Paul McCartney was my first love.  My older brother Joe was a mega-Beatles fan when we were growing up, so I could not help but to be  immersed in all things John, PAUL, George and Ringo.  One of my earliest memories was being mesmerised by the Capital Records 45 orange and yellow label as it spun around on the turntable (and no, I wasn't on drugs, I was barely 4) as I sang every word to "Twist and Shout."  I used to stare at Paul's picture -- seriously -- I especially loved the one that came in the white album where he looked scruffy.  Through my formative years, Joe would always be the first to pick up the latest from The Beatles.  I was so enchanted with "The Magical Mystery Tour" album cover that I left the album outside overnight and it got rained on -- I'm lucky to have lived through that one.  McCartney and Wings were huge during my middle and high school years.  It was the first time I realized I wasn't the only girl who was in love with Paul -- one of my best friends to this day, Judy, and I would rock out together to "Band on the Run," "Venus and Mars," and swoon at McCartney's ballads.  My heart still starts to ache whenever I hear the opening note that grows at the beginning of "My Love."  In the early '90's, I was honored to be the only radio DJ in Atlanta to get a live interview with Paul before his show at The GA Dome. I was thrilled to be finally seeing him face-to-face in a room with only 2 other people while we did the interview.  We were sitting in chairs facing each other, so close our knees nearly touched -- he put his hand on my leg as we began and I looked up at him, face flushing, and said..."Please don't do that."  I couldn't even make a joke about it, I was so awestruck.  Believe it or not, the interview was terrific -- I managed to be professional.  It might have helped that I had looked down at his feet early on and noticed he was wearing black socks with flip-flops.  Definitely NOT sexy.  But everything else about him WAS -- the crinkles around his eyes, his smile, laugh, sense-of-humor, accent....he was wonderful! 

Flash-forward to The Grammy Awards Sunday night.   Paul in white suit singing '40's sounding "new" song from his new album full of "standards", which are also known as "songs my parents grew up with."  Aw, no.  Do I really want to watch this?  Look!  Joe Walsh is playing guitar with him -- cool!  Cool for about 5 seconds.  Something really disturbed me about seeing my Paul this way (kinda like the black socks with flip-flops.)  Yeah, Rod Stewart's been doing it for years, but Rod has always been kinda schmaltzy -- he can get away with it.  But seeing Paul doing this made me wonder who he is doing it for.  My mom would LOVE it!  But did my mom love the rocking, acid-dropping, pot-smoking, Marharishi-inspired Beatles?  Hell no!  She does like the songs, "Something" and "Yesterday," but that's about it.  The Beatles were not for our folks.  Neither were Wings.  Why now, Paul?  Thank God he closed the Grammy's with the amazing "Golden Slumbers" medley, with Paul, Bruce, Joe Walsh, and Dave Grohl all taking turns at guitar solos-- it was classic McCa, and rousing!  Am I wrong about his new turn?  Obviously Paul needs to make more money to pay alimony to that crazy, second, Dancing-With-the-Stars ex-wife of his, right?  Do YOU like him in the white tux singing Mom and Dad's favorites?  Don't get me wrong -- I like the standards.  I'll even find myself searching for the "40's channel on Sirius sometimes when I'm driving.  But I don't think I'll be rushing out to buy Paul's new "Kisses on the Bottom" -- even the album title's a turn-off!