I read a lot of books that discuss the music of the Beatles and the authors nearly always say that Harrison’s early work wasn’t very good. I disagree. For example I think ‘Don’t Bother Me’ is the best track on With the Beatles’ apart from Paul’s ‘All my Loving.’ And Taxman is one of the best Beatle tracks ever.

What do others think? Was George not very good or simply lost in the shadow of Lennon and Mac.

George was my favourite and I agree 'Don't Bother me' did stand out along with the other ones he managed to get on the other albums

George's songs started out OK-ish and got better with every album, until by the time of Abbey Road he was writing some wonderful stuff.

Within You Without You is my favourite George song.

My two favourite Beatles songs were written by George-Something & Here Comes The Sun.

My two favourite Beatles songs were written by George-Something & Here Comes The Sun.

My favourite Beatle is George. While my Guitar Gently Weeps, Something and Here Comes the Sun are my absolute favourite Beatles tracks. I also much prefer his solo output to those of L&M. There's something very moving and strangely melancholic about a lot of his music that emotes far more than the mawkish stuff that L&M produced individually.

He was also, in my view, the best looking Beatle by far.

I think he was a pretty decent songwriter, Here Comes the Sun is one of my all time favorite songs. However I think he was overrated as a guitarist.

I think he was a pretty decent songwriter, Here Comes the Sun is one of my all time favorite songs. However I think he was overrated as a guitarist.Errr!...who ever rated him as a great guitarist,however you would be hard put to find a better guitarist for the Beatles work than George.His work was meaningful and he never tossed himself off like some anal warriors of the guitar!The Beatles would never have been as successful without George!

I just like the fact that The Beatles got so wasted they let Ringo sing a couple!

I like George because after The Beatles split he appeared to let it go and not whore himself around on the reputation like other members

I think he was a pretty decent songwriter, Here Comes the Sun is one of my all time favorite songs. However I think he was overrated as a guitarist.

I think he was underated as a guitarist. Even as far back as the first album he did some great solos If you can listen to his solo on 'I saw her standing there' Its way ahead of its time especially when the best around at that time was probably Hank Marvin

I just like the fact that The Beatles got so wasted they let Ringo sing a couple!

I like George because after The Beatles split he appeared to let it go and not whore himself around on the reputation like other members

Well, he did say:

'The biggest break in my career was getting into the Beatles in 1962. The second biggest break since then is getting out of them.'

and

'I wanted to be successful, not famous.'

From what I've read, he seemed quite unassuming and didn't have the ego and competitiveness of L&M.

They were greater than the sum of their parts. I heard 'My sweet lord' on the radio the other day. Nice song, dodgy lyrics. Each had a flash after the Beatles but nothing was sustained.

They were greater than the sum of their parts. I heard 'My sweet lord' on the radio the other day. Nice song, dodgy lyrics. Each had a flash after the Beatles but nothing was sustained.

Paul Mac not sustained!!! He still has sell out concerts all over the world and million selling albums.

They were greater than the sum of their parts. I heard 'My sweet lord' on the radio the other day. Nice song, dodgy lyrics. Each had a flash after the Beatles but nothing was sustained.

In retrospect the lyrics of My Sweet Lord were dodgy, but eastern religion was all the rage back then and we forgave the Beatles anything.

In any case the tune of My Sweet Lord was judged to be stolen from the Chiffons' song He's So Fine.

It dragged through the courts for years, but George eventually lost the plagiarism case against him and had to pay a lot of money.

Ironically, when the court case started The Beatles were managed by the infamous Allen Klein. By the time it reached its conclusion, Klein had been ousted and had gone on to buy the publishing company (Bright Tunes) that owned He's So Fine.

So George was, in effect, being sued by his own former manager for plagiarism.

In two equally strange twists, George later bought the rights to He's So Fine and The Chiffons subsequently made a recording of My Sweet Lord!

Well, he did say:

'The biggest break in my career was getting into the Beatles in 1962. The second biggest break since then is getting out of them.'

and

'I wanted to be successful, not famous.'

From what I've read, he seemed quite unassuming and didn't have the ego and competitiveness of L&M.

That's true, except George joined the Beatles/Quarrymen in 1958.

I know it's not your mistake, this misquote is all over the net.

