Paul McCartney Magic Still Lives (Detroit 1976)

 Paul McCartney Magic Still Lives 

By Anthony A. Rocha

The Saginaw News

May 8, 1976

    "A living legend." Few people can live up to such praise in today's music. Under the generic term of "rock", Paul McCartney stands out as a giant. His two-day stop in Michigan, Friday and Saturday, was met with an enthusiastic response in the manner given to the original mopheads, the Beatles, in the mid-1960s. 

    Wings, his group, and the Wings Over America tour brought to Detroit's Olympia Stadium a musical entertainment package matched by very few groups in today's rock concert scene. More than 18,000 fans, both nights, jammed into the hockey arena for a glimpse of their hero. That the McCartney influence on music stretches more than 12 years was evident in the program, which offered the tunes of McCartney and Wings along with classic standards from the McCartney-Lennon era. "Yesterday" and "Lady Madonna" are examples. 

    It was the magic of one of the top performers in today's music industry on the concert stage, complete with effective lighting and pyrotechnics, a songwriter and showman, McCartney recaptured the Beatlemania fans and drew a sizable number of younger people without memory of the mid 60s. Its musical quality has given rise to a wide range of acceptance since it is not simply limited to rock and roll. 

    The experience of the weekend has to be noted in terms of total impact: the more than two hours of performances and the Wings appearances around the country until June 22 will go a long way toward giving added stature to McCartney. Speculation is right for a reunion of the original Beatles. Multi-million dollar guarantees are being offered and considered. McCartney's position can only be strengthened with the success of his American tour.

     The 1976 edition of the Wings concert is total entertainment. When the lights went down after a film of poetic images on an overhead 40 by 20-foot screen, complete with classical music  (Beethoven, Bach, etc), the crowd was ready for the appearance of McCartney. The electronic guitar sound and vocals of McCartney were balanced with the talented brass instrumentation of musicians gathered for many quarters. The tasteful trumpet work of Steve Howard in "Long and Winding Road" will lend many such McCartney touches evident throughout the performance. 

    McCartney worked between his guitar and piano on selections ranging from " Jet " to  "Lie and Let's Go " [sic]. The acoustic guitar (non-amplified) selections were masterful, giving way to a showcase of McCartney's enduring talent. His solo renditions of the classic " Yesterday " gave way to a rush of memories for old Beatles enthusiasts and produced a crowd response at once overwhelming and appreciative of McCartney's work. "Band on the Run" was the album highlighted during the performance of the closing selection.  The album's title cut was set to an interpretive film of band members dressed in black, with the prison spotlight; the interesting camera close-ups of the individuals were coordinated with the song. 

    McCartney's prime situation centers on his family and Wings; the spokesman for the group would neither deny nor confirm the possible reunion talks.

     It's difficult to predict the impact of the concert visit of such a powerful show and the subsequent pressure of the high-rise tag on the entertainment. A local FM radio station offered tickets and trips for the McCartney show at the special rate of $30 per person; the expense appears obviously unbearable for some, despite the "it's worth it" notion. In the future, will major concerts drive such special rates even higher? Station officials were not available for comment.

Wings Hands

 May 9, 2001 - Cannes France 

Fans meeting Paul in Berlin

May 7, 2001 
 

A Day of Golf

 May 7, 1971 

At Kinfauns

 May 7, 1966 - Kinfauns 

On the House For Ringo! (1986)

 

I know this is a light-hearted story from 1986, but I can't help but feel a little sad reading it and knowing what we know now about Ringo and Barb's alcoholism during this time in their lives.  If they kept drinking like this, neither one of them would be with us today -- or if they were, Ringo wouldn't be able to keep up with touring and jumping jacks on stage.  So let this be a cautionary tale to Beatles fans everywhere—if you're struggling with addiction, get help!  Ringo did, and look how great he is doing today! 

