George Harrison[nb 1] (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001)[nb 2] was an English musician who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist ofthe Beatles. Known as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embracedIndian culture and helped broaden the scope ofpopular music through his incorporation of Indian instrumentation and Hindu-aligned spirituality in the Beatles' work.[3]
Harrison released several best-selling singles and albums as a solo performer. In 1988, he co-founded theplatinum-sellingsupergroup theTraveling Wilburys. A prolific recording artist, he was featured as a guest guitarist on tracks byBadfinger,Ronnie Wood, andBilly Preston, and collaborated on songs and music with Dylan,Eric Clapton,Ringo Starr, andTom Petty.Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 31 in their 2023 list of greatest guitarists of all time.[5] He is a two-timeRock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee – as a member of the Beatles in 1988, and posthumously for his solo career in 2004.[6] A lifelong smoker, Harrison died of cancer in 2001 at the age of 58, two years after surviving aknife attack by an intruder at his home.
George Harrison was born at12 Arnold Grove inWavertree, Liverpool, on 25 February 1943.[7][nb 2] He was the youngest of four children of Harold Hargreaves (or Hargrove) Harrison and Louise (née French).[12] Harold was a bus conductor who had worked as aship's steward on theWhite Star Line,[13] and Louise was a shop assistant ofIrish Catholic descent.[8] He had one sister, Louise, and two brothers, Harold and Peter.
According to Boyd, Harrison's mother was particularly supportive: "All she wanted for her children is that they should be happy, and she recognised that nothing made George quite as happy as making music."[14] Louise was an enthusiastic music fan, and she was known among friends for her loud singing voice, which at times startled visitors by rattling the Harrisons' windows.[15] When Louise was pregnant with George, she often listened to the weekly broadcastRadio India. Harrison's biographer Joshua Greene wrote, "Every Sunday she tuned in to mystical sounds evoked by sitars andtablas, hoping that the exotic music would bring peace and calm to the baby in the womb."[16]
Harrison lived at 12 Arnold Grove until 1 January 1950.[17] A terraced house on acul-de-sac, it had an outdoor toilet, and its only heat came from a single coal fire. In the autumn of 1949, the family was offered acouncil house and moved to 25 Upton Green,Speke.[18] In 1948, Harrison enrolled atDovedale Primary School.[19] He passed theeleven-plus exam and attendedLiverpool Institute High School for Boys from 1954 to 1959.[20][21] Though the institute did offer a music course, Harrison was disappointed with the absence of guitars, and felt that the school "moulded [students] into being frightened".[22]
Harrison's earliest musical influences includedGeorge Formby,Cab Calloway,Django Reinhardt andHoagy Carmichael;[23] by the 1950s,Carl Perkins andLonnie Donegan were significant influences.[24] In early 1956, he had an epiphany: while riding his bicycle, he heardElvis Presley's "Heartbreak Hotel" playing from a nearby house, and the song piqued his interest inrock and roll.[25] He often sat at the back of the class drawing guitars in his schoolbooks, and later commented, "I was totally into guitars."[26] Harrison citedSlim Whitman as another early influence: "The first person I ever saw playing a guitar was Slim Whitman, either a photo of him in a magazine or live on television. Guitars were definitely coming in."[27]
When George Harrison was about 14, a friend of Harrison, Raymond Hughes, offered to sell a guitar. Harrison's mother then paid for the guitar, which cost £3.10s.– (equivalent to £110 in 2023[28]).[29][30] One of his father's friends taught Harrison how to play "Whispering", "Sweet Sue" and "Dinah". Inspired by Donegan's music, Harrison formed askiffle group, the Rebels, with his brother Peter and a friend, Arthur Kelly.[31] On the bus to school, Harrison metPaul McCartney, who also attended the Liverpool Institute, and the pair bonded over their shared love of music.[32]
McCartney and his friendJohn Lennon were in a skiffle group calledthe Quarrymen. In March 1958, at McCartney's urging, Harrison auditioned for the Quarrymen atRory Storm's Morgue Skiffle Club, playingArthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith's "Guitar Boogie Shuffle", but Lennon felt that Harrison, having just turned 15, was too young to join the band.[33] McCartney arranged a second meeting, on the upper deck of a Liverpool bus, during which Harrison impressed Lennon by performing the lead guitar part for the instrumental "Raunchy".[34] He began socialising with the group, filling in on guitar as needed,[35] and then became accepted as a member.[36] Although his father wanted him to continue his education, Harrison left school at 16 and worked for several months as an apprentice electrician atBlacklers, a local department store.[37] During the group's first tour of Scotland, in 1960, Harrison used the pseudonym "Carl Harrison", in reference to Carl Perkins.[38]
Harrison at a Beatles press conference in Amsterdam in 1964
In 1960, promoterAllan Williams arranged for the band, now calling themselves the Beatles, to play at the Indra andKaiserkeller clubs inHamburg, both owned byBruno Koschmider.[39] Their first residency in Hamburg ended prematurely when Harrison was deported for being too young to work in nightclubs.[40] WhenBrian Epstein became their manager in December 1961, he polished up their image and later secured them a recording contract withEMI.[41] The group's first single, "Love Me Do", peaked at number 17 on theRecord Retailer chart, and by the time their debut album,Please Please Me, was released in early 1963,Beatlemania had arrived.[42] Often serious and focused while on stage with the band, Harrison was known as "the quiet Beatle".[43][44] That moniker arose when the Beatles arrived in the United States in early 1964, and Harrison was ill with a case ofStrep throat and a fever and was medically advised to limit speaking as much as possible until he performed onThe Ed Sullivan Show as scheduled. As such, the press noticed Harrison's apparent laconic nature in public appearances on that tour and the subsequent nickname stuck, much to Harrison's amusement.[45] He had two lead vocal credits on the LP, including theLennon–McCartney song "Do You Want to Know a Secret?", and three on their second album,With the Beatles (1963).[46] The latter included "Don't Bother Me", Harrison's first solo writing credit.[47]
Harrison (left) andRingo Starr (right) performing at the King's Hall in Belfast, 1964
Harrison served as the Beatles' scout for new American releases, being especially knowledgeable aboutsoul music.[48] By 1965'sRubber Soul, he had begun to lead the other Beatles intofolk rock through his interest inthe Byrds andBob Dylan, and towardsIndian classical music through his use of the sitar on "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)".[49][nb 3] He later calledRubber Soul his "favourite [Beatles] album".[51]Revolver (1966) included three of his compositions: "Taxman", selected as the album's opening track, "Love You To" and "I Want to Tell You".[52] His drone-liketambura part on Lennon's "Tomorrow Never Knows" exemplified the band's ongoing exploration of non-Western instruments,[53] while the sitar- andtabla-based "Love You To" represented the Beatles' first genuine foray into Indian music.[54] According to theethnomusicologist David Reck, the latter song set a precedent in popular music as an example of Asian culture being represented by Westerners respectfully and without parody.[55] AuthorNicholas Schaffner wrote in 1978 that following Harrison's increased association with the sitar after "Norwegian Wood", he became known as "the maharaja ofraga-rock".[56] Harrison continued to develop his interest in non-Western instrumentation, playingswarmandal on "Strawberry Fields Forever".[57]
By late 1966, Harrison's interests had moved away from the Beatles. This was reflected in his choice of Easterngurus and religious leaders for inclusion on the album cover forSgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in 1967.[58][nb 4] His sole composition on the album was the Indian-inspired "Within You Without You", to which no other Beatle contributed.[60] He played sitar and tambura on the track, backed by musicians from the LondonAsian Music Circle ondilruba, swarmandal and tabla.[61][nb 5] He later commented on theSgt. Pepper album: "It was a millstone and a milestone in the music industry ... There's about half the songs I like and the other half I can't stand."[63]
In January 1968, he recorded the basic track for his song "The Inner Light" at EMI's studio inBombay, using a group of local musicians playing traditional Indian instruments.[64] Released as the B-side to McCartney's "Lady Madonna", it was the first Harrison composition to appear on a Beatles single.[64] Derived from a quotation from theTao Te Ching, the song's lyric reflected Harrison's deepening interest in Hinduism andmeditation.[65] During the recording ofThe Beatles that same year, tensions within the group ran high, and drummerRingo Starr quit briefly.[66] Harrison's four songwriting contributions to the double album included "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", which featuredEric Clapton on lead guitar, and thehorn-driven "Savoy Truffle".[67]
