Sir Paul McCartney

I love music, especially songs I can sing very loudly to (in my car. by myself.) and I am good at recognizing songs I’ve heard before. I am very bad, however, at remembering song names and differently bad at knowing song lyrics. With names, I simply never really bother to learn them. With lyrics, I cherry pick a few easy-to-hear words and then fill in everything else with words that seem to make sensible-sounding sentences. Case in point: for most of my life I though the lyric was “knocking me out with those American eyes.” My husband would still be shaming me for this if there weren’t SO many other examples to choose from.

Armed with theses musical talents, I headed off to the Paul McCartney concert (a HUGE shout out to my friend Andi who came up with an extra ticket and offered it to me). Because there was only one ticket, I decided to take notes on his set list, which is something my husband would be inclined to find interesting. The result was a mash-up of limited song name & lyric skills, typos, and blatant ignorance. I present this list below exactly as recorded, and leave it to you to guess which effects were in play.

1. Hard day’s night
2. All my loving
3. I think I’d let you go
4. Who cares I do
5. Go to get you into my life
6. New one from carpool Karaoke I come on to you?
7. Let me roller it?
8. I’ve got a feeling … Oh yeah
9. Someone’s knocking at the door
10. My valentine?
11. Wings
12. Baby I’m amazed
13. Falling (Simon and Garfunkel?)
14. Quarrymen song – anything you want me to
15. If there anything that you need …
16. Everybody dance tonight
17. Love me do
18. Blackbird
19. If you were here today
20. ??? Lots of stars on video *
21. Lady Madonna
22. Eleanor Rigby
23. Something new – I just wan to??
24. Weird St pepper song
25. Something in the way she moves ukelee
26. Desmond
27. If o ever get out of here
28. Band on the run
29. Back in the ussr
30. Let it be
31. Live and let die
32. Hey Jude

Encore:

1. It’s your birthday
2. St pepper
3. Hwlter skelter
4. Carry back ways

In case you want to see the actual set list, you can find it here.

Ultimately, it was a really great show. It wasn’t pandering, avoiding the potential pitfall of being a greatest hits show, and really showcased songs from across his entire music career. There was some story-telling, a huge variety of instruments including the above-mentioned ukulele, and in one case, some pretty sweet pyrotechnics that made me thankful I’m not epileptic.

* Turns out this was Queenie Eye, and he may have been showing the actual video for the song.