Having been in the music business for more than six decades, Paul McCartney has witnessed the evolution of the music scene up close. As one of the most successful and influential artists of all time, he’s had the chance to meet countless famous and influential people over the years.
So, it’s certainly not easy for him to pick the coolest famous people he’s met in his life. However, The Beatles bassist, singer and songwriter once mentioned three artists he really enjoyed meeting and spending time with.
The 3 famous artists Paul McCartney said were the coolest he met
Elvis Presley
Paul first told Adam Buxton in 2020 that his wife was the coolest person he ever met. But after joking, he first mentioned the late legendary Elvis Presley. “Coolest person I ever met… My wife. I hope she’s gonna listen to this. She is very cool. But however speaking like that, I have met Elvis Presley, who was darn cool. Because this was pre his Las Vegas and the rhinestone suit. This was just when he’s sort of in Beverly Hills. So he was really cool. (…) If I had to choose (the coolest), I’d have to go with my wife, Nancy. And then if I had to give a second, I think I’d have to do Elvis.” Paul McCartney said.
The Beatles’ first meeting with Elvis happened on the evening of August 27, 1965 at his Beverly Hills mansion. It was a night off from their United States tour and they even had the chance to jam with the king. The interesting thing is that they really wanted to meet Elvis, who was a huge influence to him but without any press involved. No photos were taken either, because they didn’t want to use it as a publicity stunt, they just wanted to meet him.
In the following years Elvis covered a few Beatles tracks. Some of them were “Hey Jude”, “Something”, “Yesterday”, “Get Back” and “Lady Madonna”.
Bob Dylan
The second celebrity listed by McCartney is the legendary American songwriter Bob Dylan. They first met each other back in the early 60s when Bob Dylan had the chance to meet the Beatles and curiously, it was the first time the Fab Four smoked weed. “Bob Dylan, really cool person to meet,” McCartney told Adam Buxton.
In an interview for the Beatles Anthology released in 1995 (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage), McCartney recalled when the band first met Dylan. “It was a great honor to meet him. We had a crazy party the night we met, I thought I’d got the meaning to life that night. I went around trying to find our roadie (saying to him) ‘Mal, Mal get a pencil and a paper, I got it!’ Mal was a bit out (of himself) and he couldn’t find a pencil and paper anywhere.”
“Eventually in the end of the evening he found it and I wrote down my message for the universe, you know. I said (to the roadie), ‘Keep that in the pocket’. The next morning he said ‘Paul, do you wanna see?’. I said ‘What?’, he said ‘That bit of paper’ and I said ‘Oh yeah!’ I had written ‘There are seven levels’,” Paul McCartney said.
Bob Dylan showed the world that it was possible to write songs about other themes rather than love. It was an important inspiration for groups like The Beatles. Although he is a good friend of McCartney, Dylan was much closer to the late George Harrison. They recorded together over the decades and even were bandmates in the supergroup Traveling Wilburys.
David Bowie
“David Bowie was another fantastic person to meet,” Paul McCartney told Adam Buxton. The late legendary British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist was the third name mentioned by the Beatle.
When Bowie passed away in 2016 at the age of 69, McCartney shared a special tribute to him. He said: “Very sad news to wake up to on this rainy morning. David was a great star and I treasure the moments we had together. His music played a very strong part in British musical history and I’m proud to think of the huge influence he has had on people all around the world.
“I send my deepest sympathies to his family and will always remember the great laughs we had through the years. His star will shine in the sky forever.”
Curiously, David Bowie was closer to the late John Lennon. They became really good friends in the 70s and McCartney’s bandmate even co-wrote the Bowie hit “Fame”, besides recording the acoustic guitar and backing vocals for the track. Around that time both Beatles members talked with Bowie about maybe creating a supergroup with him, but obviously that never happened.
