James McCartney and Sean Lennon have written a song together - the sons of the most famous songwriting team in history.
The jubilant comments on social networks can be reduced to one sentence: “Wonderful! It's not over with Lennon and McCartney!” In fact, a new song by the most famous songwriter team of all time has now been released: “Primrose Hill”. Only: It's not from the Beatles John Lennon and Paul McCartney, but from their sons Sean and James.
James McCartney released the bittersweet ballad under his name - but he posted a photo of himself and Sean Lennon on Instagram to mark the occasion. And revealed: "I'm so excited to share my latest song co-written by my good friend: @sean_ono_lennon." He continued: "Releasing this song feels like we're really getting the ball rolling bring."
Can we look forward to even more? Do Lennon and McCartney not only have a past, but also a future? That would be a blast though. Because “Primrose Hill” is really pretty.
What a joy to see these two familiar faces
An online commentator
A tinkling folk rock guitar rings in the three minutes and 20 seconds, the melody is briefly reminiscent - and that's really fitting - of Leonard Cohen's “Hallelujah”. The calm tenor voice begins, it's not that similar to Papa Paul's. James describes a romance that began on the hill in Regent's Park that gave the London borough its name. Kissing under the stars, deep looks into your eyes, a goodbye forever. The wistful refrain: “Always remember Primrose Hill.”
The song, of course, reminds us of the great deeds of the fathers, especially the nostalgic “Penny Lane,” which in turn referenced landmarks in Liverpool, the Beatles’ hometown. James McCartney explains on Platform X how he came up with the song: “As a child in Scotland, I had a vision on a beautiful summer day. I saw my true love, my salvation, in my mind's eye. 'Primrose Hill' is about finding that person.”
The response online is huge: “What a joy to see these two familiar faces,” writes one commentator about the musicians’ resemblance to their fathers. “This is fantastic,” comments one forester. “I bet John is grinning from ear to ear.”
Sean Ono is the son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono (now 91). He was five years old when his father was murdered in 1980 - which made it impossible for John to work with his estranged friend Paul McCartney again. Like his half-brother Julian, Sean has been a musician since his youth. James is the only son of Paul and Linda McCartney - the relationship with his father suffered because Paul remarried after Linda's death in 1999. Things calmed down, and in 2010 his dad produced James' first solo EP. He has now released three albums, and Dhani Harrison (45) played the guitar on “The Blackberry Train” - the son of the Beatles George Harrison, who died in 2001. Meanwhile, Zak Starkey, son of Ringo Starr, has made a name for himself as a drummer. Theoretically, all four Beatles boys could make music together - an idea that is of course enthusiastically welcomed on the Internet.
Paul McCartney is extremely proud of the Filius: “My son James has released a new song called 'Primrose Hill' - listen to it!” he wrote on Facebook. “And best wishes to Sean.”