News

Paul McCartney Performs First-Ever Israeli Concert

Paul McCartney delivered his first Israel set in Tel Aviv last night, setting things off with the Beatles classic "Hello, Goodbye." (The Beatles were reportedly banned from playing Israel in 1965, due to fears of them corrupting the country's youth.) Around 40,000 fans attended the "Friendship First" concert, which was billed as a "mission of peace" between Israeli and the Palestians.

Some people didn't see it that way, however. A radical Muslim preacher from Lebanon asked McCartney to cancel the show, and another small group of Palestinians said he was supporting Israel's occupation of the West Bank simply by playing for the country.

"I get criticized wherever I go," McCartney said in a statement on Wednesday. "I'm bringing a message of peace, and I think that's what the region needs."

—The ARTISTdirect Staff
09.25.08