Brit Music Scene

Jackson’s Will Doesn’t Give Beatles Songs To McCartney

Posted: 09 Jul 2009 10:59 AM PDT

Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson were, at one time, good friends and collaborators. They worked together on a number of songs, including duets Say Say Say and The Man. However, their friendship fell apart after Jackson bought a 50 percent stake in the publishing rights to The Beatles back catalog. He did this by outbidding both McCartney and Lennon’s widow Yoko Ono.

When Michael Jackson died at the tender age of 50, rumors abounded all across the Web that he’d left McCartney the Beatles songs he effectively stole from under his nose in 1985. However, the will has been examined and there is no mention of Paul McCartney in it anywhere, which is a little bit disappointing as it would surely have been the right thing to do.

Is McCartney upset at the news? The press says yes, he says no.

The media is reporting that McCartney was devastated at the news he’d missed out on the publishing rights yet again. But that, according to McCartney himself writing on his official Web site, is not the case.

He said:

Some time ago, the media came up with the idea that Michael Jackson was going to leave his share in the Beatles songs to me in his will which was completely made up and something I didn't believe for a second.

Now the report is that I am devastated to find that he didn't leave the songs to me. This is completely untrue. I had not thought for one minute that the original report was true and therefore, the report that I'm devastated is also totally false, so don't believe everything you read folks!

In fact, though Michael and I drifted apart over the years, we never really fell out, and I have fond memories of our time together.

I guess we have to take what McCartney says on face value, but I must admit to suspecting he feels differently than he is claiming to in public. McCartney really hasn’t got much to complain about in life, but seeing the publishing rights to songs he wrote, and which are revered and respected around the world, being bought by someone you trusted must rankle a little bit.

The problem is that now Michael Jackson has died, very few people are willing to say the things they were perfectly happy to say about him prior to his passing. In this sort of environment, where everyone is mourning Jackson far beyond what is normal and healthy, McCartney can hardly come out and say he’s disappointed at being cut out of the will.

The question remains though, who was left the publishing rights to The Beatles back catalog?

[Photo Source: Newscom]

Post from: Brit Music Scene