George's offerings, especially towards the latter end of the Beatles' career, were easily up there (if not beyond in some cases) the stuff Lennon and McCartney were writing. Unfortunately, whether they felt a little annoyed at the realisation that George was beginning to match them or whether they genuinely didn't think much of his material (I find this hard to believe), they didn't seem to give him the praise or support he deserved at the time. Harrison's talent received worthy recognition in time though, as I believe Lennon later cited Something as the best track on Abbey Road.

George made no secret of his (new-found) spirituality and interest in Eastern music which played a big part in his song writing, and produced songs such as Within You Without You, The Inner Light, Love You To and the deeply emotive Long, Long, Long (one of my absolute favourite songs penned by Harrison, as is the aforementioned Love You To). Some of my overall favourite songs by the band were also Harrison's compositions (While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Something - listen to the bare, acoustic version of the former on Anthology 3; magnificent).

George also wrote my favourite post-Beatles material (All Things Must Pass being one of my all-time favourite albums, in which he proved what a competent songwriter he was), and like others have mentioned, I like that for the most part he tended to keep himself to himself for the remainder of his days.

And finally, he also gets huge kudos for writing one of the (in my opinion) best Beatles B-Sides - Old Brown Shoe (B-Side to The Ballad of John and Yoko).

Paul Mac not sustained!!! He still has sell out concerts all over the world and million selling albums.

True, he's still a great performer. Buit he's only written about 2 or 3 good songs since the Beatles.

True, he's still a great performer. Buit he's only written about 2 or 3 good songs since the Beatles.

I'd disagree with that. Some of Macca's post-Beatles albums are right up there with his best work - most of Band On The Run for example.

I'd disagree with that. Some of Macca's post-Beatles albums are right up there with his best work - most of Band On The Run for example.Agree! Band on the Run is as good as anything the Beatles did collectively!

Paul Mac not sustained!!! He still has sell out concerts all over the world and million selling albums.

Mmmm. Wings, some nice tracks but they never came close. I heard Tony Blackburn doing his top 60 of the 60s on R2 today and it was nearly all Beatles. I get goosebumps when I hear some of those track.

Mmmm. Wings, some nice tracks but they never came close. I heard Tony Blackburn doing his top 60 of the 60s on R2 today and it was nearly all Beatles. I get goosebumps when I hear some of those track.

Even as late as Flaming Pie (1997) Macca was writing some great songs.

There are 3 or 4 amazing tunes on that album, the best of which Beautiful Night is almost worthy of inclusion on a Beatles' LP.

Even as late as Flaming Pie (1997) Macca was writing some great songs.

There are 3 or 4 amazing tunes on that album, the best of which Beautiful Night is almost worthy of inclusion on a Beatles' LP.

All new to me. I will have a listen and get back to you.

All new to me. I will have a listen and get back to you.

I'll admit that Macca's work has been patchy over the years, but he has hit the spot from time to time and Flaming Pie is one such example. It's not all great but as I say, there are several top tunes on there, especially:

Young Boy
Calico Skies
Little Willow
Beautiful Night

I'll admit that Macca's work has been patchy over the years, but he has hit the spot from time to time and Flaming Pie is one such example. It's not all great but as I say, there are several top tunes on there, especially:

Young Boy
Calico Skies
Little Willow
Beautiful Night

I must admit, I've never quite been able to get into Wings/solo Macca. I've only heard a few songs that have really grabbed me, but I'll give the suggested tracks a listen. :thumbsup:

George wrote some good songs. Eric Clapton mentions George often in his autobiography. No doubt about it, George was a good friend to have on your side.

What George Harrison, the person and musician brought to the Beatles, in sound, in texture, in spirit, in direction and in ideas, cannot be over-emphasised. The Beatles without George is unthinkable and thankfully for us, he stuck it out till the very bitter end.

Learning the guitar did not come easy but he stuck at it and his double-stop, Carl Perkins-style approach gave the early Beatles' sound a slightly bluesy-cum-country and western feel. (Check out Devil In Her Heart and All My Loving on With The Beatles.) Incidentally, when, in their pre-fame days they toured Germany George gave himself the title Carl Harrison after his guitar hero. His solo on I Saw Her Standing There is an example of brilliant double-stop finger-picking. Between George's clever if sometimes economical solos and Lennon's brilliant rhythm guitar work, the latter 'colouring' the scales and melodies of the former's solos (added ninths, flattened sevenths and augmented chords), the two guitarists created a brilliant sound which to this day still shimmers and excites. (The re-mastered box sets shows off this brilliance.)

