Singer, musician, and songwriter, born in Liverpool, Merseyside, NW England, UK. He played lead guitar and sang with the Beatles, and developed an interest in Indian music and Eastern religion, receiving instruction on the sitar from Ravi Shankar, and associating with the religious leader, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Following the break-up of the Beatles, he made a solo album, All Things Must Pass (1970), which included the gospelly hit My Sweet Lord, later the subject of an expensive plagiarism suit. Later solo albums included Living in the Material World (1973), Dark Horse (1974), and Somewhere in England (1981), and he joined with other artists in the super-group The Traveling Wilburys (198890), and with Starr and McCartney to produce the Beatles anthology (1995). He formed Dark Horse Records in 1974, and a film company, HandMade Films, in 1978, producing a number of feature films, such as Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979), Time Bandits (1981, also writing the music and lyrics), A Private Function (1984), and Withnail and I (1987). He also wrote a volume of autobiography, I Me Mine. He was severely wounded following a knife attack by an intruder at his Henley home at the end of 1999, and died in 2001 after a long battle against cancer.
For Nintendo's Senior VP of Marketing and Corporate Communication, see George Harrison (executive).| George Harrison | |
|---|---|
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George Harrison at the Oval Office in 1974 |
|
| Born |
February 25, 1943 Liverpool, England |
| Died |
November 29, 2001 Los Angeles, California |
| Alias(es) | See text |
| Genre(s) |
Rock Classic Rock Pop Indian Music |
| Affiliation(s) |
The Beatles Traveling Wilburys |
| Label(s) |
Parlophone Capitol Apple Vee-Jay EMI Dark Horse Records |
| Notable guitars |
Rickenbacker 12-String Gretsch guitars Psychedelic colored Stratocaster "Rocky" |
| Years active | 1957 - 2001 |
| Official site | www.georgeharrison.com |
George Harrison, MBE (February 25, 1943 – November 29, 2001) was a popular English guitarist, singer, songwriter, record producer, and film producer, best known as a member of The Beatles.
Harrison was the lead guitarist of The Beatles. However, Harrison wrote and/or sang lead on one or two songs each album.
While still a Beatle, Harrison became attracted to Indian music and Hinduism, sparking unprecedented interest in Eastern beliefs and music in the Western Hemisphere.
Harrison also had an uneven but sometimes very successful solo career after the break-up of The Beatles, scoring major hits with "My Sweet Lord" (1970), "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" (1973), "All Those Years Ago" (1981), and "Got My Mind Set on You" (1987). Harrison's landmark album, All Things Must Pass, currently holds the title of the best selling album by a solo Beatle. Harrison was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist in 2004.
Harrison was also a film producer and founded Handmade Films in 1979. Harrison also has a cameo role in The Beatles parody film The Rutles.
Early years
George Harrison was born in Liverpool, England. He is sometimes given the middle name of Harold, as in "George Harold Harrison," but this is incorrect.
After leaving school in the summer of 1959, Harrison worked briefly as an apprentice electrician at Blacklers Stores in Liverpool. The training helped Harrison become the member who knew the most about rigging their sound equipment.
Role in The Beatles
Harrison was not a virtuoso guitarist, especially in the early days of the Beatles' recording career. Several of Harrison's famous Beatles guitar solos were recorded under specific directions from Paul McCartney, who on occasion demanded that Harrison play what he envisioned virtually note-for-note. } Other Harrison solos were directed or modified by producer George Martin, who also vetoed several of Harrison's song and instrumental offerings;
Toward the end of the 60s, however, Harrison became a fluent, inventive and highly accomplished lead and rhythm guitarist.
Harrison was the first of The Beatles to arrive on American soil, when he visited his sister Louise in rural Illinois in September 1963, some five months before the group appeared on the "Ed
Sullivan Show."
During the era of Beatlemania, Harrison was characterized as the "Quiet Beatle", noted for his introspective manner and his tendency not to speak in press conferences.
Harrison wrote his first song, "Don't Bother Me", during a sick day in 1963, as an exercise "to see if I 'could' write a song", as he remembered. After that, The Beatles did not record another Harrison song until 1965, when he contributed "I Need You" and "You Like Me Too Much" to the album Help!
Harrison was the lead vocal on all The Beatles' songs he wrote by himself.
A turning point in Harrison's career came during an American tour in 1965, when his friend David Crosby of The Byrds introduced him to Indian classical music and the work of sitar maestro Ravi Shankar. Harrison quickly became fascinated with the instrument, immersed himself in Indian music and was pivotal in popularizing the sitar in particular and Indian music in general in the West.
