve committed an assault on the working people of this country, virtually destroyed the middle class and taken a dump on this planet.


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Comments

Kansas City still Rocks | 9/6/2007, 4:19 pm EST

Hey Paul,
I have been dancing to your music since I was 4 yrs old and guess what? I still feel the same magic when I listen to it today and I’m 50. I think it more than music, It’s magic. It’s timeless.
My grandkids are addicted to it.

cheryl | 9/6/2007, 4:12 pm EST

I have got to be the all time biggest fan and anyone reading this you know who I am. Love You, Paul and I’m always listening, you make me have a good day!

Melody | 7/22/2007, 11:41 pm EST

Paul is so great! I wich I could meat him! Pauly please please do a concert in Dakar (Africa)!

darren | 7/20/2007, 11:47 am EST

it’s hard to actually say something intelligent enough to decribe what the Beatles meant to the world as a whole. their influence is so amazingly widespread, nothing I add would do them justice! as a 10 yr old, their music grabbed me & opened my ears like nothing I’d ever heard before, or, since! we had Abbey Road, Sgt. Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour & Rubber Soul (back about 1970). the songs were so amazing! quickly, we acquired the other Beatle albums, too. the different styles of music they created is what has always fascinated me about them! how many bands have songs that are so equal in so many ways? I love the album tracks as much as the hits! how they did it, I will never figure out! it is a kind of magic, I guess. with all the crap that is on the radio today, I am so glad I was born when I was! I have gotten to grow up listening to the most amazing band that has ever existed! incredibly timeless music! it still sounds so awesome, so many years later! they are right up there with the greatest sports figures, actors, philosophers, poets, etc. that have lived! their importance in our culture has made this world more joyous! it’s hard to believe 2 of the 4 Beatles are gone! I remember so vividly the night John Lennon was murdered. it hit me the way it hit many people 17 years earlier, when president Kennedy was also gunned down. I was so shocked! you almost forget they’re human beings & eat, drink, love, play, etc. it’s still hard to comprehend why things like that happen. the Beatles were perfect (well, almost), in this imperfect world we all share.

Dennis | 6/14/2007, 10:42 pm EST

The Beatles music truly stands the test of time. There is not another group that has kept its popularity and fans all these years while at the same time gaining new younger fans. A great song is a great song. I never get tired of their music. Since they hit the scene on the Ed Sullivan show I have been listening all these years.

Jose Cuellar | 6/6/2007, 10:39 pm EST

Paul Mc Cartney is music. A genius.
Just wait till he dies…then , John will become the second in the list… for sure…Paul was the musical brain on the beatles…the main musical force…
The most loved musician of many generations…thats Paul Mc Cartney… no more, no less. The best ever!!

Shelby | 5/30/2007, 5:18 pm EST

being a “young Beatle fan” i have to say i don’t know where i would be without them. i’m thankful that they have stayed such a huge influence on people my age (18) and younger. Paul put it perfectly when he said it was magic. there really is no other way to explain how amazing they were (still are). sir paul is an amazing artist.

1964 | 5/28/2007, 9:18 am EST

Without The Beatles and John & Paul’s music I’d hate to think where we would be in terms of culture today.The Beatles took us to a whole new level and how can anyone not appreciate what that means. Their influence is so big it can’t be explained really. 4 kids from Liverpool? Really, who can explain it–not even Paul can. For many of us, it all began in 1964 and I am grateful to them and so happy Paul is still around to rock..

kirkrock | 5/22/2007, 2:59 pm EST

It’s gonna be a great day!

Kalle | 5/20/2007, 10:38 am EST

Beatles still the greates after all this year.

a Supertramp's fan | 5/19/2007, 4:15 pm EST

Paul McCartney, Roger Hodgson, Roger Waters and Jim Morrison:

the geniuses of the musical composition balance in the history of contemporary music;

yes! musically they were simply brilliant in their respective rock bands!

a Supertramp fun | 5/19/2007, 4:13 pm EST

Paul McCartney, Roger Hodgson, Roger Waters and Jim Morrison:

the geniuses of the musical composition balance in the history of contemporary music;

yes! musically they were simply brilliant in their respective rock bands!