Harrison (left, withDon Grierson), in Los Angeles in October 1968
Dylan andthe Band were a major musical influence on Harrison at the end of his career with the Beatles.[68] While on a visit toWoodstock in late 1968, he established a friendship with Dylan and found himself drawn to the Band's sense of communal music-making and to the creative equality among the band members, which contrasted with Lennon and McCartney's domination of the Beatles' songwriting and creative direction. This coincided with a prolific period in his songwriting and a growing desire to assert his independence from the Beatles.[69] Tensions among the group surfaced again in January 1969, atTwickenham Studios, during the filmed rehearsals that became the 1970 documentaryLet It Be.[69] Frustrated by the cold and sterile film studio, by Lennon's creative disengagement from the Beatles, and by what he perceived as a domineering attitude from McCartney, Harrison quit the group on 10 January. He returned 12 days later, after his bandmates had agreed to move the film project to their ownApple Studio and to abandon McCartney's plan for making a return to public performance.[70]
Relations among the Beatles were more cordial, though still strained, when the band recorded their 1969 albumAbbey Road.[71] The LP included what Lavezzoli describes as "two classic contributions" from Harrison – "Here Comes the Sun" and "Something" – that saw him "finally achieve equal songwriting status" with Lennon and McCartney.[72] During the album's recording, Harrison asserted more creative control than before, rejecting suggestions for changes to his music, particularly from McCartney.[73] "Something" became his first A-side when issued on adouble A-side single with "Come Together"; the song was number one in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and West Germany,[74] and the combined sides topped theBillboard Hot 100 chart in the United States.[75] In the 1970sFrank Sinatra recorded "Something" twice (1970 and 1979) and later dubbed it "the greatest love song of the past fifty years".[76] Lennon considered it the best song onAbbey Road, and it became the Beatles' second most covered song after "Yesterday".[77][nb 6]In May 1970, Harrison's song "For You Blue" was coupled on a US single with McCartney's "The Long and Winding Road" and became Harrison's second chart-topper when the sides were listed together at number one on the Hot 100.[79] His increased productivity meant that by the time oftheir break-up he had amassed a stockpile of unreleased compositions.[80] While Harrison grew as a songwriter, his compositional presence on Beatles albums remained limited to two or three songs, increasing his frustration, and significantly contributing to the band's break-up.[81] Harrison's last recording session with the Beatles was on 4 January 1970, when he, McCartney and Starr recorded overdubs to the song "Let It Be" for thesoundtrack album of the same name.[82]
Solo career: 1968–1987
Early solo work: 1968–1969
Trade ad forWonderwall Music
Before the Beatles' break-up, Harrison had already recorded and released two solo albums:Wonderwall Music andElectronic Sound, both of which contain mainly instrumental compositions.Wonderwall Music, a soundtrack to the 1968 filmWonderwall, blends Indian and Western instrumentation, whileElectronic Sound is an experimental album that prominently features aMoog synthesizer.[83] Released in November 1968,Wonderwall Music was the first solo album by a Beatle and the first LP released byApple Records.[84] Indian musiciansAashish Khan andShivkumar Sharma performed on the album, which contains the experimentalsound collage "Dream Scene", recorded several months before Lennon's "Revolution 9".[85]
For many years, Harrison was restricted in his songwriting contributions to the Beatles' albums, but he releasedAll Things Must Pass, atriple album[88] with two discs of his songs and the third of recordings of Harrisonjamming with friends.[80][89] The album was regarded by many as his best work, and it topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic.[90][91][nb 7] The number-onehit single "My Sweet Lord" and the top-ten single "What Is Life" were taken from the album,[93] which was co-produced byPhil Spector using his "Wall of Sound" approach;[94] the musicians included Starr, Clapton,Gary Wright,Billy Preston,Klaus Voormann, the whole of Delaney and Bonnie's Friends band, and the Apple groupBadfinger.[80][95][nb 8] On its release,All Things Must Pass was received with critical acclaim;[97] Ben Gerson ofRolling Stone described it as being "of classic Spectorian proportions,Wagnerian,Brucknerian, the music of mountain tops and vast horizons".[98] Author andmusicologist Ian Inglis considers the lyrics ofthe album's title track "a recognition of the impermanence of human existence ... a simple and poignant conclusion" to Harrison's former band.[99] In 1971, Bright Tunes sued Harrison forcopyright infringement over "My Sweet Lord", owing to its similarity to the 1963Chiffons hit "He's So Fine".[100] When the case was heard in theUnited States district court in 1976, he denied deliberately plagiarising the song, but lost the case, as the judge ruled that he had done so subconsciously.[101]
In 2000, Apple Records released a thirtieth-anniversary edition of the album, and Harrison actively participated in its promotion. In an interview, he reflected on the work: "It's just something that was like my continuation from the Beatles, really. It was me sort of getting out of the Beatles and just going my own way ... it was a very happy occasion."[102] He commented on the production: "Well, in those days it was like thereverb was kind of used a bit more than what I would do now. In fact, I don't use reverb at all. I can't stand it ... You know, it's hard to go back to anything thirty years later and expect it to be how you would want it now."[103]
Harrison responded to a request from Ravi Shankar by organising a charity event, the Concert for Bangladesh, which took place on 1 August 1971. The event drew over 40,000 people to two shows in New York'sMadison Square Garden.[104] The goal of the event was to raise money to aid starving refugees during theBangladesh Liberation War.[105] Shankar opened the show, which featured popular musicians such as Dylan, Clapton,Leon Russell, Badfinger, Preston and Starr.[105]
A triple album,The Concert for Bangladesh, was released by Apple in December, followed by aconcert film in 1972.[nb 9] Credited to "George Harrison and Friends", the album topped the UK chart and peaked at number 2 in the US,[108] and went on to win theGrammy Award for Album of the Year.[109] Tax troubles and questionable expenses later tied up many of the proceeds, but Harrison commented: "Mainly the concert was to attract attention to the situation ... The money we raised was secondary, and although we had some money problems ... they still got plenty ... even though it was a drop in the ocean. The main thing was, we spread the word and helped get the war ended."[110]
Living in the Material World toGeorge Harrison: 1973–1979
Harrison standing before crowd of photographers in Los Angeles, Calif., 1974
Harrison's 1973 albumLiving in the Material World held the number one spot on theBillboard albums chart for five weeks, and the album's single, "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)", also reached number one in the US.[111] In the UK, the LP peaked at number two and the single reached number 8.[93] The album was lavishly produced and packaged, and its dominant message was Harrison's Hindu beliefs.[112] In Greene's opinion it "contained many of the strongest compositions of his career".[113]Stephen Holden, writing inRolling Stone, felt the album was "vastly appealing" and "profoundly seductive", and that it stood "alone as an article of faith, miraculous in its radiance".[114] Other reviewers were less enthusiastic, describing the release as awkward, sanctimonious and overly sentimental.[115]
In November 1974, Harrison became the first ex-Beatle to tour North America when he began his 45-dateDark Horse Tour.[116] The shows included guest spots by his band members Billy Preston andTom Scott, and traditional and contemporary Indian music performed by "Ravi Shankar, Family and Friends".[117] Despite numerous positive reviews, the consensus reaction to the tour was negative.[118] Some fans found Shankar's significant presence to be a bizarre disappointment, and many were affronted by what Inglis described as Harrison's "sermonizing".[119] Further, he reworked the lyrics to several Beatles songs,[119] and hislaryngitis-affected vocals led to some critics calling the tour "dark hoarse".[120] The author Robert Rodriguez commented: "While the Dark Horse tour might be considered a noble failure, there were a number of fans who were tuned-in to what was being attempted. They went away ecstatic, conscious that they had just witnessed something so uplifting that it could never be repeated."[121] Simon Leng called the tour "groundbreaking" and "revolutionary in its presentation of Indian Music".[122]
On 16 November 1974, Harrison and several others involved in the tour visited the White House. They were invited by PresidentGerald Ford's son, Jack.[123]
In December, Harrison releasedDark Horse, which was an album that earned him the least favourable reviews of his career.[124]Rolling Stone called it "the chronicle of a performer out of his element, working to a deadline, enfeebling his overtaxed talents by a rush to deliver a new 'LP product', rehearse a band, and assemble a cross-country tour, all within three weeks".[125] The album reached number 4 on theBillboard chart and the single "Dark Horse" reached number 15, but they failed to make an impact in the UK.[126][nb 10] The music criticMikal Gilmore describedDark Horse as "one of Harrison's most fascinating works – a record about change and loss".[127]
Harrison leaving the Hilton Hotel in Amsterdam, and signing an album for a fan, February 1977
Harrison's final studio album for EMI and Apple Records, thesoul music-inspiredExtra Texture (Read All About It) (1975),[128] peaked at number 8 on theBillboard chart and number 16 in the UK.[129] Harrison considered it the least satisfactory of the three albums he had recorded sinceAll Things Must Pass.[130] Leng identified "bitterness and dismay" in many of the tracks; his long-time friend Klaus Voormann commented: "He wasn't up for it ... It was a terrible time because I think there was a lot of cocaine going around, and that's when I got out of the picture ... I didn't like his frame of mind".[131] He released two singles from the LP: "You", which reached theBillboard top 20, and "This Guitar (Can't Keep from Crying)", Apple's final original single release.[132]
Thirty Three & 1/3 (1976), Harrison's first album release on his own Dark Horse Records label, produced the hit singles "This Song" and "Crackerbox Palace", both of which reached the top 25 in the US.[133][nb 11] Thesurreal humour of "Crackerbox Palace" reflected Harrison's association withMonty Python'sEric Idle, who directed a comical music video for the song.[136] With an emphasis on melody and musicianship, and a more subtle subject matter than the pious message of his earlier works,Thirty Three & 1/3 earned Harrison his most favourable critical notices in the US sinceAll Things Must Pass.[136] The album peaked just outside the top ten there, but outsold his previous two LPs.[137][138] As part of his promotion for the release, Harrison performed onSaturday Night Live withPaul Simon.[139]
In 1979, Harrison releasedGeorge Harrison, which followed his second marriage and the birth of his sonDhani.[140] Co-produced byRuss Titelman,[141] the album and the single "Blow Away" both made theBillboard top 20.[142] The album marked the beginning of Harrison's gradual retreat from the music business, with several of the songs having been written in the tranquil setting ofMaui in theHawaiian archipelago.[143] Leng describedGeorge Harrison as "melodic and lush ... peaceful ... the work of a man who had lived the rock and roll dream twice over and was now embracing domestic as well as spiritual bliss".[144]
Somewhere in England toCloud Nine: 1980–1987
Themurder of John Lennon on 8 December 1980 disturbed Harrison and reinforced his decades-long concern aboutstalkers.[145] The tragedy was also a deep personal loss, although Harrison and Lennon had little contact in the years before Lennon was killed.[146][nb 12] Following the murder, Harrison commented: "After all we went through together I had and still have great love and respect for John Lennon. I am shocked and stunned."[145] Harrison modified the lyrics of a song he had written for Starr to make the song a tribute to Lennon.[148] "All Those Years Ago", which included vocal contributions from Paul and Linda McCartney, as well as Starr's original drum part, peaked at number two in the US charts.[149][150] The single was included on the albumSomewhere in England in 1981.[151]
Prior, in February 1987, he joined Dylan,John Fogerty andJesse Ed Davis on stage for a two-hour performance with the blues musicianTaj Mahal.[157] Harrison recalled: "Bob rang me up and asked if I wanted to come out for the evening and see Taj Mahal ... So we went there and had a few of these Mexican beers – and had a few more ... Bob says, 'Hey, why don't we all get up and play, and you can sing?' But every time I got near the microphone, Dylan comes up and just starts singing this rubbish in my ear, trying to throw me."[158]
In November 1987, Harrison released the platinum albumCloud Nine.[159][160] Co-produced withJeff Lynne ofElectric Light Orchestra (ELO), the album included Harrison's rendition ofJames Ray's "Got My Mind Set on You", which went to number one in the US and number two in the UK.[161][162] The accompanying music video received substantial airplay,[163] and another single, "When We Was Fab", a retrospective of the Beatles' career, earned twoMTV Music Video Awards nominations in 1988.[164] Recorded at his estate in Friar Park, Harrison's slide guitar playing featured prominently on the album, which included several of his long-time musical collaborators, including Clapton,Jim Keltner andJim Horn.[165]Cloud Nine reached number eight and number ten on the US and UK charts respectively, and several tracks from the album achieved placement onBillboard'sMainstream Rock chart – "Devil's Radio", "This Is Love" and "Cloud 9".[161]
Later career: 1988–1996
The Traveling Wilburys and return to touring: 1988–1992
In 1988, Harrison formed the Traveling Wilburys with Jeff Lynne,Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan and Tom Petty. The band had gathered in Dylan's garage to record a song for a Harrison European single release.[166] Harrison's record company decided the track, "Handle with Care", was too good for its original purpose as a B-side and asked for a full album. The LP,Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, was released in October 1988 and recorded under pseudonyms as half-brothers, supposed sons of Charles Truscott Wilbury Sr.[167] It reached number 16 in the UK and number 3 in the US, where it was certifiedtriple platinum.[168] Harrison's pseudonym on the album was "Nelson Wilbury"; he used the name "Spike Wilbury" for their second album.[169]
In 1989, Harrison and Starr appeared in the music video for Petty's song "I Won't Back Down".[170] In October that year, Harrison assembled and releasedBest of Dark Horse 1976–1989, a compilation of his later solo work.[171] The album included three new songs, including "Cheer Down", which Harrison had recently contributed to theLethal Weapon 2 film soundtrack.[172]
Following Orbison's death in December 1988, the Wilburys recorded as a four-piece.[173] Their second album, issued in October 1990, was mischievously titledTraveling Wilburys Vol. 3. According to Lynne, "That was George's idea. He said, 'Let's confuse the buggers.'"[174] It peaked at number 14 in the UK and number 11 in the US, where it was certified platinum.[168] The Wilburys never performed live, and the group did not record together again following the release of their second album.[175]
In 1994, Harrison began a collaboration with McCartney, Starr and producer Jeff Lynne for theBeatles Anthology project. This included the recording of two new Beatles songs built around solo vocal and piano tapes recorded by Lennon as well as lengthy interviews about the Beatles' career.[181] Released in December 1995, "Free as a Bird" was the first new Beatles single since 1970.[182] In March 1996, they released a second single, "Real Love". They also attempted to finish a third single, "Now and Then", but did not finish it because the audio quality of the cassette was, according to Harrison, "fucking rubbish". The song was later finished by McCartney and Starr and released in 2023. He later commented on the project: "I hope somebody does this to all my crap demos when I'm dead, make them into hit songs."[183]
Later life and death: 1997–2001
After theAnthology project, Harrison collaborated with Ravi Shankar on the latter'sChants of India. Harrison's final television appearance was aVH-1 special to promote the album, taped in May 1997.[184] Soon afterwards, Harrison was diagnosed withthroat cancer;[185] he was treated withradiotherapy, which was thought at the time to be successful.[186] He publicly blamed years of smoking for the illness.[187]
In January 1998, Harrison attendedCarl Perkins' funeral inJackson, Tennessee, where he performed a brief rendition of Perkins' song "Your True Love".[188] In May, he represented the Beatles at London's High Court in their successful bid to gain control of unauthorised recordings made of a 1962 performance by the band at theStar-Club in Hamburg.[189][190] The following year, he was the most active of the former Beatles in promoting the reissue of their 1968 animated filmYellow Submarine.[189][191]
The entrance and gatehouse at Harrison'sFriar Park estate inHenley-on-Thames. In December 1999, he and his wifeOlivia were the victims of a knife attack by an intruder.
On 30 December 1999, Harrison and his wife Olivia were attacked at their home,Friar Park. The perpetrator was 34-year-oldparanoid schizophrenic man Michael Abram, who broke in and attacked Harrison with a kitchen knife, puncturing a lung and causing head injuries before he was incapacitated by Harrison's wife, who struck him repeatedly with afireplace poker and a lamp.[186][192] Harrison later commented, "I felt exhausted and could feel the strength draining from me. I vividly remember a deliberate thrust to my chest. I could hear my lung exhaling and had blood in my mouth. I believed I had been fatally stabbed".[193] Following the attack, Harrison was hospitalised with more than 40 stab wounds, and part of his punctured lung was removed.[194] He released a statement soon afterwards regarding his assailant: "He wasn't a burglar, and he certainly wasn't auditioning for the Traveling Wilburys.Adi Shankara, an Indian historical, spiritual and groovy-type person, once said, 'Life is fragile like a raindrop on a lotus leaf.' And you'd better believe it."[195][nb 15] Upon being released from a psychiatric institution in 2002, Abram said: "If I could turn back the clock, I would give anything not to have done what I did in attacking George Harrison, but looking back on it now, I have come to understand that I was at the time not in control of my actions. I can only hope the Harrison family might somehow find it in their hearts to accept my apologies."[199]
The injuries inflicted on Harrison during the home invasion were downplayed by his family in their comments to the press. Having seen Harrison looking so healthy beforehand, those in his social circle believed that the attack brought about a change in him and was the cause for his cancer's return.[194]
Death: 2001
In May 2001, it was revealed that Harrison had undergone an operation to remove a cancerous growth from one of his lungs,[200] and in July 2001, it was reported that he was being treated for abrain tumour at a clinic in Switzerland.[201] While in Switzerland, Starr visited him but had to cut short his stay to travel to Boston, where his daughter was undergoing emergency brain surgery. Harrison, who was very weak, quipped: "Do you want me to come with you?"[202] In November 2001, he began radiotherapy atStaten Island University Hospital in New York City fornon–small cell lung cancer that hadspread to his brain.[203] When the news was made public, Harrison, who would die within the month, bemoaned his physician's breach of privacy, and his estate later claimed damages.[nb 16]
On 29 November 2001, Harrison died at a property belonging to McCartney, on Heather Road inBeverly Hills, California.[209] He was 58 years old.[210][211] He died in the company of Olivia, Dhani, Shankar, and the latter's wife Sukanya and daughterAnoushka, and Hare Krishna devotees Shyamasundar Das andMukunda Goswami, who chanted verses from theBhagavad Gita.[212] His final message to the world, as relayed in a statement by Olivia and Dhani, was: "Everything else can wait, but the search for God cannot wait, and love one another."[213][nb 17] Eric Idle, who was very close to Harrison, was present at his deathbed and said that Harrison was not frightened of death, and thought he would escape rebirth.[215]
Harrison's body wascremated atHollywood Forever Cemetery, and his funeral was held at theSelf-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine inPacific Palisades, California.[216] Eric Idle, considering that "a lot of being funny is the lack of a censor mechanism", said at Harrison's funeral: "I'd like to thankMarlboro, without whom you wouldn't be here this morning", to a huge laugh. Idle said "it's really not the right thing to say, but also, let's name the names of people responsible".[215] Harrison's close family scattered his ashes according toHindu tradition in a private ceremony in theGanges andYamuna rivers nearVaranasi, India.[217] He left almost £100 million in his will.[218]
Final studio album and singles: 2002–2004
Harrison's final studio album,Brainwashed (2002), was released posthumously after it was completed by his son Dhani and Jeff Lynne.[219] A quotation from theBhagavad Gita is included in the album's liner notes: "There never was a time when you or I did not exist. Nor will there be any future when we shall cease to be."[220] A media-only single, "Stuck Inside a Cloud", which Leng describes as "a uniquely candid reaction to illness and mortality", achieved number 27 onBillboard's Adult Contemporary chart.[221][222] The single "Any Road", released in May 2003, peaked at number 37 on theUK Singles Chart.[162] "Marwa Blues" went on to receive the2004 Grammy Award forBest Pop Instrumental Performance, while "Any Road" was nominated forBest Male Pop Vocal Performance.[223]
Musicianship
Guitar work
Harrison's burgundy Les Paul
Harrison's guitar work with the Beatles was varied and flexible. Although not fast or flashy, his lead guitar playing was solid and typified the more subdued lead guitar style of the early 1960s. His rhythm guitar playing was innovative, for example when he used acapo to shorten the strings on an acoustic guitar, as on theRubber Soul (1965) album and "Here Comes the Sun", to create a bright, sweet sound.[224][225] Eric Clapton felt that Harrison was "clearly an innovator" as he was "taking certain elements of R&B and rock and rockabilly and creating something unique".[226]Rolling Stone founderJann Wenner described Harrison as "a guitarist who was never showy but who had an innate, eloquent melodic sense. He played exquisitely in the service of the song".[227] Theguitar picking style ofChet Atkins and Carl Perkins influenced Harrison, giving acountry music feel to many of the Beatles' recordings.[228] He identifiedChuck Berry as another early influence.[229]
In 1961, the Beatles recorded "Cry for a Shadow", a blues-inspired instrumental co-written by Lennon and Harrison, who is credited with composing the song's lead guitar part, building on unusual chord voicings and imitating the style of other English groups such asthe Shadows.[230] Harrison's liberal use of thediatonic scale in his guitar playing reveals the influence ofBuddy Holly, and his interest in Berry inspired him to compose songs based on theblues scale while incorporating arockabilly feel in the style of Perkins.[231][nb 18] Another of Harrison's musical techniques was the use of guitar lines written inoctaves, as on "I'll Be on My Way".[233]
By 1964, he had begun to develop a distinctive personal style as a guitarist, writing parts that featured the use of nonresolving tones, as with the ending chord arpeggios on "A Hard Day's Night".[231] On this and other songs from the period, he used aRickenbacker 360/12 – an electric guitar with twelve strings, the low eight of which are tuned in pairs, one octave apart, with the higher four being pairs tuned in unison.[233] His use of the Rickenbacker onA Hard Day's Night helped to popularise the model, and the jangly sound became so prominent thatMelody Maker termed it the Beatles' "secret weapon".[234][nb 19] In 1965, Harrison used anexpression pedal to control his guitar's volume on "I Need You", creating a syncopatedflautando effect with the melody resolving itsdissonance through tonal displacements.[236] He used the same volume-swell technique on "Yes It Is", applying what Everett described as "ghostly articulation" to the song'snatural harmonics.[231]
Everett described Harrison's guitar solo from "Old Brown Shoe" as "stinging [and] highly Claptonesque".[239] He identified two of the composition's significantmotifs: a bluesytrichord and adiminished triad with roots in A and E.[240] Huntley called the song "a sizzling rocker with a ferocious ... solo".[241] In Greene's opinion, Harrison's demo for "Old Brown Shoe" contains "one of the most complex lead guitar solos on any Beatles song".[242]
Harrison's playing onAbbey Road, and in particular on "Something", marked a significant moment in his development as a guitarist. The song's guitar solo shows a varied range of influences, incorporating the blues guitar style of Clapton and the styles of Indiangamakas.[243] According to author and musicologistKenneth Womack:"'Something' meanders toward the most unforgettable of Harrison's guitar solos ... A masterpiece in simplicity, [it] reaches toward the sublime".[244]
AfterDelaney Bramlett inspired him to learn slide guitar, Harrison began to incorporate it into his solo work, which allowed him to mimic many traditional Indian instruments, including the sarangi and thedilruba.[245] Leng described Harrison's slide guitar solo on Lennon's "How Do You Sleep?" as a departure for "the sweet soloist of 'Something'", calling his playing "rightly famed ... one of Harrison's greatest guitar statements".[246] Lennon commented: "That's the best he's ever fucking played in his life."[246]