What George might have been guilty of is NOT having an ego. He was more understated than underrated and it never bothered him. It's common knowledge that he wanted Clapton to play the solo on While My Guitar Gently Weeps. He deserves a lot of credit for this. And this probably explains why many of his songs were overlooked when it came to recording new albums: He wasn't that bothered! By 1968 with the cracks apparent, George didn't care whether he played or didn't and you'll find Lennon taking lead guitar roles more in the final Beatles' years (as did Paul on Back In The USSR for example). However, when they wanted a proper guitar solo, they called on the Beatles only serious lead guitarist. Sexy Sadie, Let It Be, Something and the magnificent Old Brown Shoe prove that by a country mile, George was THE guitarist in the Fab Four.

His ego departed on the film set of Help! in 1965. He was interested in the Indian musicians called to provide some of the sound-track and was in course introduced to Ravi Shankar, maestro of the sitar. George was spell bound by the quarter tones the sitar produced and took to learning the instrument. (His finest sitar work on a Beatles record is the instrumental break on Within You Without You on Sgt. Pepper's.) Like the guitar, learning sitar was hard work - it can take a lifetime to master the instrument - so George managed to find a compromise by way of setting up his electric guitar for slide. So it was that he set up his Fender Strat, now repainted in day-glo psychedelic colours, and begun contributing what became his trademark sound to Beatles (and solo) records.

But the Eastern sound of sitars and tabla, playing on Western records, copied by the likes of the Rolling Stones and virtually everybody else, was largely down to George bringing the sounds to Abbey Road studios. Even when not played on the likes of sitar, this style of music is everywhere in the Beatles recordings from 1966 on. Revolver showcases many songs written in one key (pedal tone or drone): Got To Get You Into My Life (Paul - the verse stays almost in one key); Tomorrow Never Knows (John); Love You To (George with indian musicians who hardly move away from Eb); Paperback Writer (Paul, released as a single around the same time of Revolver's release); and its b-side Rain (John). Add to this, backward guitars and singing featuring Indian scales - listen to the end of George's I Want To Tell You during the fade out! - and it's clear that George's influence to the sound and image of the Beatles was enormous.

Lennon was at his creative peak during Revolver; Paul was at his creative peak on Sgt. Pepper's. But without George and his interest in Eastern music and religion, these albums simply would not have been what they were. The Beatles moved on from 1965's Rubber Soul (featuring George on sitar on Lennon's Norwegian Wood) in new directions because George had opened up new avenues for the Beatles to explore. When Paul's, John's and Ringo's interest waned, the Beatles reverted to their usual guitars, bass and drums line-up with George Harrison clearly not interested in reverting back to being 'lead guitarist'. Thus, like a sore thumb, George is still searching for God on Long, Long, Long whilst Paul is singing about Rocky Raccoon and Lennon - seriously half-assed by this stage, screams about monkeys, revolutions and Sexy Sadie.

But as if, just to prove a point or two, on the Beatles' final album (Abbey Road) George proved that not only was he a wonderful guitarist (on his own Something and Here Comes The Sun, and on the solo on The End - George is streets ahead of Paul and John during these solos), he even proved that he was arguably just as good a songwriter as Lennon and McCartney (a misnomer if ever there was one). True, I Need You and You Like Me Too Much hardly fill the listener's ears with excitement, but they headed in the same direction. If I Needed Someone remains a charming, chiming sound (the jangly 12-string Rickenbacker probably inspired the likes of Johnny Marr to pick up a 12-string) and by Revolver, Taxman, I Want To Tell You and Love You To proved that George was capable of writing songs in differing styles.

As you might have guessed, I'm a big Harrison fan. It was down to Harrison that I bought my first guitar back in 1983. I adore his solo output from my favourite solo Beatles album All Things Must Pass, to Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine.

It sums the guy up when he was recording with his fellow Traveling Wilburys, he, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne were waiting for Roy Orbison to arrive for a session. George is reported to have been over the moon at the prospect of The Big O being in his band!

This beautiful guy clearly didn't know his genius. That there will never be a new George Harrison album fills me with sadness. Fortunately, I can dip into 33 and 1/3rd or Extra Texture or better still, put ATMP on with the joss-stick burning and simply melt....,

PS. The Inner Light. Has there ever been a more beautiful b-side?

What George Harrison, the person and musician brought to the Beatles, in sound, in texture, in spirit, in direction and in ideas, cannot be over-emphasised. The Beatles without George is unthinkable and thankfully for us, he stuck it out till the very bitter end.

