Paul McCartney leans into Beatles archive for Hamilton arena opening

Paul McCartney gestures to the crowd during his Got Back North American tour at TD Coliseum in Hamilton, Ont., on Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nick Iwanyshyn

Paul McCartney dug into the Beatles’ archive in Hamilton, bringing some of his oldest songs to life on a freshly renovated stage Friday.

The 83-year-old musician was the opening act for the newly revamped TD Coliseum — the erstwhile FirstOntario Centre, which was closed for 18 months while it was entirely redesigned.

“It’s good to be back!” McCartney exclaimed on stage.

He last played the 18,000-seat venue in 2016.

McCartney opened the night with “Help,” setting the stage for a performance dominated by Beatles nostalgia, with smatterings of Wings and solo work.

He told the crowd about the ukulele George Harrison gave him before launching into a rendition of “Something” on the instrument. Ahead of “Here Today,” he lamented the macho culture prevalent in his youth that meant he never told John Lennon that he loved him. 

He dug back as far as the Beatles went, and even a little farther, performing the Quarrymen song “In Spite of All the Danger” — the first piece of music the band that would become the Beatles ever recorded.

“In Liverpool there was four young lads who formed a band and ... they wanted to do well for themselves,” he quipped.

“And you know what, they did.”

He regaled the crowd with tales from the glory days: meeting Jimi Hendrix, fighting against segregated concerts, and recording music for producer George Martin at Abbey Road Studios.

When McCartney played material from the last couple decades, he stopped just short of apologizing.

“This next song is slightly newer. It’s one you may not have heard. You may have heard it. But if you haven’t heard it, too bad. We’re going to play it anyway,” he quipped before launching into 2018’s “Come On To Me.”

He also played the 2011 song “Valentine,” written for his wife Nancy Shevell, who he noted was in the audience.

And if his voice was reedy at times, McCartney made up for it with his showmanship, cycling through guitars, pianos, Harrison’s ukulele, a mandolin and a bass.

Rather than dancing, he shimmied his hips gingerly, and he walked up and down stairs with a bit more care than he may have in years past.

His performance of “Live and Let Die” was punctuated with pyrotechnics. Once the song was over, he mimed plugging his ears and mouthed “too loud!”

McCartney’s “Got Back” tour began in the United States in 2022. He revived it for each of the following three years, with swings through Australia, South America and Europe. As it stands, the tour is poised to wrap up in Chicago in just a few days.

The 2025 leg began in September, and he brought the tour to Canada for the first time earlier this week, performing in Montreal on Monday and Tuesday.

In Hamilton, venue managers Oak View Group hailed the night as a success.

CEO Chris Granger said it felt incredible to see the arena full of people after the renovation, which cost roughly $300 million.

The venue now boasts outposts of Matty’s Patty’s Burger Club and Rizzo’s House of Parm from Canadian restaurateur Matty Matheson, along with Canada’s first Big Chicken — Shaquille O’Neal’s fried chicken joint.

More importantly, he said, it fills a gap in the region and opens the door for more large concerts in the area. 

He recalled a conversation with a woman whose first concert was at the arena, then called Copps Coliseum.

“Tonight she’s bringing her daughter to her first concert,” he said. “You hear moments like that, and it’s like, that’s why you do it, right?”

It was similarly a family affair for a group of women who stood together singing “Yesterday” outside the arena. 

“I look across at my sister, who’s eight years older, and her offspring, and my daughter, and the music connected us all,” said Wanda Bennett, gesturing at the other women. “Growing up, my sister’s favourite band was the Beatles. And I can’t explain how many times I’ve listened to Paul McCartney and Wings.”

Bennett’s daughter, 19-year-old Genevieve Gallant, said the night brought back memories from her childhood, or her parents playing Beatles and Wings CDs.

“As soon as I came here tonight, I was hearing all of the songs I used to when I was a kid and it was so nostalgic,” she said.

At Friday’s show, McCartney came out for the encore waving a massive Canadian flag, flanked by members of his band who carried the Ontario flag, the Pride flag and the Union Jack.

After a stage tech handed him his guitar to raucous cheers from the crowd, McCartney said, “He says you want some more!”

McCartney was ready to give it to them.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 21, 2025.

Nicole Thompson, The Canadian Press