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Paul McCartney has reflected on the unforgettable day The Beatles met Elvis Presley, calling it one of those surreal “pinch yourself” moments.
McCartney and the rest of The Beatles famously crossed paths with Presley just once in 1965, when they visited his Los Angeles home during a meeting arranged by NME writer Chris Hutchins.
Now, during a new appearance on BBC Radio 2’s Tracks Of My Years, McCartney looked back on the legendary encounter and shared his memories of the late rock and roll icon.
“He was really great. He was a very handsome guy, but we kind of knew that. We were fans.
“We just followed everything he did, and we looked at any photo we could get. He wasn’t a disappointment at all,” McCartney said.
He went on to explain that over the years he and his former bandmates, including Ringo Starr, have often discussed the meeting, although everyone seems to remember parts of it differently.
“I say that we rang the doorbell and Elvis came to the door and said, ‘come in guys’,” he recalled. “He invited us in and we sat around and he had a jukebox, and played ‘Mohair Sam’, the record.
“Ringo says he didn’t come to the door, we went in and he was sitting there. So who’s right? I am,” he joked.
McCartney described the evening as a special experience and remembered Presley casually picking up a bass guitar during the visit.
“He had a bass there and he was talking about the bass so we could talk, sort of, bass talk. He was great, very personable, very nice.
“He had a bunch of his minders with him, and you read stuff later, and I think they were mainly his cousins, his gang.”
The Beatles legend also remembered meeting Priscilla Presley, describing that part of the night as another standout memory.
“You’re inviting four guys into your home, probably the last thing you need is them to be all over your wife.
“It was great, she was great, Elvis was great,” he continued, before adding: “You pinch yourself. I met, I actually sat with, like I’m sitting with you, Elvis.”
McCartney has previously named Presley as one of the major inspirations behind The Beatles’ landmark album ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’.
In other news, McCartney is preparing to release his new album ‘The Boys Of Dungeon Lane’ on May 29. The project has already been previewed with tracks including ‘Days We Left Behind’ and ‘Home To Us’, which marks his first official duet with Ringo Starr.
Ahead of the release, McCartney was also interviewed by actor Paul Mescal, who is set to portray him in the upcoming Beatles biopic series.
Currently titled The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, the movies have been written by Jez Butterworth, Peter Straughan and Jack Thorne. The cast includes Mescal as McCartney, Harris Dickinson as John Lennon, Joseph Quinn as George Harrison and Barry Keoghan as Ringo Starr. The films are currently scheduled for release in April 2028.
McCartney later joked about Mescal taking on the role during his recent appearance on the final episode of The Late Show. After performing ‘Hello, Goodbye’ with host Stephen Colbert before symbolically turning off the lights inside the Ed Sullivan Theatre, he was asked which of them was more attractive.
McCartney smiled, pointed to himself and answered: “Me.”
After the audience reacted with applause and laughter, he quickly clarified that he was joking, adding: “No, he’s very cute, he’s very cute.”
Elsewhere, McCartney has also recently spoken about struggling to understand what songs Bob Dylan was playing during a concert, why he dislikes taking selfies, and why he still finds much of influencer culture confusing.
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Johnny Marr has released his latest song, ‘It’s Time’, which finds the musician confronting “assholes with dodgy views”. Listen to it below.
The single provides another preview of Marr’s forthcoming fifth solo record, ‘The Age Of Everything’, which arrives on October 2. He has already introduced the project through ‘Spin’ and ‘Ophelia’.
On ‘It’s Time’, Marr addresses corruption and cynicism while holding on to a sense of hope. Discussing its meaning, he said: “‘It’s Time’ is my way of singing about some worldly issues but finding defiance in idealism.”
“I wanted a lyric that matched the exuberance of the music but is actually about resisting cynicism and corruption: ‘Everybody ain’t making it, change the weather and breaking it. Mobilise to know the truth. Open eyes to know the truth.’ I guess it’s about the assholes with dodgy views,” he added.
The accompanying video was captured earlier this year during the largest headline concert of Marr’s solo career. Filming took place at his sold out homecoming performance at Castlefield Bowl in Manchester. Watch it below.
‘The Age Of Everything’ follows Marr’s 2022 release ‘Fever Dreams Pts 1–4’. In its four star review, NME described that project as “a soulful record fuelled by fresh ideas”.
Marr also issued a concert album titled ‘Look Out Live!’ last year. The 22 song collection was recorded at London’s Eventim Apollo during his 2024 ‘Spirit Power’ tour.
More recently, Marr appeared on Gorillaz album ‘The Mountain’ and joined the group onstage in London last September. He also participated in the celebrity filled ‘Help(2)’ benefit album for War Child. In 2023, Marr put out a career spanning compilation, which included the previously unreleased song ‘Somewhere’.
Elsewhere, Morrissey and Marr recently contributed to a rare new seven inch pressing by The Smiths for an upcoming Rough Trade collection.
The famous independent London label will issue the second instalment of its newly manufactured classic singles series, ‘Rough Trade 45s: Volume 2’, on October 30. The collection will contain music from The Fall, Aztec Camera, Mazzy Star, Scritti Politti, Robert Wyatt and additional artists. Only 1,000 copies will be available when it arrives on October 30. Place an advance order here.
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