Learning the guitar did not come easy but he stuck at it and his double-stop, Carl Perkins-style approach gave the early Beatles' sound a slightly bluesy-cum-country and western feel. (Check out Devil In Her Heart and All My Loving on With The Beatles.) Incidentally, when, in their pre-fame days they toured Germany George gave himself the title Carl Harrison after his guitar hero. His solo on I Saw Her Standing There is an example of brilliant double-stop finger-picking. Between George's clever if sometimes economical solos and Lennon's brilliant rhythm guitar work, the latter 'colouring' the scales and melodies of the former's solos (added ninths, flattened sevenths and augmented chords), the two guitarists created a brilliant sound which to this day still shimmers and excites. (The re-mastered box sets shows off this brilliance.)

What George might have been guilty of is NOT having an ego. He was more understated than underrated and it never bothered him. It's common knowledge that he wanted Clapton to play the solo on While My Guitar Gently Weeps. He deserves a lot of credit for this. And this probably explains why many of his songs were overlooked when it came to recording new albums: He wasn't that bothered! By 1968 with the cracks apparent, George didn't care whether he played or didn't and you'll find Lennon taking lead guitar roles more in the final Beatles' years (as did Paul on Back In The USSR for example). However, when they wanted a proper guitar solo, they called on the Beatles only serious lead guitarist. Sexy Sadie, Let It Be, Something and the magnificent Old Brown Shoe prove that by a country mile, George was THE guitarist in the Fab Four.

His ego departed on the film set of Help! in 1965. He was interested in the Indian musicians called to provide some of the sound-track and was in course introduced to Ravi Shankar, maestro of the sitar. George was spell bound by the quarter tones the sitar produced and took to learning the instrument. (His finest sitar work on a Beatles record is the instrumental break on Within You Without You on Sgt. Pepper's.) Like the guitar, learning sitar was hard work - it can take a lifetime to master the instrument - so George managed to find a compromise by way of setting up his electric guitar for slide. So it was that he set up his Fender Strat, now repainted in day-glo psychedelic colours, and begun contributing what became his trademark sound to Beatles (and solo) records.

But the Eastern sound of sitars and tabla, playing on Western records, copied by the likes of the Rolling Stones and virtually everybody else, was largely down to George bringing the sounds to Abbey Road studios. Even when not played on the likes of sitar, this style of music is everywhere in the Beatles recordings from 1966 on. Revolver showcases many songs written in one key (pedal tone or drone): Got To Get You Into My Life (Paul - the verse stays almost in one key); Tomorrow Never Knows (John); Love You To (George with indian musicians who hardly move away from Eb); Paperback Writer (Paul, released as a single around the same time of Revolver's release); and its b-side Rain (John). Add to this, backward guitars and singing featuring Indian scales - listen to the end of George's I Want To Tell You during the fade out! - and it's clear that George's influence to the sound and image of the Beatles was enormous.

Lennon was at his creative peak during Revolver; Paul was at his creative peak on Sgt. Pepper's. But without George and his interest in Eastern music and religion, these albums simply would not have been what they were. The Beatles moved on from 1965's Rubber Soul (featuring George on sitar on Lennon's Norwegian Wood) in new directions because George had opened up new avenues for the Beatles to explore. When Paul's, John's and Ringo's interest waned, the Beatles reverted to their usual guitars, bass and drums line-up with George Harrison clearly not interested in reverting back to being 'lead guitarist'. Thus, like a sore thumb, George is still searching for God on Long, Long, Long whilst Paul is singing about Rocky Raccoon and Lennon - seriously half-assed by this stage, screams about monkeys, revolutions and Sexy Sadie.

But as if, just to prove a point or two, on the Beatles' final album (Abbey Road) George proved that not only was he a wonderful guitarist (on his own Something and Here Comes The Sun, and on the solo on The End - George is streets ahead of Paul and John during these solos), he even proved that he was arguably just as good a songwriter as Lennon and McCartney (a misnomer if ever there was one). True, I Need You and You Like Me Too Much hardly fill the listener's ears with excitement, but they headed in the same direction. If I Needed Someone remains a charming, chiming sound (the jangly 12-string Rickenbacker probably inspired the likes of Johnny Marr to pick up a 12-string) and by Revolver, Taxman, I Want To Tell You and Love You To proved that George was capable of writing songs in differing styles.