Scott of Levittown, Pa | 5/17/2007, 12:27 am EST

As a recovering Beatle-maniac I can say after a lifetime of study, Paul was 60% of the Beatles. I love them all equally but he was the main man.

pbg | 5/15/2007, 3:07 pm EST

It was not “40 years ago today that Sgt. Pepper taught the band to play.” It was 60 years ago since the band was taught to play 20 years before 1967 according to the lyrics.

Randyn | 5/13/2007, 9:54 am EST

I hate to admit to being 51…but am so glad to have grown up on the cusp of the whirlwind known as the “Beatles”!
What they accomplished in a mere 7 years was truly miraculous, and that legacy will continue to inspire generations of artists who have the priveledge of being exposed to their genious!
All of them together…pure magic!
Thank you Paul…and Ringo, glad you’re still around!

Martin | 5/12/2007, 9:30 pm EST

If you want the accurate picture of The Beatles, read The Beatles-The Biography, written by Bob Spitz. Little, Brown & Company, New York, 2005. It’s over 860 pages, and exhaustively details the choices and the lifestyles of the many people involved in the ‘Fab Four.’

Turns out, the ‘Magic’ was pretty much a drug-fueled sex orgy that began in Germany in 1962, and began to fall apart when John left his wife for Yoko Ono and both of them turned to heroin around May, 1968.

Old enough to know | 5/12/2007, 7:41 am EST

I’m thankful The Beatles were the soundtrack that ran behind my life since I was 8 years old.
I pity the kids of recent years who’s musical backdrop has songs of hate, violence against each other, sex talk, vulgarity, anger, and a sound that is void of melody and chorus that uplifts a troubled soul. Crunching guitars grinding the same “chunk” over and over through the song and gutteral screaming. Or fast spoken monotone rhymes of hate and killing.

So glad I lived when I did. Watching the music scene today unfold, it is no mystery why there is so much violence in society, hate, and kids shooting each other. Their life’s soundtracks (movies and videogames as well) are negative ones of anger, hate and revenge, making and keeping their own thoughts negative instead of positive, with hope.
Music doesn’t uplift the soul anymore it fosters it to sit and contemplate with the evil and negative. So kids do that.

aria | 5/11/2007, 5:38 pm EST

I just wanted to say that Paul’s heart is broken.Going through a devorce is like going through another death. He needs to have the time to grieve. As far as his music, I think he truly genius. coming from simple songs in the early days to writing music for an entire orchestra.Including strings, brass,and everything in between. I would love to talk to him as I feel I’ve known him forever. Mabey he will read these comments.Luv ya Paul

brywool | 5/11/2007, 10:51 am EST

I can’t believe some of the crummy replies here…
Paul and the Beatles were definitely Magical. What they did is timeless and blows away any of the flannel, hairsprayed, plastic stuff that came out since. It’s really lame that after all this time, Paul especially doesn’t get the respect he deserves. Grunge gave us a few albums of nothing but bitching and whining. Rap’s brought the degradation of women, and gang warfare into style… At least The Beatles music had (and Paul’s music still has) hope to offer. I’ll take the music of that band over ANYTHING offered up since.

myspace.com/mrdrok | 5/11/2007, 2:27 am EST

and now about Paul, sure George was great, & John what a wonderfully creative song writer but Paul is the ONE, he made that group what it was, dont get me wrong, it was a GROUP & we wouldnt of had as extraordinary of an experiance if it wasnt the collection of those 3 supernatural song writers, the fed off of eachother in such a devine way to create THE MOST beautiful music EVER heard, after they disbanded they were still great individually, but Paul IS music, there hasnt been a Paul Album that i have ever disliked, & there hasnt been many songs on any of those albums than i couldnt listen to over & over, as for John, not so much, dont get me wrong, he had wonderful songs, but not in the volume that Paul had, but no matter how delightful his lone songs have been for me, nothing can compare to what him & John could do together, I MISS YOU GUYS, & I will do my best to make eveyone i know, understand how great you were, THANK YOU BEATLES

myspace.com/mrdrok | 5/11/2007, 2:12 am EST

the Beatles did so much for art, let alone music as a whole, & the Beatles did more in there time together than any group of song writers ever could do, no matter what you say, or how much you say you hate them, your favorite band wouldnt BE what they are without Paul, John, & sometimes George’s inspiration, from Black Sabbath to Garth Brooks to Justin Timberlake, these peoples fans need to understand about the Beatles & how they made music a beautiful place.

