Paul McCartney Shared What Impressed Him Most About John Lennon When They First Met
In Liverpool in the 1960s, finding other young people who shared a passion for rock n’ roll music was hard. The pair immediately bonded when Paul McCartney first met John Lennon, thanks to their shared love of music and songwriting. They would later bring in George Harrison, but they became a dynamic duo that led The Beatles to international stardom. McCartney recalled the day he met Lennon, saying one thing, in particular, impressed him the most.
Paul McCartney was impressed that John Lennon was making up music on the spot
In an interview with This Cultural Life podcast, Paul McCartney recalled the first time he met John Lennon. While Lennon was older than the young singer, they had a mutual friend who decided they would be a good match. At the time, Lennon was part of a band called The Quarrymen, who were performing at the Woolton Village Fete.
McCartney attended and was immediately drawn to the future “Imagine” singer. The main reason was that whatever Lennon was singing, he was making up all the words on the spot.
“I was at Woolton Village Fete. John lived in Woolton. And his friend, Ivan, was my best friend at school,” McCartney explained. “And one day, he said, ‘You know, I’ve got a mate I think you’d like.’ So, we went to the fete. They were playing. And later, we just chatted. And I knew a couple of songs that I could do, and I knew all the lyrics, which was very impressive ‘cause John was doing stuff we didn’t know all the lyrics. He was making them up, which I found was very impressive. So, I thought he was pretty cool for that.”
McCartney auditioned for Lennon to join The Quarrymen
Paul McCartney had been practicing guitar for years and wanted to impress John Lennon with his homegrown skills. After seeing his band at the fete. Macca wanted to join The Quarrymen and be a part of a local rock band. So, he took his guitar with him and played a few songs for Lennon.
“One thing led to another – typical teenage boys posturing and the like – and lended up showing off a little by playing Eddie Cochran’s ‘Twenty Flight Rock’ on the guitar,” McCartney shared in The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present. “I think l also played Gene Vincent’s ‘Be-Bop-a-Lula’ and a few Little Richard songs too.”
Macca wasn’t sure if joining Lennon’s band was the best idea
After his audition, John Lennon wanted Paul McCartney to join his band. However, he didn’t ask himself. He sent the washboard player, Pete Shotton, to recruit the young singer instead of being direct. While McCartney was excited to advance his music career, he wasn’t sure if it was the right step.
Pursuing music or any career in the arts is a risk. Since McCartney was from a working-class family, he wasn’t sure if he could take that risk. In The Lyrics, he wrote, “I wasn’t exactly playing hard to get. But I was a careful young fellow. I wondered whether I really wanted to be in a band. Was this a good thing, or should I be trying to study for school?”
Eventually, he decided to join the band and later brought in his schoolmate, George Harrison. The three would later form The Beatles and complete the group with Ringo Starr on drums in 1962. It’s amazing that three kids from Liverpool would form the most successful band of all time, but their story inspires anyone looking to pursue music.