AHawaiian influence is notable in much of Harrison's music, ranging from his slide guitar work onGone Troppo (1982) to his televised performance of theCab Calloway standard "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" onukulele in 1992.[247] Lavezzoli described Harrison's slide playing on the Grammy-winning instrumental "Marwa Blues" (2002) as demonstrating Hawaiian influences while comparing the melody to an Indiansarod orveena, calling it "yet another demonstration of Harrison's unique slide approach".[248] Harrison was an admirer ofGeorge Formby and a member of the Ukulele Society of Great Britain, and played a ukulele solo in the style of Formby at the end of "Free as a Bird".[249] He performed at a Formby convention in 1991, and served as the honorary president of the George Formby Appreciation Society.[250] Harrison played bass guitar on a few tracks, including the Beatles songs "She Said She Said", "Golden Slumbers", "Birthday" and "Honey Pie".[251] He also played bass on several solo recordings, including "Faster", "Wake Up My Love" and "Bye Bye Love".[252]
During the Beatles' American tour in August 1965, Harrison's friendDavid Crosby of the Byrds introduced him toIndian classical music and the work ofsitar maestroRavi Shankar.[253][254] Harrison described Shankar as "the first person who ever impressed me in my life ... and he was the only person who didn't try to impress me."[255] Harrison became fascinated with the sitar and immersed himself inIndian music.[256] According to Lavezzoli, Harrison's introduction of the instrument on the Beatles' song "Norwegian Wood" "opened the floodgates for Indian instrumentation in rock music, triggering what Shankar called 'The Great Sitar Explosion' of 1966–67".[257] Lavezzoli recognises Harrison as "the man most responsible for this phenomenon".[258][nb 20]
In June 1966, Harrison met Shankar at the home of Mrs Angadi of the Asian Music Circle, asked to be his student, and was accepted.[260] Before this meeting, Harrison had recorded hisRevolver track "Love You To", contributing a sitar part that Lavezzoli describes as an "astonishing improvement" over "Norwegian Wood" and "the most accomplished performance on sitar by any rock musician".[261] On 6 July, Harrison travelled to India to buy a sitar from Rikhi Ram & Sons in New Delhi.[260] In September, following the Beatles' final tour, he returned to India to study sitar for six weeks with Shankar.[260] He initially stayed in Bombay until fans learned of his arrival, then moved to a houseboat on a remote lake inKashmir.[260] During this visit, he also received tutelage fromShambhu Das, Shankar's protégé.[262][263]
Harrison studied the instrument until 1968, when, following a discussion with Shankar about the need to find his "roots", an encounter with Clapton andJimi Hendrix at a hotel in New York convinced him to return to guitar playing. Harrison commented: "I decided ... I'm not going to be a great sitar player ... because I should have started at least fifteen years earlier."[264] Harrison continued to use Indian instrumentation occasionally on his solo albums and remained strongly associated with the genre.[265] Lavezzoli groups him withPaul Simon andPeter Gabriel as the three rock musicians who have given the most "mainstream exposure to non-Western musics, or the concept of 'world music'".[266]
Songwriting
Harrison wrote his first song, "Don't Bother Me", while sick in a hotel bed in Bournemouth during August 1963, as "an exercise to see if Icould write a song", as he remembered.[267] His songwriting ability improved throughout the Beatles' career, but his material did not earn full respect from Lennon, McCartney and producerGeorge Martin until near the group's break-up.[268] In 1969, McCartney told Lennon: "Until this year, our songs have been better than George's. Now this year his songs are at least as good as ours".[269] Harrison often had difficulty getting the band to record his songs.[270][81] Most Beatles albums from 1965 onwards contain at least two Harrison compositions; three of his songs appear onRevolver, "the album on which Harrison came of age as a songwriter", according to Inglis.[271]
Harrison wrote thechord progression of "Don't Bother Me" almost exclusively in theDorian mode, demonstrating an interest in exotic tones that eventually culminated in his embrace of Indian music.[272] The latter proved a strong influence on his songwriting and contributed to his innovation within the Beatles. According toMikal Gilmore ofRolling Stone, "Harrison's openness to new sounds and textures cleared new paths for his rock and roll compositions. His use of dissonance on ... 'Taxman' and 'I Want to Tell You' was revolutionary in popular music – and perhaps more originally creative than the avant-garde mannerisms that Lennon and McCartney borrowed from the music ofKarlheinz Stockhausen,Luciano Berio,Edgard Varèse andIgor Stravinsky ...".[273]
Of the 1967 Harrison song "Within You Without You", author Gerry Farrell said that Harrison had created a "new form", calling the composition "a quintessential fusion of pop and Indian music".[274] Lennon called the song one of Harrison's best: "His mind and his music are clear. There is his innate talent, he brought that sound together."[275] In his next fully Indian-styled song, "The Inner Light", Harrison embraced theKarnatak discipline of Indian music, rather than theHindustani style he had used in "Love You To" and "Within You Without You".[276] Writing in 1997, Farrell commented: "It is a mark of Harrison's sincere involvement with Indian music that, nearly thirty years on, the Beatles' 'Indian' songs remain the most imaginative and successful examples of this type of fusion – for example, 'Blue Jay Way' and 'The Inner Light'."[277]
Beatles biographer Bob Spitz described "Something" as a masterpiece, and "an intensely stirring romantic ballad that would challenge 'Yesterday' and 'Michelle' as one of the most recognizable songs they ever produced".[278] Inglis consideredAbbey Road a turning point in Harrison's development as a songwriter and musician. He described Harrison's two contributions to the LP, "Here Comes the Sun" and "Something", as "exquisite", declaring them equal to any previous Beatles songs.[73]
In 1974, Harrison foundedDark Horse Records as an avenue for collaboration with other musicians.[292] He wanted Dark Horse to serve as a creative outlet for artists, as Apple Records had for the Beatles.[293] Eric Idle commented: "He's extremely generous, and he backs and supports all sorts of people that you'll never, ever hear of."[294] The first acts signed to the new label were Ravi Shankar and the duoSplinter. Harrison produced and made multiple musical contributions to Splinter's debut album,The Place I Love, which provided Dark Horse with its first hit, "Costafine Town".[295] He also produced and played guitar andautoharp on Shankar'sShankar Family & Friends, the label's other inaugural release.[296] Other artists signed by Dark Horse includeAttitudes,Henry McCullough, Jiva andStairsteps.[297]
Harrison collaborated with Tom Scott on Scott's 1975 albumNew York Connection, and in 1981 he played guitar on "Walk a Thin Line", fromMick Fleetwood'sThe Visitor.[298] His contributions to Starr's solo career continued with "Wrack My Brain", a 1981 US top 40 hit written and produced by Harrison,[299] and guitar overdubs to two tracks onVertical Man (1998).[300] In 1996, Harrison recorded "Distance Makes No Difference With Love" with Carl Perkins for the latter's albumGo Cat Go!, and, in 1990, he played slide guitar on the title track of Dylan'sUnder the Red Sky album.[301] In 2001, he performed as a guest musician on Jeff Lynne and Electric Light Orchestra's comeback albumZoom, and on the song "Love Letters" forBill Wyman's Rhythm Kings.[302] He also co-wrote a new song with his son Dhani, "Horse to the Water", which was recorded on 2 October, eight weeks before his death. It appeared onJools Holland's albumSmall World, Big Band.[303]
Guitars
Harrison's Harptone L-6 acoustic guitar, which he played at the Concert for Bangladesh
When Harrison joined the Quarrymen in 1958, his main guitar was aHöfner President Acoustic, which he soon traded for a Höfner Club 40 model.[304] His first solid-body electric guitar was a Czech-builtJolana Futurama/Grazioso.[305] The guitars he used on early recordings were mainlyGretsch models, played through aVox amplifier, including aGretsch Duo Jet that he bought secondhand in 1961 and posed with on the album cover forCloud Nine (1987).[306] He also bought a Gretsch Tennessean and a Gretsch Country Gentleman, which he played on "She Loves You", and during the Beatles' 1964 appearance onThe Ed Sullivan Show.[307][308] In 1963, he bought aRickenbacker 425 Fireglo, and in 1964 he acquired a Rickenbacker 360/12 guitar, which was the second of its kind to be manufactured.[309] Harrison obtained his firstFender Stratocaster in 1965 and first used it during the recording of theHelp! album that February; he also used it when recordingRubber Soul later that year, most notably on the song "Nowhere Man".[310]
In early 1966, Harrison and Lennon each purchasedEpiphone Casinos, which they used onRevolver.[311] Harrison also used aGibson J-160E and aGibson SG Standard while recording the album.[312] He later painted his Stratocaster in a psychedelic design that included the word "Bebopalula" above the pickguard and the guitar's nickname, "Rocky", on the headstock.[313] He played this guitar in theMagical Mystery Tour (1967) film and throughout his solo career.[314] In July 1968, Clapton gave him aGibson Les Paul[315] that had been stripped of its original finish and stained cherry red, which Harrison nicknamed "Lucy".[316] Around this time, he obtained a Gibson Jumbo J-200 acoustic guitar,[317] which he subsequently gave to Dylan to use at the1969 Isle of Wight Festival.[318] In late 1968,Fender Musical Instruments Corporation gave Harrison a custom-madeFender Telecaster Rosewood prototype, made especially for him by Philip Kubicki.[319][320][nb 22] In August 2017, Fender released a "Limited Edition George Harrison Rosewood Telecaster" modelled after a Telecaster thatRoger Rossmeisl originally created for Harrison.[323]
Harrison helped finance Ravi Shankar's documentaryRaga and released it throughApple Films in 1971.[324] He also produced, with Apple managerAllen Klein, theConcert for Bangladesh film.[325] In 1973, he produced the feature filmLittle Malcolm,[326] but the project was lost amid the litigation surrounding the former Beatles ending their business ties with Klein.[327]
In 1973,Peter Sellers introduced Harrison toDenis O'Brien. Soon after, the two went into business together.[328] In 1978, to produceMonty Python's Life of Brian, they formed the film production and distribution company HandMade Films.[329] Their opportunity for investment came afterEMI Films withdrew funding at the demand of their chief executive,Bernard Delfont.[330] Harrison financed the production ofLife of Brian in part by mortgaging his home, which Idle later called "the most anybody's ever paid for a cinema ticket in history".[331][294] The film grossed $21 million at the box office in the US.[328] The first film distributed by HandMade Films wasThe Long Good Friday (1980), and the first they produced wasTime Bandits (1981), a co-scripted project byMonty Python'sTerry Gilliam andMichael Palin.[332] The film featured a new song by Harrison, "Dream Away", in the closing credits.[331][333]Time Bandits became one of HandMade's most successful and acclaimed efforts; with a budget of $5 million, it earned $35 million in the US within ten weeks of its release.[333]
Harrison served asexecutive producer for 23 films with HandMade, includingA Private Function (1984),Mona Lisa (1986),Shanghai Surprise (1986),Withnail and I (1987) andHow to Get Ahead in Advertising (1989).[325] He madecameo appearances in several of these films, including a role as anightclub singer inShanghai Surprise, for which he recorded five new songs.[334] According to Ian Inglis, "[Harrison's] executive role in HandMade Films helped to sustain British cinema at a time of crisis, producing some of the country's most memorable movies of the 1980s."[335] Following a series ofbox office bombs in the late 1980s, and excessive debt incurred by O'Brien which wasguaranteed by Harrison, HandMade's financial situation became precarious.[336][337] The company ceased operations in 1991[331] and was sold three years later to Paragon Entertainment, a Canadian corporation.[338] Afterwards, Harrison sued O'Brien for $25 million for fraud and negligence, resulting in an $11.6 million judgement in 1996.[339][331]
Harrison was involved in humanitarian and political activism throughout his life. In the 1960s, the Beatles supported thecivil rights movement and protested against theVietnam War. In early 1971, Ravi Shankar consulted Harrison about how to provide aid to the people of Bangladesh after the1970 Bhola cyclone and theBangladesh Liberation War.[340] Harrison hastily wrote and recorded the song "Bangla Desh", which became pop music's firstcharity single when issued by Apple Records in late July.[341][342] He also pushed Apple to release Shankar'sJoi Bangla EP in an effort to raise further awareness for the cause.[108] Shankar asked for Harrison's advice about planning a small charity event in the US. Harrison responded by organising the Concert for Bangladesh, which raised more than $240,000.[343] Around $13.5 million was generated through the album and film releases,[344] although most of the funds were frozen in anInternal Revenue Service audit for ten years, due to Klein's failure to register the event as aUNICEF benefit beforehand.[345] In June 1972, UNICEF honoured Harrison, Shankar, and Klein, with the "Child Is the Father of Man" award at an annual ceremony in recognition of their fundraising efforts for Bangladesh.[346]
The Concert for Bangladesh has been described as an innovative precursor for the large-scale charity rock shows that followed, includingLive Aid.[356] The George Harrison Humanitarian Fund for UNICEF, a joint effort between the Harrison family and theUS Fund for UNICEF, aims to support programmes that help children caught in humanitarian emergencies.[357] In December 2007, they donated $450,000 to help the victims ofCyclone Sidr in Bangladesh.[357] On 13 October 2009, the first George Harrison Humanitarian Award went to Ravi Shankar for his efforts in saving the lives of children, and his involvement with the Concert for Bangladesh.[358]
Harrison's experiences with LSD in the mid-1960s served as a catalyst for his early pursuance of Hinduism. In a 1977 interview, George recalled:
For me, it was like a flash. The first time I had acid, it just opened up something in my head that was inside of me, and I realized a lot of things. I didn't learn them because I already knew them, but that happened to be the key that opened the door to reveal them. From the moment I had that, I wanted to have it all the time – these thoughts about the yogis and the Himalayas, and Ravi's music.[139]
However, Harrison stopped using LSD after a disenchanting experience in San Francisco'sHaight-Ashbury neighborhood. He recounted inThe Beatles Anthology:
That was the turning point for me – that's when I went right off the whole drug cult and stopped taking the dreaded lysergic acid. I had some in a little bottle – it was liquid. I put it under a microscope, and it looked like bits of old rope. I thought that I couldn't put that into my brain any more.[363]
Regarding other faiths, he once remarked: "All religions are branches of one big tree. It doesn't matter what you call Him just as long as you call."[368] He commented on his beliefs:
Krishna actually was in a body as a person ... What makes it complicated is, if he's God, what's he doing fighting on a battlefield? It took me ages to try to figure that out, and again it was Yogananda's spiritual interpretation of theBhagavad Gita that made me realise what it was. Our idea of Krishna andArjuna on the battlefield in the chariot. So this is the point – that we're in these bodies, which is like a kind of chariot, and we're going through this incarnation, this life, which is kind of a battlefield. The senses of the body ... are the horses pulling the chariot, and we have to get control over the chariot by getting control over the reins. And Arjuna in the end says, "Please Krishna, you drive the chariot" because unless we bringChrist or Krishna orBuddha or whichever of our spiritual guides ... we're going to crash our chariot, and we're going to turn over, and we're going to get killed in the battlefield. That's why we say "Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna", asking Krishna to come and take over the chariot.[369]
Inglis comments that, in contrast toCliff Richard's conversion to Christianity in 1966: "Harrison's spiritual journey was seen as a serious and important development that reflected popular music's increasing maturity ... what he, and the Beatles, had managed to overturn was the paternalistic assumption that popular musicians had no role other than to stand on stage and sing their hit songs."[370]
Vegetarianism
In line with the Hinduyoga tradition,[371] Harrison became avegetarian in the late 1960s.[372] He remained a vegetarian on religious grounds from 1968 until his death,[373] and spent the second half of his life as an advocate for the benefits of vegetarian diet.[374]
Family and interests
Harrison andPattie Boyd lived inKinfauns in Surrey from 1964 to 1970.Harrison and Boyd leaving the registry office after their wedding
Harrison married modelPattie Boyd on 21 January 1966, with McCartney serving asbest man.[375] Harrison and Boyd had met on set in 1964 during the production of the filmA Hard Day's Night, in which the 19-year-old Boyd had been cast as a schoolgirl. During a lunch break, George 'playfully' proposed to her.[376][377] They separated in 1974 and their divorce was finalised in 1977.[378] Boyd said her decision to end the marriage was due largely to George's repeated infidelities. The last infidelity culminated in an affair with Ringo's wifeMaureen, which Boyd called "the final straw".[379] She characterised the last year of their marriage as "fuelled by alcohol and cocaine", and she stated: "George used coke excessively, and I think it changed him ... it froze his emotions and hardened his heart."[380] She subsequently moved in withEric Clapton, and they married in 1979.[381][nb 25]
On 2 September 1978, Harrison marriedOlivia Trinidad Arias, who was a marketing executive for A&M Records, and later Dark Horse Records.[383] As Dark Horse was a subsidiary of A&M,[384] the couple had first met over the phone working on record company business,[385] and then in person at theA&M Records offices in Los Angeles in 1974.[386] Together they had one son,Dhani Harrison, born on 1 August 1978.[387]
Harrison restored the English manor house and grounds of Friar Park, his home inHenley-on-Thames, where several of his music videos, including "Crackerbox Palace", were filmed; the grounds also served as the background for the cover ofAll Things Must Pass.[388][nb 26] He employed ten workers to maintain the 36-acre (15 ha) garden.[392] Harrison commented on gardening as a form ofescapism: "Sometimes I feel like I'm actually on the wrong planet, and it's great when I'm in my garden, but the minute I go out the gate I think: 'What the hell am I doing here?'"[393] His autobiography,I, Me, Mine, is dedicated "to gardeners everywhere".[394] The former Beatles publicistDerek Taylor helped Harrison write the book, which said little about the Beatles, focusing instead on Harrison's hobbies, music and lyrics.[395] Taylor commented: "George is not disowning the Beatles ... but it was a long time ago and actually a short part of his life."[396]
Harrison had an interest insports cars andmotor racing; he was one of the 100 people who purchased theMcLaren F1 road car.[397] He had collected photos of racing drivers and their cars since he was young; at 12, he had attended his first race, the1955 British Grand Prix atAintree.[397][398] He wrote "Faster" as a tribute to theFormula One racing driversJackie Stewart andRonnie Peterson. Proceeds from its release went to theGunnar Nilsson cancer charity, set up after the Swedish driver's death from the disease in 1978.[399] Harrison's first extravagant car, a 1964Aston Martin DB5, was sold at auction on 7 December 2011 in London. An anonymous Beatles collector paid £350,000 for the vehicle that Harrison had bought new in January 1965.[400]
Relationships with the other Beatles
Lennon, McCartney, Harrison and Starr on arrival in New York City at the height ofBeatlemania, February 1964
For most of the Beatles' career, the relationships in the group were close. According toHunter Davies, "the Beatles spent their lives not living a communal life, but communally living the same life. They were each other's greatest friends." Harrison's ex-wife Pattie Boyd described how the Beatles "all belonged to each other" and admitted, "George has a lot with the others that I can never know about. Nobody, not even the wives, can break through or even comprehend it."[401] Starr said, "We really looked out for each other and we had so many laughs together. In the old days we'd have the biggest hotel suites, the whole floor of the hotel, and the four of us would end up in the bathroom, just to be with each other." He added, "there were some really loving, caring moments between four people: a hotel room here and there – a really amazing closeness. Just four guys who loved each other. It was pretty sensational."[402]
Lennon stated that his relationship with Harrison was "one of young follower and older guy ... [he] was like a disciple of mine when we started."[403] The two later bonded over theirLSD experiences, finding common ground as seekers of spirituality. They took radically different paths thereafter, with, according to biographer Gary Tillery, Harrison finding God and Lennon coming to the conclusion that people are the creators of their own lives.[404] In 1974, Harrison said of his former bandmate: "John Lennon is a saint and he's heavy-duty, and he's great and I love him. But at the same time, he's such abastard – but that's the great thing about him, you see?"[405]
Harrison and McCartney were the first of the Beatles to meet, having shared a school bus, and often learned and rehearsed new guitar chords together.[406] McCartney said that he and Harrison usually shared a bedroom while touring.[407] McCartney has referred to Harrison as his "baby brother".[408] In a 1974 BBC radio interview withAlan Freeman, Harrison stated: "[McCartney] ruined me as a guitar player". In the same interview, however, Harrison stated that "I just know that whatever we've been through, there's always been something that's tied us together."[409] Perhaps the most significant obstacle to a Beatles reunion after the death of Lennon was Harrison and McCartney's personal relationship, as both men admitted that they often got on each other's nerves.[410] Rodriguez commented: "Even to the end of George's days, theirs was a volatile relationship".[411] When, in aYahoo online chat in February 2001, he was asked if Paul "[pisses] you off", Harrison replied "Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass -- You know his faults -- Then let his foibles pass. Old Victorian Proverb. I'm sure there's enough about me that pisses him off, but I think we have now grown old enough to realize that we're both pretty damn cute!"[412]
Close-up of Harrison from the Beatles statue atPier Head, Liverpool
InJune 1965, Harrison and the other Beatles were appointed Members of the Order of the British Empire (MBE).[413] They received their insignia fromthe Queen at an investiture at Buckingham Palace on 26 October.[414] In 1971, the Beatles received anAcademy Award for the bestOriginal Song Score for the filmLet It Be.[415] The minor planet4149 Harrison, discovered in 1984, was named after him,[416] as was a variety ofDahlia flower.[417] In December 1992, he became the first recipient of theBillboard Century Award, an honour presented to music artists for significant bodies of work.[418] The award recognised Harrison's "critical role in laying the groundwork for the modern concept ofworld music" and for his having "advanced society's comprehension of the spiritual and altruistic power of popular music".[419]Rolling Stone magazine ranked him number 11 in their list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". He is also in number 65 in the list of "100 greatest songwriters of all time" by the same magazine.[420]
In 2002, on the first anniversary of his death, theConcert for George was held at theRoyal Albert Hall. Eric Clapton organised the event, which included performances by many of Harrison's friends and musical collaborators, including McCartney and Starr.[421] Eric Idle, who described Harrison as "one of the few morally good people that rock and roll has produced", was among the performers of Monty Python's "Lumberjack Song".[422] The profits from the concert went to Harrison's charity, theMaterial World Charitable Foundation.[421]
In 2004, Harrison was posthumously inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist by his former bandmates Lynne and Petty, and into theMadison Square Garden Walk of Fame in 2006 for the Concert for Bangladesh.[423] On 14 April 2009, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce awarded Harrison a star on theWalk of Fame in front of theCapitol Records Building. McCartney, Lynne and Petty were present when the star was unveiled. Harrison's widow Olivia, the actorTom Hanks and Idle made speeches at the ceremony, and Harrison's son Dhani spoke the Hare Krishna mantra.[424]
AnIllinois State Historical Society marker inBenton, Illinois, commemorates Harrison's visit in the town in 1963 to see his sister, making him the first Beatle to visit the United States.[428] In 2017, a mural installation was unveiled in the town of Harrison[429] painted by artist John Cerney.[430] Statues of Harrison can be found around the world, including several across his native Liverpool and abust in the Shadhinotar Shagram Triangle Sculpture Garden inDhaka, Bangladesh, commemorating Harrison's contributions to Bangladeshi culture.