Anne Gaffney | 5/9/2007, 8:05 am EST

THE BEATLES ARE MAGIC - always unequalled and certainly unsurpassed, looking forward to the Sgt Pepper party (my favourite album, wow so cherished)!! on lst June in the Wondrous Place! a huge thank you to my favourite 4 people for sharing the beautiful gift of their miraculous music - in my life - love & peace always to you most fondly Anne xxxx

Jim C. | 5/8/2007, 11:28 am EST

The Beatles were the BEST….something like that will NEVER happen again!!

ALBERT DESTEFANO | 5/8/2007, 8:45 am EST

THERE CAN NEVER BE ANOTHER BEATLES.

Teddy Boy | 5/7/2007, 5:39 pm EST

There are at least 2 things you can see that demonstrates that Paul, with all the success, money and adulation, remains a regular guy. One - I’ve seen interviews where the cameras are rolling before the interview officially begins. You can witness Paul talking to the interviewer, making them feel more comfortable, asking if he/she’s new in town, have you been to this particular place or done that. He’s genuinely friendly. The true personality of a celeb can only be seen when you can catch them when they are just BEING. Paul is REAL.
Second - take a look at Paul’s reaction during “The Long & Winding Road” on the Back in the U.S. Live DVD. It’s a rare moment when he’s un-guarded. He loses it when his tour crew hold up Heart signs showing their love. His voice cracks (what?!? even HE can’t believe it!) and he weeps. Are these the actions of a man who is full of himself? Paul, you are an inspiration - a legendary artist AND a decent, human being. What a combo! Love you, Paul. You’ve given me such joy.

FRANKMAN | 5/6/2007, 10:57 pm EST

great interview.mccarthy fan from canada

dwight | 5/5/2007, 8:10 pm EST

In 1964, Ed Sullivan show introducing the Beatles and then pandamonium. I was sitting in front of the TV. Never been a group that could match the 4 mop tops from Liverpool. For better or worse their legacy lives on .

noname | 5/5/2007, 6:31 am EST

Bob Dylan changed the world! When he shared a stick with Da Beatles, then they became a bunch of silly goofballs singing drab mundane nonsensical bullsh*t.

RandyRocker | 5/4/2007, 4:49 pm EST

Take the fastest Beatle songs and string them together in a rhythmic order, one into the other, don’t forget to add Slowdown and Anytime At All, and what you will hear, is the fastest, tightest, greatest rock and roll band in the world, bar none, and I’m as big a Rolling Stones fan as you can get. But the Beatles were faster, and a whole lot tighter, than the Stones ever were. One other thing, listen to the Beatles do some live concerts, and they sound awesome, I should know, I saw them live in ‘64 myself. Never and I mean never, has any entertainer anywhere on God’s green earth, received the kind of screaming adulation, the Beatles were submitted to, I love Elvis Presley, but even he never was as showered with the fierce might of pandemonium that the Beatles had received. Those screams must still ring in Paul and Ringo’s ears, even today, it was overwhelming, to say the least. By far, the Beatles held their own against all comers, that’s why they are still revered today. When their airplane landed it was an international event, with throngs of adoring fans cheering everywhere. Love of Life, was the core to their success, and all they ever wanted to do was share that vibe with everyone, open, ready, and willing to feel it too. God bless the Beatles. They pushed merchandising and marketing, and sales of stereos and HiFi sound quality enhancement, fashion, and psychological change, These 4 Fab Mop Tops, changed the world forever, and kept their sanity throughout it all. Their fame was so great, they knew that to hold on to reality, they just had to be their original selves, and that’s why they will always be creative spirits.
Love them all the same.

