"Paul persuaded me to join the band. I would never have had the courage otherwise. It was fun at the beginning. We were playing just for fun, with Paul's group"
About this Quote
The line "I would never have had the courage otherwise" does double duty. It reads as vulnerability, but it also preempts the harsher narrative that critics later supplied: that she was there because of him. Linda accepts the fact of the gate while reclaiming the emotional reality of walking through it. In a culture eager to mythologize lone genius, she describes creativity as relational: courage can be contagious.
Then she narrows the lens to mood and scale: "It was fun at the beginning... just for fun". That repetition acts like a defense mechanism against the machinery that would soon swallow the project. Wings began as a domestic experiment after the Beatles' implosion, when "band" was less brand than refuge. "With Paul's group" is the sharpest tell. Even in reminiscence, she refuses to rewrite the hierarchy; she also refuses the heroic narrative of self-made entry. The subtext is almost punk in its plainness: origin myths are messier than fans prefer, and joy often starts as something smaller than a career.
Quote Details
| Topic | Music |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
McCartney, Linda. (2026, January 15). Paul persuaded me to join the band. I would never have had the courage otherwise. It was fun at the beginning. We were playing just for fun, with Paul's group. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/paul-persuaded-me-to-join-the-band-i-would-never-107676/
Chicago Style
McCartney, Linda. "Paul persuaded me to join the band. I would never have had the courage otherwise. It was fun at the beginning. We were playing just for fun, with Paul's group." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/paul-persuaded-me-to-join-the-band-i-would-never-107676/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Paul persuaded me to join the band. I would never have had the courage otherwise. It was fun at the beginning. We were playing just for fun, with Paul's group." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/paul-persuaded-me-to-join-the-band-i-would-never-107676/. Accessed 28 Mar. 2026.



