Paul McCartney has paid tribute to his former Wings bandmate Denny Laine, who passed away December 5 at the age of 79.
“I am very saddened to hear that my ex-bandmate, Denny Laine, has died,” McCartney writes, recalling his “fond memories” of the days when The Beatles toured with Laine’s band Moody Blues. “Our two bands had a lot of respect for each other and a lot of fun together.”
“Denny joined Wings at the outset. He was an outstanding vocalist and guitar player,” McCartney shares. “We had drifted apart but in recent years managed to reestablish our friendship and share memories of our times together.”
Finally, he notes, “Denny was a great talent with a fine sense of humour and was always ready to help other people. He will be missed by all his fans and remembered with great fondness by his friends.”
Laine teamed with McCartney and wife Linda to form McCartney’s first post-Beatles band, Wings, in 1971. Over his 10 years with the group, they released seven studio albums, including the bestselling Band on The Run, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.
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