From the Liverpool soundcheck. (Thanks to Brian Cancemi.)

Ok I'm a little late, but I warned you I might need time to recover from this one, and boy was I right. For the first time I, Sooz the Verbose, was left speechless. What a priviledge to be there. I only wish all of you could have been with me (instead of the drunk guy behind me who sang loud and off key to nearly every song--I shoulda slammed him in the nads when I had the chance).

Where to begin, oh dearie me...well, how about the practice run for Liverpool, the rescheduled gig in Sheffield on the 29th...

Piled in a bus up to Sheffield accompanied by impresario extraordinaire Sam Leach no less. Quite the traffic snarl up near the venue but we made it just past 6PM, in time to hear the PA announce that entry would be delayed 20 minutes, no doubt because Sir Dawdlepants was late getting in again. Indeed we could hear the soundcheck rumbling through the walls. Soon though we were easing towards the entrances, and I was awestruck at the lack of security pressure in this alternate universe. I breezed in with a fa nny pack and a huge purse loaded with photographic and recording equipment and no one even ASKED to look in my bag! Am I at the right show??? Hmm, I was P.O.ed I didn't bring my video camera then!

First stop, the merchandise stands. Nowhere near as much stuff as the American gigs, so I was quick to decide on a hat with Paul's embroidered signature, a fabulous "Back In the World" t-shirt with nothing but his upraised thumb pictured on the front and his back on the back (clever...). And of course the essential but very silly flashing badge, a mere ten pounds for an exciting shaped pin of Paul holding his bass that flashes with obnoxiously bright red and blue LED's.

Cops in squad cars everywhere are jealous.

We shuffle up to our seats which we had been warned by Charles before might very well suck. But I wasn't too disappointed. Straight back from the stage, far away, but not off center. With binoculars and the screens I could still revel in the sight of Paul's golden eyes, his sweaty red shirt and my favorite gray trousers. Rather warm in the venue this night, as Britain was having something of a premature summer, and Paul was delicously moist throughout. Yum.

Before that i get to check out the screen scrolling the text messages from fans, a feature not found on the US dates. Some crass idiots used it to post advertisments and other propaganda, but some entertaining messages still crept through. Some faves, alluding to the fresh news of the forthcoming McBaby: "Congrats Paul. Still a bit of a ram then!", "Need a babysitter??" "So THAT'S what you were doing April 6!". And then there were off the wall things like, "I love you and my otter", "Hope my colostomy bag holds out", and "Move me to the front or I'll tell Yoko!"

The pre-show commenced in timely fashion at quarter past 8 (crowd was efficient at getting to their seats. Guess that lack of security harrassment really speeds thing up, eh?). Then the Hofner silhouette, the power chords, the crowd on their feet, and bang-o there he is, the Boy of the Hour, resplendent in that far out sky blue nehru jacket and my personal fave butt caressing charcoal grey trousers. It was like seeing an old friend at school the next semester after a summer apart. Hadn't realized i missed the git in the flesh so much until his presence once again warmed me all over. Even all the way back i felt his Whateveritis upon me.

I guess i dont have much specifically to add about the performance here, as it was the same as the recent other Euro gigs. But I did thrill to the "new" songs not heard on the US dates, such as a rollicking "I've just Seen a Face", sublime "Two of Us", fantastic "Calico Skies" from recent times hooray, and bouncing "Birthday", a song this scrappy band was just born to play. Oh and don't forget the add-ons, such as the pounding "Foxy Lady" riff at the end of "Let Me Roll It" (I'm surprised to see it's actually Paul doing most of the wailing Hendrix solos! You go man!), and the space-a-rama intro to "Band on the Run" with its clever chiming segue into the original. Paul's voice is sharp and clear throughout, with only minor cracks here and there. His top range is right on.

The big news of the day is of course the Bun in the Oven, and Paul alludes to it in his dedication to Heather before "Loving Flame". "We got some good news", he said to a wave of applause. Overall, another impressively controlled and competent peformance by Macca and chums, with some emotions about the imminent end of the tour already starting to show. More on that later...

