He Seeks Wings Emergence From Wings Chrysalis (St. Paul 1976)

 

He Seeks Wings Emergence From Wings Chrysalis

By Jon Bream

The Minneapolis Star

June 8, 1976

    His eyes look the same-- big, brown, and expressive. His handsome, boyish face has grown fleshier, but his chin remains firm. His short, cropped hair is Beatle bang length on top and long in back. He is wearing a well-worn Hawaiian print shirt and blue jeans. Around his neck is a choker with ivory wings.

     Paul McCartney is a Wing, not a Beatle. It's Friday night, 15 minutes earlier, his group, Wings, finished a triumphant two-and-1/4-hour concert. McCartney is sitting on a couch in a dressing room at the St. Paul Civic Center Arena, smoking a cigarette. 

    For McCartney, it is a greater burden to be a former Beatle than it was to be a Beatle.  He says,  "A lot of people think that whatever happens can never be as good as the Beatles was. It's the kind of thing that's difficult to think about generally. Now I think it's there, and I'll go along with the people to a certain extent, but when it really gets to me, I finally remind them that I'm not in the Beatles anymore. You can't keep assuming I am, because then you're then living the myth, not me."

    McCartney is cordial, polite, and attentive. His brow furrows when he makes a point. He displays touches of the kind of silly humor seen in the Beatles movie Help and A Hard Day's Night. Since the Beatles dissolved in 1970, McCartney, the group's cute romantic melodist, has enjoyed the most commercially and critically successful career of the four Beatles. 

    John Lennon, the dark poet, formed the ad hoc Plastic Ono Band before going solo, singing politically oriented songs, and in the last couple of years, he has spent more time in court with various legal predicaments than with music.

     George Harrison, the shy mystic, has continued on his introspective ways in his solo career. His U.S. concert tour in 1974 was largely a disaster. Ringo Starr, the Good Timer, has had limited success recording novelty songs. 

    Only McCartney seriously pursued work in the context of a new band. Wings first appeared in 1971 on Wildfire, [sic] the third of seven albums McCartney has recorded since the Beatles broke up. 

    Wings frequently has changed personnel, except for McCartney and his wife, Linda Eastman McCartney, whom he married in 1969 and encouraged to pursue a musical career. McCartney has been preparing for his return to the States. In 1972 and 1973, Wings performed in Europe. In 1975, the band toured Great Britain, and earlier this year, it played in Australia [sic] and Europe. 

    "We had to gear it up for America," McCartney says. "American people don't seem to think of their country as big. It is the biggest place to tour on earth. We just did Europe with about 1/3 of this equipment."

     The current Wings tour marks McCartney's first U.S. performance since the Beatles' last concert in 1966 in San Francisco. The two-month tour will play 34 concerts before 600,000 persons and gross $5 million.

     McCartney is determined that Wings be recognized as a band on its own merits, not as ex-Beatle McCartney's new backup band. The tour's billed as Wings Over America.  On its record, the band is now identified as 'Wings', no longer 'Paul McCartney and Wings.'

     The singer-songwriter bassist has assembled a capable band that has more impact on stage than on record. In concert, the well-oiled pop recording group rocks in the good time spirit of Elton John.

     McCartney has a formidable sideman and New York drummer Joe English, British guitarist Jimmy McCulloch, formerly of Thunderclap Newman and Stone the Crows, and Denny Laine, co-founder of the Moody Blues, who also plays bass and keyboards on stage. Linda McCartney sings adequate schoolgirl harmonies and plays minimal keyboard fills. Her presence as a cheerleader for both the audience and the band seems to outweigh her musical contributions. McCartney is a personable, friendly, enthusiastic band leader on stage. He is a first-class showman who employs a tasteful array of stage effects, including laser, strobe lights, stage fog, bubbles, film, and smoke bombs. He has put together a top-flight show featuring Wings songs, Paul Simon's "Richard Cory" and five Beatles songs, including his classic "Yesterday."

 McCartney is plugging for Wings "because I'm in it. I have to want anything I'm in to be good."