As you might have guessed, I'm a big Harrison fan. It was down to Harrison that I bought my first guitar back in 1983. I adore his solo output from my favourite solo Beatles album All Things Must Pass, to Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine.

It sums the guy up when he was recording with his fellow Traveling Wilburys, he, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne were waiting for Roy Orbison to arrive for a session. George is reported to have been over the moon at the prospect of The Big O being in his band!

This beautiful guy clearly didn't know his genius. That there will never be a new George Harrison album fills me with sadness. Fortunately, I can dip into 33 and 1/3rd or Extra Texture or better still, put ATMP on with the joss-stick burning and simply melt....,

PS. The Inner Light. Has there ever been a more beautiful b-side?

That's a very tender and moving tribute to the guy and like you, I am a huge fan; it always saddens me that he's so eclipsed by L&M. I'm looking forward to seeing Scorsese's Harrison documentary.

All new to me. I will have a listen and get back to you.

Also try his more recent albums...'Memory almost Full' and Chaos and Creation in the Backyard. Not one bad track on these albums.

And his most recent live album fantastic.

Also try his more recent albums...'Memory almost Full' and Chaos and Creation in the Backyard. Not one bad track on these albums.

And his most recent live album fantastic.

Very good album and I love Nigel Godrich's production which allows the music to breathe.

Musically, Macca ages like a fine wine but vocally he's showing signs of his age and needs to accept that he's not the singer he was when he toured the world with Wings in the mid nineteen seventies.

What George Harrison, the person and musician brought to the Beatles, in sound, in texture, in spirit, in direction and in ideas, cannot be over-emphasised. The Beatles without George is unthinkable and thankfully for us, he stuck it out till the very bitter end.

Learning the guitar did not come easy but he stuck at it and his double-stop, Carl Perkins-style approach gave the early Beatles' sound a slightly bluesy-cum-country and western feel. (Check out Devil In Her Heart and All My Loving on With The Beatles.) Incidentally, when, in their pre-fame days they toured Germany George gave himself the title Carl Harrison after his guitar hero. His solo on I Saw Her Standing There is an example of brilliant double-stop finger-picking. Between George's clever if sometimes economical solos and Lennon's brilliant rhythm guitar work, the latter 'colouring' the scales and melodies of the former's solos (added ninths, flattened sevenths and augmented chords), the two guitarists created a brilliant sound which to this day still shimmers and excites. (The re-mastered box sets shows off this brilliance.)

What George might have been guilty of is NOT having an ego. He was more understated than underrated and it never bothered him. It's common knowledge that he wanted Clapton to play the solo on While My Guitar Gently Weeps. He deserves a lot of credit for this. And this probably explains why many of his songs were overlooked when it came to recording new albums: He wasn't that bothered! By 1968 with the cracks apparent, George didn't care whether he played or didn't and you'll find Lennon taking lead guitar roles more in the final Beatles' years (as did Paul on Back In The USSR for example). However, when they wanted a proper guitar solo, they called on the Beatles only serious lead guitarist. Sexy Sadie, Let It Be, Something and the magnificent Old Brown Shoe prove that by a country mile, George was THE guitarist in the Fab Four.

His ego departed on the film set of Help! in 1965. He was interested in the Indian musicians called to provide some of the sound-track and was in course introduced to Ravi Shankar, maestro of the sitar. George was spell bound by the quarter tones the sitar produced and took to learning the instrument. (His finest sitar work on a Beatles record is the instrumental break on Within You Without You on Sgt. Pepper's.) Like the guitar, learning sitar was hard work - it can take a lifetime to master the instrument - so George managed to find a compromise by way of setting up his electric guitar for slide. So it was that he set up his Fender Strat, now repainted in day-glo psychedelic colours, and begun contributing what became his trademark sound to Beatles (and solo) records.

But the Eastern sound of sitars and tabla, playing on Western records, copied by the likes of the Rolling Stones and virtually everybody else, was largely down to George bringing the sounds to Abbey Road studios. Even when not played on the likes of sitar, this style of music is everywhere in the Beatles recordings from 1966 on. Revolver showcases many songs written in one key (pedal tone or drone): Got To Get You Into My Life (Paul - the verse stays almost in one key); Tomorrow Never Knows (John); Love You To (George with indian musicians who hardly move away from Eb); Paperback Writer (Paul, released as a single around the same time of Revolver's release); and its b-side Rain (John). Add to this, backward guitars and singing featuring Indian scales - listen to the end of George's I Want To Tell You during the fade out! - and it's clear that George's influence to the sound and image of the Beatles was enormous.

