George Harrison - Ten years on, Liverpool remembers

November 29^th 2011 marked the tenth anniversary of the death of a legend. To many he was an unsung musician and more importantly, a wonderful human being. Whilst many remember him as the “quiet Beatle”, the musical legacy that George Harrison has left behind speaks major volumes for a man who may not have embraced the limelight as much as his fellow band members. Although he didn’t bask in being the centre of attention as much as the other three lads who shook the world, George Harrison was still every inch the music icon.

As the youngest member of the band which would go on to become one of music’s greatest success stories, Harrison shouldered a great deal of responsibility in his role as lead guitarist. The manner in which he undertook this role and the skill in which he demonstrated through his lead suggested that he was mature beyond his years. However, his cheeky smile, along with his shy and reserved manner, was a reminder to the viewing public that Harrison was merely a boy when The Beatles first came to prominence.

Whilst he may have only been 18 years of age by the time The Beatles burst onto the scene and became famous, Harrison’s life had already been eventful, joining the band at the age of 14 and gaining fan-bases in the German city of Hamburg, as well as his home city, Liverpool. It was in the Liverpool music venue, The Cavern, where The Beatles were spotted by Brian Epstein. He would later become the band’s manager, and would project them onto the popular music scene. The band would eventually reach global recognition and Harrison’s life was about to become even more eventful.

The Beatles would go on a whirlwind of a journey during their successful yet sometimes controversial reign – both musically and physically. They smashed their way to the top of the British music scene by 1963, and embarked upon an era which was famously named “Beatlemania” during the years of ’64 and ’65, in which they not only cracked the American music market, but also dominated it.

Throughout their reign together as a signed band, The Beatles reached 17 UK number ones and 20 US number ones. The band also starred in films together, with A Hard Day’s Night and Help! both being well-received amongst audiences and critics.

Although the band stopped touring in the year of 1966 – performing their last gig at Candlestick Park in San Francisco – they continued to make music together up until the release of their final album, Let It Be, in 1970.

During his time with The Beatles, Harrison wrote several successful songs – amongst which, “Taxman”, “Within You, Without You”, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”, “Here Comes The Sun” and “I Me Mine” (which he later used as the name of his autobiography in 1980) are counted as his best.

Harrison also shared experiences with the band which largely contributed to his being. The Beatles were of course renowned for taking LSD and later openly sharing their “acid-trip” experiences within interviews.

In The Beatles Anthology, Harrison explained that the first time that The Beatles took LSD was “sometime in 1965, between albums and tours”, and that it was “an accident”. In a quirky little anecdote which he christened “the dental experience”, Harrison went on to say that him and his fellow Beatles “were the innocent victims of the wicked dentist”, whom they had met and had dinner with a few times. However, whilst initially making it sound as if he and the rest of the band were objects of victimisation, Harrison later went on to say that LSD was “fantastic” and that it had gave him “the most incredible feeling”. Stories such as this give you a sense that Harrison and his fellow Beatles were all free birds who wanted to both feel and share experiences with each other.

During his time with The Beatles, Harrison later embraced Indian culture and mysticism, introducing it to the rest of the band. He had met the Maharishi in London during the year of 1967, and had expressed an interest in transitional meditation – however, plans to attend a 10-day seminar with the rest of The Beatles were curtailed, due to the death of Brian Epstein. The Beatles did, however, revive their interest when they visited India the following year of 1968. It was there that The Beatles attended a transitional meditation class, which particularly had a profound effect on Harrison, as spirituality and meditation both became prominent features during the rest of his life.

Whilst all four of The Beatles possessed different qualities within aspects of their personality which enhanced their popularity amongst the masses, the deep and mysterious aspects of Harrison’s personality conveyed an almost ethereal and spiritual persona – not only to general public perception, but also to people who actually knew him. Many would argue that his experience of spirituality and meditation indeed enhanced this persona of his.

Whilst many daub Harrison as the “quiet Beatle”, due to this somewhat reserved and mysterious persona of his, he still had a profound effect and influence over other people. He was renowned for taking interests in things and befriending people as a result of that – he not only did this through his appreciation for the transitional meditation of Indian mysticism, but he also did it when he embraced elements of the Indian music style and incorporated it within some of his own music.

It was the Indian musician, Ravi Shankar, who introduced Harrison to the Indian stringed instrument of the sitar. Harrison would go on to use the sitar in several Beatles’ tracks – most famously in his own song “Within You, Without You” from the Sgt. Pepper album. Harrison also showed his appreciation of Indian culture when he later wrote and released his solo song, “My Sweet Lord”, in praise of the Hindu god, Krishna.

“My Sweet Lord” was, of course, just one of many songs that Harrison released after his time with The Beatles. Other solo hits included “What is Life?”, “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)”, “You” and Harrison’s cover of the James Ray song “Got My Mind Set on You”.  Harrison also famously collaborated with his own super-group, The Traveling Wilburys (with whom he featured alongside with Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Roy Orbison) – the bands most famous hit being “Handle With Care”.

Outside of music, Harrison worked as a film impresario and producer, when he set up his own production company, HandMade Films. Although the company was initially set up just to raise and provide the funding for the Monty Python film, “Life of Brian”, it continued to thrive when Harrison bought the rights to “The Long Good Friday” and successfully put it into production. Other successful films that Harrison helped to fund and produce include “Time Bandits” and “Withnail and I”.

Within his personal life, Harrison married twice – first to model, Pattie Boyd, during the years of 1966 and 1974, and later to record company secretary, Olivia Trinidad Arias, from 1978 up until his death in 2001. His first marriage ended when Boyd pursued a romance with Harrison’s close friend and fellow musician, Eric Clapton – although many would see this as the ultimate act of portrayal, Harrison still remained friends with both Boyd and Clapton. His later marriage to Olivia was much more successful, lasting for 23 years up until Harrison’s death and spawning Harrison’s one and only child – his son Dhani, who followed in his father’s footsteps and became a musician.

In 1999, Harrison was attacked with a knife at his home by Michael Abram – an intruder who claimed that he was possessed by Harrison. After confronting Abram and receiving several stab wounds as a result of his approach, Harrison was saved when his wife, Olivia, struck the intruder several times with a lamp. In Martin Scorsese’s documentary film, “George Harrison: Living in the Material World”, Olivia recalls that Harrison claimed that he was “preparing his spirit” and was ready to “accept death” during the moments in which he was being attacked.

Although Harrison survived the attack and overcame his various wounds and injuries, he was tragically diagnosed with lung cancer just two years later. The cancer spread to his brain and his condition rapidly deteriorated, causing his death on 29^th November 2001. He was 58 years old.

Whilst this article merely serves as an account of key moments in Harrison’s life, it comes nowhere near to covering the constant whirlwind of events and the journey through life that he endured. There are so many moments that contributed towards Harrison’s life and being that it could arguably take years to tell his story.

One thing can certainly be derived: George Harrison was a wonderful spirit – a beautiful soul with a host of talent, whose influence will live long in the memory and will affect many for years to come. Ten years on, Liverpool remembers one of its most famous and influential sons, along with the rest of the world.

Rest in Peace, George Harrison.

*If you want to discover more about George Harrison’s intriguing and adventurous story, then watch the documentary film, George Harrison: Living in the Material World – available to purchase online and in most film and music outlets

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