Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr Reunite for Star-Studded David Lynch Charity Concert Featuring Beatles Classics

A remarkable night that brought Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr back onto the same stage was preserved for fans through a concert DVD documenting the David Lynch Foundation’s 2009 Change Begins Within benefit.

Held on April 4, 2009, at New York City’s legendary Radio City Music Hall, the event assembled an extraordinary collection of musicians in support of filmmaker David Lynch’s charitable work. Alongside the two surviving Beatles, the lineup included Eddie Vedder, Sheryl Crow, Donovan, Ben Harper, Moby, Jim James, Betty LaVette, Paul Horn and Angelo Badalamenti, with comedian Jerry Seinfeld also making a special appearance.

But for Beatles fans, the emotional centerpiece was unmistakable: seeing McCartney and Starr sharing a stage again.

Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr Bring Beatles History Back to Life

Both musicians were given their own moments during the concert.

Ringo performed his solo favorite “It Don’t Come Easy,” while McCartney delivered a set packed with songs spanning different chapters of his extraordinary career.

McCartney’s selections included “Drive My Car,” “Jet,” “Got to Get You Into My Life,” “Let It Be,” “Here Today” and “Band on the Run.”

“Here Today” carried particular emotional weight. McCartney originally wrote the song as a deeply personal tribute to his late Beatles bandmate and songwriting partner, John Lennon.

Yet one of the evening’s most memorable moments arrived when Ringo returned to join Paul.

Together, the former Beatles performed “With a Little Help From My Friends.” Decades after the song first appeared on Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, hearing it performed with McCartney and Starr together gave the familiar classic an entirely different significance.

The celebration became even bigger for the finale.

The evening’s performers gathered together for McCartney’s “Cosmically Conscious,” before closing with the Beatles favorite “I Saw Her Standing There.”

Eddie Vedder, Sheryl Crow and More Join the Celebration

The concert was far more than a Beatles reunion.

Eddie Vedder performed “Rise” before joining Ben Harper for a rendition of Queen and David Bowie’s “Under Pressure.”

Sheryl Crow offered her interpretation of George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord,” adding another Beatles connection to an already historic evening.

Donovan teamed with Jim James for “Hurdy Gurdy Man” and also performed “Isle of Islay” with Paul Horn. Moby and Betty LaVette appeared alongside the TM Choir for “Natural Blues.”

The combination of generations and musical styles turned the benefit into an unusually diverse celebration.

Music With a Larger Purpose

The concert supported the David Lynch Foundation, which Lynch established in 2005. Its work focused on using Transcendental Meditation programs to help address trauma and stress among vulnerable and at-risk communities.

The organization continued staging Change Begins Within events after the 2009 concert, attracting performers and supporters including Sting, Katy Perry, Herbie Hancock, Hugh Jackman, Esperanza Spalding and Ellen DeGeneres.

Still, the Radio City Music Hall gathering remains particularly memorable because of what happened when two old bandmates found themselves together once more.

For longtime Beatles followers, watching Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr perform “With a Little Help From My Friends” before joining an all-star finale of “I Saw Her Standing There” wasn’t simply another celebrity collaboration.

It was a brief return to a musical bond—and a piece of Beatles history brought back to life for one extraordinary night.