Paul McCartney surprises diners at Tahoe-area restaurant

[I am the Paulrus]

Paul McCartney surprises diners at Tahoe-area restaurant
03-30) 16:35 PST TRUCKEE, Calif. (AP) --

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?
file=/news/archive/2004/03/30/entertainment1641EST0109.DTL


Paul McCartney capped a ski vacation at Lake Tahoe with an impromptu
performance at the same Sierra Nevada restaurant where he entertained
surprised diners last year.

"Unfortunately, you have an unscheduled guest here at Moody's," the
former Beatle said when he took the stage with a jazz trio late
Monday night.

About 70 people crowded around as McCartney sang the jazz
standard "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" with the George Souza Trio.
Then, he asked the band to play the blues rocker "Kansas City" and he
altered the lyrics into a tribute to "Tahoe City" -- a neighboring
lakefront town.

"I'm going to Tahoe City, going to get me some skiing," he sang as
the patrons joined in for the refrain.

"Everyone totally went nuts," Souza said Tuesday.

McCartney, 61, made a similar appearance last February at Moody's
Bistro and Lounge in the old Truckee Hotel built in the 1870s. Last
year, he improvised a tune he called the "Truckee Blues." He said
Monday night that it was becoming his "annual residency."

"It was awesome," said David LaPlante, 34, Reno, who took in the
scene with his wife, Jessica.

"I'm a little young to be a die-hard fan, but he's Paul McCartney, a
living legend. ... and he's sitting 15 feet away from you in a
restaurant in Truckee," he said.

Adam Comey of Salt Lake City was in town for a ski competition his
sports production company is producing at the nearby Kirkwood Ski
Resort.

"There was sort of a buzz in the whole room but I was clueless until
he got up on stage," Comey said.

"It's something you could never expect in your lifetime, to go to a
small restaurant in Truckee, California and see Paul McCartney sing a
couple of creative tunes. It was a blast," he said.

McCartney and his wife, Heather Mills, called ahead earlier in the
day to Moody's co-owners Mark Estee, the chef, and J.J. Morgan, the
general manager.

"It was an unbelievable repeat performance. They had a great time
partly because we make sure everybody respects their privacy," Estee
said.

The couple had been skiing at Tahoe resorts for about a week and
attended the Prince concert Saturday night at the University of
Nevada, Reno, about 30 miles from Truckee.

"They just kind of snuck him in through the kitchen," Souza said.

They ate dinner at a corner table next to the band before McCartney
joined the trio on stage shortly after 9:30 p.m. for about 15
minutes.

"It was definitely a feel-good time by everybody. I think he seemed
like he had fun," said Souza, who played a jazz rendition
of "Yesterday" for the couple.

"They were probably there two hours. He was very gracious," Souza
said. "I think the guy has a future in show business."

[Steve-o]

Mike (Admin) has already posted this. Please be sure and check past threads to make sure we don't have a bunch of duplicates. He just posted this one yesterday. And welcome!

[theDingle]

Back in the day when I used to post on the-official-now-avoid-at-all-costs paulmccartneydotcom, I swapped a reply with a fan who is a regular at Truckee's, but he didn't go that night in February of last year. He was kicking himself! I would too! Geez, watching him perform for free! When you consider pricey concert tickets, that's quite a bonus.

[theDingle]

Mike (Admin) has already posted this. Please be sure and check past threads to make sure we don't have a bunch of duplicates. He just posted this one yesterday. And welcome!

Mike is usually a step ahead of the rest of us on the Macca news, Paulrus. I generally leave it to him.

Otherwise, many of us here are a jaded bunch. We prefer to hear about the overlooked minutiae, such as what kind of bumper stickers he puts on his car(s), lol!