Paul McCartney Receives Walk of Fame Star

Famed musician and former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Thursday, February 9, 2012.

“Way back in history, in Liverpool when we were kids and we were listening to Buddy Holly and all the rock and roll greats, I would have never thought the day would come when I'd be getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” McCartney said at the ceremony. “That was an impossible thing to happen. But here we are today.” Sir Paul then thanked “three boys” in his life: John, George and Ringo.

McCartney’s star — the 2,460th given — was approved in 1993. He was the last Beatle to accept the honor, with John Lennon’s and George Harrison’s given posthumously. Ringo Starr was absent from the ceremony because he was “under the weather,” McCartney said.

Thursday also marked the 48th anniversary of the Beatles’s first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Guest speaker Neil Young praised McCartney’s musicianship, saying (via the L.A. Times), “When I was in high school and the Beatles came out, I loved the Beatles and I tried to learn how to play like them, and no one could figure out what  Paul was doing on the bass. Not only was he playing differently because he plays left-handed, he played notes that no one had put together before — in a way that made us stand in awe of this great musician.”

He’s also set to perform at the Grammy Awards Sunday and will headline Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee in June.

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