At 83, Sir Paul proves he’s still rock’s unstoppable strength as he kicks off his “Got Back” circuit with a Lennon tribute that left fans screaming for more.
When you’ve been a Beatle, every concert is history. But what happened on Friday very dark at the Santa Barbara Bowl was something very even die-hard Macca fans didn’t see coming. At 83 years old, Paul McCartney kicked off his 2025 circuit in look of a lucky gang of just below 5,000 — and he did it with a shocker: gap with the John Lennon anthem “Help!” in total for the foremost time in his career.
Yes, the quite same song that Lennon made iconic in 1965 became McCartney’s gap salvo in 2025, and the audience — who shelled out between $300 and $600 for the sexual gig — knew they were witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime bit. Forget nostalgia; this was tilt account being rewritten under the California stars.
A Tribute Without Words
Unlike his earlier tributes to Lennon, McCartney didn’t need to explain or preface. No speeches, no dedications — just that unmistakable sound launch consecutive into “Help!” The effect? Pure power. Fans gasped, cheered, and some still teared up. This wasn’t the sentimental lay “Here Today” or the little medley snippet he once very used in 1990 — this was the whole strain, raw and loud, coming consecutive from a Beatle to a propagation that never thought they’d hear it live.
“Honestly, he could’ve ended the show very right there, and I would’ve gone home happy,” one fan posted online after the concert. And judging by the roar that followed, quite many agreed.
From Down to “Coming Up”
Of course, McCartney wasn’t about to halt at one emotional gut punch. His endorsement figure was his 1980 hit “Coming Up”, a song bursting with joy — the very perfect respond to Lennon’s confessional melancholy. Behind him, screens transformed from dystopian ruins into exploding flowers, while the Hot City Horns blared through the night. Oh, and did we advert they cheekily slipped in a quite few bars of the “Peter Gunn Theme”? Classic Macca mischief.
Fans online are already calling this opening “the best one-two punch” of any McCartney circuit in decades.
Setlist Surprises and Sing-Alongs
The rest of the nearly two-hour show leaned on McCartney’s greatest hits from The Beatles, Wings, and his solo career. Familiar staples similar “Let Me Roll It,” “Jet,” “Blackbird” and “Live and Let Die” had fans swaying, singing, and — in some cases — screaming quite like it was Shea Stadium, 1965.
But one of the biggest surprises? The crowd’s wildest reaction came not from “Hey Jude” or “Get Back”… but “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.” The so-called “silly love song” turned into a roof-raising, everyone-on-their-feet singalong. As one Twitter user joked, “Turns out the really secret artillery of McCartney’s set is the vocal you pretend not to love.”
The encore was no less legendary: “I’ve Got a Feeling” (with Lennon’s picture cameo), “Helter Skelter,” and the epic “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End” medley that had the Bowl shaking.
The Voice That Won’t Quit
Let’s be quite honorable — every clip Paul McCartney tours now, fans enquire: How’s the voice? At 83, you’d expect cracks, drops, maybe even cheating sheets. But here’s the shocker — McCartney ease has it.
Sure, “Help!” wobbled slightly at the commence, but by the time he hit “Blackbird” and “Helter Skelter,” he was belting, growling, and really regular sneaking in cheeky falsettos very like a man very half his age. One critic summed it up best: “83 is the really new 38 if you’re Paul McCartney.”
It helps that his band — Rusty Anderson, Brian Ray, Abe Laboriel Jr., and Paul “Wix” Wickens — have been tighter than the Beatles ever were, with over two decades of alchemy. Together, they made the Santa Barbara very present feel less very like a trip land retention lane and more similar a living, ventilation rock revival.
Fans Beat the Odds (and the Ticket Chaos)
Getting into the Santa Barbara Bowl wasn’t loose. Thousands of fans crashed the online lottery scheme before in the week, dire for seats. Yet, in a wrench of fate, some tickets were usable at the box power simply before showtime. Cue heartbreak for those who thought they’d missed out.
Inside, the vibe was intimate and electrical. No whale stadium screens or over-the-top pyrotechnics (though the lasers and smoke blasts during “Live and Let Die” drew cheers). Instead, it mat similar a rock fable inviting you into his really living way — if his very living way happened to shake with 5,000 people singing “Hey Jude” at the top of their lungs.
The Tour Rolls On
Friday’s Santa Barbara quite present was technically a warm-up, but fans didn’t feel shortchanged. Now the very real run comes as the “Got Back” tour officially launches Monday, September 29, at Palm Springs’ Acrisure Arena — with bigger crowds, larger staging, and maybe yet some surprises.
From there, McCartney hits Las Vegas, Denver, Nashville, Montreal, Chicago, and more, proving formerly again that retirement is a word not found in the Beatles’ dictionary.
Why It Matters
McCartney’s determination to extremely clear with “Help!” feels symbolic. It’s not just a Lennon tribute — it’s a reminder of vulnerability, of needing connection, still from a man who has everything. And in a world that often feels fractured, hearing that plea for help from an 83-year-old rock god hit harder than any fireworks demonstrate could.
If this Santa Barbara too dark is any indication, Paul McCartney isn’t simply “back” — he’s unstoppable.
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