A Beatle met the president when Sir Paul McCartney performed at the East Room of the White House on Wednesday night. Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, Mr. McCartney used the occasion to applaud President Obama. “Getting this prize would be good enough,” Mr. McCartney said. “But getting it from this president ...” He smiled. He added that despite “difficult times” for the president, “you have billions of us who are rooting for you.” Then, with the first lady in the front row, Mr. McCartney sang “a song I have been itching to do at the White House,” he said. It was “Michelle.”A few minutes after the concert, Mr. McCartney returned to the microphone, thanking the Library of Congress.Mr. McCartney sang reflective songs like “Eleanor Rigby” and “Let It Be.” The president praised Mr. McCartney but also brought up the catastrophic Gulf Coast oil spill. Mr. Obama spoke about “part of the country this is so rich in musical heritage” and said he was committed to “see to it that their lives and their communities are made whole again.”Mr. McCartney, who turns 68 on June 18, is the third winner of the Gershwin Prize, the highest American award for popular song. He is the first recipient who is not an American.
“We stole you,” Mr. Obama said.
Gershwin Prize has been awarded to skillful melodists who forged their reputations in the 1960s: Paul Simon in 2007 and Mr. Wonder in 2009, the first time the award was presented at the White House. n a news conference at the Library of Congress on Monday, Mr. McCartney had called the process of songwriting a mystery. “You start with a black hole and if you’re lucky, a couple hours later there’ll be a song waiting there. That mystery, that magic is still the same for me.”
Mr. McCartney ended the concert with a song that’s ideal for an all-star singalong, “Hey Jude,” with the first family joining in.
source by-nytimes.com
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