He and The Beatles were awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours List for their services to music.
He is in the Guinness Book of World Records with 60 gold discs and sales of over 100 million singles.
He is one of Britain's wealthiest men: according to the High Court judgment Sir Paul's total fortune comes to £387,012,000.
He loved and was flattered by Ray Charles's cover of "Eleanor Rigby", but John Lennon did not like the version.
He reportedly turned down a part in Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet (1968/I). McCartney didn't believe he would be good enough and the Beatles were recording Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band at the time.
He still owns an interest in Apple Corps, the Beatles's company. His own company MPL Communications owns a sizable publishing catalog, with over three thousand copyrights (songs, poems, images, recordings, etc.).
He was The Beatles' lead vocalist, bass player, pianist and songwriter. He was also an accomplished lead guitarist whose vibrato-laced solos can be heard on "Taxman," "Drive My Car," "Ticket to Ride," "Another Girl," and other Beatles' hits.
He was awarded the Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire in the 1997 Queen's New Years Honours List for his services to music. He is the only Beatle to be given a higher British honor since their MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1965 Queen's Birthday Honours List. John Lennon returned his MBE in 1969 out of protest.
He was respected by The Beatles producer, George Martin for his superior musicianship, musical inventiveness, and multi-instrumental abilities. Martin said that Paul McCartney was the one with enough attention span to sit at the piano, or in the studio as long as it takes to compose the best melody and harmony for their songs.
He was the only "ex-Beatle" to appear on "The Ed Sullivan Show" (1948) (aka "The Ed Sullivan Show") with his 1970 video of "Maybe I'm Amazed".
He was the only "ex-Beatle" to appear on "The Ed Sullivan Show" (1948) (aka "The Ed Sullivan Show") with his 1970 video of "Maybe I'm Amazed".
He wrote his first song, "I Lost My Little Girl", when he was 14. It was never recorded by the Beatles, and was not one of the songs McCartney and Lennon lost in 1969, when their publishing company Northern Songs was sold.
His father, Jim, was a musician, and had a band called Jim Mac's Jazz Band. Paul has fond memories of lying on his bedroom floor and listening to his father play piano.
His first guitar was a Zenith archtop f-hole acoustic. He got it at the Rushworth and Drapers Music Store in Liverpool when he was 14, as a gift from his father (brother Mike McGear got a banjo at the same time, but broke his arm at Boy Scout camp a few weeks later).
His four children with Linda McCartney are Heather McCartney (adopted from her previous marriage), photographer Mary McCartney, top fashion designer Stella McCartney and musician/sculptor James McCartney. Paul was married to rock photographer Linda Eastman on March 12, 1969 at the Marylebone Register Office.
His grandchildren, Arthur and Elliot, are older than his daughter, Beatrice McCarthy.
His later musical compositions have included classical works, such as the acclaimed 'Liverpool Oratorio' and 'Standing Stone'.
His song "When I'm 64" was written for his father Jim's 64th birthday.
His song "Yesterday" is one of the most popular songs of all time. Whilst he was looking for the right lyrics, he was temporarily using the line "Scrambled Eggs" until he came up with "Yesterday" in the final version of the song, as it is now known to the world. It became one of the most recorded songs of all time, with more than 3,000 known versions.
His younger brother, Michael, aka Mike McGear of the satirical group The Scaffold. Michael chose to take the name of "McGear" as his professional name so as not to capitalize on the fame of his brother. Mike McGear was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the 1997 Queen's New Years Honours List while Paul McCartney was awarded Knight Bachelor of the Order of the British Empire for his services to music.