Paul McCartney Live in Philadelphia

Veterans Stadium — July 14, 1990
Wells Fargo Center — August 15, 2010

Paul McCartney playing piano during Live and Let Die explosions.
Paul McCartney playing piano during Live and Let Die explosions.

Photo Gallery | Video Gallery

I've been fortunate to see Paul McCartney twice — at Veterans Stadium on July 14, 1990, and again at the Wells Fargo Center on August 15, 2010. Each show represented a different era, yet both carried the same sense of history, musicianship, and joy.

Veterans Stadium — July 14, 1990

Paul McCartney's 1989–90 World Tour band featured Linda McCartney, Robbie McIntosh, Hamish Stuart, Paul “Wix” Wickens, and Chris Whitten. The set blended Beatles, Wings, and solo material with surprising tightness and warmth. Stand-outs for me included Hamish Stuart on rhythm guitar, bass, and vocals (formerly of Average White Band), and Linda McCartney, whose musicianship and stage presence were a genuine revelation.

Setlist — 1990
Figure of Eight
Jet (Wings)
Got to Get You Into My Life (Beatles)
Rough Ride
Band on the Run (Wings)
Birthday (Beatles)
We Got Married
Let ’Em In (Wings)
The Long and Winding Road (Beatles)
The Fool on the Hill (Beatles)
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (Beatles)
Good Day Sunshine (Beatles)
Can’t Buy Me Love (Beatles)
Put It There
Things We Said Today (Beatles)
Eleanor Rigby (Beatles)
This One
My Brave Face
Back in the U.S.S.R. (Beatles)
I Saw Her Standing There (Beatles)
Coming Up
Let It Be (Beatles)
Yellow Submarine (Beatles)

John Lennon Medley:
Strawberry Fields Forever
Help!
Give Peace a Chance
Live and Let Die (Wings)
Hey Jude

Encore:
Yesterday
Get Back
Golden Slumbers
Carry That Weight
The End

Wells Fargo Center — August 15, 2010

Twenty years later, McCartney returned with a massive, polished production that still felt personal. The 2010 show was a masterclass in pacing — moving effortlessly from Wings rockers to Beatles intimacy and back again.

Venus and Mars / Rock Show
Jet
All My Loving
Letting Go
Drive My Car
Highway
Let Me Roll It (with “Foxy Lady” jam)
The Long and Winding Road
1985
Let ’Em In
My Love
I’ve Just Seen a Face
And I Love Her
Blackbird
Here Today
Dance Tonight
Mrs. Vandebilt
Eleanor Rigby
Ram On
Something
Sing the Changes
Band on the Run
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
Back in the U.S.S.R.
I’ve Got a Feeling
Paperback Writer
A Day in the Life / Give Peace a Chance
Let It Be
Live and Let Die
Hey Jude

Encore:
Day Tripper
Lady Madonna
Get Back

Encore 2:
Yesterday
Helter Skelter
Sgt. Pepper (Reprise)
The End

Photo Gallery — Wells Fargo Center (2010)

Paul McCartney performing before a sold-out Philadelphia audience
Paul McCartney on stage at the Wells Fargo Center, performing before a packed Philadelphia audience.
Confetti cannons erupt during Paul McCartney encore
Confetti cannons erupt during the encore, a signature moment of McCartney’s stadium shows.
Paul McCartney performing Helter Skelter live
McCartney unleashes raw energy during “Helter Skelter.”
Alternate angle of Paul McCartney performing Helter Skelter
A second angle capturing the intensity and volume of “Helter Skelter.”
Pyrotechnics during Live and Let Die
Explosive pyrotechnics accompany “Live and Let Die.”
Alternate pyrotechnic burst during Live and Let Die
A second burst of fire and light during “Live and Let Die.”
Audience singalong during Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da
Arena-wide singalong during “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.”
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band reprise live
The band performs the Sgt. Pepper’s reprise as the show nears its finale.
Paul McCartney closing the show with The End
McCartney closes the night with “The End.”