Paul McCartney Attacked By Mexicans, Plays White House, Remains Topical As Ever

A youth mob stormed Paul McCartney's tour bus in a shady Mexico City "slum" as the singer was en route to tonight's performance at the White House. The rowdy kids were not, as McCartney and posse first thought, crazed fans. But the incident proved McCartney's continued relevance nonetheless.

For one thing, Sir Paul was on his way to D.C. to perform in the big house alongside Stevie Wonder, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris and, er, the Jonas Brothers and to accept the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize. He accidentally found himself in a vortex of pressing current events.

Here's what went down, according to the Mirror:

"Terrified Sir Paul McCartney had to be rescued by cops after a mob attacked his tour bus in a dodgy no-go part of Mexico City. Youths forced his driver to stop then started jumping up and down on the roof as the Beatles legend, 67, cowered inside. A source said: 'At first his security team thought it was just swarms of fans but when people started scaling the bus, the situation changed in a flash.' They called cops who raced to the rescue. 'Paul and the team were shaken up,' the source added."

McCartney had played two shows in Mexico City prior to the melee, which, although it sounds relatively innocuous, recalls recent harrowing headlines about the drug war violence coursing through the beleaguered Mexican capital. And of course, immigration, mostly from Mexico, is primed to shove health care, finance, climate and energy reform off center stage as debate rages over Arizona's recently passed immigrant identification law. That's not to mention Obama's recent move to station members of the National Guard along the U.S.-Mexico border, a move that while meant to combat drug smuggling might also prevent future nuisances befalling traveling rock icons.

McCartney's White House visit comes two weeks after the state dinner which greeted Mexican president Felipe Calderon. But McCartney can probably work some diplomatic magic through his music by singing life goes on, but strife shouldn't.

Photo via MediaBistro