GEORGE HARRISON

“Those were the days when we was fab”

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“C”

 

Main Decade:

70's

Main Ages:

The Great Transition (1970-1980+)

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Key Members:

George Harrison: Solo, The Traveling Wildburys

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Key Songs:

My Sweet Lord, All Things Must Pass, When We Was Fab, If Not For You, I Got My Mind Set On You, Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth), Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp, This Is Love, Isn’t It A Pitty, Wha Wah, Not Guilty, Art Of Dying, Dark Horse, Bangladesh, Maya Love, You, All Those Years Ago, I'd Have You Anytime, Out Of The Blue

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George, the serious Beatle, the spiritual, the mystical, the youngest, and perhaps the most mature and focused. He was always in the shadow of John and Paul. And Eric. But you know what? He cared very little. Some of his songs with the Beatles were masterpieces, especially from 1968 onward. The best thing about these songs is that they are charged with enormous emotion. George was able to convey very strong emotions with his guitar, and make it speak for him, whether it was the anger of "Taxman," the infinite love of "Something," the hope of "Here Comes the Sun," the peace of "My Sweet Lord," or the rage of "How Do You Sleep?" with John. And he also realized that he was the only one who could make Indian music, add lyrics more acceptable to Western ears, and disguise them as pop music. It would be an innovator, then, to introduce World Music. The years from '69 to '73 were clearly George's "Golden Age" (his peaks on Abbey Road, the huge success of All Things Must Pass, the spectacular Bangladesh Concert, and the magnificent Living in the Material World). During this period, he was actually the most successful of the Beatles, and Paul McCartney must have been green with envy. Two albums (All Things Must Pass and Cloud Nine) are true gems, proving in one that he didn't need John and Paul, and in the other that a great album could be made even in the '80s. Plus, we can't forget his role in the curious Traveling Wilburys. George is one of the greatest guitarists in history. Perhaps not with the technique of a Hendrix or a Clapton, or the speed of a Petrucci, but more emotional than all of them combined, possessing one of the most beautiful slides in existence. As if that weren't enough, he's possibly the only person in the world who could sincerely forgive his best friend for stealing his wife.​

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George Harrison was the only Beatle whose childhood wasn't marked by divorce or death. He was born on February 25, 1943, the youngest of three sons and a daughter. His father, Harold Harrison, was a municipal transport truck driver. His mother, Louise, was the typical good-natured, friendly, and cheerful lady of the neighborhood, beloved by all the children. The family lived in the same house in Arnold Grove for 18 years before moving to the Speke neighborhood. George was a cheerful and independent child who, from the age of two, would go to the butcher shop alone on his mother's errands. Like John, he attended Dovedale Primary School, across from Penny Lane, but due to their age difference, they never lived together.

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George became friends with Paul McCartney not long after the family moved to Speke. Every morning, the two would meet at the bus stop that took them to Liverpool Institute, the secondary school they both attended. One morning, Paul realized he was a few pence short on the fare, and Louise gave him those, along with the return fare. Although George was a year behind him in school, the two found conversation topics in rock & roll and skiffle.

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When George was 14, George was obsessed with the guitar. Louise began finding papers with drawings of guitars in his pockets. So she started saving up and bought her son a used acoustic guitar for 3 pounds. The next one was a deluxe model, which he helped pay for by running errands for the butcher. His mother would encourage him to keep trying whenever George became discouraged in his attempts to master the instrument, and she was always supportive of her son's musical interests.

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When Paul introduced him to Lennon in March 1958, the band was called John and the Moondogs. George played their best song, "Raunchee," and John was impressed, but feigned disdain because he believed George was still too young. Regardless, young Harrison followed them everywhere, hoping that one day they would let him play. Whenever a guitarist wasn't present, they would let him play and even perform a few solos. Over time, and without anyone noticing, the almost 16-year-old boy became a member of the band. Paul, Stuart Suttcliffe, George, John, and Cynthia used to meet every day in the school cafeteria, and she would listen to the boys play.

