On Monday night, Sir Paul McCartney served as the guest on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert at New York City’s Ed Sullivan Theatre. The former member of The Beatles stopped by the late-night TV show in support of his new children’s book, Hey Grandude!, and discussed a variety of topics with Colbert.
The episode began with Paul McCartney reflecting on The Beatles’ performance at the same theater Stephen Colbert regularly hosts his show, which marked the quartet’s first live televised performance in the U.S. as part of the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. Paul continued to discuss his musical upbringing and his early days of songwriting, the magic of touring with The Beatles, and his favorite Beatles covers.
Paul revealed that his favorite artists to cover with The Beatles were Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, and Marvin Gaye, with his favorite cover being Marvin Gaye’s rendition of “Yesterday”. Colbert then showed McCartney a video of K-Pop superstars BTS singing “Hey Jude” on a May episode of The Late Show, and Paul went on to reflect on The Beatles’ continued global reach. With an eruption of audience laughter and applause, Paul jokingly reacted to Colbert’s question of “What do you think it is about your music that transcends geographic and language barriers, so those seven guys can just jump up and sing the ‘na, na, nas’?'” with “Easy lyrics”.
McCartney continued by discussing his friendship and love for John Lennon. When Colbert asked Paul, “How often do you think about John Lennon?” McCartney responded, “Quite often. I dream about him. The thing is, when you’ve had such a deep relationship with someone like that for so long, you know, I love it when people revisit you in the dreams. I’m often with John, just talking about doing something, and I come to get my Hofner bass, ready to play, and it’s covered in sticky tape. You know, dreams (laughs).”
Paul went on to discuss his forthcoming children’s book, which recently arrived on September 5th via Puffin Books, his love for Elvis, and more, which you can watch and enjoy below:
Paul McCartney on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert [Part 1]
[Video: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]
Paul McCartney on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert [Part 2]
[Video: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]
Paul McCartney on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert [Part 3]
[Video: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]
Paul McCartney on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert [Part 4]
[Video: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert]