TrendMacro conversation with Ian Leslie on John and Paul, the volatile bromance that created the greatest art of the 20th century

In a meteoric career that lasted less than seven years, the Beatles created an extensive body of music that is among the greatest artworks of the 20th century. The group invented re-invention, constantly changing its style and identity, and ending its run with a bang, not a whimper, selling more records at the end than even in their explosive early years. The one through-line across all the stylistic and artistic innovation is the interplay of the voices of John Lennon and Paul McCartney, symbolizing in performance the interplay of their great talents in both words and music, which was itself a dynamic upwelling from their interplay in an intensely loving, yet competitive, relationship. John was the bad boy, Paul the good boy. Both were brilliant lyricists, composers, musicians and singers. It is astonishing that two such gifted, motivated and competitive people should exist at the same time in history, meet each other, and fuse their combustible personalities into a collaboration that managed to hold together as long as it did. Disappointment about the inevitable break-up, and Lennon's death, has led to opposing camps of Team John and Team Paul among critics and historians. Ian Leslie is the first to recognize that the only team is Team John and Paul.