    The last three of the five Wings albums, Band on the Run, Venus and Mars, and At the Speed of Sound, each have sold more than 1 million copies. At the concerts, concessionaries hawk Wings T-shirts, posters, and souvenir programs. A crew is filming the tour for a possible movie, yet McCartney emphatically does not want Wingsmania in the 70s to become the phenomenon that Beatlemania was in the 60s. "I'm sure it won't, and I hope it doesn't, and it really shouldn't, because I think we've moved ahead. It's a new time. The symptoms of these years are different, and the audiences are different. I wouldn't want to recreate the old audience and get it back to the '60s. That's been and gone. It was great. You don't really want to be back there. I don't, I don't think most people do like this sort of advancement."

     McCartney acknowledges that the Beatles were catalysts, partly responsible for the advancement of culture in the '60s. He feels it was unintentional, though. "I only came into it to make music," he says, "I don't think about it thematically, I just think about writing songs, writing tunes, writing music, getting into stuff I like. I have no control over how people take my songs."

     For instance, McCartney explains his purpose behind "Helter Skelter", a Beatles song he wrote that inspired the hideous crimes of the Charles Manson family. "I was writing sort of a down blues, and I wanted to get into a funky screaming thing as just sort of a release, but Manson took it very differently. I certainly didn't mean any of the things he says I meant, but I say (he raises his voice) tt has nothing to do with me, man!

     McCartney's goal for his life and career are simple: "just to feel that what I'm doing is right. I like to be happy," he says, "to satisfy my own personal standards."

     Since the Beatles' disbandment, McCartney, 33, has become a family man. His three daughters, Heather, 13, by Linda's first marriage, Mary, six, and Stella, four, are accompanying him and Linda on the tour. Critics have charged that all of McCartney's post-Beatles albums, except for the brilliant Band on the Run in 1974, have fallen victim to his marital bliss. Each of his first four albums had a strong single, but the albums are unmemorable. His singles, including non-album cuts like "Live and Let Die" and "Junior's Farm", have sold well consistently.

     One critic recently asserted that the pretty sweet balladeer harbors an ambivalence towards the culture to help deliver. "I don't agree," McCartney responds. "People spout off and think they've got the gist of it, and I don't pretend anyone's got the gist of it.

     "I like what happened and believe in what went on in the 6'0s, and still want to see wars come to an end. I want to see the kind of wrong things in life changed, but I don't necessarily want to see it change the way some other people do. So we differ."

     He is aware that to some people he's a hero and a legend, but McCartney feels no obligation because of that. "There is the hero side. It exists in the papers at arm's length. It's nothing I really get into. I don't want to have to behave like a hero all the time, cause I also know myself as a person, that's the real thing, so he contented.

     McCartney sings in his current hit, "Silly Love Songs:"  "Some people want to fill the world with silly  love songs, and what's wrong with that? I'd like to know, because here I go again...."

     On record, it's an infectious discotheque romp. In concert, "Silly Love Songs" becomes an exuberant rocker showcasing the superb melodist's exceptional gift for arranging. "It's just sort of an up song for love. I just write them, don't ask me to explain them." Today it's Silly Love Songs for McCartney. Tomorrow, there's another Wings album, some more Wings tours, and more unfounded rumors of a Beatles reunion.

Paul McCartney Still Inspires Beatlemania (St. Paul 1976)

That is "Blond Brenda" in the lower right corner

 Paul McCartney Still Inspires Beatlemania

By Mike Newgren

Post Bulletin

June 7, 1976

    Having grown up during the apex of Beatlemania, listening to "She Loves You" and "I Want to Hold Your Hand" for hours on end led me to consider Paul McCartney more than just another rock star. That would easily explain why I've spent the last month eagerly awaiting Friday night's Paul McCartney and Wings concert at the St. Paul Civic Center. My wait was well worth its duration after watching the former Beatle perform for two hours.

    

     Oh, the voice is fading, and there are a few wrinkles on his boyish-looking face, but that didn't matter. It was Paul McCartney, resplendent in a yellow t-shirt, black satin suit, and white-and-black shoes, and that in itself was enough. 

    I arrived at the Civic Center at 5:28pm, two and a half hours before the concert was scheduled to begin, thinking that would give me plenty of time to avoid the rush before the doors opened at six. I was wrong. There were 1000s of people milling around the building when I found my way to one of the doors marked 'entrance'. Some had sleeping bags tucked under their arms, and one man in his mid 20s said he had driven down from Montreal to see the concert. It was obvious that I wasn't the only person who remembered how the shaggy-haired, blue-eyed boy from Liverpool set hearts fluttering over a decade ago, when he, John, George, and Ringo were the idols of millions of teenagers. 

