Mccartney Rocks Hollywood Bowl With Three-hour Set

Seats in the arena were still half-empty at 7.30pm, when the Beatles legend was set to kick off the sold-out gig, as concert-goers were kept waiting to have their tickets scanned at the entrance by just a few members of venue staff.

The show began 45 minutes late, but MCCartney made sure he was worth the wait - he opened the outdoor concert with the fitting Venus and Mars Rock Show, a track which makes reference to "rock 'n' roll at the Hollywood Bowl".

He kept the 18,000-strong audience rocking for almost three hours with powerful renditions of Beatles, Wings and solo classics, such as Yesterday, Eleanor Rigby and Lady Madonna.

MCCartney also included tributes to late Fab Four member John Lennon with songs A Day in the Life and Give Peace a Chance, and remembered George Harrison with a moving reading of Something, reports the Los Angeles Times.

The star is scheduled to play a second sold-out show at the Bowl on Wednesday night (31Mar10).