A dream of mine was realized on Wednesday night.

Despite being born after their break-up, and despite being in diapers when they were at their commercial peak as solo artists, my love for the Beatles defines me in many ways.

I love everything about the band: their historical, social and musical importance; their personalities; their personal stories and life histories; their message of peace and love and understanding. But mostly, I love their music, most of which—decades later—stands the test of time and still sounds fresh. The first response to pop into my mind in many situations is a Beatles lyric (there’s always a fitting line). I’m a geek of the highest order when it comes to facts and trivia about the band.

Before Wednesday night, I had seen the two living, touring Beatles in concert 19 times. And each time I see Paul McCartney or Ringo Starr, my appreciation for them grows.

In those 19 concerts, I’ve never yet been disappointed. I’ve never been let down or thought it was time for either man to retire. In fact, the older they get while still performing so well at such a high energy level, the more impressed I become… it gives me a sense of hope for the future as I, myself, age.

As great as these concerts have been, it’s hard not to think about how exciting it would be to see them perform together. Paul and Ringo have such a presence, such a vibe and an aura surrounding them, that the notion of both in one room—where I’m present—is a bit mind-blowing for a fanatic like me.

No, it wouldn’t be The Beatles. There could be no Beatles without John Lennon and George Harrison. But, yes, it would be magical.

So when Ringo announced that his summer tour would include a performance at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on his 70^th birthday, I knew I had to be there. And as Paul announced a series of European and American dates, I continually wondered where he would be on the night of July 7.  As it turns out, his European tour ended June 27, and he had some open dates before a San Francisco performance on July 10. In my mind, this was my best chance ever to see two Beatles share a musical stage.

As far as I can tell, that’s only happened 11 times in the 40 years since the band’s break-up. There have been so many business and personal issues between them through the years, and the four, and now two, have been so conscious to avoid the appearance of trying to re-create the Beatles, that it’s as if they forget that they’re actually friends (or “brothers” as Ringo calls them) and musicians with a shared history.

Despite huge offers for a one-time reunion concert appearance, the four Beatles never performed together between their break-up in 1970 and the tragic assassination of John Lennon in 1980.

So I tried to keep my expectations low, despite thinking about the fact that Paul has a girlfriend from New York and that he could realistically be in the city even if Ringo weren’t performing; that the two had just worked together, singing beautiful harmony vocals on Ringo’s recent single “Walk With You;” and that when they made a rare appearance on stage together last year, their obvious joy at playing with one another was undeniable. Seventy is a big number, a birthday worth celebrating. If there were ever a time to speculate about Paul and Ringo performing together, this was it.

The show began as most Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band concerts do. His band of veteran musicians took the stage and hit the opening notes to the Ringo solo classic “It Don’t Come Easy,” with Ringo bouncing on stage just in time to sing his opening line. Standing center stage as a front man, Ringo followed with his cover of the Carl Perkins song “Honey Don’t,” which he sang on the Beatles For Sale album.

Ringo then performed his recent track “Choose Love,” jumping on his Ludwig drum kit, adorned with a shiny star on the bass drum, to bash out the end of the song. At that point, he introduced one of his All-Starrs, Rick Derringer, whose vocals were really impressive as he sang his ‘60s hit “Hang On Sloopy.”

Ringo’s All-Starr concerts feature him performing a selection of the Beatles songs he sang, plus some of his solo hits from the ‘70s and a few tracks from his recent albums. Interspersed are a couple songs from each of his rotating band of All-Starrs, oftentimes musicians you might not pay to see individually, but who nearly always impress with performances of their hits while Ringo plays drums. In addition to “Hang on Sloopy,” Edgar Winter’s “Free Ride” and “Frankenstein,” Gary Wright’s “Dream Weaver” and Wally Palmar’s Romantics hit “What I Like About You” were big crowd pleasers on Wednesday.

But the Radio City crowd seemed most into Ringo’s early Beatles numbers, “Boys” from the album Please Please Me and “I Wanna Be Your Man” from With the Beatles, both of which he sang while rocking out on his drums, much like the Beatles touring days. Two songs from his recent album Y Not were also well-received, “Peace Dream,” in which he references Lennon’s bed-in for peace, and “The Other Side of Liverpool,” on which he played a pared-down drum kit with sticks that lit up while singing at the center of the temporarily darkened stage. And, of course, “Yellow Submarine” proved to be the night’s biggest singalong.