    The doors opened at 6:03, and there was a mad rush to get inside to grab a seat as close to the stage as possible. By 6:30, the place was half full. Approximately 17,000 people attended the concert. As the minutes slowly ticked away towards 8 o'clock, the rumors began to trickle through the civic center. 

    Someone said they saw John Lennon. "I hear Ringo Starr's going to sit in on drums for a couple of numbers," a teenage boy kept repeating. Lennon and Starr never showed, but it made little difference whatsoever to the audience. It came to see McCartney the leader of Wings, a band that includes his wife, Linda, didn't let his fans down.

     He pranced out on the stage at 8:04 and sang two songs, "Venus and Mars" and "Jet", before uttering a word, but when he did speak, the crowd went wild. "Thanks a lot, St. Paul", he said, almost being drowned out by a thunderous ovation. "You're great. How are you doing? All right", and then he flashed a big smile, gave the peace sign, and shouted, "Welcome to Minnesota!"

     "Listen", he added, after singing, "Maybe I'm Amazed," "It's really nice for us to be here this evening, so just enjoy yourself, because I know we will."

     And enjoy himself is exactly what McCartney did. It was evident that he was having a good time, as he joked with the audience, gave numerous thumbs up and number one signals to the crowd, and stomped his feet on the stage after most of the songs.

     In addition to his most recent hit records with Wings, McCartney also sang five numbers that were recorded by the Beatles. "Lady Madonna", "I've just seen a face," "Yesterday, "" Blackbird, and "The Long and Winding Road."

     "This is where we have a little sit down and play our acoustic guitars," McCartney said shortly before breaking into "Yesterday", which is perhaps the most popular song ever recorded by the Beatles. When he finished, he held two guitars high in the air to acknowledge the standing ovation from the audience.

     "I can see those big blue eyes all the way up here!" one woman sighed from the balcony.

     "Say, listen," McCartney explained at 9:58. "We're getting near the end of the show, and you've been a grand wee bunch. Thanks for coming."  With that, Wings played "Band on the Run", and the concert was over. 

    "I don't care if the Beatles ever get back together again", one girl told her friend as they left the Civic Center and headed for the parking lot. "Paul McCartney will always be a Beatle, as far as I'm concerned."

Look over there

 

Are Mop Tops Real? Yeah Yeah Yeah (Minneapolis Press Conference 1965)

 

Are Mop Tops Real?  Yeah Yeah Yeah

By Allen Holbert

Star Tribune

August 22, 1965

The Beatles – the most Interesting thing about England since Christine Keeler- held a press conference Saturday in the Minnesota room of Metropolitan Stadium.

It was a 12-microphone and five TV camera press conference with about 150 warm bodies crowded into an even warmer, smoke-filled room. At 5:27 p.m., the Beatles walked into the room, led by five policemen carrying wooden sticks that were 42 inches long.

 First was Ringo Starr, still wearing his red and white striped polo shirt with a brown coat over it. Then came John (the poet and author) Lennon with a similar red and white polo shirt with a black long-sleeved shirt over it and a blue cap with three brass buttons on it. Next was Paul McCartney in a gray suit. Then George Harrison, who wore a suede coat and jeans. All of them were smoking, except Paul, who was chewing gum.

 The questions covered a number of significant topics, including:

 Disc jockey:  Paul, would you hold up one of these shirts? (The disc jockey thrust one onto the table in front of him.)

 Paul:  No.

 Disc Jockey: Please!  My station said, I have to have you do it.

 Paul:  Don't do everything you're told, or you'll get in trouble.

Q:  George, hold up this cigar.

George:  I don't like cigars.

Q:  John, how much was your hat?

 John:  I got it free when I arrived in Minneapolis.

Q:  Ringo, what do you think of your fans?

 Ringo: The ones who scream and shout are a bunch of idiotic lunatics.

 Q:  Is your hair real?

 George:  Our hair's real, lady. What about yours?