But as we know, all roads lead to Liverpool, and in quick time June 1 arrived, bright and sunny and warm like its whole week of predecessors. Perfect for a bon voyage party by the river. First stop was the Docks in a quest to suss out where the man might arrive later in the day. Discounted the entrance nearest the shopping area along the docks as that would be too visible and crowded. He'd NEVER go in there, so we camped out by the back, near the VIP gates. Wrong-o! Later found out he arrived out front, near the shopping area, in the mob, at 4:40 PM, leaving me high and dry for the second time this trip (first time was outside the Cavern on Friday after his private party--another 4 hours of my life I'll never get back, but hey, the drunk Liverpudlians stumbling out of the pubs all night kept us amused).

So before I knew it he was up there onstage behind foreboding green metal gates doing the soundcheck. Alongside us back there was the line for the general admission seats, which had started forming in the wee hours. So Paul had his largest and most enthusiastic crowd ever for a soundcheck, which was easily heard over the tall green walls. If you stood on your tippy toes and found a crack to peek through, you could even watch the soundcheck on one of the video screens. Cool!

The soundcheck lasted a full hour. For those who keep record of such things, here is the complete track listing for the soundcheck: Spanish Castle Magic (Paul fooling us with a ridiculously accurate Jimi Hendrix vocal)/India/Coming Up/Volare/Honey Don't/Matchbox/instrumental jam/Celebration/C-Moon/Things we Said Today/Midnight Special/Here There and Everywhere/Blackbird (fast bluegrass version again)/San Francisco Bay Blues/Coming back home jam/You Never Give Me Your Money ("...you break down for the last time on this tour," sang Paul, looking visibly emotional on the screen.)/Lady Madonna

And the second the soundcheck ended i heard the security detail give the Ok to open gates which had been scheduled to open at 5:30. We shuffled in orderly (except for the first few rows of GA people who did their best bionic sprint to the front), another lackluster bag search followed, and we were in the huge Kings Docks complex, all gravel with temporary food and beverage stands, looking like a ramshackle state fair. All you needed was the corn dogs.

Although this was definitely a wine and cheese crowd. Took a quick sniff at the merchandise stands, finding supplies of most items seriously depleted but not marked down half price like Ringo did on the last show of HIS tour. Hmm! Then we took a little wade into the GA crowd just to see if we could make out anything of the stage from there, only to conclude that England has way too many tall people. So we scampered back to our reserved seats in the fifth section stage left in the very top row, which was cool cuz we could stand the entire show and there would be no one behind us to tell us to sit down. The view was spectacular, miles of people everywhere and a stage higher than some of the nearby buildings. Residents of nearby condos hung out on their balconies hoping to glimpse a free show by Macca. There was an auxilliary screen on either side of the stage too which showed the band at all times, which would have been perfect if I'd had the nerve to bring my video camera, but eh, I wanted to absorb this one full force.

Some text messages: "Paul, check your limo. It might be on bricks", "xz*pfq# pzzt%&jl--Stevie Wonder", "All the girls who love Paul get yer boobs out!", "I'm still alive--Brian Epstein".

The pre show began in nearly full daylight at 8:20 PM, and to our surprise the performers did go into the crowds. But before too long (luckily for the performers who saw some beer cups head their way), the pageant ended, replaced by the godzilla image of the Hofner one last time, power chords, ka-boom! Macca in Liverpool! He limbos under the screen and greets the throbbing throng.

He's decked out in his favorite ensemble of red shirt, purple jacket and the baggy jeans, which weren't too bad upon further review. The important bits were still there. Hair longer in back, the mop top tussled in the gusty winds. He looked tall and strong and ready to ROCK. You could almost see the energy oozing from within him.

The show progresses in pretty much by the book fashion early on. "Oh Liverpoool, it's good to be home and we have come to rock you!" he said. Paul seemed a little nervous early, at times searching for the right words in what must have been a heartwarming scene that would only become moreso as the night went on.

The first musical surprise of the night came after "Let Me Roll It". Paul began a reminiscence about staying at John & Stuart Sutcliffe's flat "up the road here in Gambier Terrace" where he would wake up after staying up all night "eyes burning after doing too much of everything", and he would put on a record. He then launched the band into the most scorching live performance of "Honey Hush" I have yet heard. Has Macca rocked any harder than this...ever?? He tossed out numerous snarling solos on the Gibson, followed by an equally raucous perfromance by Rusty. All the while spitting out his best throaty Cavern rocking vocal. Awesome. Things calm down as the Driving Rain songs follow and Paul dedicates "Loving Flame" to Heather again and another current events reference: "You just might have heard we've had some very good news recently." Paul made his usual commentary about being distracted by signs in the audience. "We've got some strange ones here tonight...there's one over here, 'Still lead in your pencil then Paul!'", which drew a smirk from the soon to be McDad.

