Paul McCartney Was Convinced He Found the Meaning of Life After Getting High With Bob Dylan
Paul McCartney has often recounted the story of the first time The Beatles got high with Bob Dylan. The American musician introduced the band to marijuana in the 1960s, and they’ve said it profoundly impacted their music. McCartney explained that in the midst of his first experience with the drug, he became convinced that he’d found the meaning of life. When he looked back on his findings later, he couldn’t help but laugh.
Paul McCartney got high with Bob Dylan for the first time
When The Beatles met Dylan in 1964, he introduced them to marijuana for the first time.
“George Harrison, John [Lennon], and I were sitting in the main room of the suite, the lounge, drinking,” McCartney explained, per the book Paul McCartney: Many Years From Now by Barry Miles. “We were sitting there with our Scotch and Cokes, and Dylan had just given Ringo [Starr] a puff of it.”
Starr’s bandmates were curious about how he felt once he left the room.
“He said, ‘The ceiling’s coming down on me,’” McCartney said. “And we went, Wow! Leaped up, ‘God! Got to do this!’ So we ran into the back room — first John, then me and George, then Brian [Epstein]. We all had a puff and for about five minutes we went, ‘This isn’t doing anything. Are you feeling … ggggzzzzz!’ and we started giggling uncontrollably.”
He was convinced he discovered the meaning of life
McCartney explained that he quickly convinced himself that he’d discovered the meaning of life.
“I spent the whole evening running around trying to find a pencil and paper because when I went back in the bedroom later, I discovered the Meaning of Life,” he said. “And I suddenly felt like a reporter, on behalf of my local newspaper in Liverpool. I wanted to tell my people what it was. I was the great discoverer, on this sea of pot, in New York.”
The following day, McCartney looked at what he’d written.
“Anyway, Mal [Evans, the band’s road manager] gave me this little slip of paper in the morning, and written on it was, ‘There are seven levels!” he said. “Actually it wasn’t bad. Not bad for an amateur. And we pissed ourselves laughing, I mean, ‘What the f***’s that? What the f*** are the seven levels?’”
Paul McCartney said The Beatles were proud Bob Dylan introduced them to pot
The Beatles smoked pot for the first time that night, but it certainly wasn’t their last time. McCartney explained that it had an impact on their music soon after that night. Looking back, he said there was something exciting about the fact that Dylan was the one who had introduced them to the drug.
“We were kind of proud to have been introduced to pot by Dylan, that was rather a coup,” McCartney said. “It was like being introduced to meditation and given your mantra by Maharishi. There was a certain status to it.”