 Q:  What do you do with all your money?

Ringo:  We bury it.

 Q:  When you do a new song, how do you decide who sings the lead?

 John:  We just get together, and whoever knows most of the words sings the lead.

 Q:  How do you sleep with your hair that long?

George:  How do you sleep with your arms and legs still hooked on?

 Q:  I'm such and so from wonderful rock and roll, such and so radio station.

 George:  How do you do? I'm wonderful George from wonderful, WWW.

 Q:  I understand you're all good friends of Elvis Presley.

 Beatles  (In unison):  We've never met Elvis Presley.

 After the Beatles, who mumbled to each other and laughed throughout the press conference, had finished putting down all the teenagers and disc jockeys, they ended the fun, but not until one blonde teenager stood up and yelled, “If you ever come to Omaha, you can stay at my house!”  Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Replied The Beatles.

 

 

Photos from Minneapolis

 

Beatles are People Just Like You and I

 

Beatles Are People Just Like You and I

By Karen Christianson 

The Albert Lea Tribune

September 2, 1965

Part 3 of 3

    Before the end of the last number, Chris and I ran to her car. As we neared the gate where it was parked, a small green and white laundry truck sped past, followed by a limousine. We later learned that the Beatles were in the laundry truck and that a Minneapolis band had been used as a decoy in the limousine. Ringo sat in the front seat of the truck wearing a laundry cap, and the others were hidden in the back. 

    The fans would not believe that the Beatles had left the stadium, and they pounded on the gate until they broke through. The security police quickly shoved them back, telling them that The Beatles were gone. 

    Chris and I waited for Mr. Glass, and when he finally appeared, He was accompanied by Don Short and Chris Hutchins, two men closely associated with the Beatles who work for the London Daily Mirror. Mr. Hutchins wore his hair rather long, and as we drove through the gates, fans jumped on the car, pounded the windows, and pulled wildly at the locked doors with cries of "Ringo's in there. I know he is!" "I can see him!"  We were all terrified. With horns blaring to clear the way before us, we drove through the mob and left the stadium. 

    From there, we slowly made our way in heavy traffic to the Lemmington Motor Hotel, where the Beatles had taken the entire fifth floor for themselves and their entourage. After telling the security police that we were with the Beatles' party. Mr. Short and Mr. Hutchins asked us to wait in the lobby until they could arrange for us to meet the Beatles.

     We waited for several hours, then they appeared and motioned us into the elevator, which took us to the fifth floor. Security Officer at the elevator was shown Mr. Short and Mr. Hutchins credentials, and was told that we were with the Beatles' party. He let us pass. We walked to the end of the long corridor. 

    We were admitted into room 550 and, on shaking legs, we stood face to face with John, Paul, George, and Ringo. They were sprawled casually across the two double beds, watching a James Stewart Western on television. 

    I uttered a rather weak "Hello."  They all looked up, grinned, and John said, "Hello, come in and sit down if you can find a place."  Louise Harrison Caldwell, Georgia's older sister, was sitting in the only chair. So Chris and I sat at the end of Ringo's bed with Ringo's feet between us. 

    John and Ringo were dressed in matching sweatshirts. Paul badly needed a shave, and George's hair was quite untidy. Other than that, all the Beatles impressed me as being much better looking in person than in their pictures. They have fair complexions, no blemishes, and are slightly built. Paul has the darkest brown hair of the four, and George has the thickest British accent. 

    I asked Ringo if he liked to watch television. And he answered, "Yeah, I do." Then, I asked him if he liked American television programs. He said, "Yeah, I really like those westerns, you know." Incidentally, the Beatles' next movie is going to be a Western. 

    Paul asked us if we would each like one of his British cigarettes as a souvenir. It is a rare brand manufactured in South Africa. Of course, we said, "Yes."  Paul impressed me as being the most polite Beatle. George asked us if we were hungry. Neither of us had eaten all day, so we gladly accepted the sandwiches and orange juice they gave us.

     Once, I went to the window to look down at the crowd of patient fans five stories below. Immediately, they began to scream, "There's a Beatle. It's John." "No, it's George." "Oh, it's Paul. Paul!" I quickly withdrew my head. 