Lennon was at his creative peak during Revolver; Paul was at his creative peak on Sgt. Pepper's. But without George and his interest in Eastern music and religion, these albums simply would not have been what they were. The Beatles moved on from 1965's Rubber Soul (featuring George on sitar on Lennon's Norwegian Wood) in new directions because George had opened up new avenues for the Beatles to explore. When Paul's, John's and Ringo's interest waned, the Beatles reverted to their usual guitars, bass and drums line-up with George Harrison clearly not interested in reverting back to being 'lead guitarist'. Thus, like a sore thumb, George is still searching for God on Long, Long, Long whilst Paul is singing about Rocky Raccoon and Lennon - seriously half-assed by this stage, screams about monkeys, revolutions and Sexy Sadie.

But as if, just to prove a point or two, on the Beatles' final album (Abbey Road) George proved that not only was he a wonderful guitarist (on his own Something and Here Comes The Sun, and on the solo on The End - George is streets ahead of Paul and John during these solos), he even proved that he was arguably just as good a songwriter as Lennon and McCartney (a misnomer if ever there was one). True, I Need You and You Like Me Too Much hardly fill the listener's ears with excitement, but they headed in the same direction. If I Needed Someone remains a charming, chiming sound (the jangly 12-string Rickenbacker probably inspired the likes of Johnny Marr to pick up a 12-string) and by Revolver, Taxman, I Want To Tell You and Love You To proved that George was capable of writing songs in differing styles.

As you might have guessed, I'm a big Harrison fan. It was down to Harrison that I bought my first guitar back in 1983. I adore his solo output from my favourite solo Beatles album All Things Must Pass, to Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine.

It sums the guy up when he was recording with his fellow Traveling Wilburys, he, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne were waiting for Roy Orbison to arrive for a session. George is reported to have been over the moon at the prospect of The Big O being in his band!

This beautiful guy clearly didn't know his genius. That there will never be a new George Harrison album fills me with sadness. Fortunately, I can dip into 33 and 1/3rd or Extra Texture or better still, put ATMP on with the joss-stick burning and simply melt....,

PS. The Inner Light. Has there ever been a more beautiful b-side?

What a great well thought out thread, I agree with everything you say.

I heard an interview with George Martin recently where he publically apolgised to George for not giving his songwriting the suport it deserved.

I'd love a record company to release an album of George's songs from the Beatles albums.

For me it's while my guitar gently weeps this song is one of the most beautiful bits of music evver written and the guitar solos are amazing and show as with all great guitar solos that simple and emotive is the way it's done
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7qpfGVUd8c&feature=related
And whos that in the background?, that's right the greatest guitarist of the time maybe all time and george holds his own at the end of the song.
It's great to see the friendship that existed between them showing on this film.

For me it's while my guitar gently weeps this song is one of the most beautiful bits of music evver written and the guitar solos are amazing and show as with all great guitar solos that simple and emotive is the way it's done
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7qpfGVUd8c&feature=related
And whos that in the background?, that's right the greatest guitarist of the time maybe all time and george holds his own at the end of the song.
It's great to see the friendship that existed between them showing on this film.

I agree, but there's one thing that bothers me about Clapton's playing on the White Album version of WMGGW. After his solo was recorded, they thought it didn't sound "Beatle-y enough" so they put it through a revolving Leslie speaker to give it that "wobbling" effect we are so familiar with now.

As a huge fan of Clapton in his Cream period, I'd love to hear the orginal solo before they messed with it. I suspect it was a lot more ballsy.

Other than that, it's a beautiful song.

I agree, but there's one thing that bothers me about Clapton's playing on WMGGW. After his solo was recorded, they thought it didn't sound "Beatle-y enough" so they put it through a revolving Leslie speaker to give it that "wobbling" effect we are so familiar with now.

As a huge fan of Clapton in his Cream period, I'd love to hear the orginal solo before they messed with it. I suspect it was a lot more ballsy.

Other than that, it's a beautiful song.

The mono and stereo mixes are quite different with the 'wobbling' more noticeable on one (IIRC, the mono) mix.

As I've said here many times before, the mono version of 'The Beatles' is superior to its stereo counterpart. So is 'Sgt. Pepper's'; it's a totally different listening experience.

