At the 2023 Tribeca Festival, British musician Paul McCartney, 81, spoke candidly about his former Beatles bandmate, John Lennon, during a live recording of Conan O’Brien’s podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.
The conversation occurred during the Storytellers panel on Thursday, June 15, where McCartney and O’Brien, 60, sifted through vintage Beatles photographs.
One photo depicting Lennon prompted O’Brien to comment on the appearance of vulnerability and anxiety in Lennon’s expression. McCartney acknowledged the vulnerability, attributing it to the early hardships in Lennon’s life. He mentioned Lennon’s mother being deemed unfit to raise him and his father leaving when Lennon was three.
Lennon was raised by his aunt Mimi and uncle George in Liverpool. He kept in contact with his mother Julia Lennon until she died in 1958, but he had very little contact with his father Alf.
McCartney expressed admiration for Lennon’s resilience in dealing with these challenges.
In addition, McCartney revealed plans for a new Beatles release utilizing artificial intelligence to extract vocals from Lennon’s old demos. Sir Paul did not name the song, but it is likely to be a piece Lennon wrote in 1978 called Now And Then.
McCartney received the demo from Yoko Ono, Lennon’s widow. It was one of several songs on a cassette that Lennon made and it was labelled “For Paul.”
Lennon was fatally shot in December 1980 at the age of 40.
The panel also focused on McCartney’s forthcoming book, 1964: Eyes of the Storm, which contains 275 photographs taken by McCartney between late 1963 and early 1964, a pivotal time for the Beatles. These photos will be exhibited at the UK’s National Portrait Gallery in London from June 28 to October 1.
In a statement, McCartney characterized the photographs as possessing an air of innocence and mentioned they evoke numerous cherished memories. He expressed his affection for the images and their ability to spark his imagination.
John Lennon was born October 9, 1940. He would have been 82 if he had lived.
