The sons of Beatles icons John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr have teamed up to collaborate on a new track as a part of the supergroup Mantra of the Cosmos.
Sean Ono Lennon and James McCartney have joined forces with Starr’s son Zak Starkey, formerly of The Who, to record the song “Rip-Off”.
Starkey, 59, shared a lengthy sample of the new song on his Instagram account on Monday (16 June), simply writing in the caption: “Vocals - Shaun Ryder, James McCartney, Sean Lennon.”
The video for the song features images of Lennon, McCartney and Mantra of the Cosmos, as well as The Beatles in their heyday.
Starkey formed the band in 2023. The project also features the talents of Happy Mondays' Shaun Ryder and Mark “Bez” Berry, as well as former Oasis and Beady Eye bassist Andy Bell.
Noel Gallagher previously collaborated with Mantra of the Cosmos on their last single “Domino Bones (Gets Dangerous)”. The Oasis legend described the song to The Times as being: “Dylan, Dali, Ginsberg and a bit of cosmic jibber-jabber. Add in Bez, who dances on the tunes like Zak plays the drums and Andy Bell plays all things stringed, and you have it”.
This isn’t the first time the offspring of Lennon and McCartney have collaborated. In April 2024 the pair released the song “Primrose Hill”, an ode to one of London’s most panoramic beauty spots in Regent’s Park.
James, the son of Sir Paul and his first wife, the late Linda McCartney, announced the release with his “good friend” Sean and hinted that it was the first of many collaborations to come.
“With the release of this song it feels like we’re really getting the ball rolling,” he wrote on Instagram.
Starkey has recently been in the news after he was unceremoniously fired by The Who, following complaints by frontman Roger Daltrey about the drummer’s performance during a gig at the Royal Albert Hall in March.
The news was made public first by guitarist Pete Townshend, who shared the announcement with his followers on social media.
Townshend had announced, in text written over a photo: “After many years of great work on drums from Zak the time has come for a change. A poignant time. Zak has lots of new projects in hand and I wish him the best.”
He also revealed that Starkey would be replaced by Scott Devours, who has worked with frontman Roger Daltrey’s solo band.
“Please welcome him,” Townshend wrote.
In response, Starkey wrote text over Townshend’s image, remarking that quitting The Who “would [have] let down the countless amazing people who stood up for me (thank you all a million times over and more) through the weeks of mayhem” as he was first fired from the band then reinstated.
“To clarify ‘other projects’... yes I do have other projects and always have,” he continued, referencing his work with artists including Johnny Marr and The Lightning Seeds.
“None of this has ever interfered with The Who and was never a problem for them,” he concluded. “The lie is or would have been that I quit The Who – I didn’t. I love The Who and everyone in it.”
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