Barbara | 4/28/2007, 8:13 pm EST

Linda was and always will be special she was unique in every way we miss you Linda

John | 4/28/2007, 2:25 pm EST

THE BEATLES 4ever!!!!!!1

paul | 4/28/2007, 1:49 pm EST

W Beatles

awc | 4/28/2007, 11:15 am EST

the beatles rocked. they still do. paul’s new cd rocks too. isn’t ringo interviewed in this issue too?

Nmar | 4/26/2007, 1:50 pm EST

I’ve been a Paul Mccartney fan for about 11 years, saw him in Concert, have several Beatles albums, and I can safely say The Beatles where the greatest Rock and Roll band,(My Dad’s a huge Zeppelin fan and he might disagree, but The Beatles were and are such a huge musical influence. God bless you Macca!!!!

Bert Maio | 4/26/2007, 3:44 am EST

John Lennon: the mind
George Harrison: the arms
Ringo Starr: the legs
Paul McCartney: the HEART!!
The whole setup wouldn’t run w/o the “main ingredient.”

Anonymous | 4/26/2007, 12:13 am EST

who likes heather mills here…ANYONE?

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:51 pm EST

Boner everone has different views of who’s beautiful, and are you on drugs or something! Freak (sorry). and did you get your name from the guy off growing pains the tv show or something weirdo and sicko! John thoguht Yoko was beautiful, nad you can never change that, so shut up about them already! I know it was partially Yoko who broke up the Beatles, and their endless fighting, but i still respect Yoko Ono anyways.

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:47 pm EST

You people who posted comments about the interviewer are so mean and extra critical! He’s talking to the great rock legend Paul McCartney, a former Beatle, I mean wouldn’t you be nervous talking to him too! Don’t be so critcial of him.

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:42 pm EST

I post long comments don’t I??? Well this one’s sort! I LOVE PAUL MCCARTNEY!!! He rocks (…and rolls) - get it! Well I’d better stop this comment now before I go ranting on about something like on my last 5 comments!!! (I was about to type more but I’ll stop going crazy now!)

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:39 pm EST

I wonder if Paul looks at pictures of his younger self and thinks ‘wow i was a good looking kid’…he probably knows he was very hot, considering girls used to and still today flock around him in public! Fans can get so crazy sometimes…but i’d probably do the same thing if I saw Paul McCartney walking on the street today(which I doubt he does, but all the same) or if I lived back in the Age of Aquarius (mid to late 60’s) or in any of the 60’s years for that matter!… I love Paul… I wonder if he thinks back to old times and wishes he were young again…i knw I would want to go back to the good ol’ days if I was him! Oh, one day i’ll hopefully see Paul and maybe Ringo in concert…not that I really like Ringo…well I like him, but he’s not my favorite Beatle…i just want to see the two remaining Beatles sing….at least I was alive when 3 of the Beatles were and are still alive (i was alive when George was alive, of course, otherwise I woldn’t be old enough to know how to post theis message) but I wasn’t alive when practically the creator of the
Beatles was alive(John Lennon, of course) and I’m alive when Yoko Ono is still alive…God I LOVE the Beatles so much!!! Kisses to Paul!

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:31 pm EST

Oh, and one more thing proving that Paul McCartney is the REAL Paul McCartney, Klaatu - If you look at pictures of Paul in the younger days, you’ll see his eyes sometimes look half closed, but it looks natural for him. That’s always how people draw Paul too. And he has some sort of thing with his mouth where when he smiles the top of his mouth is flat and the bottom in in kind of a sideways D shape (respectively): people always draw Paul like this (just watch the Beatles movie Yellow Submarine his animated character looks like that). His facial expressions and features still look hte same today - no imposter could make their face look just like his in the aspect of identifying features! So Paul is alive.

