Sir Paul McCartney reveals 'embarrassing' moment he suffered live on stage with the Beatles
Sir Paul McCartney was "so embarrassed" when he tried to play lead guitar with the Beatles.
The 81-year-old music legend was part of the iconic rock group alongside John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr but explained when he tried playing lead guitar during an early gig instead of bass, he "totally froze" on stage.
Speaking on the 'Paul McCartney: A Life in Lyrics' podcast, he explained: "Mind you, when I first met John. He didn’t play guitar, ‘cause I had to show him guitar chords because he’d been taught by his mum [Julia], and she only knew banjo chords.
" We had this gig and it was like, the first thing I ever played, and I was lead guitar player. John was rhythm. And I had a solo and I totally froze. Could not move my fingers. … It was like, just so embarrassing. My lead guitar playing career melted at that moment and I said, ‘Well, I’m not doing this again. I’m not cut out for this. I’m no good."
The 'Hey Jude' singer provided most of the lyrics for the Beatles and was also co-lead singer alongside John and previously revealed he loves to spend time with his instruments and he even worries that some of them might feel "lonely".
Talking about one of his guitars, he shared: "I felt quite guilty in a minor way, so I went over and started playing - and then the song that came out was me talking directly to the guitar and talking about all the times it had helped me."
We always used to say that when you sit down with your guitar to write a song, you’re telling it your secrets, which then become a song for the world.
"But at that moment, when you’re alone, the guitar is your confidante. You cradle it.
"When you go up to a piano, though, it’s almost as if you’re pushing the piano away; they’re different actions completely