Massage stories were told one more time and Paul caught himself in the midst of the New Orleans massage story: "I'm going around telling this...well I have been until tonight, so I'll stop. Or maybe not!" The first of many references to this not being his last tour.

But the night was all about emotion."To be here on the banks of the Mersey with you lot is something special," he said. His performance of "Here Today" silenced what had been a happy chatty crowd. All 35,000, even those at the beer stands, stopped what they were doing and actually listened. Paul began to crumble slightly under the emotion, as we discerened a noticeable wobble as he sang "I love you....oooo". I was misting, as were nearly all the scousers around me. Bladders too close to the eyes y'know. George's "Something" is a happier occasion and elicits a mass sing along.

"And what about Ringo then?" asks Paul, and takes the crowd through a quick verse of "Yellow Submarine" complete with pics on the screens of the big Yellow Submarine sculpture just outside the gates of the Kings' Dock. "I told Ringo this was happening on the tour," Paul said, "and he rather liked hearing that."

The acoustic set is supreme, and "Two of Us" was altered to have the line "all roads lead to Liverpool". Which must have lit a bulb in Paul's head. Time for another musical surprise. He reaches way back into the local crowd's roots for a nifty swing through "Maggie Mae", with all the verses and double entendres intact! "We just chucked it in for tonight," says Paul. The locals lap it up and sing along and slug more beer and the night reaches another emotional peak. On the screens are snapshots of Liverpool landmarks, many of which I'd just visited on my tour through Liverpool's Beatleology (including 20 Forthlin and Mendips and LIPA), so it was a well timed review for me.

Strangely enough, the crowd had been rather sedate at this point (I guess I never really got over the wax-dummy like demeanor of these British crowds versus excitable American ones, but it's cool). But what brought them all to their feet was a surprise--the Wings (read: NON-BEATLE!) staple "Band on the Run". The next Wings song "Let 'em In" was also more well received than usual, no doubt because half the people mentioned in it were in the audience, as Paul pointed out. He stopped to name check his brother Mike again for taking the photos in the George tribute.

As he sang, he added Uncle Albert and Auntie Dill to the roll call of names. "I just want to say that as along as we're sitting out here on the banks of the Mersey, that I DO love each and every one of you," said Paul, with unsually strong emphasis on the "do". His family must have been putting on quite the love scene for him out there. He delivered a passionate "My Love", nailing the high parts perfectly. Paul's voice was terriffic throughout, even better than Sheffield, which is remarkable considering a damp wind was still whipping in off the Mersey (it even spritzed rain briefly early in the show). Paul was really leaving it all out on stage this night.

Then it was Wix' turn at the microphone. He said the band had just played Dublin and that Paul told him then that Liverpool was the REAL capital of Ireland. He plopped on his silly Guinness beer stein hat, which he'd also done in Sheffield. He alluded to the Friday night party at the Cavern as being "a quiet affair" and then started to introduce "She's Leaving Home" as "always being a reminder of the special time we had on this tour."

A great moment for me came when Paul dedicated "Birthday" to anyone having a birthday because my own birthday was just three days away. No matter, I'll take it now than later. Paul also mentioned the birthdays of his cousin Mike Robbins and LIPA chief Mark Featherstone-Witty. I'm in groovy company! With Brian's turn at the mic, he referred to the city by the Mersey as "LiverPAUL". Then, with some fair amount of sincerity, he turned back to Paul and said "Liverpool, you've raised a great guy." Cheers of agreement all around.

During "Let it Be", as i was fussing with my cranky pen light, i noticed a stream of colored lights filtering into the area in front of the stage. Turns out it was his cast and crew carrying colored lanterns, or some "little fairies with their lanterns," as Paul described them. "I know it's sad to say goodbye," he told them, "but we'll see each other soon, don't worry." Another allusion to this not being an end..?