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Over time, George would improve his guitar skills, practicing for hours at home and trying to sing the songs of Big Bill Broonzy, Chet Atkins, and Chuck Berry, his idols, perfectly.

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In 1960, the Beatles were formed, and they landed a series of gigs in Hamburg nightclubs, such as the Indra and the Kaiserkeller, where they played up to eight hours a night. The problem was that George was 17 years old, so he was working illegally and was deported when they started working at the Top Ten, the most prestigious club in the city.

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When they signed with Parlophone to begin recording albums, it became clear that Lennon and McCartney were the driving force of the band. George Martin auditioned everyone and found George's voice to be weaker, so the usual live performance schedule was drastically cut, and he was assigned two or three songs per album to sing, one of which was his own. Still, George would be instrumental not only with his riffs and arrangements, but with his spectacular harmonies, which he combined with either Paul or John to give the songs more life. During Beatlemania, he was characterized as the quiet or calm Beatle, as he was generally the least likely to joke around in interviews and press conferences. He was certainly introspective, somewhat overwhelmed by everything that was happening at such a young age, but his friends said that, once in private, he was very talkative and joking. During The Beatles' first trip to the US in February 1964, Harrison received a new model of guitar, the "360/12," from Rickenbacker. This twelve-string electric guitar would begin to play on the group's future albums, giving it a bright, distinctive sound. Roger McGuinn of The Byrds was delighted with the sound and bought a similar guitar, creating the signature sound for The Byrds' songs.
 

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That same year, during the filming of "A Hard Day's Night," the boys would pick up actresses or fans who were filming and take them backstage. There, he met Patti Boyd, who played a schoolgirl on the train they were traveling on. She refused to accompany George, who was smitten with her. Harrison was forced to formally court her, and they became engaged for two years.

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Far from being annoyed by McGuinn, Harrison became his friend and exchanged views on the sound they used. On the 1965 tour, George would meet the other Byrds, and this meeting would prove crucial, as David Crosby would introduce him to Ravi Shankar's music and introduce him to their fascination with Indian culture. That same year, the Kinks released the song "See My Friends," in which Davies gives his guitar a very oriental tone. George bought a secondhand sitar and practiced until he mastered it. He used it for the first time on the album Rubber Soul for the song "Norwegian Woods." During the filming of Help!, he was given a book on reincarnation in the Bahamas, and as a result, he began corresponding with Joan Mascaró, a translator of important Hindu works.

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Another important event occurred at the home of the Beatles' dentist and friend, John Riley, who invited John, Cynthia, George, and Pattie to his house for tea. The interesting thing is that he served them cups with diluted drops of LSD without telling them what was inside. The best part of Harrison's version is when he says the dentist had perverse intentions: "I'm sure the dentist thought it was an aphrodisiac. I remember his girlfriend had enormous breasts, and I suppose he thought it was going to end in a big orgy." They left the dentist's house very upset, and the dentist warned them they should wait because the effects were just beginning. They thought an elevator was on fire, Harrison's wife tried to break a window, and then they drove very slowly in a Mini Cooper. When, miraculously, each couple arrived home, John believed he was in a yellow submarine and would write a song about it.

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In 1966, for the recording of Revolver, he contributed "Taxman" to the album, a song in which he strongly criticized the British tax system, which left them with barely 20% of total sales. This would be the first open political critique on a Beatles album, and it wasn't John's! Incidentally, the song was the first to be considered a powerful track and not just filler on the album, on par with the Lennon/McCartney compositions. During these sessions, they also began to experiment even more and would completely use the studio as an instrument, adding backward guitar recordings.