Personally, I am not a fan of the heavy version of WMGGW. The acoustic version available on 'Anthology 3' (and NOT the version on 'Love' with George Martin's over-the-top strings) is by far the best version, a version I was lucky enough to hear over studio 2's speakers at Abbey Road back in 1983.

I agree about the Anthology version of WMGGW, but I'm not really a fan of the Concert For Bangla Desh version either.

Clapton was in the middle of his junkie period at that point and they had to go out and score some heroin for him before he could even go on stage (this is confirmed in EC's autobiography) and this is reflected in his lacklustre performance on the Bangla Desh concert.

This is a much better live performance of George's song. The only thing missing is The Quiet One himself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNBEiyGwGRc

This is a much better live performance of George's song. The only thing missing is The Quiet One himself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNBEiyGwGRc

I've always loved the little boy at the end who jumps up out of his seat - it's nice to see a kid enjoying the music so much. And I agree, it's a wonderful performance. :thumbsup:

I've always loved the little boy at the end who jumps up out of his seat - it's nice to see a kid enjoying the music so much. And I agree, it's a wonderful performance. :thumbsup:

Thanks Jen, it's great to see Eric and Macca (and all the others) on top of their game and performing together so well. George would have been so happy to see that. :cool:

So good to see Dhani up there, too!

I agree about the Anthology version of WMGGW, but I'm not really a fan of the Concert For Bangla Desh version either.

Clapton was in the middle of his junkie period at that point and they had to go out and score some heroin for him before he could even go on stage (this is confirmed in EC's autobiography) and this is reflected in his lacklustre performance on the Bangla Desh concert.

This is a much better live performance of George's song. The only thing missing is The Quiet One himself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNBEiyGwGRc

Yes I read that as well in ECs autobiography

My favourite Beatle is George. While my Guitar Gently Weeps,

As good as any Lennon and McCartney song imo.

Very good album and I love Nigel Godrich's production which allows the music to breathe.

Musically, Macca ages like a fine wine but vocally he's showing signs of his age and needs to accept that he's not the singer he was when he toured the world with Wings in the mid nineteen seventies.

As I think we've already discussed, Macca has lowered the keys on a few songs when performing live, notably I Will

But that's standard practice as singers get older.

Within You Without You is my favourite George song.

Lordy, you must have been doing Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds to enjoy that one, mojo ;)

Lordy, you must have been doing Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds to enjoy that one, mojo ;)

I put all that kind of thing behind me a long time ago bf :hihi:

Lordy, you must have been doing Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds to enjoy that one, mojo ;)

:nono::nono:

Is it cos they is Indians?:hihi: BF - you racist!:D

I think that that track is an acquired taste.

:nono::nono:

Is it cos they is Indians?:hihi: BF - you racist!:D

I think that that track is an acquired taste.

Just to qualify this: WYWY is my favourite George RECORDING with the Beatles, as in the production, instrumentation and overall feel of the track.

The Beatles Love album version, which combined the hypnotic backing track of Tomorrow Never Knows with the vocal/sitar track of WYWY only made me love it more.

As for my favourite George SONG with the Beatles, that would be between WMGGW, Something, Here Comes The Sun and Piggies.

The Beatles Love album version, which combined the hypnotic backing track of Tomorrow Never Knows with the vocal/sitar track of WYWY only made me love it more.

When I first heard the Love album and that pairing, it just sounded as if those two songs were made for eachother - they compliment eachother extremely well.

I also loved the amalgamation of Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite/Helter Skelter/I Want You (She's So Heavy).

When I first heard the Love album and that pairing, it just sounded as if those two songs were made for eachother - they compliment eachother extremely well.

I also loved the amalgamation of Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite/Helter Skelter/I Want You (She's So Heavy).

Love is such a great album generally isn't it? It's a full time job (and great fun) working out which songs have been cannibalised to make up the tracks.

For example, I love the sections of one of the Christmas records tagged on the end of All You Need Is Love.

In fact I seem to hear new things every time I play the album.

Did you see the Love DVD where Giles and George Martin talk about how they did it? It's tantalising, because they don't quite give away all the secrets.

Love is such a great album generally isn't it? It's a full time job (and great fun) working out which songs have been cannibalised to make up the tracks.

For example, I love the sections of one of the Christmas records tagged on the end of All You Need Is Love.

In fact I seem to hear new things every time I play the album.

Did you see the Love DVD where Giles and George Martin talk about how they did it? It's tantalising, because they don't quite give away all the secrets.

