Paul McCartney fans have been on a first-name basis with their musical hero for decades, but McCartney himself often seems happy to credit other one-namers. That includes John, George and Ringo, but also Jimi (Hendrix) and Nancy (Shevell, McCartney’s wife of 14 years) — all of whom were praised during a Saturday night concert at Coors Field.
Throughout the triumphant show, the 83-year-old McCartney paid tribute with songs, stories and videos, even performing a virtual duet with footage of John Lennon atop the Apple Corps building in 1969 — a.k.a. the Beatles’ final performance — on “I’ve Got a Feeling.”
McCartney is currently 78 shows into his Got Back Tour, which started in 2022 and winds up next month, and on Saturday, he gave the impression he would happily play 78 more. His weathered voice still carries enormous emotional weight, and his guitar, bass, mandolin, ukulele and piano playing (he rocked them all) shot holes in any argument that he’s not still a passionate, disciplined musician.
His three-hour set delved into a mix of Beatles, Wings and solo songs that will be familiar to anyone who saw him play Ball Arena (then called the Pepsi Center) in 2002, 2005 or 2010. At that last show, McCartney was in typically friendly form, also doling out credit to lost friends and lovers as he tore through tracks such as “Day Tripper” and “Got to Get You Into My Life.”
But set lists change, and while we didn’t get any “Paperback Writer” or “Eleanor Rigby” this time around, we did get “Help!” (the concert’s opening song) and a nearly note-perfect “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!” That 1967 song, in particular, felt like a gloriously psychedelic outlier in a show that was mostly safe in its selection, if also deeply sweet and sad at times. McCartney’s coy, gentle butt-slapping (his own, of course), trademark surprised-faces, and other improbably charming, boyish touches blurred the decades and tied it all together.
Even if you’ve listened to the studio version 1,000 times, hearing McCartney sing “Band on the Run” or “Hey Jude” in concert is a uniquely stirring experience, and the capacity crowd swayed, raised their phone lights and sang along in unison to the 35-song set. A nimble horn trio beefed up hits such as “Getting Better,” which was backed on the screen by an animation of flowers blooming in a post-apocalyptic American landscape.
Clearly, he’s not lost his sense of humor. Nor has he lost his social conscience, as when he recounted playing a Beatles show in Jacksonville, Fla., where a promoter had planned to racially segregate the audience (the Beatles talked him out of it). He spotted — and spoke Japanese to — a man holding a Japanese sign in the crowd. He brought the nasal growl in “Got to Get You Into My Life” and the face-flushing flames of “Live and Let Die.” In other words, he gave it his all from start to finish.
The banter and asides weren’t exactly a therapist-couch view into his brain. But they didn’t need to be. McCartney’s talent and professionalism would be welcome from any musician, of any age. On Saturday, his earnest warmth added poignance to predictable nostalgia, and reminded us that not only was he a musical legend, but a vigorously living one.