Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen
Podcasts Off-Ramp
Paul McCartney surprises fans with a tiny (for him) concert at Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown
Off-Ramp with John Rabe Hero Image
(
Dan Carino
)
Oct 14, 2016
Listen 3:41
Paul McCartney surprises fans with a tiny (for him) concert at Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown
Off-Ramp's R.H. Greene didn't make it inside, but only 350 people did, when Paul McCartney played at the famous Pioneertown venue Thursday night.

Off-Ramp's R.H. Greene didn't make it inside, but only 350 people did, when Paul McCartney played at the famous Pioneertown venue Thursday night.

Why would Paul McCartney play for a few hundred people, when he's got thousands in the audience at Desert Trip? As an anonymous member of his entourage told Off-Ramp High Desert Correspondent R.H. Greene, "He loves music."

When Thursday's flash concert was announced at the legendary venue Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown, Greene hit the road, and brought back a tale of the joys and sorrows of superfandom.

At Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown, Sue Weisenhaus - with a friend - shows off her Paul McCartney tattoo ... inked over his actual signature on her arm.
At Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown, Sue Weisenhaus - with a friend - shows off her Paul McCartney tattoo ... inked over his actual signature on her arm.
(
R.H. Greene
)

Greene - and a superfan named Sue Weisenhaus - didn't get inside, but The Desert Sun's Bruce Fessier reported on the set:



McCartney opened with a solo number, “Save Us,” and then went into a selection of Beatles and Wings songs, including “A Hard Day's Night,” “Junior’s Farm” and “Can’t Buy Me Love.” Fans screamed and sang along, especially to his Beatles songs. When he tried to end his set with “Hey Jude” after an hour and 15 minutes, he got shrieks before most everyone began singing along. “I can’t stop this thing!” McCartney said. Then he came back for an encore of three more songs.

Fessier also says David Hockney attended, and that the gig — set up at least a few weeks ago — was designed to be as "locals only" as possible.