Buying a sitar himself as The Beatles came back from a Far East tour, he became the first Western popular musician to play one on a pop record, on the Rubber Soul track "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)". Shankar did not admire Harrison's first Indian-influenced efforts, but the two became friends, and Harrison began his first formal musical studies with Shankar.
A personal turning point for Harrison came during the filming of the movie Help!, on location in the Bahamas, when a Hindu devotee presented each Beatle with a book about reincarnation. A pilgrimage with wife Pattie to India, where Harrison studied sitar, met several gurus and visited various holy places, filled the months between the end of the final Beatles tour in 1966 and the commencement of the Sgt.
Ironically though, it was through his wife (and when back in England) that Harrison met Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who introduced The Beatles, their wives and girlfriends to Transcendental Meditation.
In the summer of 1969, he produced the single "Hare Krishna Mantra", performed by Harrison with the devotees of the London Radha Krishna Temple, that topped the 10 best-selling record charts throughout the UK, Europe, and Asia. Soon after, Harrison embraced the Hare Krishna tradition (particularly japa-yoga chanting with beads;
When, during his lifetime, Harrison bequeathed to ISKCON his Letchmore Heath mansion (renamed Bhaktivedanta Manor) north of London, he redoubled speculations that he would leave ISKCON a large sum in his will. Whilst some sources indicate he left nothing to the organisation (see ), others report he did leave a sum of 20 million pounds (see )
Harrison formed a close friendship with Eric Clapton in the late 1960s and they co-wrote the song "Badge", which was released on Cream's farewell album in 1969. This song was the basis for Harrison's composition for The Beatles' Abbey Road album, "Here Comes the Sun", which was written in Clapton's back garden.
Harrison's songwriting improved greatly through the years, and his material gradually earned respect from both his fellow Beatles (with Lennon telling McCartney during 1969 "George's songs this year are at least as good as ours") and the public.
Notable Harrison compositions from The Beatles' canon include "If I Needed Someone";
Friction between Harrison, Lennon and McCartney increased markedly during the recording of The Beatles, with Harrison threatening to leave the group on several occasions. Between 1967 and 1969, McCartney on several occasions expressed dissatisfaction with Harrison's guitar playing. Conflicts between Harrison and McCartney appear in several scenes in the film. Frustrated by these ongoing slights, the poor working conditions in the cold and sterile film studio, and Lennon's creative disengagement from the group, Harrison quit the band on 10 January. The album included "Something" and "Here Comes the Sun", probably Harrison's two best-known Beatles songs. Sinatra credited the song to Lennon/McCartney rather than Harrison when making the compliment however.
When asked years later what kind of music The Beatles might have made if they had stayed together, his answer was to the point: "The solo stuff that we've done would have been on Beatle albums." Harrison, Lennon, and McCartney had often written apart;
Harrison was still only 26 years old at the time of The Beatles last recording session on 4 January 1970 (minus Lennon, who had left the group the previous September).
1970s
After The Beatles split in 1970, Harrison released a number of albums that were critically and commercially successful, both as solo projects and as a member of other groups. The album, which topped the charts, included the number one hit singles "My Sweet Lord" and "Isn't it a Pity" as well as the top 10 single "What is life", the first of these over which Harrison was later sued for copyright infringement due to the supposed similarities to the 1963 Chiffons single "He's So Fine". Harrison denied deliberately stealing the song, but he lost the resulting court case in 1976. In the ruling, the court accepted the possibility that Harrison had "unconsciously copied" the Chiffons melody as the basis for his own song. Disputes over damages dragged on into the 1990s, with manager Allen Klein changing sides by buying Bright Tunes, which published "He's So Fine", and continuing the suit after parting with Harrison. Harrison ultimately wound up as the owner of both songs (Huntley 2004).
Harrison was probably the first modern musician to organize a major charity concert. Unfortunately, tax troubles and questionable expenses tied up many of the concert's proceeds (see ) Apple Corps released a newly arranged concert DVD and CD in October 2005 (with all artists' sales royalties continuing to go to UNICEF), which contained additional material such as previously unreleased rehearsal footage of "If Not For You", featuring Harrison and Dylan.
In addition to his own works, during this time Harrison co-wrote and/or produced several hits for Ringo Starr ("It Don't Come Easy", "Photograph") and also appeared on tracks by John Lennon ("How Do You Sleep?"), Harry Nilsson ("You're Breakin' My Heart"), Badfinger ("Day After Day"), Billy Preston ("That's The Way God Planned It") and Cheech &
Harrison's next album was Living in the Material World in 1973.
