Video will appear as you scroll through the story
The Beatles · S11 E1
All Things Must Pass
George releases a triple album. The quiet Beatle had a hundred songs waiting. My Sweet Lord reaches number one worldwide
It's late May 1970, and George Harrison walks into Abbey Road Studios carrying demo tapes for over forty songs. After a decade of being limited to two or three tracks per Beatles album, the quiet Beatle is about to release more music in one go than John and Paul ever saw coming.
"My Sweet Lord" (George Harrison, 1970). The first number one hit by any solo Beatle. It's the ultimate opening statement after years of being sidelined by Lennon-McCartney, and it sets the spiritual tone for everything on All Things Must Pass.
The Quiet Beatle Speaks
The Beatles' split became official in April 1970 when Paul McCartney publicly announced his departure. But George had been preparing for this moment for years. Songs like "Isn't It a Pity," "All Things Must Pass," and "Hear Me Lord" had all been offered to the Beatles and rejected during sessions. By the time the band collapsed, George didn't mourn. He booked the studio.
Sources
Olivia Harrison. "George Harrison: Living in the Material World." Abrams, 2011.
“It was like being constipated for years, then finally you were allowed to go.”
— George Harrison
My Sweet Lord, George Harrison (1970)
The song opens with a sliding acoustic guitar riff that became one of the most recognizable intros in rock history. Listen for the backing vocals shifting from "Hallelujah" to "Hare Krishna" halfway through. George blends Christian and Hindu devotion into a single pop song, something no mainstream Western artist had pulled off before. The slide guitar, played by George himself, carries the emotional weight of the entire track, weaving around Phil Spector's layered Wall of Sound production.
Sources
Allison, Dale. "The Love There That's Sleeping: The Art and Spirituality of George Harrison." Continuum, 2006.
Lavezzoli, Peter. "The Dawn of Indian Music in the West." Continuum, 2006.
TAP TO REVEAL: How did the "My Sweet Lord" plagiarism case get even more absurd?
Friar Park, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, UK
George purchased this 120-room Victorian Gothic mansion in January 1970, months before the Beatles' breakup became official. It became his home, recording studio, and personal sanctuary, and its gardens appear on the All Things Must Pass album cover.
All Things Must Pass
Isn't It a Pity, George Harrison (1970)
George first brought this song to the Beatles during the Get Back sessions in January 1969. The band briefly ran through it, then moved on. A year later, George turned it into the emotional centrepiece of All Things Must Pass: seven minutes of slowly building regret and forgiveness, with a long fade-out that echoes "Hey Jude." The fact that Lennon and McCartney passed on this song tells you everything about how George was undervalued in the band.
Isn't It a Pity, George Harrison (1970)
"What a pity, what a pity, what a pity." The lyrics barely change across seven minutes, but they don't need to. George repeats the same question, how can people treat each other so carelessly, while the arrangement slowly builds from acoustic guitar to a full orchestral crescendo. The long fade-out mirrors "Hey Jude," and that's not an accident: George knew exactly whose shadow he was stepping out of.
What legal term did the judge use to describe George Harrison's use of the "He's So Fine" melody?
In a white room at Tittenhurst Park, John Lennon sits down at a white piano and records the song that will become the most recognized anthem of the twentieth century. Next: S11E2, "Imagine."
0 XP earned this session