A/N: I've had this book for a few years and still enjoy going back and reading Jorie's remarkable stories of meeting and photographing Paul through the years as well as recollections and photos of other concert goers who interacted with Paul from 1975 through 1999. The following is an excerpt from Jorie's amazing, gorgeous book!
Text and photographs from I Saw Him Standing There by Jorie B. Gracen
Toward the beginning of the 1989-90 Paul McCartney World tour, I was assigned to photograph McCartney for various publications. As a member of the working press during the course of the ten-month tour I acquired a vast collection of photos, which I decided to present to Paul as a thank you for allowing me to take his photo.
That opportunity came on July 29, 1990, at the last show of the world tour, which just happened to be in my hometown of Chicago. Backstage, as the famous couple posed for photos, I handed Paul my book. Ten days later I received a call from his London office asking permission to use one of the photographs on Paul's new album, Tripping the Live Fantastic. Out of thousands of photos taken by McCartney's tour photographers, Paul and Linda had found something unique about my photo that no other photographer had captured.
The album was released a few months later and I received an invitation to join Paul and Linda at a private London party to celebrate the official end of the world tour and the new album. When the couple arrived, they greeted me as if I were an old friend. I said to Paul, "I'm the one who took the photo on your album."
He kiddingly asked, "Which one?"
"This one!" I exclaimed, trying to imitate the pose.
"No, I think it was more like this," he replied, with a squint, checking my posture for accuracy. Then he assumed the position that was unmistakably a re-creation off the photo.
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I told him how much I appreciated the opportunity to have my photo on his album and he said, "I saw thousands of photos and yours was one of the best. Brilliant photo! Right Linder?" He playfully nudged her with his elbow as she responded with a smile. "Yeah, great photo!" It was quite a compliment coming from a legendary rock star and a world-famous photographer.
Later I seized the moment and asked Paul if I could take a photo with him. "Well, let's get one done then!" he shouted, lifting me off the floor with one arm wrapped around my waist. I dangled like a doll, struggling to plant one foot on the ground, until he released his grip and we posed. In less time than it took to say "The Cute Beatle," McCartney was off terrorizing another fan with a similar request.
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