^Some published sources give Harold as Harrison's middle name;[2] however, there is no middle name on his birth certificate.
^abAuthorBarry Miles writes that Harrison was born at 11:42 pm on 24 February.[8] AuthorMark Lewisohn writes that it was 12:10 am on 25 February, with that date provided on both Harrison'sbirth andbaptism certificates.[9] Harrison had recognised 25 February as his birthday for most of his life before stating in a 1992Billboard article that he had recently learned it was 24 February.[10][11]
^Harrison received anIvor Novello award in July 1970 for "Something", as "The Best Song Musically and Lyrically of the Year".[78]
^In July 2006, it was determined thatAll Things Must Pass should have been credited as a number one album in the United Kingdom when first released in 1970–71. Because some sales were not properly counted, the album originally peaked at number four in Britain.[92]
^In November 1971 Harrison appeared onThe Dick Cavett Show, performing "Two-Faced Man" withGary Wright.[106] In his subsequent interview withCavett, he used the opportunity to complain about Capitol's delay in releasing the live album and seeking a percentage of the funds intended for the Bangladeshi refugees.[107]
^Released during the same month,The Best of George Harrison combined several of his Beatles songs with a selection of his solo Apple work.[134] After Harrison's departure from the label, Capitol was able to license releases featuring Beatles and post-Beatles work on the same album.[135]
^Their estrangement had been marked by Harrison's longstanding dislike of Lennon's wifeYoko Ono, his refusal to allow her to participate in the Concert for Bangladesh, and, during the last year of Lennon's life, by Harrison's scant mention of Lennon in his autobiography,I, Me, Mine.[147]
^In 1992, Dark Horse Records released an album of recorded material from the shows titledLive in Japan.[178]
^Abram, who believed he waspossessed by Harrison and that he was on a mission from God to kill him,[196][197] was later acquitted ofattempted murder ongrounds of insanity and was detained for treatment in a secure mental hospital. He was released in 2002.[198]
^Harrison's estate complained that during a round of experimental radiotherapy at Staten Island University Hospital, theoncologist Dr Gilbert Lederman repeatedly revealed Harrison's confidential medical information during television interviews and forced him to autograph a guitar.[204][205][206][207] The suit was ultimatelysettled out of court under the condition that the guitar be "disposed of".[208]
^Roger McGuinn liked the effect so much that it became his signature guitar sound with the Byrds.[235]
^Harrison was influential in the decision to have Shankar included on the bill at theMonterey Pop Festival in 1967, and atWoodstock in 1969.[259]
^MusicianDavid Bromberg introduced Harrison to the dobro, an instrument that soon became one of his favourites.[290]
^Harrison subsequently gave the Rosewood Telecaster to Delaney Bramlett during the 1969 Delaney & Bonnie tour.[321] He similarly gifted his Gibson SG toPete Ham of Badfinger.[322]
^Harrison credited English sculptorDavid Wynne as the person who first recommended the Mararishi as a "remarkable" yogi, after which the Beatles attended a lecture he gave in London in August 1967.[362]
^Harrison had formed a close friendship with Clapton in the late 1960s; he wrote one of his compositions for theAbbey Road album, "Here Comes the Sun", in Clapton's back garden, and he played guitar onCream's song "Badge", which he co-wrote with Clapton.[382]
^Leng 2006, p. 22: (secondary source);Reck, D.B. (1985). "Beatles Orientalis: Influences from Asia in a Popular Song Form".Asian Music.XVI (1):83–150.doi:10.2307/834014.ISSN0044-9202.JSTOR834014.: (primary source)
^Spignesi & Lewis 2009, p. 97: "Something" is the Beatles' second most covered song after "Yesterday";Gilmore 2002, p. 39: Lennon considered "Something" the best song onAbbey Road.
^Harry 2003, p. 393:Wonderwall Music as first LP released by Apple Records;Strong 2004, p. 481:Wonderwall Music as first solo album released by a Beatle.
^Doggett 2009, pp. 181–206;Harry 2003, pp. 132–138;Harry 2003, p. 135: "Mainly the concert was to attract attention to the situation".
^Bronson 1992, p. 336: Peak US chart position for "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)";Rosen 1996, p. 162: US chart data onLiving in the Material World.
^Doggett 2009, p. 295: the Wilburys never performed live;Harry 2003, p. 381: the Wilburys did not record together again following the release of their second album.
^Civil Action CV040033 (NGG)Archived 18 September 2017 at theWayback Machine (PDF), Complaint, United States District Court, Eastern District of New York, The Estate of George Harrison v Gilbert Lederman. The allegations about the autograph appear on page 10 of the Complaint.
^"Harrison leaves £99m will".BBC News. 29 November 2002.Archived from the original on 22 April 2023. Retrieved19 September 2009.Harrison left £99,226,700, reduced to £98,916,400 after expenses, a High Court spokeswoman confirmed.
^Harry 2003, pp. 162–163: Dylan, 121–125: Eric Clapton, 303–304: Billy Preston, 381–382: Doris Troy, 41: David Bromberg, 171: Ronnie Wood, 395: Gary Wright, 257–258: Jeff Lynne, 295–296: Tom Petty.
^Leng 2006, p. 55: Lomax; 59: Preston; 60–62: Troy.
^Babiuk 2002, pp. 52–55: Gretsch 6128 Duo Jet, 89–91, 99–101: Gretsch 6122 Country Gentleman, 105–106: Gretsch 6119–62 Tennessee Rose.
^Babiuk 2002, pp. 94–97: Rickenbacker 425 Fireglo;Smith 1987, pp. 77–79: Harrison acquired his firstRickenbacker 360/12 in New York in February 1964. It was the second of its kind to be manufactured.
^Harrison, Olivia (2004). "The History of Dark Horse 1976–1992".The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 (DVD booklet). George Harrison. Dark Horse Records/EMI. pp. 4, 7.
^Doggett 2009, pp. 265–266:I, Me, Mine said little about the Beatles;Huntley 2006, p. 170: Derek Taylor helped Harrison write the book;Tillery 2011, p. 121:I, Me, Mine included the lyrics, with comments by Harrison.
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