Paul McCartney has paid tribute to his former bandmate Len Garry, describing him as a “dear old mate” following the musician’s death at the age of 84.
Garry’s family confirmed that he died from pneumonia on Monday. The bassist was one of the early members of The Quarrymen, the skiffle group formed by John Lennon in Liverpool that would eventually evolve into The Beatles.
Sharing a photograph of the band’s early line-up, McCartney reflected on their friendship and the memories they shared during the group’s earliest days.
“My dear old mate from the Quarrymen, Len Garry, has passed away. He was a lovely guy and I’m sad to see him go but glad that we had so many fun times together. Rest in Peace Len, Love Paul.”
The tribute highlights a friendship that stretches back to the mid-1950s, when McCartney and Garry were teenagers in Liverpool and part of the city’s thriving skiffle scene. Both musicians became members of The Quarrymen, a group originally founded by Lennon while he was still at school.
The band’s early line-up featured John Lennon, Paul McCartney, Len Garry, Colin Hanton, Rod Davis, Pete Shotton, and Eric Griffiths. While the group performed a mixture of skiffle and early rock ’n’ roll covers, their biggest historical significance lies in the relationships formed within it.
It was through The Quarrymen that Lennon and McCartney first met in 1957, a meeting that would eventually lead to one of the most successful songwriting partnerships in music history. McCartney soon became a regular member of the band, with Garry playing bass during the group’s formative period.
Although Len Garry’s time in the band was relatively short, he was part of what many historians consider The Quarrymen’s first stable line-up. During this period, the group began performing regularly at local venues and community events around Liverpool, building the foundations of what would later become a global phenomenon.
However, Garry’s involvement with the group was cut short when he became seriously ill with tuberculosis in the late 1950s. The illness forced him to leave the band and spend an extended period recovering, meaning he stepped away just as the group began to transform.
In the years that followed, the band underwent several line-up and name changes, gradually evolving from The Quarrymen into the group that would eventually be known as The Beatles. George Harrison later joined the band, initially playing lead guitar, and the group’s sound moved away from skiffle towards the rock and pop style that would define the 1960s.
Despite leaving the group early, Len Garry remained a notable figure in the story of The Beatles’ origins, often remembered as part of the group’s earliest chapter.
Over the years he occasionally took part in reunions and events celebrating The Quarrymen, helping preserve the history of the band that played such a crucial role in shaping modern popular music.
The skiffle outfit itself has become legendary among fans and historians, as it represents the starting point for a musical revolution that would soon sweep the world.
The transition from The Quarrymen to The Beatles marked the beginning of a cultural shift that changed the direction of pop music forever.
For Paul McCartney, now one of the last surviving members connected to that earliest era, Garry’s death marks another poignant reminder of the passing of time since those teenage days in Liverpool.
His tribute reflects not only the loss of a former bandmate, but also of a friend from the formative years before global fame — when the future Beatles were simply a group of schoolboys experimenting with guitars, skiffle rhythms and the dream of making music together.
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