    We watched more television and chatted until a security officer asked us to leave so that the Beatles could rest up for their trip to Portland, Oregon. Chris and I said goodbye to the Beatles and reluctantly left the room. 

    My impression of them has changed slightly. There are four very nice, polite young men, but I now realize that the Beatles are real people, just like everyone else. They are neither Gods nor idols. Any fascination with them that I had before I met them is now completely gone. I no longer consider myself a true fan. I still enjoy their music, but I consider myself only a casual observer of their phenomenal career.

     At times, the experience of meeting them seems unreal, like a faraway dream, but it was not a dream that I met, touched, and talked to the fabulous Beatles; it was very, very real.

Back Route Getaway Lead to The Beatles

 

Back Route Getaway Leads to The Beatles

By Karen Christienson

The Albert Lea Tribune

September 1, 1965

Part 2 of 3

    As Paul McCartney neared the limousine, a young girl broke through the police line and grabbed him. She cried, "I love you, Paul. I love you," over and over. Paul only smiled and continued to wave until the policeman pulled the girl away. 

    Then all the Beatles quickly entered the limousine and locked the doors. I saw Chris running toward her car and followed. Don Glass joined us, and we took a back road from the airport, only to find ourselves in the official cavalcade and only two cars behind the Beatles' limousine.

     Shortly afterward, however, the highway patrol pulled us over, but when Mr. Glass showed his credentials, we were quickly waved on. It was a wild ride to Met Stadium where the Beatles were due for a 5:30pm press conference in the Minnesota Room. 

    We drove through the gates and were locked inside. Mr. Glass said he would try to get Chris and me into the conference, but he was afraid it would be impossible, because the security was tight and we were not properly authorized. 

    After waiting nearly an hour for him, Chris and I went through the stadium to the Minnesota Room. The room was packed. No one else was allowed inside. We waited outside until the press conference was over and Mr. Glass came out.

     He told us to go to our seats in the stadium and wait for him there. It was the first time I had been in Met Stadium, and I was very impressed. The gates were not due to open for 10 minutes, and 1000s of empty seats surrounded us.

     At 5:55pm, the gates opened and the fans began to pour into the stadium. Mr. Glass joined us and played back his tape of the entire press conference, which ended with a presentation of a 12-string guitar to George Harrison. He was very pleased. 

    The performance began at 7:30. The Beatles were preceded by the King Curtis Band, Cannibal and the Head Hunters, Brenda Holloway, and Sounds, Inc., a great band from England. 

    At 8:40, Bill Diehl announced the group that everyone had eagerly been waiting for, the Beatles! With John, Paul, and George carrying their guitars and John wearing a Twins cap, the Beatles walked casually from the dugout to the large platform on the pitcher mound, waving piley all the way. 

    The stadium seemed to explode with the sound of screams, shouts, clapping hands, and stamping feet. The Beatles mounted the platform, and Paul introduced and sang the first number, "She's a Woman". At every wave of a guitar and hand or shake of Ringo's head, the stands would burst with screams.

     Then the Beatles sang, "I Feel Fine", "Dizzy, Miss Lizzy", "Ticket to Ride", and "Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby."  Paul said during this next song, "You can do whatever you feel like doing. You can clap your hands, shout, stamp your feet, or snap your fingers."

    Then he yelled, "Can you hear me?" And we all yelled back, "Yeah!". Paul shook his head and said, "No, no, you're supposed to say 'Yes, Uncle Paul.'" Shouts of "Yes, Uncle Paul" resounded in the stadium. 

    After this introduction, the Beatles swung into a wild "Can't Buy Me Love". The next song was "Baby's in Black", a slow, mournful ballad. And introducing it, John said "It's from another one of our albums, because that's the only one we know. It's a waltz. You know, a slow waltz, and you can waltz to it, if you like."  During the song, Paul began to waltz around the platform with his guitar, much to the fans amusement. Then Ringo Starr put forth a lively, "I Want To Be Your Man." As he sang, the fans cried, "Ringo Ringo! We love Ringo!" The last three songs were "A Hard Day's Night," "Help", and "I'm Down". By this time, John sounded as though he had a bad case of laryngitis.

