Whenever Paul McCartney picks up the guitar to compose new music he still wonders what John Lennon would make of it.

“John’s input was very important … These days even when I’m writing the song, I would kind of check with him just mentally, you know: ‘Does this suck? Like, I think it does? Right. Let’s get rid of it. Start again.’ Yeah, so I really miss that.”

McCartney, who’s preparing to return to Australia later this year, opened up about his creative process in an exclusive TV interview with 7.30.

He described how one of music’s greatest duos would get together and write the Beatles tunes that have inspired generations for 60 years.

“You know, we go in a room, two guitars, sitting opposite each other. And we start with some sort of idea. Maybe one of us would have brought in an idea. And then we just work on it and throw ideas back and forth. And it was fun. And it was quick.”

Trust was at the core of that process, McCartney says.

“I had the song which became ‘I saw her standing there’ … My original first verse was: ‘She was just 17. She’d never been a beauty queen.’ I kind of looked at him. I said: ‘I’m not sure about that line.’ And he said ‘No, it’s horrible.’ So we just thought a little bit extra. And it was like ‘She was just 17, you know what I mean?’ So yeah, to be able to solve problems, like quickly, with someone you could totally trust was a great boon for both of us.”

Changing narrative

Pop culture never quite recovered from the Beatles breaking up in 1970 with McCartney’s alleged “bossiness” blamed for the break-up.

But in 2021 Peter Jackson’s brilliant remake of “The Beatles: Get Back” documentary changed that narrative.

It showed never-before-seen footage of the band working together on their 1969 album, “Let it be.”

It painted a dramatically different picture of the events even for McCartney himself.

“I had kind of ended up buying into this idea that, you know, poor all other three, and I’m just bossing them around. But when I saw the film, I’m thinking ‘No, I’m not.’ It’s OK. It’s just us in the studio, and a lock-box in there, everyone’s kind of happy to work like that. So, it was a big relief for me. It just made me feel really good about that whole period.”

‘Singing with my buddy again’

The Beatles first came to Australia in 1964, peak Beatlemania, provoking wild scenes in cities across the country.

McCartney remembers vividly how loud and supportive Australian audiences were.

“When you see the films of the reaction the Aussies gave us the first time round, it was exceptional. And, you know, you’d have to be half dead to not love it. So yeah, I have great memories of them.”

This time, and now 81 years old, McCartney will return to Australia in October with Lennon.

It’s thanks to a piece of technological magic first used in the filming of Jackson’s documentary.

“Peter texted me and he said ‘we could isolate John’s voice out. And you could play live. And that would mean you will be singing with John again’,” McCartney said.

“Wow. OK. I mean, but that’s maybe too good to be true.”

The end result was first seen at Glastonbury in 2022 when McCartney sang alongside Lennon projected on a mega screen.

“And that’s really magic, because we really are singing together, even though it’s through technology. So, I’ve also got to listen to his timing, which is great, because that’s exactly how it is when you are live.”

For audiences, it’s like being transported back in time and for McCartney it is much more personal.

“The first time I ever did it was very emotional. And it keeps being emotional. Because, you know, I’m singing with my old buddy again.”

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