MAYOR OF EDMONTON MEETS PAUL

EDMONTON - Mayor Stephen Mandel lived the dream of music fans when he met Paul McCartney before his final Edmonton concert.

It turns out that despite vast wealth and almost 50 years of international stardom, Sir Paul is still a good egg.

“What you saw on stage was what we saw in the minute or two (meeting). He seemed like a very nice guy,” Mandel said Friday.

The mayor was behind the scenes at Rexall Place to give the former Beatle a copy of the proclamation he read out during a celebration at City Hall this week honouring McCartney’s first visit to Edmonton.

“ ‘Oh,’ he said, ‘I’m going to be arrested,’ ” Mandel recalled.

“He was joking. He’s very warm … (He said) how much he enjoyed the city, how much he’s enjoyed performing in front of Edmontonians.”

Following Thursday’s brief get-together, Mandel attended the concert, adding his voice to the glowing reviews McCartney received for his two-night Edmonton stand.

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