muzak to my ears

A MESSAGE TO WOOLTON FROM PAUL MCCARTNEY

Ah yes, I remember it well.

I do, actually. My memory of meeting John for the first time is very clear. My mate Ivan Vaughn took me along to Woolton here and there were The Quarry Men, playing on a little platform.

I can still see John now - checked shirt and slightly curly hair, singing Come Go With Me by The Del Vikings. He didn't know all the words, so he was putting in stuff about penitentiaries - and making a good job of it.

I remember thinking 'He looks good - I wouldn't mind being in a group with him'.

A bit later on we met up; I played him Twenty Flight Rock and he seemed pretty impressed - maybe because I did know all the words.

Then, as you know, he asked me to join the group, and so began our trip together. We wrote our first songs together, we grew up together and we lived our lives together.

And when we'd do it together, something special would happen. There'd be that little magic spark.

I still remember his beery old breath when I met him here that day. But I soon came to love that beery old breath. And I loved John. I always was and still am a great fan of John's. We had a lot of fun together and I treasure all those beautiful memories.

So I sent you all in Woolton and Liddipool my best wishes today.

And thanks for remembering - there's no way that when we met here we had any idea of what we'd be starting. But I'm very proud of what we did. And I'm very glad that I did it with John.

I hope you all have a wonderful day and God bless all who sail in you.

PAUL MCCARTNEY

MESSAGE FROM YOKO ONO

What a sweet celebration!

Yes, the meeting of John and Paul was an important event not only for those of us who loved their songs, but for the whole world which went through a social change for the better as a result of their words and music.

John's first thought as Paul showed him what he could do was: "Okay - this guy is good and already the girls are flocking around him - not around me! So if I let him in, he'd going to be a tough one to handle - but I'll have a strong band."

So John took Paul in. I think this story is important in that it shows as a creator and a leader of the band, John went for getting a strong band rather than having an easy time. And John was only a teenager. What a brain! What a guy!

By the way, it's interesting that the meeting took place at a church. Also, the main bulk of their songs were recorded in Abbey Road Studios, in London. Am I the only one who thinks of these coincidences as interesting?

John and Paul were traveling minstrels, who spread the word of love throughout the world. Through their songs, they brought the energy of love to the then gray world, which was still coping with the aftermath of the second world war.

With their words and music, John and Paul showed the world that law and order was not necessarily the most important force in the world. Love was the power and the energy that could change the world. And it did.