Paul McCartney is live on Facebook right now from the Liverpool Institute of the Arts talking with rocker Jarvis Cocker.
He just said the one song he wished he’d written was Sting’s “Fields of Gold.” “It’s quite good,” McCartney said. He also cited Kanye West’s “Dark Twisted Fantasy” as a very good album. “It’s the reason I wanted to work with him.”
Paul also cited Stevie Wonder as the best musician he’s worked with aside from the other Beatles.
Esther Phillips cover version of “And I Love Him” and Ray Charles’ “Eleanor Rigby” were among the cover versions of his songs that he thinks are best. (I would alert him to Aretha Franklin’s “Let it Be” and Phoebe Snow’s “Every Night.”)
He also cited Frank Sinatra’s re-working of “Yesterday.”
McCartney said his new album is a concept album. He didn’t aim for singles. “I can’t compete with a Taylor Swift thing, she has better legs than me!”
In the interview, which I hope we can embed here when it’s over, McCartney reminisces a lot about his early, early Beatles days. He remembers doing gigs with Ringo, George and John using fake names– since Ringo had one. “John’s was Long John Silver,” he said with a laugh.
More to come…the interview, in real time, is lovely…