As the concert neared its final stages, my own anxiety grew. Would we see Paul? Would we see any of Ringo’s famous friends?

When Ringo returned to center stage for his final numbers, Mark Rivera, a former member of the All-Starr Band and the saxophonist for Billy Joel, came on to play sax alongside Winter on a beautiful version Ringo’s number-one hit “Photograph.” That was followed by “Act Naturally,” which Ringo originally sang on the Beatles Help! album.

As Ringo jokingly introduced the next song, his big finale, as one that didn’t go over well the night before, his son Zak Starkey, who has drummed for Oasis and the Who, took over his father’s drum kit, sitting alongside the band’s other drummer, Gregg Bissonnette. At the same time, 15 or 20 other musicians and celebrities appeared on-stage, most notably Yoko Ono, who, like Ringo, appears to be about half her age. Looking sleek, dressed in all black, except for a white hat, she joined in as Ringo sang his most famous song, the classic “With a Little Help From My Friends” from the Sgt. Pepper album.

While trying to figure out the identities of all the musicians on stage, I couldn’t help but feel a bit of disappointment at who wasn’t there: Paul McCartney.

I’d told myself in advance to enjoy the show no matter what, even if Paul didn’t show up. I wouldn’t let a no-show from Paul ruin my night.

And it was a great concert filled with phenomenal performances from Ringo and the rest of his band members. I had gotten my money’s worth. Doing what he’s doing at the age of 70, Ringo is a wonder. He’s amazing. He’s in great shape and was in great spirits throughout the show, cracking jokes and continuing to push for “peace and love” in his own slightly goofy, yet totally genuine way. His voice sounds good, and watching him play drums is a truly enjoyable thing in itself. Paul’s presence wasn’t necessary for the show to be great.

But I admit that I was thinking, “Dammit, Paul, where are you?”

The huge group on stage followed-up “With a Little Help From My Friends” with a snippet of “Give Peace a Chance,” and it was nice to see Ringo and Yoko together on stage for Lennon’s anti-war anthem. But I knew that was it. The concert was over. Right?

A birthday cake shaped as a drum set was wheeled out for Ringo by some of his family members as the crowd sang “Happy Birthday.” Ringo kissed his grandsons before thanking the crowd and saying goodnight.

I’ve seen a dozen Ringo Starr shows in the past. Every single show ends with “With a Little Help From My Friends.” I doubted that this time would be different. But the stage and venue lights stayed off after he left the stage, and in the faint glow of a star lit up on the stage’s backdrop, you could see a lot of movement. An amp was wheeled in, and for one glorious second, I saw the iconic Hofner bass.

That could only mean one thing: Paul McCartney was in the house.

I tried to contain my excitement, and as I lost view of the bass with some of the dark, shadowy movement on stage, I thought maybe I had imagined the Hofner, when suddenly the crowd in the front rows let out an enormous scream just before the stage lights came back on.

And there he was. At center stage, with the Hofner bass strapped on, wearing a Beatle-y suit with a skinny tie, it was Paul McCartney, beaming, with a huge smile.

I’ve seen many concerts through the years, but I’ve never experienced the kind of unadulterated, pure joy in any concert crowd as was happening all around me—and within me—at that moment. People were cheering, screaming, jumping up and down and even crying as Paul launched into “Birthday” from the White Album. In typically dramatic fashion, Ringo ran back onto the stage, hopping onto his drum kit as the crowd went absolutely wild.

It was a ripping, rocking, rousing version of “Birthday,” four minutes of exhilaration. The rhythm section of the greatest, most influential band in the history of recorded music was together, doing what they do best, and the emotionally charged atmosphere was out of this world. The continual roar and stomping and clapping throughout the song seemed like something straight from the Beatles concerts in the ‘60s when screaming crowds often over-powered the stage amplification.

I couldn’t believe I was seeing Paul and Ringo together. It was every bit as exciting and thrilling as I imagined it would be, with Paul’s delayed appearance on stage adding to the level of excitement and drama of the moment. Two men who had brought so much joy and so many good vibes to the world—and to me—were doing it again.

I didn’t want it to end, and I didn’t want to leave the venue. I’m so thankful to have had the opportunity to see these two legends perform together. It was brief, but unforgettable.

Someday a line in my obituary will probably read something like this: Travis was a huge fan of the Beatles and often re-told the story of seeing Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr perform together in New York City.

Here is a fan video from YouTube. Hope you enjoy it as well.