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:23 pm EST

klaatu, im sorry, but what you posted was the most idiotic thing i’ve ever heard. Paul never died! That was just a stupid hoax in the late 60’s that the Beatles went along with by putting references to Paul dying in songs and albums - they only went along with the rumors as a joke! No one, and I mean no one, could impersonate Paul McCartney’s voice and singing, and look just like him, even with surgery. None of the Beatles ever said he died! Why? Because he never died! Ask Yoko Ono or something Paul never died she would know (kidding, but Yoko does know that Paul never died most likely, being married to his best friend). So don’t believe the news and media that used to spread the “Paul is Dead” rumors, because I am telling you, no matter what you here, Paul is alive! He could probably tell you everything about his life. You may say, well maybe he told secret stuff about his life to John or George or Ringo and they told the Paul impersonator, but 2 things - Paul probably didn’t tell his bandmates everything about himself, because you can’t tell someone about your whole life in full!!! It’d be impossible, and Paul probably had secrets he never told John or anything, if they even shared secrets, which I know girls do but I doubt many guys do, except for who they like and stuff. And 2, like I said earlier, no one could ever impersonate the great Paul McCartney!!! So Paul nevr died is not dead now and that’s that!!! And one more thing - a person impersontating Paul McCartney would probably know that he wasn’t exactly like Paul, so after the Beatles were over, why wouldn’t he end his singing career in fear of people finding out he wasn’t Paul??? That’s why Paul kept singing - because he is really Paul McCartney. And they say the Paul impersonator was Canadian or Americcan or something - do you really think an American could always speak with a British accent and never accidentally speak in an American accent? No one’s ever heard Paul McCartney speaking in an American accent. I am American and can speak with a British accent pretty well, but not like Paul McCartney!!! So please dismiss any ideas you ahve that Paul is dead, because Paul is, and always has been since he was born, been alive.

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:07 pm EST

I went back and read my last comment-the part where I say whazzzup you suck might sound offensive to someone reading it, so don’t think I meant it toward people reading that comment. I meant it to the comment at the bottom of this page where someone who calls themself whazzzup said Beatles suck, and I was saying he sucked because if he think’s the Beatles suck, then HE sucks!!!

Beatles Lover | 4/25/2007, 10:02 pm EST

Nickle Dun-Levy (Who posted this comment - Woody Guthrie was better than all of them.) - you’re wrong! How many people today know who Woody Guthrie is? I’ve never even heard of him! Everyone’s at least heard of the Beatles, even if they don’t and never did like them. I personally love the Beatles, and I wish I was around in the time they were the biggest (the 60’s), but unluckily, I wasn’t. I am Paul McCartney’s biggest fan! I look at his pictures in my Beatles albums because when he waas younger, he was so cute! He’s still cute today! I think he was always the best looking Beatle, and even when he was like 25, he still had a boyish look to his face and that’s what I love about him! And, unlike most stars, he performs to see his fans smile and make people happy, not mainly for money. He’s already rolling in money, so why would he want to perform for more? Peple may say he’s just too greedy, but he’s not!!!!!!!!!! Paul McCartney really does love to see his fans happy, and one day I hope to be in a crowd of people he is making happy. In other words, I hope to see him in concert today. Oh boy, I wish John Lennon and George Harrison were still alive like Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, then they could have reunion concerts or even become the Beatles again! But I think they wouldn’t be as famous if they were all still with us…maybe…there would be less controversy about them if they were all still here…I wish I was from the 60’s!!! And by the way, whazzzup, you suck!!! If you don’t like Paul McCartney and the Beatles, then why are you even on this webpage!!!???!!! Anyway, the Beatles (especially Paul, but the rest of them too) rock!!! (and roll!)

jgripps | 4/25/2007, 3:48 pm EST

just the fact that we are all talking about the beatles 40 plus years after they created their magic is most interesting to note..
does it really matter who is your favorite beatle? john paul george ringo bill steve tom pete..we are all just people.they were in the position to make good music which enriched our lives..but in the end….we are what we are….

