Everyone recognizes the name George Harrison (Feb. 25, 1943 - Nov. 29, 2001), but many people can't name any of the songs he wrote. Dubbed the "Quiet Beatle" or the "Spiritual Beatle," Harrison's guitar playing established the Beatle sound as much as Lennon & McCartney's songwriting. His well crafted guitar solos were never showy and he never wasted a note. On Rubber Soul, Harrison broadened their sound with the use of the sitar (Norwegian Wood) and Indian inspired compositions (Love You Too). Frank Sinatra called Harrison's Something "the most beautiful love song ever written" Other Beatle classics he penned include Here Comes the Sun, Taxman, and If I Needed Someone. Although Lennon was thought of as the "political Beatle," Harrison wrote the most scathing commentary of the ruling class (Piggies). After the Beatles' breakup, Harrison recorded the first "solo Beatle" hits with All Things Must Pass and Give Me Love. Organizing The Concert for Bangladesh set the precedent for Live Aid and its many permeations.
The goal of the Tributes were not to imitate his music, but emulate it. We celebrate George as a songwriter, an instrumentalist and a spiritual guide. We've invited musicians in the community to come bring their favorite Harrison song or add a solo or harmony to the arrangements. Some musicians were recruited for their specific appropriateness for a song. Many of the musicians were unfamiliar with much of George's work and developed an appreciation for his music by getting involved.
Exhausted by Beatlemania and always being in the limelight, Harrison spent much his life living quietly with his wife Olivia and son Dhani. He founded Handmade Films to produce Monty Python's Life of Brian. Harrison never failed to appreciate laughter and even during his most devotional periods he included jokes in his album covers. Known for his affinity with the Krishna Consciousness Movement, Olivia Harrison said this about him, "he embraced the essence of all religions… he would gladly spend hours discussing God with an interested person."
We play songs from his whole career and demonstrating his integration of Indian music and western pop. We try to have some old vinyl artifacts as well. The first four Tributes ended with a medley of Brainwashed, including the lovely chanting that it finishes with, followed by My Sweet Lord. Other musical highlights include Isn't It A Pity featuring Guy Forsyth on vocals and saw, Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth) arranged for banjo, Within You Without You featuring Oliver Rajamani playing tabla and Owl Morrison on viola and guest vocalists every year and the hard-bop jazz version of Blue Jay Way where a trumpeter appeared on stage totally impromptu.
George continued recording music and perfecting the slide guitar sound that was to be one of his distinct trademarks up until his death in 2003. In the late 90's he connected with the critics again with his release of Cloud Nine and his instigation of the Traveling Wilburys (with bandmates Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne). He was working on his album Brainwashed when he died of throat cancer. Finished by his son, Dhani, it stands as a fitting epitaph for a brilliant artist and a person who tried to spread light and joy with his works. His last words were "Love one another."
