British singer-songwriter and musician Paul McCartney sitting on a bench and playing a Gibson Les Paul guitar. 1987 (Photo by Rino Petrosino/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)

Happy Birthday to Paul McCartney, who turns 81 on Sunday (June 18th). To date, Paul McCartney is the most successful songwriter in history, having written or co-written 30 U.S. Number One hits. McCartney met his original songwriting partner John Lennon on July 6th, 1957 at a church social where Lennon was performing. After joining Lennon’s band, the Quarrymen, McCartney persuaded Lennon to add his friend George Harrison in 1958, and the seeds of the Beatles were born. Ringo Starr joined the group in 1962.

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