Paul McCartney “totally blew” his first concert with John Lennon
John Lennon was older than Paul McCartney, and as a result, the budding musician was eager to impress his older friend once he received an invitation to join The Quarrymen. However, much to McCartney’s dismay, the first time they played together was a nightmare affair. Fortunately, they didn’t let the disastrous debut stop them at the first hurdle.
From the outside looking in, it seemed as if the pair of musical talents were born with innate chemistry, and it was their calling to unite. Although they were not in the same year at school, their local community was relatively small, and it was through a mutual friend that their relationship blossomed. Yet, at this stage, they were still honing their talents and learning their craft.
The year was 1957 when their minds first collided at Woolton’s Parish Church in Liverpool. Lennon was performing with his band The Quarrymen, and McCartney was an audience member with his friend Ivan Vaughan, who brought the pair together.
Of the gig, McCartney later said: “I remember John singing a song called ‘Come Go With Me.’ He’d heard it on the radio. He didn’t really know the verses, but he knew the chorus. The rest he just made up himself. I just thought, ‘Well, he looks good, he’s singing well and he seems like a great lead singer to me.’ Of course, he had his glasses off, so he really looked suave. I remember John was good.”
Following the show, the two engaged in conversation, and Lennon already began to consider whether McCartney would be a suitable addition to his group. However, he and bandmate Pete Shotton refrained from asking him on that day.
Two weeks later, Shotton randomly bumped into McCartney in their neighbourhood and decided to pop the question. Paul didn’t need to give the offer much thought before accepting the proposal, and it was soon time for his inaugural performance with his new bandmates.
The show occurred on October 18th, 1957, at the New Clubmoor Hall in the Norris Green area of Liverpool. McCartney was only 15, and the importance of the occasion got the better of him, leading to a concert to forget.
Reminiscing upon the historic occasion, McCartney told Reverb: “When I got up on stage at the very first gig I totally blew it. I had never experienced these things called nerves before…This was still with the Zenith, yeah. Might have got a pickup on it by then… yes, I did, I got a little pickup and a little wire, bought the pickup separately, tried to gash it on there”.
He continued: “But I was playing ‘Guitar Boogie’ and I knew it fine off-stage, like I say, but on stage, my fingers all went very stiff and then found themselves underneath the strings instead of on top of them. So I vowed that night that it was the end of my career as the lead guitar player. I just thought I’ll lean back. So me and John kind of both did that around that same time, both became rhythm guitarists.”
Failure is an inevitable juncture on the road to success, and even the seemingly superhuman Paul McCartney couldn’t escape the harsh reality of it. However, he persevered on his journey, and the nightmare performance in Norris Green soon became a distant memory.
