“Paul McCartney was killed in an automobile accident in early November, 1966 after leaving EMI recording studios tired, sad, and dejected. The Beatles had been preparing their forthcoming album, tentatively entitled Smile, when progress bogged down in intragroup hassles and bickering.
https://www.grunge.com/272538/the-truth-about-the-paul-mccartney-car-crash-myth/