Key keywords: Paul McCartney, The Beatles, John Lennon, George Harrison, new solo album, Beatles emotional tribute, 2024 music release, unreleased Beatles recordings During a recent candid interview with BBC Radio 6 Music, legendary singer-songwriter and Beatles co-founder Paul McCartney opened up about the creative process behind his highly anticipated upcoming 18th solo studio album, making the viral comment that "the Beatles are haunting my new album" as he admitted "I still get emotional talking about John and George." At 81 years old, McCartney has spent more than 60 years at the forefront of global pop music, but he says the bond he shared with his three Beatles bandmates – John Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr – remains the most defining experience of his life. He explained that the phrase "haunting" is not used in a negative context, but rather to describe the warm, constant presence of Lennon and Harrison's memory throughout every step of the album's recording. Lennon was shot and killed in New York City in 1980, while Harrison passed away from cancer in 2001, leaving McCartney and Starr as the two surviving Beatles. McCartney revealed that the new record features two original tracks written specifically as tributes to Lennon and Harrison respectively, as well as snippets of unreleased demo recordings the four band members created together in Liverpool in the early 1960s, before they signed their first record deal. "I was sitting in the studio a few months ago, laying down vocals for the track I wrote for John, and I swear I could hear his voice in the room with me, joking about how I was hitting the wrong note," McCartney shared in the interview, adding that he had to step out of the booth for 20 minutes to compose himself after the moment, as he was overcome with emotion. He also referenced the 2023 release of "Now and Then", billed as the final ever Beatles track, which used AI technology to isolate Lennon's vocals from a 1970s home demo. The success of that release, he said, inspired him to dig through his personal archive of unheard Beatles recordings to include pieces on the new solo album. McCartney noted that he has shared early cuts of the album with Ringo Starr, who also contributed drum tracks to one of the tribute songs, and that the pair often spend hours reminiscing about their old bandmates when they meet up to work on music. The album is scheduled for global release on October 18, 2024, and pre-orders opened earlier this week, already breaking sales records for solo artist pre-orders on multiple streaming platforms. Fans have expressed widespread excitement for the project, with many noting that it feels like a full-circle moment for McCartney and the entire Beatles fan community.