Paul McCartney and Stephen Colbert Close Out the Late Show with "Hello, Goodbye"

Paul McCartney appeared unannounced as the final guest on the last episode of The Late Show. His return brought him back to the Ed Sullivan Theatre, where the Beatles performed on February 9, 1964, reaching a massive television audience and helping cement the British Invasion. After interview segments, McCartney performed “Hello, Goodbye” with Stephen Colbert providing backup vocals, alongside Elvis Costello, Jon Batiste, Louis Cato, and the Late Show band. During the final “Hela, heba-helloa” refrain, Colbert’s family and the entire staff joined onstage. Earlier, Colbert, Costello, Batiste, and Cato performed the pre-taped “Jump Up.” McCartney then shut off the theater power as the building was shown being pulled into a vortex, ending with a snow globe playing the theme song.

"Paul McCartney turned up as the surprise, unannounced final guest guest for the final episode ever. Of course, McCartney's appearance marks his return to the very room where the Beatles played The Ed Sullivan Show on February 9th, 1964, performing for a shrieking studio audience and an estimated 73 million Americans at home. That broadcast is widely credited with cementing the British Invasion. Sixty-two years later, Sir McCartney returned to The Ed Sullivan Theatre to help switch off the lights on more than three decades of CBS' late-night franchise."

"After a couple of interview segments, McCartney performed the Beatles classic "Hello, Goodbye" at the end of the late-night program's finale episode, joined onstage by Colbert himself, who sang backup vocals, as well as Elvis Costello, former Late Show band leader Jon Batiste, final band leader Louis Cato, and the rest of the Late Show band. During the final "Hela, heba-helloa" refrain, Colbert's family and the entire Late Show staff took the stage, making for a celebratory ending."

"Just prior to "Hello, Goodbye," Colbert joined Costello, Batiste, and Cato for a pre-taped performance of the Costello rarity "Jump Up." A final bit had McCartney shutting the power off at the Ed Sullivan Theater, with the building getting sucked into a vortex, leading to a shot of a snow globe playing the Late Show theme song as the program's final visual."

Read at Consequence