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After the band's final tour, during their hiatus, George married Patti and they traveled to India, where he took sitar lessons, visited sacred sites, and met various gurus. Armed with this new knowledge, he returned to England to begin the Sgt. Peppers sessions, contributing "Within You Without You," a Hindu song recorded with traditional instruments, with only Paul playing bass. The song was well received within the album's conceptual intent, but it would be a turning point, not being a rock song with Eastern influences, but a distinctly Hindu song, in a way ushering in World Music. Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones experimented similarly with Moroccan recordings, although that album wouldn't be released until after his death.

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Shortly after, he met Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in England and was impressed by his ideology. Shortly after, he convinced the others to attend a weekend course the Maharishi was giving in Bangor, Wales. On August 27, they received a call informing them of the death of their manager, Brian Epstein. Brian died from an overdose of barbiturates and sedatives, which he used in increasingly larger doses to counteract the effects of each. He had fallen into depression since the band announced they would no longer tour, as his role had been significantly reduced, despite managing a number of other artists. The Maharishi offered them comfort during these difficult times, and John would say that his words helped them cope with Epstein's death more effectively. They returned to London at that critical time for the funeral. Shortly after, they embarked on their first adventure as orphans, filming the movie Magical Mystery Tour, which basically showed them traveling with a bunch of eccentric people, clowning around. The film premiered on British television for Christmas and was panned by critics, although it produced another impeccable soundtrack.

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In early 1968, George convinced the others to finish the course they had started with the Maharishi by going on an intensive course in Rishikesh, India. Paul and Ringo were reluctant, but John was enchanted by the guru and helped George convince them. In addition to their wives, the group included other celebrities such as Mike Love of the Beach Boys, Donovan, Paul Horn, Magic Alex, Mia Farrow, and his sister Prudence. Ringo returned shortly afterward because his stomach couldn't handle the food. It would be one of the band's most productive periods, composing scores of songs that would later make up the White Album and Abbey Road, as well as providing material for their first solo albums. Paul would be the next to leave, claiming he had work to do, but the truth is he was getting bored and had heard rumors about the Maharishi. John and George stayed for six weeks, and toward the end, they couldn't ignore the rumors that the Maharishi was secretly feasting on meat and chicken and trying to seduce his students. Legend has it that they set a trap for him, which he ultimately neither denied nor clarified whether the rumor was true, but John was convinced it was true, so they returned to London.

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There they would dive headlong into recording the White Album, with the material written in India. 20 of the 30 songs were written there. During those sessions, friction began between them, to the point that George began to feel uncomfortable. The turning point came when Ringo quit after not following Paul's instructions for his songs. Ringo would be gone for a couple of weeks, and George would call to ask him to come back and come up with the idea of ​​showering his drum kit with flowers. It was also his idea to bring a guest to the sessions. He had noticed at home that when he and Patti got angry, they would act as if nothing had happened if someone came along, and he thought the same thing must be happening in the studio, so he called Eric Clapton, with whom he was good friends. Clapton showed up thinking he was just there to watch the sessions, but George asked him to play with them on one of his compositions, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," which started out as an acoustic tune and ended with one of Clapton's most heartfelt and incendiary solos, which was credited as L'angelo Misteriosso, to avoid problems with the various record labels.​

The problem arose during the recording of the film Get Back, where they attempted to capture the recording process on film, but it was more of a testament to how the group was dissolving. The sessions were a hostile lethargy. On January 6, Paul told George that "Two of Us" would sound better without so much riffing, to which Harrison exploded, "I'll play what you want me to play, or I won't play anything at all. Whatever pleases you, I'll do it!" Later, on January 10, George argued with John about something, whether it was clear whether they came to blows or not. After the lunch break, George got in his car and drove home to Esher. He told Pattie, "I'm out of the group, the Beatles are no more." George remained at home in a huff while filming was delayed. Legend has it that Paul, furious and without pause, called Eric Clapton to offer him the job, but the latter declined out of loyalty to George (Ha!), concluding with a certain cynicism: “Jeff Beck is also busy recording an album, so don’t bother calling him.” A few days later, when they had a business meeting, George showed up as if nothing had happened.