At this time some glossy paper hearts began to be passed around our section but we weren't sure why yet. The hearts were inscribed, "Home is Where The Heart Is: Liverpool 2003". Hmmm. The crowd began a chant of some sort at this point, couldn't make out what it was. Any locals know? Paul stopped to take it in so he must have known, whatever it was. "Hey Jude" was up next, and this is where the emotional dam burst open. Just as Paul hit the "better better better wahhhhh!" part, all 30,000 red hearts shot up in the air, including mine, reflexively.

And in a re-run of the emotional meltdown in Ft.Lauderdale last year (captured on BITUS), Paul began to weep. But he manfully pushed on. "Oh...everybody...what are you doing to me?" Paul said with no small amount of disbelief and slight panic that he felt himself losing control of another song finale in another farewell concert! But this was cool in that he worked in his thank yous and awe in the ad libs of the fade out. Some examples: "And our hearts go out to you too!", "Oh yeah, I don't know what to say now, thank you thank you!" and he sang "I love you" over and over during the fade. He was a little bit faklempt, I'd say! He took many bows with his band arm in arm, and oodles of stuffed animals started flying up on stage. Paul picked up a goofy looking spindly little bunny and stuck it in his trouser waistband, to everyone's amusement.

Upon returning for the encores, a close up on the screen revealed his eyes were as red as his shirt. He was all messed up, but in the most beautiful way!

After "Long & Winding" he said, "For me, born in Walton Hospital just up the road here, it isn't a long way. But you know, in a way it is." It was obvious the most awestruck person in the place was James Paul McCartney. "Thank you from the hearts of our bottoms," he mugged, showing it's never too late for some good scouse humor. John Hammel got a special introduction to the crowd and much ape-dancing followed "I Saw Her Standing There."

The final encore came around with Paul alone with his acoustic guitar, and the final song surprise followed. "When i was 14 I wrote my first song down the road at 20 Forthlin Rd in Speke," he said, "and for some reason I have this uncontrollable urge to sing it right now..and I'm not so sure this is a good idea!" There then followed a pregnant pause (sorry Heather). "I've forgotten it!" said Paul suddenly flustered. "No I haven't..hang on!" and he launched into this historic silly ditty. "I don't know why i did that" he said afterwards. "Yes I do. Cuz I wrote it around here"

But alas the end was near. He stopped to thank his crew, including soundman Pab "from Crosby" in Liverpool, and "tonight more than any other I want to thank these mates of mine, these friends, my fantastic band!" Each band member hugged Paul individually.

But then it was time to rock one last time, and a particularly long and ferocious guitar battle ensued during "The End", with Paul the most out of control, windmilling and making all sorts of nasty noise with his guitar, cracking up Brian and Rusty. And during the final note as Paul has his arm in the air, he sings a series of escalating "Oh yeahs" similar to the end of the live '76 "Soily". Brought chills to my spine!

Then it all came to a crashing halt. More hugs, bows and tears (and yes, more ape-dancing). "We hope you've had a happy evening cuz we certainly have," said Paul, "and you know what...WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME!" With that fireworks shot off from the sides and behind the stage, a pleasant reminder of all those stadium extravaganzas in '93. Paul and band continued the love fest onstage while it went on for several minutes. Paul was last to leave of course, and almost had to be dragged off, returning a couple times to punch the air with his fist before he scampered around the corner and out of sight, for what many believe will not be the last time. I certainly hope not, baby or no. This man is unique in his ability to give and receive love with such diginity and sincerity. It was an honor to witness it, this just doesn't happen at anyone else's shows. Only Paul's.

Why is that?? That Whateveritis he brings is sure a powerful tonic for a lot of the world's population. It would be a crime to bottle up forever from here on out.

So, yeah, I''ll take you up on your promise Paul. See ya next time!

We're Going Home you Better Believe It,

A banner advertising Paul's Liverpool concert. (Thanks to Brian Cancemi.)

BACK IN LIVERPOOL!!!

The Liverpool was the sixth and last show I saw during the Back in the World tour, after attending Antwerp (2 shows), Arnhem (1 show) and Cologne (2 shows). I also had the opportunity to attend the soundcheck (as in Arnhem). Here are my impressions of the soundcheck and the show.