In 1974, Harrison released Dark Horse and at the same time launched a major tour of the United States which was subsequently criticised for its long opening act of Ravi Shankar &
It was during this period while in Los Angeles, preparing for the 1974 tour, that he also opened offices for his new Dark Horse Records on the A&M Records lot, on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles.
Subsequent to the 1974 tour he returned to his home in the UK, and commuted between there and Los Angeles for the next few years, while Dark Horse issued a small number of records by performers such as Splinter, Attitudes and Ravi Shankar.
Amidst a music media rife with Beatle-reunion speculation, Harrison was probably the least accommodating of these theories, telling the press in 1974 that while he would not mind working with John Lennon and Ringo Starr again, he could not see himself being involved in a band with Paul McCartney, who had limited his contributions while in The Beatles.
Following the former Beatles' departure from Capitol, the record company was in a position to license releases featuring Beatles and post-Beatles work on the same album, and used Harrison for this unfortunate experiment. Harrison made plain his annoyance with the track listing, and the fact that he was not consulted.
Business and personal troubles took their toll on Harrison during 1976. 1/3, his age at the time) was due, Harrison was suffering from hepatitis and could not complete the production. Records stepped in, buying out Harrison's Dark Horse contract with A&M, and allowing him time to regain his health. the title was the name of comedian Lord Buckley's former home in Hollywood, California, which Harrison visited, while "Mr. Greif" was George Greif, Buckley's former manager).
After his second marriage and the birth of son Dhani Harrison, Harrison's next album was self-titled: 1979s George Harrison included the hits "Blow Away", "Love Comes To Everyone" and "Faster".
1980s
In 1980, Harrison became the only ex-Beatle to write an autobiography, I Me Mine. The book said little about The Beatles, focusing instead on Harrison's hobbies, such as gardening and Formula One auto racing.
Immediately following the December 1980 murder of his friend and former bandmate John Lennon, Harrison modified the lyrics of a song he had written for Ringo Starr to make it a tribute song to Lennon, "All Those Years Ago", which found substantial radio airplay and continues to be a staple of "classic rock" radio. All the three remaining Beatles performed on it, although it was expressly a Harrison single. rejected it, ordering Harrison to replace several tracks, and to change the album cover as well.
Aside from a song on the Porky's Revenge soundtrack in 1984, his version of a little-known Bob Dylan song "I Don't Want To Do It", Harrison released no new records for five years after 1982's Gone Troppo was met with apparent indifference.
During the late 1980s, he was instrumental in forming the Traveling Wilburys with Roy Orbison, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, and Tom Petty when they gathered in Dylan's garage to quickly record an additional track for a projected Harrison European single release.
One of Harrison's most artistically successful ventures during this period was his involvement in film production through his company Handmade Films. Since childhood The Beatles had been fans of the anarchic humour of The Goons, and Harrison became a dedicated fan of their successors, the Monty Python team. Despite this string of successes, Handmade Films fell into mismanagement in the 1990's, much like the Beatles' Apple Corps, and the demands severely depleted Harrison's finances. Unlike his previous greatest hits package, Harrison made sure to oversee this one.
1990s
The first year of the new decade saw a new Traveling Wilburys album, despite the untimely death of Roy Orbison.
It was not as successful as the previous album, but still managed to stay on the charts for quite a time, spawning the singles "She's My Baby", "Inside Out", and "Wilbury Twist".
In 1991, Harrison staged a tour of Japan along with Eric Clapton. In October 1992, Harrison played three songs ("If Not For You", "Absolutely Sweet Marie", and "My Back Pages") at a huge Bob Dylan tribute concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
In 1994-1996, Harrison reunited with the surviving former Beatles for The Beatles Anthology project, which included the recording of two new Beatles songs built around solo vocal tapes recorded by Lennon in the 1970's, as well as the lengthy interviews on The Beatles history. The project was in part spurred on by Harrison's financial difficulties at the time, stemming from problems with his Handmade Films venture.
In 1995, at the height of the britpop movement—which was heavily influenced by Harrison's music—he became embroiled in a feud with Oasis' Gallagher brothers. Devoted fans of The Beatles, the brothers were offended when Harrison referred to them as "silly" and "a passing fad". Noel Gallagher responded by saying "George was always the quiet Beatle—maybe he should keep that up" whilst Liam Gallagher described him as a "nipple" and threatened to play golf off of Harrison's head should they ever meet.
Harrison's final television appearance was not intended as such; John Fugelsang conducted the interview, and at one point an acoustic guitar was produced, and handed to Harrison.