 

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For Abbey Road, George would perform two of his signature songs: "Here Comes the Sun," which he composed at Hurtwood, Clapton's home, and "Something," an incredible love ballad dedicated to Pattie. Fanny Sinatra would say it was his favorite Lennon/McCartney song. Oops! By the way, at the time they were the only ones unable to have children, so they underwent tests and realized she was infertile.

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The Beatles' last recording session was on January 3, 1970, to record one more song for Let It Be. It was "I Me Mine," a George composition. John didn't show up for that session, so they recorded it without him.

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After the group's dissolution in April, George took it easy. In May, he called Phil Spector and gathered some friends to record the material he had accumulated over the years. At some point, he realized that a double album wouldn't be enough, and it would end up being the first triple album in history. Bob Dylan didn't participate, but as an apology, he asked George to choose his favorite song from his catalog and cover it.

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George would release the masterful All Things Must Pass in November, a triple album in which he released all the material he'd been forced to hold back due to his bandmates' monopoly. Not only did it make for the first triple album in history, but it's also the best album by a former Beatle, of moving, spiritual beauty, without being preachy, and with many, many songs of the highest quality, in which he showed some resignation with the title track. The album would reach No. 1 on both sides of the Atlantic and would launch a slew of top ten singles. George began his solo career in an ironic way: overshadowing the bandmates who had been overshadowing him for so many years. Unfortunately, George would be sued by the Chiffons for the similarity between "My Sweet Lord" and their song "She's So Fine," which, to be honest, is undeniable. George would claim in court that it could have been an unconscious rip-off, and I honestly believe him. He's a talented enough guy to have to steal tunes. The lawsuit would be settled with Harrison buying the company that owned the rights to the Chiffons' songs.

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The following year, George would collaborate on John's Imagine, particularly on "How Do You Sleep," featuring a furious, quasi-metal guitar. But the highlight would be the organization of the Concert for Bangladesh. In the small Asian country, people were starving due to the war to secede from Pakistan, and crops were ruined by the previous year's monsoons. Harrison would gather his friends for a spectacular fundraising concert in New York, pioneering the benefit concerts that would become fashionable years later, but above all, bringing the Bangladeshi problem to the attention of the general public. The concert was scheduled for June 1 and 2 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, drawing more than 40,000 people. Ravi Shankar opened the concert, which included artists such as Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Jim Keltner, Billy Preston, Leon Russell, Ringo Starr, and Klaus Voormann. An album was released, and a DVD was released in 2005. All proceeds went to aid people dying of starvation. It would be the first concert of its kind, which would become more common in the 1980s.
 

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In 1973, George collaborated with Ringo on his self-titled album, writing the songs "It Don't Come Easy" and "Photograph," which became hit singles. That same year, he released Living in a Material World, a simpler album without the Wall of Sound of his debut and featuring star guests such as Nicky Hopkins, Klaus Voormann, Jim Keltner, Ringo Starr, and Leon Russell. Here, he returned to songs that spoke of Hindu philosophy, such as "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)," "The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord)," and "Try Some, Buy Some," while on "Sue Me Sue You Blues," he mocked McCartney's ongoing legal proceedings to officially disband The Beatles. The album was well received by critics and also reached number 1 in the US and UK.

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Around this time, his marriage to Pattie was falling apart. Despite his philosophical bent, George wasn't exactly perfect. Pattie would claim he was constantly unfaithful and still involved in drugs, which caused constant conflict between the two. The final straw came when George openly flirted with Ringo's wife, Mo, during dinner at the Starrs' house. Eric Clapton had been unsuccessfully courting Pattie for years, and had even dedicated his Derek & The Dominoes song "Layla" and "Bell Bottom Blues" to her (after a pair of low-rise jeans she was wearing), but the closest they'd gotten was a kiss, as she felt she couldn't betray George despite everything he'd done to her. However, George's alleged infidelity with Mo crossed her boundaries, and she supposedly cheated on him with... no, sorry Eric, you're still on the friendzoned list... Ronnie Wood, then guitarist of the Faces!!! The couple would eventually divorce in 1974. In his autobiography, Clapton recalls an episode at Hurtwood, his country home, where he was sitting on a sofa with George, discussing the Harrisons' marriage. At one point, George said, "Damn, I'll have to divorce her!" To which Clapton responded without thinking, "Damn, I'll have to marry her!", causing both to burst into laughter. Clapton would marry Pattie in 1979, and they would divorce 10 years later.

