Paul McCartney says he called John Lennon “Four-Eyes” when they quarreled

• Paul McCartney tells stories about John Lennon in the new Hulu docuseries “McCartney 3,2,1”.
• He says the famous songwriting duo used to call each other by names when they quarreled.
• “John had a very defensive manner, which was wonderful,” he says. “But I was much more open.”
• Visit the Insider homepage for more stories.

Paul McCartney gives fans a more in-depth look at his relationship with John Lennon and their years together as singers for The Beatles.

In the new

Hulu
The “McCartney 3,2,1” docuseries, which premiered on Friday, the rocker talks about his former writing partner and their obvious differences.

“Come to think of it, it’s crazy,” says McCartney in the first of six episodes. “He was wearing glasses and I wasn’t. So if we had a fight, I would call him ‘four eyes’. Four eyes! And he would say,’ Pigeon breast! My chest wasn’t as developed as his, or anything else. “

“So you know, we’ve done all of this. But these things obviously bring you closer together,” he adds.

McCartney and Lennon were the lead vocalists and main lyricists of The Beatles, which also included drummer Ringo Starr and guitarist George Harrison. The duo had a successful but complicated dynamic until the band broke up in 1970. Lennon was assassinated in 1980.

In the docuseries, McCartney reflects on their different backgrounds, including Lennon’s tragic family history, and how it affected their adult personalities.

“I always thought everyone had loving families,” he told producer Rick Rubin, who stars on the show. “Of course, later I found out that was not true. And some people are very unhappy. John was unlucky. His father left his house when he was 3, and John didn’t. didn’t see him until he was famous. And also John’s mother was killed. So that opened my eyes. “

As Rubin points out, this “testifies to the difference in temperament as adults.”

“It’s true,” McCartney nods. “John had a very defensive manner, which was wonderful. That’s how he went through that childhood. But I was a lot more open and just more, ‘It’s all right.’ Optimistic.”

Jeff Hochberg / Getty Images

“As a team, it worked,” he continues, singing a few lines from their 1967 song “Getting Better”. “I wrote, ‘It gets better all the time’ and he said, ‘It couldn’t be worse.’ Which was like, the perfect nod to that song. So I loved how he always added a little bit of cynicism. “

Later, in the fifth episode, Rubin reads a quote from Lennon about McCartney’s skills and influence as a musician. The “Imagine” frontman called his former bandmate “one of the most innovative bassists to ever play bass”.

“It’s beautiful. I’ve never heard that before,” McCartney replies. “He never told me that. But it’s nice to hear he told someone.”