From the Daily Record

May 8. 1986

I saw him standing there

 

Honeymoon to the Tonight Show

 May 6, 1981

Just married and still promoting their movie 

The Night Beatlemania was Born (1981)

 Well, this article from 1981 is quite a mess, isn't it?  We all know that Ringo didn't join the group until 1962 -- to say they weren't popular in Hamburg was not correct, and the concert this whole article was based on -- the Beatles at the Liverpool Empire -- I see no record of that show!    One thing is right -- the Beatles deserved to be recognized and remembered.   I share this just to show you how misinformation was out in the public and taken at face value even in 1981.   At that time, we didn't even have a list of all the concerts the Beatles performed!  (although I am sure that fan did know that Ringo joined in 1962).  This is why Beatle historicians have their work cut out for them.  We have to sift through all the lies to get to the truth.   How many false things do you see in this article?

The Night Beatlemania was Born

By Chris Powell

Reading Evening Post

May 30, 1981

    They had been brought onto the bill as the last moment to replace a beat group that failed to turn up. They were thin, pale, and rebellious, with their rickety amplification gear threatening to short-circuit the theater's powerful system, but that Sunday night in the winter of 1961, show business history was made. Beatlemania had been born, and the management of the Liverpool Empire didn't know what hit them.

     John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr had just returned home, broke, bemused, and beaten after a disastrous period playing in Hamburg clubs. Their loud, abrasive, and strangely new beat music had left German fans unmoved, and a change of name from Long John and the Silver Men to the Silver Beatles hadn't helped much either.

     Now billed simply as The Beatles, their new manager, Brian Epstein, had squeezed them into one of the Empire Sunday night pop concerts. From that moment, they were destined to become the biggest sensation in the history of the recording industry. In the Empire that night was Liverpool carpenter John Chambers, today probably the world's greatest fan of the famous Four, and prime mover in a current campaign to get the group immortalized in statues and other memorials. 

    "Looking back over two decades," John told me, "I will never forget that night at the Empire. There must have been a million guys playing guitar around Liverpool in those days, but I'd never seen the sort of reaction the Beatles aroused. The place went absolutely mad. The way the music sent the fans wild was almost magical.

    "I think it's fair to say that The Beatles' legend was created that night, and for me, it's never been broken. "

    The following year, encouraged by Brian Epstein, The Beatles arrived in London. Six months later, they were top of the hit parade, and for the next 10 glittering years, they could do no wrong. John Chambers had recognized the Beatles' potential long before that memorable night at the Liverpool Empire. 

    He had chatted with the group over espresso coffee in Liverpool cafes and listened to their sessions at the city's rock mecca, the dingy Cavern Club. And from the beginning, he was convinced that they would one day become the world's greatest rock group. Today, the Beatles are still legends in their home city. Shrines of the four youngsters who toppled Elvis Presley from his apparently impregnable throne as King of Rock, and made themselves into legends in the process.

     John Chambers remembers, "It was over 20 years ago when I started attending lunchtime sessions at the Cavern Club and first discovered the Beatles, who were then a very minor group. Their music has obsessed me ever since. With a friend, I've collected every single Beatles record that's ever been produced, including some pirate productions.

     About four years ago, we decided that it was about time Liverpool made some sort of official recognition of the Beatles. So with two friends, I formed the Beatles Monument Campaign to get something done. Earlier this year, the city council, at last, started to take the project seriously. Money is starting to come in, and a bank is handling the funds.

     "Already, we're getting a tremendous response and have commissioned a Beatle statue by John Doubleday, the sculptor who did the Charlie Chaplin statue recently in London. A major building company has already agreed to name streets in a new housing development in Liverpool after the Beatles, including Stu Sutcliffe, Pete Best, and their first real manager, the late Brian Epstein."

    Today, the Beatles represent not just one generation, but all those who followed since. And there can't be anybody anywhere in the world who doesn't know who they are. The campaign organizers have written for support to the Queen. "Although she replied that she couldn't do anything officially to help us, Buckingham Palace did send us good wishes for our campaign. So did the former Prime Minister James Callahan, as well as disc jockeys and showbiz celebrities. 

     "There's no chance that the Beatles will ever be forgotten, but those of us who grew up with them just want to make sure that they receive the recognition that we know they deserve. They were and are part of our lives."

Whatever Gets You Thru the Night