John Lennon was just 40 years old when he was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman in New York City 45 years ago today, with Paul McCartney recalling their last conversation
Paul McCartney was heartbroken when John Lennon died(Image: Redferns)
Paul McCartney admitted “it was just too crazy” as he recalled how he found out about John Lennon’s death.
John was just 40 years old when he was shot outside the Dakota in New York City on December 8, 1980, by Mark David Chapman. The killer shot John twice in the back and twice in the shoulder at close range and The Beatles icon was pronounced dead after being rushed to the hospital.
Paul opened up about his former bandmate’s murder in his book, Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run. He revealed he found out about John’s death from his manager “early in the morning.”
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“We just said what everyone said; it was all blurred,” Paul recalled in his book. “It was the same as the Kennedy [assassination]. The same horrific moment, you know. You couldn’t take it in. I still haven’t taken it in. I don’t want to.”
After news of John’s death spread, Paul met with Ringo Starr and George Harrison at the recording studio. Paul said none of them could stay home following the news, explaining, “We all had to go to work and be with people we knew. Couldn’t bear it. We just had to keep going.”
Paul McCartney and John Lennon had their ups and downs over the years(Image: Bettmann Archive)
Paul admitted he was “in shock” after being told John had died before opening up about the last phone call he had with his former bandmate. The pair had a tense relationship following the break up of The Beatles in 1970, but they tried to make amends years later.
While the pair never got to sit down face to face to sort out their differences, Paul said their last phone call was “consoling.” He wrote in his book, “The last phone conversation I ever had with him was really great, and we didn’t have any kind of blowup.”
Paul said the pair had a “very happy conversation” about their families before John’s death. He revealed one of the people they spoke about was John’s son Sean Lennon, who he shared with Yoko Ono.
Paul opened up in his book(Image: Getty Images)
Paul described the ending of their feud as “one of the great blessings in my life.” The 83-year-old said he and John loved each other “all out lives” and described their relationship as “two brothers in a family.”
Paul’s daughter Stella McCartney, who he shared with the late Linda McCartney, also wrote about John’s death in her dad’s book. She recalled her dad leaving the kitchen and stepping outside after receiving a call telling him John had died.
“I admit it breaks my heart to this day. That was truly heartbreaking to see,” Stella wrote. She admitted that the memory is “in my head for life.”