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In 1974, he released Dark Horse, a darker album that portrayed his state of mind after his divorce, and dealt less with religious issues. It featured funk and soul songs that simply didn't sit well with him, and the album received harsh reviews. Despite this, it reached #4 in the US, but it would be his first not to chart in England. It would be his first album under his own label, Dark Horse Records, and with it, he would go on his first US tour, which was widely criticized due to Ravi Shankar, who opened for him, lasting forever, and Harrison being hoarse from strep throat. After returning to Friar Park, with the house empty, George sank deeper into alcohol and cocaine.

 

At the Dark Horse offices, he met Olivia Arias, a Mexican who would connect him with other artists, and they soon began dating. George would later say that she saved his life by making him believe in love again, helping him detox, and returning to his spirituality and the things he enjoyed doing. In 1975, he released Extra Texture, on which he dedicated the song "You" to Olivia, which reached the Top 20, and the single "This Guitar (Can't Keep From Crying)," which would be his first to fail to chart. Around this time, with Olivia's help, he began to devote more time to leisure time, discovering his passion for motorsports.

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In 1976, while recording the album Thirty Three & 1/3, Harrison contracted hepatitis, delaying its release and breaching a clause in his contract with the distributor A&M. After being sued, Warner Bros. Records took over its distribution, giving him time to recover from the illness and record the album. The album was a success compared to the previous two. "This Song" satirically portrayed the Chiffons' plagiarism trial, and "Cracker Box Palace" was also well received. Interestingly, in the video for this song, he appears dressed as a schoolboy, wearing short shorts and a cap... basically like Angus Young!

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On August 1, 1978, his only son, Dhani, was born, and on September 2, he married Olivia. In 1979, he released his self-titled album, which did well but wasn't a hit either. In 1980, he wrote his autobiography, "I Me Mine," and months later, John Lennon was assassinated. This was a huge blow to George, as he had lost contact with Lennon. Lennon called him one day, half jokingly, half seriously, telling him he was upset that he barely mentioned him in the book. This also caused him tremendous paranoia, and he locked himself in his Friar Park mansion and hired security. He modified the lyrics of "All Those Years Ago," which he had originally written for Ringo and reworked as a tribute to John, for the album "Somewhere in England." The song featured Ringo on drums and Paul and Linda on backing vocals, reuniting in the studio for the first time since January 1969. The single reached #2 on the US charts. In 1982, he released the consistent Gonne Troppo, which would be his last solo album before taking a five-year hiatus.

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In 1987, George would make a full-blown comeback with Cloud 9, produced by Jeff Lyne, and featuring hits like "Got My Mind Set On You" (a Rudy Clark cover), "This is Love," and "When We Was Fab," in which he pays tribute to the Beatles. With spectacular videos (for the time), but above all with great musical quality, George managed to reach the top ten during a very difficult time for rock, with a fresher and barely dated sound. Critics would consider it his best work since All Things Must Pass.

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Despite the album's success, he didn't decide to tour and instead put together a project to record "Handle With Care" with Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, and Roy Orbison. The result was so good that they decided to continue with the project and call it The Traveling Wildburys, where his slide guitar is superb. The band hid their names behind pseudonyms, all with the surname Wildbury. The group released a couple of albums between 1988 and 1990, before disappearing or remaining in sporadic collaborations between its members.