In January, 1998 Harrison made a rare trip outside England to attend the funeral of his boyhood idol, Carl Perkins, held in Jackson, Tennessee. Harrison played an impromptu version of Perkins' song "Your True Love" during the service.
A former heavy smoker, Harrison endured an ongoing battle with cancer throughout the late 1990s, having growths removed first from his throat, then his lung.
In late 1999 Harrison survived a knife attack by an intruder in his home, which mirrored John Lennon's murder. On the evening of 30 December 1999 Michael Abram broke into the Harrison's Friar Park home in Henley-on-Thames, and stabbed George multiple times, ultimately puncturing his lung. 35-year-old Abram, who believed he was possessed by Harrison and was on a "mission from God" to kill him, was later acquitted on grounds of insanity.
In 2001, Harrison appeared as a guest musician on the Electric Light Orchestra album, Zoom, played slide guitar on the song "Love Letters" for Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings, remastered and restored unreleased tracks from "The Traveling Wilbury's I," and wrote a new song, "Horse To The Water", and recorded it (on what was his final recording, on October 2nd, just 58 days before his death) with Jools Holland on the latter's album, Small World, Big Band.
Death
Harrison's cancer recurred in 2001 and was found to have metastasized.
It has been said that McCartney, in circumstances that mirrored the great lengths taken for family privacy during the final days of his cancer-stricken wife Linda McCartney, provided Harrison with a secret place to die, in a Hollywood Hills home leased by McCartney. (Reuters reported that the home had been leased in the name of Gavin de Becker, a security consultant working for Harrison.)
Harrison died on November 29, 2001.
After his death, the Harrison family released the following statement: "He left this world as he lived in it: conscious of God, fearless of death and at peace, surrounded by family and friends. and love one another."
Harrison and Aaliyah made UK chart history when they scored the first (and so far the only) pair of back-to-back posthumous number one hits as Aaliyah's "More than a Woman" (released on 7 January 2002 and topped the chart on January 13, 2002) was followed by Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" (re-released on January 14, 2002 and topped the chart on January 20, 2002).
Harrison's final album, Brainwashed, was completed by Dhani Harrison and Jeff Lynne and released on November 18, 2002.
On 29 November 2002 – the first anniversary of George Harrison's death – the Concert for George saw the two remaining Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr join many of Harrison's other friends for a special memorial concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London that benefitted the Material World Charitable Foundation.
In 2003, Harrison was included in Rolling Stone Magazines list of The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time..
Harrison was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist on 15 March 2004.
Personal and family life
Harrison was the youngest of four children (his older siblings being sister Louise, and brothers Peter and Harry). Harrison paid his mother back by making deliveries for the local butcher; to meet their first tour commitments, Harrison had to take his summer holiday early.
George's father, Harry, was disappointed that George had to quit at Blacklers to make the first Beatles trip to Hamburg in 1960, wanting him to have a trade, but reasoned that if things didn't work out, George was young and had time to start over. Harrison himself had hopes of being a working musician for a few years, then possibly trying to get into Art school.
Harrison's family remained close, even as the children grew up and the youngest became famous. Harrison bought his parents a new house with his Beatles earnings, and looked after their needs. His sister Louise became an unofficial Beatles spokesperson, contributing memorabilia to display collections and answering fan questions, while brothers Peter (who had briefly formed a band called the Rebels with George) and Harry were among Harrison's co-gardeners at his eventual home, Friar Park. Sadly, tensions with his siblings in his later years strained the earlier family closeness, although Harrison made a point of reconciling with them just before his death.
Harrison married model Pattie Boyd on January 21, 1966 at Leatherhead and Esher registry office, with Paul McCartney as best man, and is reputed to have written the song "Something" for her in 1969, although he himself denied this, saying he was actually thinking about a song for Ray Charles.
Harrison's mother Louise died of cancer during 1970;
Harrison married for a second time to Olivia Trinidad Arias (born 18 May 1948) in 1978. After the 1999 stabbing incident where Arias accosted Harrison's assailant nearly single-handedly, Harrison was sent a fax by close friend Tom Petty that simply read "Aren't you glad you married a Mexican girl?"
Cars
Harrison was a fan of sports cars and motor racing;
In The Beatles Anthology, Harrison, McCartney, and Starr are shown sitting around a table at Friar Park with a colour poster of the late Brazilian Formula 1 World Champion, Ayrton Senna, behind them. The 3-seater McLaren can be seen carrying Harrison, McCartney, and Starr in The "Beatles Anthology" segment prior to the "Free As a Bird" video. Skiff at the Anderson Mesa Station of the Lowell Observatory, was named after George Harrison.
Discography
For a detailed discography, see: George Harrison discography
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