Lexington • Saturday, June 1, 2019

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From Kentucky.com, June 2, 2019:

Paul McCartney had the sold-out audience of 19,000 before him sized up pretty well as his tireless and irrepressibly fun concert headed into the home stretch Saturday evening at Rupp Arena.

Noting that performances of his Beatles classics usually triggered “a galaxy of stars” through the glow of cell phones from eager fans while the delivery of new songs amounted, in terms of expectation and interest, to “a black hole,” he unapologetically launched into “Fuh You,” the third of three tunes from his 2018 album “Egypt Station.”

Maybe the audience showed a sliver of sympathy for the seemingly orphaned tune or perhaps they were taken by the its bright pop melodicism which sounded like the direct descendent of a Beatles gem. Regardless, the cell phones came out and lit up Rupp like a Christmas tree for the song. […]

As for McCartney directly, he remains something of a wonder onstage. Two weeks shy of his 77^thbirthday, he looked fit, sang with surprisingly unblemished gusto (yes, a few cracks of age appeared, but nothing more than what most rock singers half his age reveal in performance) and flowed with the program’s length and drive as it were a casual stroll. A testament to his stamina was the encore segment, which had him ripping through a reserved but still immediate version of “Helter Skelter,” one of the Beatles’ most savagely electric works, after navigating a full 2 ½ hour set. McCartney didn’t look even remotely winded afterward either. […]

Worth noting that Paul skipped “Band On The Run” for that concert !

From Paul McCartney.com, June 21, 2019:

A stretch of more than a quarter century between shows came to an end with Paul’s return to the Rupp Arena in Lexington KY for the first time since 1990.

Prior to the show, Paul had the occasion to get reacquainted with Babydaddy from Scissor Sisters—who was in his hometown of Lexington visiting family—including his father Philip, once a young attendee of Beatles shows who finally got the chance to express his gratitude for Paul’s music in person. Of that once in a lifetime experience, Babydaddy’s daddy said:

 “I was able to go see them at a concert at Busch Stadium in St. Louis in the rain, in 1965… I have every British and American Album and have two early Beatle full band autograph sets.

I had not been able to see Paul McCartney again since that concert in 1965.

When I heard he was coming to Lexington with this concert tour, I decided that it would be great for the whole family to go. Our three boys are also big Beatle fans. As you know Scott (a/k/a Babydaddy) was in a pretty famous band called the Scissor Sisters and he had been able to meet Paul at Live 8 in 2008.

Because of his connections, he was able to take me to meet Paul when he came to Lexington last week.

This was an amazing thrill for me. It is not often that you get to meet one of your heroes. Paul was friendly and down to earth, just as I would have suspected.

He talked with us for a few minutes and accepted a book that one of my other son’s best friends had written. The book concerned a horse that was bred in Lexington and led to Pete Best’s mother winning money enough to build the Casbah Coffee Club in Liverpool where the Quarrymen played.

Paul was very interested and held the book up when we took photos. It was overall a great experience. And by the way, the show was amazing. Probably the best rock concert I have seen.”

… this from someone who saw The Beatles in 1965! I can’t come close to topping that, so… on to five consecutive first ever Paul shows in…

From Steve Martin, Paul’s US Publicist

Last updated on June 22, 2019