Haley | 4/25/2007, 12:52 pm EST

Paul is one of the most enduring talents of all time as are The Beatles. George Harrison is one of the most underrated lead guitarists. And all of the Beatles were and are talented and special and unique in their own way and it took each of them to make the group. The Beatles had the best harmonies of any group.

Nickle Dun-Levy | 4/25/2007, 12:30 am EST

Woody Guthrie was better than all of them.

Leo | 4/24/2007, 11:39 pm EST

Magical Mystery Molecules
A Hard Day’s Magic
Let it Be Magic
The Magic Album
Magic Soul
Sgt Peppers Molecular Band

zim | 4/24/2007, 10:44 pm EST

Elvis Presley…..
Bob Dylan…..
The Beatles……

Yesterday, today, 100 years from now

The rest….mere footnotes

Juan, USA | 4/24/2007, 5:48 pm EST

Mccartney = greatest songwriter ever. (if you dont believe me just go and listen his “Flaming Pie” CD.)
Beatles = best band ever by far.

Lwolf70 | 4/24/2007, 4:29 pm EST

The Beatles are, by far, the Greatest Rock band ever. While John, Paul, & George, and Ringo created the magic, One must give proper credit. One must put at the top of the list. George.

George Martin.

The architect of what the world enjoys on a daily basis.

“So whats wrong with that, Id like to know”

Haley | 4/24/2007, 2:43 pm EST

Each of the Beatles are special in their own way. Their harmonies are the best ever in a pop group. George Harrison is one of the most underrated lead guitar players ever.

-pawleys island george | 4/24/2007, 2:02 pm EST

I want to get a post in, and I don’t think my first one made it. I teach 10th grade English, and use Paul’s and the Beatles’ music extensively in my lesson plans. The reason: what Paul calls magic, I call “zap”, defined as genius with no logical basis therefore. How could four poor youths from Liverpool do what they did, which was change the world as we knew it? Who has done it before? Very few. In short, Paul McCartney taught me my best lesson, which I try to instill in my kids. He taught me how to love. Right, Jen?

MP3J | 4/24/2007, 1:40 pm EST

The Beatles went from “From Me To You” to “Sgt Pepper” in 4 years.
Name any other band that progressed so much in such a short time!!

Masha | 4/24/2007, 12:53 pm EST

Oh.. “Priveleged?” was that before or after you commented on John’s death being a “drag???”

Boner | 4/24/2007, 12:50 pm EST

Can’t silence the bone.

Boner | 4/24/2007, 12:30 pm EST

Between him and John, don’t you think they should have scored some better lookin pussy? Yokos hairy bush will be forever burned into my brain. Love is way overrated. Heroin and big tits are much better. Try em.

Haley | 4/24/2007, 12:29 pm EST

The Beatles are the best pop group of all time. Their harmonies are unbelievable. It took all four of them to make the group. Each unique in their own way. No one member is better than the other. George one of the most underrated lead guitar players of all time.

Twitch | 4/24/2007, 12:11 pm EST

The Beatles were one of the most influential bands ever to walk the earth. They made rock in to a whole new genre of itself.

Leon Botstein | 4/24/2007, 12:06 pm EST

And for those of you who think Paul = Love, recall the story of how Paul was walking past a group of schoolteachers striking for the simple right to earn a living wage, and this billionaire pop star grabbed one of their signs and tore it apart, telling the teachers, “you people should be thankful you have jobs.” What a man of the people.

jungleland | 4/24/2007, 12:04 pm EST

Ok, so Paul’s catalogue is MUCH better than he is given credit for

McCartney I
Ram
Band On The Run
Venus & Mars
Wings At The Speed Of Sound
Back To The Egg
Tug Of War
Flowers In The Dirt
Off The Ground
Flaming Pie
Chaos & Creation

Are ALL Classics

(Sure there are a few in between that were phoned in)

add Junior’s Farm, Coming Up, No More Lonely Nights, Hi Hi Hi (all singles)

and you have one hell of a legacy

…Oh, and he also was in that Beatle band too:

Helter Skelter, Drive My Car, Paperback Writer, I’m Down, I’ve Got A Feeling, Birthday, Get Back, Oh Darling! Paul turned out to be the ROCKER as well!

