One day Paul McCartney is gonna die.
And we're never gonna believe he was ever alive.
We thought rock and roll was forever. And then David Bowie passed. Glenn Frey. Prince and Tom Petty. You're getting the impression you'd better see your favorite classic act now, because they truly might not be around anymore.
Not that that's the essence.
The essence is the songs. The records. The singers. The players. HOW DID THEY DO THIS?
That's one thing we know for sure, we never could. It's different from being smart, it's different from learning a trade, it seems somehow these people channeled the gods and made concrete creations that not only infected our lives, but changed them.
Like the Beatles.
They were the internet of their day. Remember how you bought a computer just to play on AOL? In '64, everybody rushed out and bought a Beatles album. But the difference is, today you've got no use for that old Packard Bell or Dell, but those sweet sweet tunes sound just as fine.
And rock and roll is all about image.
But when you break that image...
That's right, in this clip Paul McCartney looks old. Nearly frail. It's still him, but he's a grandpa. Hip, but a bit crotchety when it comes to movement. And you're not turned off in the least, you want to will him to go on, to never die, to be here forever, because once he's gone, we're next.
And unlike seemingly everybody else, Paul McCartney won.
Not only is he still here, he's got children and grandchildren, upright citizens. How did that happen? When seemingly everybody else got caught up in drugs, and if they didn't o.d., made a mess of their lives.
And he never got cheesy. And never lost his fame.
That's the amazing thing here, the way the throngs appear, because it's HIM!
Hang out with a teen phenom of yesteryear, most people ignore them. They can shop like normal people, you and me, but not Paul McCartney.
He's led a charmed life. But the stunning thing is it's OUR LIFE!
We know those records by heart. When the assembled multitude starts singing along in the pub, everybody knows the words, young and old.
Kinda like that matron in the barber shop, on Penny Lane. She was young once. She remembers. When the Beatles were playing the Cavern Club, when they were coming up. She doesn't think about it every day, but she's instantly jetted back upon seeing Paul, the same way you are when seeing this clip.
And Corden is nice enough, but he's superfluous, flavor of the moment, Paul is forever, and he's the star.
He's sitting in the Range Rover and exuding a charisma and a complacency all at the same time, how does he do this? And when he starts pointing out landmarks...
Everybody faked a British accent. Liverpool was the most famous city in the world. They're driving around and it's like a kinescope to the past. A link between who you were and now are and forevermore shall be.
Paul actually lived there. Everything in the songs is real.
They go to the house he grew up in, Paul's first time back since he resided there, and...
It's living history. Paul talks about playing "She Loves You" for his dad the same way we talk about our parents. We're living through him, but we could never be him. It's EERIE!
And sure, he's promoting a new album.
And sure, his hair is not completely his natural color.
But it's most definitely him. With no artifice. Enjoying his fame. Still a musician at heart. You can take the boy out of Liverpool, but Liverpool's always in him.
He's richer than almost everybody else. But he's not flaunting it, he's comfortable in his role. You can only kick back and say to yourself you want to be him.
But you can't.
But you can listen to his music. Which he is still making.
But one day he'll be unable to. And he'll become a myth. Like John Lennon. He'll be cast in stone. His three dimensions will fall away. But for now...
He's still walking the earth. The biggest giant of the twentieth century. Bigger than any President, bigger than any astronaut, purveyor of the soundtrack to our victories and our losses. You can see he knows all this, it's there in his eyes.
But he keeps keepin' on, until the very end.
WHAT AN INSPIRATION!
--
Visit the archive: lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-TuneIn: tunein.com/lefsetz
-Apple: apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, Unsubscribe
To change your email address this link
No comments:
Post a Comment