The Sun
The Ron And Winding Road for Macca and Wood
Still rolling ... Paul McCartney and Ronnie WoodPublished: 52 minutes ago FORMER Beatle Paul McCartney got a little help from a friend last night – when Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood joined him on stage.
The guitar-slinger joined the former mop top for a rendition of classic Get Back during Paul's show at London's O2 Arena.
The gig was the first of three he will play before Christmas.
He'll visit Manchester next before giving his final gig of the year on December 20 at his home town's Echo Arena in Liverpool.
And the 69-year-old said he was thrilled to be pperforming at the O2.
He said: "Yes, I love the O2, it's one of London's great venues. I think one of the things I like about it is that before the O2 arena was built, we rehearsed in what was then the Millennium Dome.
"I remember my promoter bringing round an American guy who said, 'We are going to build an arena within this dome'. And we all thought it was a great idea, and now that it's a reality, it's especially cool to play."
It's been a happy year for the legendary hitmaker.
In October he wed American heiress Nancy Shevell.
Fellow Beatle Ringo Starr, Wood and model Kate Moss were some of the guests at the reception held in his North West London home.
The same month saw 64-year-old Wood split from his Brazilian model girlfriend Ana Araujo after two years together.
At the time he said: "I'm taking a sabbatical from her.
"I'm like Picasso, painting up the ladder after leaving his mistress at the bottom after a row."
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From The Finacial Times
Paul McCartney, O2 Arena, London
By Ludovic Hunter-Tilney
Paul McCartney hit the nail on the head when he sang, “You say goodbye, I say hello,” on his opening number, The Beatles’ “Hello, Goodbye”. As he approaches 70, people come to his shows in the expectation he can’t go on forever. Yet McCartney plays on precisely as if he will go on forever.
He is a Cliff Richard-ian vision of eternal youth with his chestnut thatch of hair and amazing repertoire of cheesy stage gestures: lifting a finger and pretending to burn it – as in “Yow, that version of ‘Hello, Goodbye’ was hot!” – or pausing on arrival to scratch his chin and point at the audience with mock puzzlement. You guys are here for little old moi?
There were “goodbyes” in the show but they were directed at fellow Beatles: his touching tribute to John Lennon, “Here Today”, and a cover of the George Harrison-penned “Something”. The latter was initially played on a ukulele, George being, we were told, “a great ukulele player” – which rather underplayed his talents. But the uke was ditched a few bars in, and McCartney and his backing band proceeded to play a respectfully powerful version of the song. Lennon’s and Harrison’s mortality was properly acknowledged – and so was the happier fact of Macca’s endurance.
It was a marathon set lasting 160 minutes but it didn’t sag. His touring band, with him since 2002, was stripped-back and focused: just two guitarists, a keyboardist and a drummer. McCartney ranged fluently between bass, electric and acoustic guitars, a mandolin, the wretched ukulele and a grand piano. His guitar solos were superb: he appears to be reinventing himself as an axe hero in his dotage.
The opening suite of songs mixed rockier Beatles tracks (“Paperback Writer”, a dynamic “Drive My Car”) with 1970s rockers such as Wings’ “Juniors Farm”, a terrific power-pop stomper. “Long and Winding Road” announced a downwards shift in tempo, leading to “Blackbird”, played alone on an acoustic guitar: McCartney, voice crumbling a little, uncharacteristically fluffed a note. The fallibility added to the song’s frail tenderness.
A knockout “Back in the USSR” ramped the mood back up while “I’ve Got a Feeling” was a scorching guitar workout with a wild lead vocal from Macca. Then it was into the reliable old warhorses: “Live and Let Die”, “Hey Jude”, “Let It Be”. Ronnie Wood made a guest appearance, adding a sleazy Stonesy swagger to “Get Back”. On his way offstage, McCartney, as if struck by an afterthought, walked back to the microphone. “We’ll see you next time,” he announced brightly.
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From The Telegraph
Paul McCartney brings 'On The Run' tour home
Playing at London's O2 Arena, the singer said he was happy to be back in the UK after performing to packed crowds in Dubai, France, Germany and Italy.
Paul McCartney, 69, rocked the arena with a three-hour concert playing Beatles' favourites, including "All My Loving", "Eleanor Rigby", and "Blackbird" as well as hits from his later band Wings including "Jet", "Live and Let Die" and the eponymous "Band On The Run".
He told the audience that it was "nice to be back here", adding, "it's always nice to be home".
Tickets for the 19,000-strong crowd had sold out in minutes.
McCartney and Wings were recently nominated for a Grammy for Best Historical Album for "Band on the Run" (Paul McCartney Archive Collection - Deluxe Edition).
The singer will next take his tour to Scandinavia and Russia before returning to Britain to play Manchester and ending at his birthplace, Liverpool, on December .
Here's the full show set list
1.Hello Goodbye
2.Juniors Farm
3.All My Loving
4.Jet
5.Drive My Car
6.Sing The Changes
7.The Night Before
8.Let Me Roll It (with ‘Voodoo Chile’ outro)
9.Paperback Writer
10.The Long and Winding Road
11.Come and Get It
12.Nineteen Hundred Eighty-Five
13.Maybe I'm Amazed
14.I've Just Seen A Face
15.I Will
16.Blackbird
17.Here Today
18.Dance Tonight
19.Mrs. Vandebilt
20.Eleanor Rigby
21.Something
22.Band on the Run
23.Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
24.Back in the USSR
25.I've Got A Feeling
26.A Day in the Life/Give Peace A Chance
27.Let it Be
28.Live and Let Die
29.Hey Jude
30.Encore: The Word/All You Need Is Love/She Loves You ending
31.Day Tripper
32.Get Back (with Ronnie Wood)
33.Second Encore: Yesterday
34.Helter Skelter/Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End
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