Paul McCartney Mourns Ex-Bandmate & ‘Great Talent’ Denny Laine: ‘It Was a Pleasure to Know You’

Following the news of rock legend Denny Laine’s death, his former bandmate Paul McCartney took to Instagram to mourn the loss.

“I have many fond memories of my time with Denny: from the early days when The Beatles toured with the Moody Blues,” he wrote alongside a throwback picture of Laine. “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. His most famous performance is probably ‘Go Now’ an old Bessie Banks song which he would sing brilliantly. He and I wrote some songs together the most successful being ‘Mull of Kintyre’ which was a big hit in the Seventies. We had drifted apart but in recent years managed to re-establish our friendship and share memories of our times together.”

He continued, “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. I send my condolences and best wishes to his wife, Elizabeth and family. Peace and love Denny. It was a pleasure to know you. We are all going to miss you.”

Laine — who co-founded The Moody Blues and Wings alongside Paul and Linda McCartney — died on Tuesday, Dec. 5. His wife Elizabeth Hines announced the news on Facebook, less than three months after she started a GoFundMe to help with Laine’s “critical” health issues following a serious bout of COVID-19 followed by a bacterial infection.