“He’s Crying and He Needed To”: The Touching Song That Helped Paul McCartney Process John Lennon’s Death

Grief has a funny way of peaking its head out at the most unexpected times, which is why Paul McCartney was so taken aback by an impromptu song that helped him process John Lennon’s death. The emotional moment happened in 1981, only months after Mark David Chapman murdered Lennon in front of his New York City home.

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Carl Perkins (of “Blue Suede Shoes” fame) was visiting McCartney on the island of Montserrat while the former Beatle was recording his 1982 album Tug of War. To thank McCartney for his hospitality and collaborative relationship, Perkins wrote him a song, unknowingly creating a piece of music that would leave McCartney in tears.

An Impromptu Performance That Ended In Tears

Paul McCartney was in the process of recording his third solo album when he woke to hear the tragic news of John Lennon’s death. Understandably, he put the musical project on hold to give himself time to process the senseless act of violence against his lifelong friend. Several months later, in February 1981, he resumed recording on the island of Montserrat, inviting fellow stars like Stevie Wonder, Carl Perkins, and his former bandmate, Ringo Starr, to help with the sessions. Perkins, touched by McCartney’s generosity and friendship, decided to write him a song before he left: “My Old Friend.”

“He was so kind to invite me down to this beautiful island of Montserrat with Stevie Wonder,” Perkins later said. “Ringo was there. [We] just had a wonderful time. I flew down by myself. I didn’t want to cry when I left after staying down there, and I’m a big crybaby! If something moves me, I’ll just choke up. So, the night before, I just wrote how I felt.” On the isle of Montserrat, no, I never shall forget. Just a country boy, a guitar and a song. You invited me in, and you’ve treated me like kin.

Before Perkins left, he played the song for McCartney, who immediately asked Perkins to play the song again, this time with Linda McCartney in the room. “After I finished signing the song to Paul, he was crying. Tears were rolling down his pretty cheeks. Linda said, ‘Carl, thank you so much.’ I said, ‘Kinda, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you cry.’ She said, ‘But he’s crying, and he needed to. He hasn’t been able to really break down since that happened to John.’” Little did Perkins know just how close to home his song had hit.

John Lennon’s Final Words To Paul McCartney Before His Death

After Carl Perkins finished playing the song, Paul McCartney stepped outside and wept. Perkins recalled McCartney’s wife, Linda McCartney, putting her arm around him and asking, “But how did you know?” Perkins continued, “I said, ‘Know what, Linda? I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ She said, ‘There’s two people in the world that know what John Lennon said to Paul. The last thing he said to him. Me and Paul are the only two that know that. But now there’s three. You know it. I said, ‘Girl, you’re freaking me out! I don’t know what you’re talking about!’”

The answer was in Perkins’ refrain. And if we never meet again this side of life, in a little while, over yonder, where it’s peace and quiet, my old friend, won’t you think about me every now and then?

“She said the last words that John Lennon said to Paul in the hallway of the Dakota building were… he patted him on the shoulder and said, ‘Think about me every now and then, old friend.’ She said, ‘Here you are. That’s what you just sang. How did you know?’ And I said I didn’t know. Gosh, I didn’t know it. But McCartney really feels that Lennon sent me that song, he really does.” The songwriter said in The Beatles: Off the Record 2, “I only meant the song to be from me to [Paul]. But it turned out that it sounds like John Lennon is talking to him.”

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