SOUNDCHECK:
1. Jam (starting with Abe on drums followed 

by Wix on keyboards at 16.30h)
2. Jam (with the full band, Rusty on guitar and Brian on bass)
3. Ferry cross the Mersey (instrumental 

version with Rusty playing lead on guitar)
4. Jam (Rusty played the wrong chords and this jam 

ends with a laugh)
5. Song about Spanish girls (sang by Rusty and Abe on backing vocals, 

from Rusty's forthcoming new album?)
6. Jam (at 16.50 abruptly ended as Paul enters the stage and gives 

every band member a hug)
7. India (at 16.55h with Paul on bass, as featured in the 'secret gig')
8. 'welcome everyone'
9. Coming up (Paul on bass)
10. Volare (Paul on bass, McCartney makes a reference to Rome and 

the soundcheck in Dublin where a not-so-good version was recorded)
11. Honey don't (Paul switches to electric guitar)
12. Matchbox (Paul on electric guitar)
13. Jam (Paul on electric guitar)
14. Celebration (starting at 17.15h with Paul on piano)
15. C moon (Paul on piano)
16. Things we said today (Paul switches to acoustic guitar)
17. Midnight special (Paul on acoustic guitar)
18. fun short piece about the "Goons"
19. Here, there and everywhere (Paul on acoustic guitar)
20. Blackbird (fast Cajun version, like played during the soundcheck in Arnhem)
21. San Francisco bay blues (Paul on acoustic guitar)
22. Paul asking for his 'magic piano' to arrive on stage, in the meantime Paul plays:
23. Back home jam (on acoustic guitar, sounded like the aeroplane jam 

recorded in 1990 during a soundcheck in the USA and featured as a soundboard 

recording on the Yellow Cat box set)
24. You never give me your money (Paul on magic 

piano, lots of echo on the voice)/Carry that weight (this bit played by the band, 

unlike the version in the show which features only Paul)
25. You never give me your money jam (on magic piano)
26. Lady Madonna (ending with Paul thanking the crowd 

and sound engineer 'Pab' for the last soundcheck, ending at 17.45h) 

SETLIST SHOW:
1. Pre-show (starting at about 8.15h)
2. Hello, goodbye
3. Jet
4. All my loving
5. Getting better 
6. Let me roll it/Foxy lady (great version, the best I've heard)
7. Honey hush (with introduction about Stu Sutcliffe's flat

 and record player, great hard rocking version)
8. Lonely road
9. Your loving flame
10. Blackbird
11. Every night
12. We can work it out (starting with 

"When I was walking down the road" fake)
13. You never give me your money/Carry that weight (again 

'messing' up the lyrics, for the last time!)
14. massage story (like in America with anecdotes about New Orleans 

and Tokyo, the only times he told this story during the Back in the 

World tour was in England)
15. The fool on the hill
16. Here today (emotional moment for Paul which could be heard in the vocals)
17. Something
18. Yellow Submarine (short version with Liverpool 

yellow submarine on screen, so it was not very 

spontaneous. Paul also talked about telling Ringo 

that the audiences loved singing the song as a tribute for him!)
19. Eleanor Rigby
20. Here, there and everywhere
21. I've just seen a face
22. Calico skies (with outro that the song is featured on the "Hope" cd)
23. Two of us
24. Maggie Mae (I think it was played before Michelle, but I'm 

not 100% certain. It was played with Paul on acoustic 

guitar and Abe on drums. It was the full version lasting 2 or 3 minutes 

with Paul singing it with a think Scouse accent. Absolutely 

stunning version with a great sing along chorus…)
25. Michelle (with long anecdote about going to the parties 

for John's art school teachers)
26. Band on the run
27. Back in the USSR (again a tight hard rocking version, 

of course he mentioned singing the song in Moscow)
28. Maybe I'm amazed (starting with Rusty's introduction, this time

 taking a photo of the audience. Best version of the song I've ever heard live)
29. Let'em in (before the song started he talked about his relatives,

 also 'our kid' Mike who contributed to the show with many 

George Harrison pics showed during "Something" on the screens.

