Paul McCartney Pays Tribute To His Late Wings Bandmate, Denny Laine

Singer and songwriter Denny Laine, who is best known for his contributions to two iconic bands, The Moody Blues and Wings, recently passed away on Friday, December 5. He passed less than three months after his wife, Elizabeth Hines, had started a GoFundMe to help with his critical health issues following a serious bout of COVID-19 followed by a bacterial infection. Hines took to his official Facebook and Instagram to announce the death of her husband.

“My darling husband passed away peacefully early this morning, I was at his bedside, holding his hand as I played his favorite Christmas songs for him. He’s been singing Christmas songs the past few weeks and I continued to play Christmas songs while he’s been in ICU on a ventilator this past week,” she wrote. “He and I both believed he would overcome his health setbacks and return to the rehabilitation center and eventually home. Unfortunately, his lung disease, Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD), is unpredictable and aggressive; each infection weakened and damaged his lungs. He fought everyday. He was so strong and brave, never complained.”

Paul McCartney pays tribute to the late musician, Denny Laine

Following the news of Laine’s untimely passing, former Beatles star and creator of Wings took to Instagram to share a heartfelt tribute to his ex-bandmate as he expressed his profound shock in response to the tragic news.

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“I am very saddened to hear that my ex-bandmate, Denny Laine, has died,” he captioned the post. “I have many fond memories of my time with Denny: from the early days when The Beatles toured with the Moody Blues. Our two bands had a lot of respect for each other and a lot of fun together.”

Paul McCartney says Denny Laine was a musical genius

The 81-year-old further shared that Laine was not only a musical genius but also a pivotal contributor to the band, highlighting the significant impact he made on their collective musical journey. “Denny joined Wings at the outset. He was an outstanding vocalist and guitar player,” McCartney wrote. “His most famous performance is probably ‘Go Now’ an old Bessie Banks song which he would sing brilliantly.”

McCartney noted that he is happy they were able to put their differences aside and reconnect after an extended period before his death. “He and I wrote some songs together the most successful being ‘Mull of Kintyre’ which was a big hit in the Seventies,” he added. “We had drifted apart but, in recent years, managed to reestablish our friendship and share memories of our times together.”