Happy Birthday Paul McCartney: 5 One On One World Tour One-Timers

One of the world’s most famous and accomplished musicians, Paul McCartney, turns 74-years-old today. Macca burst onto the scene with The Beatles and was a huge creative force behind the Fab Four over the course of their career. The Beatles seemed to reinvent themselves with each new studio album they put out in the ’60s. The Liverpool product was a master bassist and songwriter, who also had impressive skills at other instruments including piano, drums and guitar. Paul went on to form Wings shortly after the Beatles broke up and the group scored 14 Top 10 hits by the time the ’70s were over.

McCartney has since showed no sign of slowing down as he continues to tour with an incredible backing band he’s had in place since 2002 and has issued a bevy of solo albums. Earlier this year Macca launched his latest tour dubbed “One On One” which features a heady mix of Beatles, Wings and solo cuts. In a 2014 interview with Rolling Stone Paul was asked if he ever feels like ripping up the setlist and playing more obscure material to which he responded, “Yeah, we occasionally do that, just for the fun of it. But it’s not like I’m Phish, you know.” While the first 19 shows of the One On One Tour have featured nearly identical setlists, there have been a few treats thrown in. Let’s celebrate Macca’s birthday by looking at five tunes he’s only played once thus far on his current tour.

1. Helter Skelter with Krist Novoselic – April 17 @ Key Arena in Seattle

Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic performed with Paul McCartney on The White Album classic “Helter Skelter” on April 17. Both Krist and Paul played bass on one of the heavier tunes in the Beatles catalog. The pair forged a friendship while working on Dave Grohl’s Sound City project, when they recorded “Cut Me Some Slack” with Grohl and Pat Smear.

2. I Saw Her Standing There with Jimmy Fallon – April 20 @ Rogers Arena in Vancouver

Talk show host and musician in his own right Jimmy Fallon celebrated 4/20 with Macca when he made a surprise appearance during McCartney’s encore on the stoner holiday in Vancouver. Jimmy and Paul dueted on what still stands as the tour’s lone “I Saw Her Standing There.”

3. Get Back with 10-Year-Old bassist Leila – May 17 @ Estadio Ciudad de La Plata in La Plata

Paul McCartney welcomed 10-year-old Leila from Buenos Aires to the stage during his May show in nearby La Plata, Argentina. Leila asked if she could play bass with him and mispronounced bass. Macca seized on the mispronunciation and asked the youngster if she had a bass with her. While she didn’t, McCartney’s crew stepped up and provided Leila with a bass. Paul, his band and Leila then proceeded to play “Get Back” which was a tour debut.

4. Michelle – May 30 @ AccorHotels Arena in Paris

Macca and his band played “the only French song we know” during a visit to Paris late last month, the Rubber Soul track “Michelle.” The tour debut of “Michelle” in Paris continued a trend of McCartney dusting off the song when he performs in France or Quebec. Paul utilizes acoustic guitar on his take on the tune, while keyboardist Paul “Wix” Wickens accompanies his boss on accordion.

5. Ram On – June 12 @ Pinkpop Festival in Landgraaf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRSUDVJdeb0

It’s not often Paul McCartney takes requests, but he did so last weekend during his headlining set at Holland’s Pinkpop Festival. Macca responded to a request for “Ram On” by performing the track from his 1971 album Ram for the first time on the current tour, though he had played the tune as part of private soundchecks.