 In the song he mentioned his uncle Albert among others)
30. My love (as a tribute for Linda, but now for all the lovers in the audience)
31. She's leaving home (with Wix' introduction about loving the show so much

 and putting on a hat he brought along from Dublin making a reference 

that some people thought Liverpool was the capitol of Ireland)
32. Can't buy me love
33. Birthday (great rocking version)
34. Live and let die (bangs and fireworks)
35. Let it be
36. Baby face (long fake out, over one minute. 

It had a smooth ending instead of an abrupt one)
37. Hey Jude
Encores:
38. The long and winding road
39. Lady Madonna
40. I saw her standing there
Encores:
41. I lost my little girl (sounded unrehearsed, Paul forgot how to start the song. 

Short version, unlike the Unplugged version as the middle eight section 

"let me tell you a story, the very first thing I wrote" was missing)
42. Yesterday
43. credits about band (my friends) and crew
44. Sgt. Pepper (reprise)/The end (the show ended at 23.30h)

All in all a great concert, the best and longest show I've ever seen or heard. Great sound, great band, great audience, great atmosphere, quite an emotional trip, not only for Paul but also for the band and the audience. Wix had the tears in his eyes (you could see it on the screens) and it sounded like Paul and the band didn't want the concert to end. At the end of the concert, a couple of songs before the first encores, cardboard flats (12" x 12" size) were handed out to the audience which were held up in the air. On the front it had a big red heart and on the back the red heart with the text: "Home is where the heart is. Liverpool 1 June 2003

PAUL McCARTNEY IN LIVERPOOL

By Jordi Melgosa and Amparo Garcia, from Barcelona, Spain.

Fantastic! Unique! Extraordinary!

It is plain that nothing is comparable to seeing Paul with his people. All who though, here in Spain, that both Paul's shows in Barcelona were the best, due to the warmth of people and the welcome brought to Paul, were wrong. A concert of Paul in Liverpool is something very special. For him, but also for people from the city. We had never seen Paul being as moved as he was yesterday. He had to keep back many times without crying The concert was as always but different. He broke the "script" used in all the tour, showing himself more free and relaxed and improvising the explanations of the songs.

Paul came to the Kings Dock around 4:30 pm in his limo. We were lucky to listen the soundcheck while we were in the queue. At first The Band were playing alone several jams, and Paul joined after to them. And the show began!!! The set list of the soundcheck was the following:

- INDIA
- COMING UP
- VOLARE
- HONEY DON´T
- MATCHBOX
- INSTRUMENTAL JAM
- CELEBRATION
- C'MOON
- THINGS WE SAID TODAY
- MIDNIGHT SPECIAL
- HERE, THERE & EVERYWHERE
- BLACKBIRD (FAST VERSION)
- SAN FRANCISCO BAY BLUES
- JAM
- YOU NEVER GIVE ME YOUR MONEY

 (DIFFERENT VERSION)
- LADY MADONNA

After each song people in the queue applauded and Paul said, "Thank you tiny audience!"

When the Soundcheck finished, at 6:00 pm the doors were opened.

In the messages that were appearing in the screen before the concert we can realized the innate mood of people from Liverpool. The most part of the points were against the public official of the Town Council of Liverpool, who had got the tickets before they were on sale ("Anyone here from the town council? Oh yeah, all of you!", for example)

After the pre-show, similar to the previous concerts, around 8:30 pm, the figure of Paul appeared in the screen, while the first chords of "Hello, Goodbye" began to sound.

The following songs were "Jet" and "All My loving", after which he said " It 's great to be home, We have come here to rock you".

After "Let me roll it", Paul commented all the memories coming in his mind performing in Liverpool. He said that near there, in Gambier Terrace, in the apartment that John and Stu shared, he spent his first night outside home. He remembered when he woke up and he went to the record player, there was the Johnny Burnette single, "Honey Hush", and. he began to perform it, an unheard theme in this tour.

After this, he began to play a couple of themes of his last studio album. While he performed "Lonely Road", it began to rain, but luckily it lasted not too much.

Then, at the piano, Paul introduced "Your Loving Flame" saying that he would like to dedicate it to someone very special in the audience, his beautiful wife, Heather. And he said he imagined that we have heard that they had some good news recently, because she was waiting a baby, and he dedicated the song to him.

The following songs were "Blackbird", "Every Night " and "We can work it out".

