Paul McCartney Calls The Rolling Stones a “Blues Cover Band,” Discusses The Beatles’ Breakup

In a recent interview with The New Yorker, Paul McCartney divulged his opinion on the ongoing comparisons between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, apprehensively stating, “I’m not sure I should say it, but they’re a blues cover band, that’s sort of what the Stones are.” He continued, “I think our net was cast a bit wider than theirs.”

The seemingly shady comment is another match to the fiery, longtime debate of which band is better, though McCartney didn’t seem to mean it as such. While speaking with Howard Stern last year on Sirius XM, McCartney clarified these claims a bit, noting that The Stones “are rooted in the blues. When they are writing stuff, it has to do with the blues. Whereas we had a little more influence.” He then praised the band, calling them a “fantastic group,” but agreed with Stern that The Beatles were the better band.

But McCartney and Mick Jagger, frontman of The Stones, have both expressed admiration for each other’s groups. Jagger responded to McCartney’s Sirius XM comments on Zane Lowe’s Apple Music show, saying diplomatically, “He’s a sweetheart. There’s obviously no competition.”