I agree Mojo, it's a fine album, and George and Giles Martin did a great job undertaking the task of deciding which songs would be compatible with one another and which wouldn't quite work.

I actually didn't bother buying it for a while, for the sole reason that I thought it was just a normal compilation at first - I was then informed otherwise so decided to get it.

I haven't seen the DVD you mention, no. I'm only aware of one Love DVD, and I was under the impression that it was simply a recording of the actual Cirque du Soleil show. Is that the DVD you mean or is there another?

I agree Mojo, it's a fine album, and George and Giles Martin did a great job undertaking the task of deciding which songs would be compatible with one another and which wouldn't quite work.

I actually didn't bother buying it for a while, for the sole reason that I thought it was just a normal compilation at first - I was then informed otherwise so decided to get it.

I haven't seen the DVD you mention, no. I'm only aware of one Love DVD, and I was under the impression that it was simply a recording of the actual Cirque du Soleil show. Is that the DVD you mean or is there another?

Like you, I wasn't really aware of just how much work had gone into the Love album until after I got it home, so it came as a huge (but welcome) surprise to find that here was almost a totally new Beatles album.

The DVD is divided into 2 parts. One half shows the preparation for the Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas and the other is all about how Giles and George Martin made the album. Macca and Ringo are heavily involved in both parts of the process.

The DVD has virtually the same yellow/orange cover artwork as the CD, so you can't miss it.

Like you, I wasn't really aware of just how much work had gone into the Love album until after I got it home, so it came as a huge (but welcome) surprise to find that here was almost a totally new Beatles album.

The DVD is divided into 2 parts. One half shows the preparation for the Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas and the other is all about how Giles and George Martin made the album. Macca and Ringo are heavily involved in both parts of the process.

The DVD has virtually the same yellow/orange cover artwork as the CD, so you can't miss it.

Thanks for the information Mojo, I'll consider buying that. :thumbsup:

Shame on me; I've got the Love multi-pack and have never even watched the DVD!!

Shame on me; I've got the Love multi-pack and have never even watched the DVD!!

What else is in the multipack? Is it just the CD and DVD?

What else is in the multipack? Is it just the CD and DVD?

There was also a 5.1 audio mix of the Love CD around when it was first released, but I haven't seen it for sale in ages.

There was also a 5.1 audio mix of the Love CD around when it was first released, but I haven't seen it for sale in ages.

I've got it and when the speakers are set up correctly it sounds stunning.

A friend of mine set the surround sound speakers up and honest to God, it was like Paul was sat in one of the chairs singing Eleanor Rigby!

At the time of writing, my top ten Harrisongs (with the Beatles) would be:

1 Something
2 Old Brown Shoe
3 The Inner Light
4 Here Comes The Sun
5 Long, Long, Long
6 I, Me, Mine
7 Savoy Truffle
8 If I Needed Someone
9 While My Guitar Gently Weeps
10 I Want To Tell You

My favourite solo albums:

1 All Things Must Pass
2 Living In The Material World
3 Cloud Nine
4 Gone Troppo
5 Thirty Three And A Third
6 George Harrison
7 Extra Texture
8 Somewhere In England
9 Brainwashed
10 Dark Horse

Good choices. Here's mine:

Favourite George songs with The Beatles:

1 Something
2 Within You, Without You
3 Here Comes The Sun
4 While My Guitar Gently Weeps
5 Piggies
6 Taxman
7 It's All Too Much
8 Love You To
9 Savoy Truffle
10 I Want To Tell You
11 If I Needed Someone
12 I Need You
13 You Like Me Too Much

Favourite solo albums:

1 All Things Must Pass
2 George Harrison
3 Somewhere In England
4 Cloud Nine
5 Gone Troppo
6 Traveling Wilburys Vol.1
7 Live In Japan
8 Living In The Material World
9 Thirty Three And A Third
10 Dark Horse

At the time of writing, my top ten Harrisongs (with the Beatles) would be:

1 Something
2 Old Brown Shoe
3 The Inner Light
4 Here Comes The Sun
5 Long, Long, Long
6 I, Me, Mine
7 Savoy Truffle
8 If I Needed Someone
9 While My Guitar Gently Weeps
10 I Want To Tell You


If I could substitute Here Comes The Sun for While My Guitar Gently Weeps, I couldn't fault that top 5. :thumbsup:

(Nice to see I Me Mine in your list too).