Then he sang again "You Never Give me your money", with the wrong words, singing that he had not time to learn it for this tour.

Before begining "The Fool on the hill" he said that the tour was ideal to have himself massaged, explaining two "bad"experiences in USA and in Japan.

After "The Fool on the hill" he performed both tributes to John and to George.

Paul mentioned during the intro to "Here Today" that he wrote it after the death of John and people screamed. During the song we could read "John loves you", and Paul seemed almost in tears.

In the intro of "Something" he mentioned that George was a good ukelele player, and after it he said that George had told "no, it's not like that, it's like this!" and then He played the fast version of the song heard in the Driving USA tour.

After these tributes, Paul mentioned that in some concerts (we must remember that the first time was in the second concert of Barcelona), people asked for Ringo, and then He began to play "Yellow Submarine", while in the screen appeared images of the Yellow Submarine placed in Chavase Park, in Liverpool. When he finished, he commented that he told Ringo what happened in the shows, with people asking about him, and that he was very pleased for this reason.

With the acoustic guitar he performed "Eleanor Rigby", "Here There & Everywhere", "I´ve Just Seen a Face", "Calico Skies" and "Two of us".

After Two of us, Paul said that the next song was specially prepared for the Liverpool show, beginning the first chords of "Maggie Mae", first he lonely with the acoustc guitar, and then with all the Band joining him, with an spectacular electric sound, while in the screen appeared landmarks of the city. The crowd drove mad with this song!!!.

In the intro of "Michelle", Paul said that when George and him were students and they went to a party organized by John' partners, they tried to seem more affected than they really were. He said that John' partners drank wine while George and him at most drank beer, saying this was still fantastic for him. In order to seem more sophisticated, George and him talked in French. Some years after, John reminded him those years and he was inspired by this to write "Michelle".

"Band on the Run" began with the slow versión that at the beginning of the Back in the world tour sounded after the concert (this happened in the last concerts of the Tour) After it, "Back in The U.S.S.R", another of the star songs of the night, with the crowd shaking.

Then "Maybe I´m Amazed" was performed. Abe played drums with so much impetus that a drumstick was escaped from his hands and it almost touched to Paul who was on his left, playing piano.

After "Let´ Em in". Paul performed "My Love". In this song Paul said that he wanted to take the opportunity to tell to all his family that he does love them. Paul was about crying, very moved, and he said he wrote this song thinking in Linda and that night it was dedicated to all the lovers in the audience.

"She´s Leaving Home", "Can´t Buy Me Love", "Birthday", "Live and Let Die" and "Let it be". WITHOUT WORDS!!!. The crowd, more and more surrended to Paul, vibrating increasingly.

Before "Hey Jude", Paul delighted us with another jewel. "Baby Face", performing its complete versión. Then a lot of sheets with a red heart and the words "HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS. LIVERPOOL 1 JUNE 2003" were distributed among people in the first rows. The crowd raised them up during the Hey Jude chorus.

In the first encore Paul performed "The long and winding Road", "Lady Madonna" and "I Saw her standing There", and he said goodbye again.

When he returned, he had only his acoustic guitar in hands. He said that when he was fourteen he wrote his first song at Forthlin Road. It was "I Lost My little Girl" and he said in that night he had the absolute necessity of performing it for us.

"Yesterday" was huge!!! When it seems that nothing could surpass all the heard until then, BANG!! He performed this song all alone by himself, only with his guitar, and letting us deeply moved. At the end all the crowd sang along while Paul waved his arms conducting people.

Then the band returned and they performed "Sgt. Peppers / The End". Wonderful colophon after a 3-hour concert.

When he said goodbye and that it was the last concert of the show, he commented that it was not the last time he played in Liverpool but he would play again in the next tour.

THANKS A LOT PAUL!!! WE ARE WAITING YOU!!! YOU AND YOUR MUSIC MAKE THIS WORLD BETTER!!!

(6/3/03) From David Shaw:

Hi Steve, My wife, Janet, and I were fortunate enough to attend Paul McCartney's amazing Liverpool concert last night. We arrived at the purpose-built outdoor arena on the docks at 4.40 p.m. and we could hear the band playing a long instrumental, early in their soundcheck.