She will Long Remember Day The Beatles Appeared

 

She Will Long Remember Day The Beatles Appeared

By Karen Christianson

The Albert Lea Tribune

August 31, 1965

    (Karen Christanson, daughter of Mrs. Catherine Christanson of Albert Lea, a 1965 graduate of Albert Lea High School, was one of the lucky ones by teenage standards, to get a glimpse, to talk, and spend some time in Minneapolis when the Beatles appeared there recently. The account of her experience before and during the show starts today in a three-part Tribune series.)

 Part one of three.

     August 21 was a very special Saturday for 1000s of Minnesota teenagers. It was the day the Beatles arrived in Minneapolis to do a swingin' show at Met Stadium, and it was a day I will long remember.

     The Beatles were due to arrive at the old terminal building on Wold-Chamberlain field at 415 on Saturday afternoon. After my press card passed the inspection of five top security police, I was let through the gate onto the strip of field where the Beatles' plane would finally taxi to a halt. 

    My triumph was the fan's dismay. Screams of "Get her out of there!"  "How does she rate?" And "Don't let her near the Beatles!" pierce the air.

     One of the security police kiddingly told me that he was "my personal bodyguard."  At 3pm, many of the 3000-4000 fans had already gathered to welcome their idols, carrying large signs, reading, "Welcome Beatles," "We love the Beatles!" and  "Paul, Paul, Paul." They crowded against the heavy, spiked-topped fence, singing, "Help," the Beatles' current hit. 

    Several rescue squad ambulances were standing by in case of casualties and an estimated 95 tan uniform police were prepared to hold back the mob. Hoses were uncoiled in front of the fence. 

    Time slowly wore on. I became acquainted with Don Glass, a Canadian and personal friend of the Beatles who had acted as master of ceremonies during their highly successful Toronto performances. As we talked, he mentioned that he would be staying with the Beatles at their hotel. I asked him if there would be any chance for me to meet the Beatles. He said he would "think about it."

     A short time later, Mr. Glass introduced me to Chris Hill, who works for a Minneapolis radio station. He said that we could use her car and he would try to use his influence so that Chris and I could meet the Beatles.

     At 3:45, one of the policemen went to the center of the field with a loudspeaker and announced that The Beatles' plane would arrive four minutes earlier than scheduled. The announcement was greeted with screams and sighs. "If weather permitted", he continued, "The Beatles would pose for a 15-minute picture-taking session, as long as the fans stayed where they were. The minute any of you tried to climb the fence or make any move to get close to the Beatles", he said "they would have to leave."

     At 4:11 pm., approaching any plane or jet that passed overhead caused screams and shouts of "there they are! and They are early." One could almost feel the extreme tenseness in the air as police, firemen, ambulance squad, press, photographers, and fans strained for the sight of the Beatles' charter jet.

     I chatted with Bill Diehl of  WDGY and Ray Colihan, promoter of the Beatles show, for a few moments. Then, at 4:12, a huge silver jet taxied around the corner of a nearby hangar toward the waiting crowd. John, Paul, George, and Ringo had landed. Pandemonium broke loose. Girls screamed hysterically. Police sprang into action, and the press and photographers ran forward. 

    The door of the jet opened,  and the steps were put into place. Several men quickly left the jet when Ringo Starr appeared, wearing large sunglasses and a happy smile. He stood for a moment, surveying the fans, then he waved and descended the stairs. John, Paul, and George followed close behind.

     Everyone was jostled in the rush, and several girls were flung bodily away by the police. Despite this, I managed to take several pictures of the Beatles and escaped with badly bruised ribs.

The boys

 

John always has an answer

Come sail away

I love how creative Beatle fans were in the 1960's.  How could the Beatles miss seeing this sail boat?

Up front and personal

Welcome to another Beatles press conference

The arrival

It always throws me when the Beatles arrive and there aren't a bunch of people crowding around the plane to see them.   Why only the one photographer and one police?

Is it them?

One overzealous fan

She should have waited just a few more seconds and the Beatles would have been coming off the plane instead of Tony Barrow, Bob Bonis (I think) and Wendy Hanson. 

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Break for a quick bite

Sign this please

Close but no cigar

For those of you who don't know (or dont' remember) what this photo is all about, here is the story that goes along with it.

http://www.meetthebeatlesforreal.com/2012/01/another-installment-of-girls-who-met.html