Stan Lee was the primary creative leader of Marvel Comics for around two decades. Collaborating with other comic artists in Marvel, he co-created the superheroes we all love, including Spider-Man, the X-Men, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, Ant-Man, the Wasp, the Fantastic Four, Black Panther, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, the Scarlet Witch, and Black Widow. Lee’s characters have had a significant impact on popular culture for years, and there are even rock songs based on his creations.
Apart from The Traits’ ‘Nobody Loves The Hulk,’ which is probably the first song written about a Marvel superhero, Joe Satriani’s ‘Surfing With The Alien,’ Monster Magnet’s ‘Ego The Living Planet,’ and the Ramones’ ‘Spider-Man’ are great examples of rock songs inspired by Lee’s characters. As it turns out, the Beatles’ Paul McCartney also created a song telling the story of the Marvel Comics characters Magneto, Titanium Man, and the Crimson Dynamo, titled ‘Magneto And Titanium Man.’
The song ‘Magneto And Titanium Man’ appeared on the B-Side of Wings’ ‘Venus and Mars/Rock Show’ single. When the band played the song during live shows, comic art of the characters created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Don Heck appeared on the large screen behind them. As a Marvel Comics fan, Paul McCartney paid tribute to Stan Lee’s co-creations with this song. Years passed after ‘Magneto And Titanium Man’s release, and Stan Lee described it as ‘terrific’ in a 2000 article in his ‘Stan’s Soapbox’ column.
Sadly, Stan Lee passed away on November 12, 2018, just one month before his 96th birthday. “I was lucky enough to meet him,” Paul McCartney wrote after Lee’s passing. “He came to my office, and we sat around chatting about comic books and my admiration for his work. He was suggesting making a superhero who would wield a Hofner bass guitar. The guitar would have superpowers, and we spent some time imagining what those could be. He had a great sense of humor, and I must say that becoming a guitar-wielding superhero in one of his comic books was very appealing.”
Apart from ‘Magneto And Titanium Man,’ McCartney had also created a song titled ‘Rocky Raccoon.’ The track appeared on the Beatles’ 1968 double album ‘The Beatles’ and inspired writer Bill Mantlo and artist Keith Giffen to come up with the Marvel hero Rocket Raccoon. According to McCartney’s farewell letter to Stan Lee, it seems like he would have inspired another superhero in the Marvel universe, but Stan Lee’s passing made it impossible.
