When Paul McCartney started touring again in 2002, he explained to us how he goes about assembling a set list.
Paul McCartney on how he goes about putting together his set list.
“I just think, ‘What would I want to see,’ because that probably is what an average…it’s not easy to define what an average fan is or an average fan of mine. But I actually do it by just looking into my own mind and think, ‘What would I have to see him do?’ So with that in mind, that’s how we put the show together. There’s some stuff I’ve never played before, so that keeps it fresh for me and I think that will be interesting for the audience.”
Well, 24 years later, not much has changed as he explained in a recent interview with England’s The Rest Is Entertainment podcast, saying people pay good money not to hear a “lot of black holes.”
He added that he knows the feeling, having seen Bob Dylan in concert a few times, who notoriously doesn’t play many of his biggest songs, not to mention drastically changing the arrangements.
Paul McCartney on seeing Bob Dylan in concert.
“I couldn’t tell what song was that he was doing. Now, that’s a bit much, because I mean I know his stuff! And you know I get it if he doesn’t want to do ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ – maybe he’s fed up with that — but I would like to hear it. And I paid!”
Dylan is a fan of McCartney’s having said in 2007, “I’m in awe of McCartney. He’s about the only one that I am in awe of. He can do it all. And he’s never let up… He’s just so damn effortless.”
McCartney will be back on stage this Thursday when he performs on the finale of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in support of his new album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, which will be out on May 29th.
Dylan starts his summer tour on June 4th in Troutdale, Oregon.
