Everyone attending a Paul McCartney show in 2025 will have set expectations, and, more than likely, those expectations are correct. You know you’re going to get a career-spanning set that highlights the magnitude of his contributions to music history. You know you’re going to get some insider tidbits of the Beatles’ heyday. You know you’re going to bear witness to an icon in the truest sense of the word. Those expectations are set before you even walk in the door. However, the reality of seeing those expectations play out is greater than any pre-conceived notion.
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To many, the Beatles’ catalog is like a musical Big Bang. Though they obviously aren’t the root of all pop and rock, their songs are so ubiquitous that they can feel like the wellspring from which everything else flows. Because of this, hearing songs like “Help!”, “Something”, or “Love Me Do” live during McCartney’s 2025 Got Back Tour was surreal. It almost feels silly to turn to your friends at a McCartney show and gush, “I love this one.” Do you mean one of the undisputed greatest songs of all time?
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Nevertheless, that kind of redundant excitement trickled through the crowd at The Pinnacle in Nashville as McCartney cycled through the breadth of the Beatles’ tenure, all the way from their pre-name-change track “In Spite of All the Danger” to their swan song cut, “The End.” Most of the Beatles numbers were accompanied by visuals of the band, keeping a little bit of their spirit alive for fans who never got to experience Beatlemania in its prime.
McCartney spent a reasonable amount of time with the Fab Four. He even tipped his hat to the late George Harrison with a ukulele-led performance of “Something,” a la Concert for George, performed the semi-posthumously released “Now and Then”, and did a virtual duet with John Lennon on “I’ve Got a Feeling.”
I fulfilled a dream of singing along to “Hey Jude” at the Nashville Got Back show. Unsurprisingly, this was a highlight of the night thanks to this song’s unifying Na-Na-Na sing-along.
There’s more to McCartney’s career than the Beatles, though, and the setlist certainly reflected that. He played through solo material and Wings cuts, giving fans of every era of his career something to talk about.
And there truly was a little something for everyone at the Nashville show. The crowd reflected the sheer scale of McCartney’s listenership. From concertgoers closer to his age (one of whom wrote McCartney love letters when she was a kid, as McCartney called out on stage) to attendees no more than five years old brought along by their parents for an early musical education.
It’s hard to step into McCartney’s shoes and know exactly what he’s feeling at this stage of his career. But looking out over a packed room and realizing you’ve bridged every possible gap in it with your songwriting must carry a rare kind of satisfaction. McCartney seems more than aware of what it means for people to see him live. He was generous with his words, time, and setlist choices, giving fans the songs they’ve held close for decades. In return, the audience gave him the kind of love only a lifetime of listening can earn.
Photo: Nicholas LeTellier for Alive Coverage
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