I love John and George, but they only had one or two great post-Beatle records

Nurse | 4/24/2007, 12:03 pm EST

Doc, I have to agree with your assessment of George Harrison as the most influential artist in any genre of all time. Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Robert Coover, John Berger and William Eggleston, just to name a few, all openly and graciously acknowledge the influence of Sir George on their respective works. For that matter, sports figures such as Jim Brady and Lance Armstrong are on record as saying they owe it all to George. Truly, I can’t think of a better ukelele player in the world than our George.

Roscoe | 4/24/2007, 11:59 am EST

Beatles suck? Compared only to what is yet to be written ,maybe. Between then and now there has been nothing that even approaches their genius.

SandyC | 4/24/2007, 10:51 am EST

To all of you who trash the man, I offer the familiar trope: He’s always spoken highly of you…(really, listen to the songs)

BeatleJEB | 4/24/2007, 10:47 am EST

Whazzzup sucks.

Jim, Philadelphia | 4/24/2007, 9:56 am EST

ah, if we could all just plant some daisy’s together and share a bit of grass the world would be as one. it’s nice to see that Paul is just as nieve as he was 40 years ago. but i guess thats why i still love him. shame my history book tells me different

burnt fingers in boston | 4/24/2007, 8:44 am EST

PAUL.what a legend.He really is all
about love.God bless that man.He
still performs just to see us smile.
All the world loves paul.

Doc | 4/24/2007, 8:42 am EST

Mccartney is and was simply the elite of all songwriters. Just because his melodies seemed effortless doesn’t mean they were simple. He is the most loved songwritere of all time. That says something. On another note though. He and John were not the brains of the Beatles. George was the most influential artist in any genre of all time. If anyone was underappriciated it was him. He was quiet and attempted to be egoless of his talents. Listen to his solo music. Nothches above Pauls and Johns work.

vegma | 4/24/2007, 8:37 am EST

“Just look what Bob Dylan says about Paul in the latest Rollingstone issue.”

What did he say, and in which issue of RS?

mr hoping | 4/24/2007, 8:00 am EST

did anyone bother to ask Sir Paul if he’s going to finish the beatle reunion song and why didin’t they don’t you think thats a pretty big question

DareTu | 4/24/2007, 1:28 am EST

some magic some fate alot of genius

Bernie Conlee | 4/23/2007, 10:36 pm EST

Sean,
I have to strongly disagree with assessment of Paul’s Post Bealtes career. He’s had four albums that have had multiple grammy nominations including Band on the Run, Tug of War, Flaming Pie and Chaos. Other albums like Ram, McCartney, Flowers in the Dirt, Back to the Egg are now being considered classics that were vastly underappreciated. And of all the Beatles, Paul is easily the greatest performer. As great as John and George were, Paul will go down as the greatest Beatle if you put everything together. Just look what Bob Dylan says about Paul in the latest Rollingstone issue.

wherezthubeef? | 4/23/2007, 10:17 pm EST

Paul who?

Ron | 4/23/2007, 9:53 pm EST

The man…the icon….the music….
You will find him in everything you hear today.

Joe Puma | 4/23/2007, 9:43 pm EST

Paul should be more revered than I think he has been,but so many fail to give him credit for all his fantastic songs because of all the fluff music that he also recorded.Nobody loves the Beatles more than I,but I have to say-they ALL recorded crap at one time or another!This just proves that they can’t all be gems.Paul is also competing against the legacies of John Lennon and sometimes now George Harrison.I hate to list my favorite Beatles but if pressed to they come out as John,George,Paul and Ringo,and that was long before the two Beatles’ deaths.I have my own reasons for this,partially because John and George seemed to be more liberal(like myself)than Paul,but that’s not to say that Paul isn’t liberal ,too.History has suggested that McCartney was a royal pain in the ass to his bandmates,especially in the later years with his overbearing bossiness and perfectionism,and that may have been just as much a reason the Beatles broke up than Yoko,solo career yearnings,Apple and lawyers,etc.,and this too has tarnished his legacy.Having spouted all this shit,I still have to proclaim that Paul McCartney is one of the very finest singer-songwriter -musicians of this or any other era,and he really means the world to me,and besides with all his foibles he’s still regarded as a great guy,a humanitarian who has done much for charities throughout his career.If you ever get to see him perform live,please do yourself a favor and do so.You’ll be treated to a show containing the best songs of most of our lives,and you’d never believe it was coming from a performer past ‘64.

