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The Sydney Morning Herald
November 9, 1975
A crowd of 5,200 cheering fans greeted Paul McCartney and his band Wings as they walked on stage at the Horden Pavilion on Friday night, but the foot stomping and hand clapping soon gave way to awed silence as the near legendary McCartney brandished his bass guitar and slipped into a song from Venus and Mars, the band's new album.
McCartney urged on by the crowd, engaged in light banter before he fortook his famed bass for a grand piano. The rafters of the Pavilion shook as he played the first few bars of "Lady Madonna." No sooner had the ecstatic applause died than McCartney launched into "The Long and Winding Road" by which time part of the audience had surged to the foot of the stage.
The old Beatle charisma was still there, but now the crowd listened, except for a young girl and an agile youth who clamored on stage to hug her idol.
Band members, Denny Laine,( ex Moody Blues), Jimmy McCulloch, Joe English and McCartney's wife Linda threw the full weight of their considerable musical talent behind their baby faced leader.
An acoustic set that started in a bright hand-clapping way ended with McCartney solo and center stage singing "Yesterday," the 5,200 could stand it no longer. They stood on their seats and broke into deafening applause.
For more than two hours, McCartney and Wings held them captive. Then, when it was all over, the crowd yelled for more. Two encores could not satisfy them, and finally, McCartney placated them by throwing flowers. Wiping sweat from his face, he announced that the band had run out of songs to play. He then left, as he had entered, to the loudest, longest ovation heard at the Pavilion for many years.
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