[Editor’s Note:] As part of National Disc Jockey Day, MVO: The Voice-Over Guys asked some of the guys to share a story or two from their radio days.
Fully 50% of the stories we got back we can’y publish because we’re not sure if the statute of limitations has expired, questions would be asked (some by spouses, some by the police) and none of the MVO guys would survive a day in the clink. We know this because some have had the brief experience (allegedly).
So after tirelessly editing, here’s this radio story from MVO: The Voice-Over Guys’ DAN HURST.
So, in 1993 when Paul McCartney was on tour and came to perform in Kansas City, he granted ONE (1) interview to the media, including Radio, TV, and newspaper. I don’t know how, but our radio morning show was granted that interview.
My partner, Glo Goodwin and I were instructed to meet Paul McCartney in a particular room at Arrowhead Stadium one hour before the concert start. We were told that we would have ten minutes to interview him.
We arrived a few minutes early just to make sure we were in the right place and ready for the interview. The backstage crew was awesome – including Linda McCartney who offered us veggie burgers!
A few minutes after the scheduled time to start the interview, Paul walked into the room and greeted us. He. Was. Awesome! He was as friendly and open and kind and as charming as we could have possibly hoped for.
The interview went great! One of my interview strategies throughout my almost 30 years in radio was to always ask the unexpected. There were times with some of the biggest names in music that we never even touched on the song (or album) the artist was promoting because we just went off on subjects that the artist didn’t expect. This interview was no exception.
During the interview I asked how his son, James, was. By that time James was quite a good musician in his own right, and eventually would play on a couple of recording tracks with Paul.
That launched into a conversation about kids that was mesmerizing! The ten minutes we were allotted turned into over 30! To hear Paul McCartney talk about fatherhood and kids and family was breathtaking.
He spoke of James commitment to music, and playing guitar for hours up in his room. I asked him what he thought about James’ taste in music.
I never would have expected his answer!
He said, “Oh, there are times I have to walk over to the bottom of the stairs and yell up ‘Turn that S*%@& off!!!'”
I said, “I think I heard my Dad say something like that when I was listening to The Beatles!”
“I know,” he said. “It’s a never ending cycle, isn’t it?”