jonmarck | 4/23/2007, 9:40 pm EST

my guess is Neil Young tomorrow

gerardosaucedo | 4/23/2007, 8:03 pm EST

Macca is the greatest!

the hud | 4/23/2007, 7:29 pm EST

Paul McCartney is the greatest ever.

jimmyc | 4/23/2007, 6:39 pm EST

Appreciate true legends while you can folks, it looks like the music “bizness” is determined to make sure that there wont be any others. Love you Paul.

As for the interviewer…you truly suck “yes”.

sarah | 4/23/2007, 6:14 pm EST

Some people who posted here are so sick and yuckie! Jerks!

Mark Ebner | 4/23/2007, 6:14 pm EST

Paul is a scientologist! Read my book! Help me!

Sean | 4/23/2007, 6:05 pm EST

Paul is an amazing songwriter. In listening to post beatles albums by all the artists, you can really see what paul brought to john and what john brought to paul. Paul’s solo stuff is what shadowed him post beatles. Don’t get me wrong, there are some good albums and really good songs, but compared to imagine by lennon or all things must pass by harrison (also dark horse, living in the material world), he just didn’t have that continuing staying power. But the beatles in my opinion are the best band that ever lived and the work they did together was magic.

Gene - Palm Bay, FL | 4/23/2007, 5:50 pm EST

some of you people on here can be so ultra critical… even taking a stab at the interviewer, hmm I wonder what kind of interviewer YOU’D make! Who cares about the questions, he is chatting with a rock icon! Keep to the subject.. Paul is still great and very much a man to be admired. Thanks, Rolling Stone, for bringing us another glimpse of the living legend, Sir Paul McCartney!

klaatu | 4/23/2007, 5:49 pm EST

Paul is dead.

Macca Fan | 4/23/2007, 5:37 pm EST

Paul’s right, the Beatles were magic. There will never be another band that talented. I agree with 47, Paul deserves much more respect from the music press than he gets.

47 | 4/23/2007, 5:10 pm EST

Paul remains the least appreciated Beatle. Maybe even the most misunderstood. And his reputation today isn’t what it should be. He should be just as revered as Dylan, but he isn’t. I find that a shame.

Michael | 4/23/2007, 5:00 pm EST

hey Doug, considering Rolling Stone is a magazine on paper, i think the interview was meant for print. Anthony DeCurtis was not trying to be Larry King. it’s not supposed to be the Anthony DeCurtis radio show. and probably half of Rolling Stone interviews are probably done over the phone. it ends up edited on paper.

Morrissey | 4/23/2007, 4:51 pm EST

I just heard that Sir Paul has married for the 3rd and final time - this time to Courtney Love. I’m so glad he’s finally found a wife who can both sing AND dance and isn’t some psycho-bitch golddigger tramp. God bless you both, Paul and Courtney, and next week I plan to marry Simon Cowell.

Pete Best | 4/23/2007, 4:42 pm EST

Everyone says Paul and John were the brains behind the Beatles - but at least Ringo and George were never stupid enough to put their wives onstage. Anal bum cover!

bob america | 4/23/2007, 4:32 pm EST

www.myspace.com/bobamerica
Ho o Koo Ka Choo…
peace and love
and missles too

Doug | 4/23/2007, 4:20 pm EST

Macca LITERALLY “phoning it in.” Anthony DeCurtis is one helluvan interviewer, huh? Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

whazzzup | 4/23/2007, 3:54 pm EST

Beatles suck

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