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Around this time, he became friends with Monty Python and helped finance their films through his production company. In gratitude, the Pythons would make a Beatles parody called The Rutles. In 1991, George finally decided to go on a world tour, for which he enlisted the help of his old friend Eric Clapton. Clapton had just gotten clean and was enthusiastic, putting on one of the most successful tours for both in almost 15 years. The following year, the album Live in Japan was released, a compilation of the duo's concert in the Asian country and a must-have.

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Between 1994 and 1996, he dedicated himself to the Anthologies, along with Paul and Ringo, not only working with George Martin on restoring tapes and recording two new songs, "Free as a Bird" and "Real Love," over John's tracks, but also with hours of interviews tracing the quartet's history. Beatlemania was back, but George began a battle with lung cancer, after a lifetime of smoking. He managed to beat mouth and later lung cancer, but the cancer would remain…

 

His last live appearance was in 1997, promoting Chants for India with Ravi Shankar. He performed "Any Road," an unreleased song he was saving for his next album, the posthumous Brainwashed.
 

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On December 30, 1999, the Lennon tragedy almost repeated itself… Michael Abraham broke into George's home and attacked him with a knife. Harrison and his wife managed to restrain the intruder, escaping with minor injuries. George swore he was following God's instructions and was committed to a mental institution. After this, George's paranoia returned, and he essentially became a shut-in, avoiding public appearances.

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The lung cancer reappeared in 2001, metastasizing to his brain. He underwent aggressive treatment in Switzerland, but on November 22, doctors told him his condition was terminal. Olivia arranged a final, absolutely private meeting with Paul and Ringo, whom he was able to say a peaceful goodbye to, as well as with his sister Louise, with whom he had had disagreements in the past.

 

George died peacefully on November 29, 2001, at the age of 58. Olivia and Dhani issued a brief statement: “He left this world as he lived: conscious of God, unafraid of death, and at peace, surrounded by family and friends.” It was a Thursday, because I remember very well reading it on the news on Friday. I think my eyes were watering intermittently throughout the day. I think the following Saturday I played with Trovadictos at the Café-Eco, and instead of our usual repertoire, we played songs by George and the Beatles. I think because those days were so blurry and sad.

The 2000 version of My Sweet Lord would play day and night on the radio, reminding us that George had been ready for this for a long time. Now he was part of the whole…

George Harrison's posthumous album, Brainwashed, was completed by his son Dhani Harrison and Jeff Lynne and released on November 18, 2002, receiving good reviews and peaking at #18.

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The story doesn't end there. Months later, Eric Clapton, still overwhelmed by the grief of not being able to say goodbye to his lifelong friend, would realize that George hadn't had a funeral. A musical one, that is. So, he agreed with Dhani and Olivia and dedicated himself wholeheartedly to organizing the Concert for George on the first anniversary of his death.

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And the magic happened. Remember the movie Big Fish, in which Edward Bloom dies at the end, and all those characters he touched in one way or another during his life, whom his son thought were mere inventions, appear at his funeral? Well, that’s what happened on November 29, 2002. From Ravi Shankar, Paul McCartney with the ukulele George gave him the last time they saw each other, Ringo Starr who shed tears playing “Photograph”, Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Billy Preston, Jools Holland, Albert Lee, Sam Brown, Gary Brooker, Joe Brown, Ray Cooper, Marc Mann, Monty Python, who reunited to sing and do a thank you sketch, Eric Clapton and his guitar who wept more gently than ever, playing with Paul and Ringo for the first time since they recorded the song in the studio, and Dhani, who remained stoic with his guitar during almost every song, reminding us of George with their incredible resemblance. John must have been there too, somehow. The very name of the concert was a tribute to what Harrison did in 1971.

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So George passed away, the quiet, the spiritual, the mystic, honored by the cream of the crop of rock, all on whom he had left a mark with his simple demeanor throughout his life, and reminding us of the great truth of those words he sang in chorus:
 

“And in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love...   you make.”

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By Corvan

Jun/16/2017

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