Paul McCartney & Mexico

So there are a lot of curious relationships between Mexico and The Beatles, but after all, what’s more intimate than an artist actually interacting with his fans?

Sir Paul McCartney thought of Mexico as an exotic but close place. Evidence of this, is this specific line on “The Back Seat of My Car” from the album “Ram”:

”We can make it to Mexico City,

sittin' in the backseat of my car”

The song speaks of young love and the chance of being free for a while and doing something a bit “crazy.” So Mexico City stands out as an interesting possibility. Yes, this is just a song lyric, but McCartney’s interest in Mexico would later be proven bigger.

In 1993, for the first time ever, a member of The Beatles played a live concert in Mexico and this was Paul McCartney. You may like the country for the food or the tourism, but this was a Beatle paying tribute to his Mexican fans. To be more precise, Paul played twice (November 25 & 27) at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City.

 

Nine years after those historic concerts and having in between that time The Beatles’ Anthology project and Linda’s and George’s passing, Paul McCartney returned to Mexico with a specific tour called “Driving Mexico.” This time, he played three nights: November 2, 3 and 5 of 2002 at the Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City. Tributes to Linda, John, George and Mexican painter Frida Kahlo happened throughout those three nights. 

Eight years later, the man himself returned during the “Up and Coming” tour. This time he played 27 and 28 of May of 2010 at the Foro Sol stadium…

...and above everything else, he played an E N O R M O U S tribute to Mexico:

The song is called "Shine a Light in Mexico" and has only been played twice: at both 2010 Mexico City concerts. It emerged as a response from Paul to Mexican fans that thrilled him previously with a light “beat” during “Let ‘Em In.”

Finally, it is rumored that Paul McCartney is scheduled to play at Ciudad Juárez and Guadalajara later on this year and at Chichén Itzá at some point in 2012. While there is still no confirmation of any of these concerts, we can only hope they do happen and fondly remember the seven concerts that have already happened on this land.