Beatles News
George Harrison was a spiritual being and the conversations Elton John had with him proved that he was something of a wise sageAfter The Beatles disbanded in 1970, Elton John was the most in-demand artist from the U.K. John developed a friendship with John Lennon, as the pair collaborated on several projects. His relationship with George Harrison was less intimate, but Harrison gave Elton John some advice that led the “Tiny Dancer” singer to call him the ‘sage of The Beatles.’”
During the 1970s ad 1980s, John hit the peak of his fame where he was releasing hits like “Bennie and the Jets,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” and “Rocket Man”. However, his fame led to excess as he struggled with addiction to alcohol and drugs. In 1990, he took the first step to recovery by checking in to rehab.
Source: Ross Tanenbaum/cheatsheet.com
Cat Stevens called George Harrison an "inspiration of mine" before covering 'Here Comes The Sun' at Glastonbury.
There's a reason why it's called the 'Legend's Slot'.
Every Sunday at the gargantuan Glastonbury Festival, the mid-afternoon set is primed for a bonafide legend of music to work their magic.
After a long weekend of partying, exploring, and immersing in all the festival has to offer, festival-goers need a little lift to propel them through the final night ahead.
There's nothing more revitalising than hearing the songs that have soundtracked our entire lives.
In 2023, the coveted Legend's Slot was handed to Yusuf/Cat Stevens, who certainly got the memo when it came to soothing the masses.
Source: Thomas Curtis-Horsfall/goldradiouk.com
George Harrison. In a way, he’s the most overlooked of the Fab Four. He played guitar in the band and wrote some popular songs like “Here Comes The Sun,” but he never had the prowess Paul McCartney and John Lennon had, nor the goofiness of Ringo Starr.
But in that way, he actually does stand out. The ever-changing, thoughtful, quiet philosopher king of the band.
With so much talent and success to his name, with such a career both with the Beatles and as a solo artist, one may wonder: what did Harrison, who passed away in 2001 at the age of 58, have to say about his time with the former Mop Tops, what about his career after, spirituality and the world around him?
Here are the 25 best George Harrison quotes.
Source: Jacob Uitti/americansongwriter.com
With seemingly unstoppable momentum during the summer of 1967, on 18 May The Beatles signed a contract to represent the BBC, and Britain, on Our World, the world’s first live television satellite link-up to be seen by approximately 400 million people across five continents.
The Beatles’ appearance was announced four days later, on 22 May. John Lennon wrote the song ‘All You Need Is Love’ especially for the occasion, to the brief given by the BBC: it had to be simple so that viewers around the world would understand it.
We were big enough to command an audience of that size, and it was for love. It was for love and bloody peace. It was a fabulous time. I even get excited now when I realise that’s what it was for: peace and love, people putting flowers in guns.
Our World took place on 25 June 1967. Between the announcement and the broadcast date, The Beatles recorded the rhythm track and some basic vocals.
Source: beatlesbible.com
Beatlemania swept Australia and New Zealand from June to July in 1964 in what became an iconic pop culture moment.
But a music historian reveals in an upcoming book there was a dark side to the international frenzy over the Liverpool boys whose hits revolutionised music.
In Kenneth Womack's Living the Beatles' Legend: The Untold Story of Mal Evans, he reveals how one fan tried to commit suicide after failing to get to the bands' hotel room.
Mal was a road manager for the Beatles from 1963 and became their personal assistant when they stopped touring three years later, remaining with them until their break-up in 1970.
One of Mal's diary entries detailed his most 'serious and frightening memory' where he came back to his New Zealand hotel room to find 'all this blood'.
'There's the story of a woman who attempted to commit suicide in [Mal's] hotel room because she couldn't get to the Beatles,' Mr Womack told Daily Mail Australia.
Source: Jade Hobman/dailymail.co.uk
On June 25, 1967, the Beatles performed their song "All You Need Is Love" for the first time on "Our World," the first live global link-up performative showcase seen by over 23 million people in the United Kingdom and reached upwards of "170 million televisions in 24 nations," according to the BBC.
Today, honor the Beatles and their music, which shattered records and has dominated pop culture for nearly six decades.
Here are some fascinating facts to share with fellow Beatles fans for Global Beatles Day.
1. How many No. 1 hits do the Beatles have?
The Beatles hold the record for most No. 1 hits. In a span of only eight years, the Beatles hit No. 1 with 20 songs.
Two years after the group formed, the Beatles had at least one No. 1 hit every year leading up to their disbanding in 1970.
Source: Nicole Pelletiere, Sydney Borchers/foxnews.com
Since 1960, The Beatles—four fabulous lads from Liverpool, England—have remained the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in the history of music. How John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr managed to make music together remains a mythical truth over half-a-century later. From Please Please Me to Abbey Road (or Let It Be, commercially), the quartet have influenced thousands—likey millions—of people to pick up an instrument and start writing songs. Without the Beatles, the DNA of modern music as we know it would look unrecognizable.
We ranked the 50 best Beatles songs nearly a decade ago, and we decided it was time for an upgrade. Since the band is always present and relevant in the zeitgeist, the cultural consensus on their catalog is constantly shifting. The popularity of albums and tracks are firmly in flux, and our ranking sets out to illustrate that. Notable entries from our 2015 list that didn’t make the cut this time around include “Come Together,” “I Saw Her Standing There” and “Here Comes the Sun,” but we’ve also added a good amount of undersung masterpieces to balance out those losses. Here are our picks for the 30 greatest Beatles songs of all time.
Source: pastemagazine.com
George Harrison and Jeff Lynne of the Electric Light Orchestra became friends through their many collaborations. Lynne assisted Harrison with a few projects, like his album Cloud Nine, and both were part of the supergroup, Traveling Wilburys. One song Lynne helped Harrison with was “magical” for Lynne as it sounded like a throwback to The Beatles.
“When We Was Fab” is a song released by George Harrison in 1988 as the second single for the album Cloud Nine. Harrison wrote the song as a nostalgic reflection of the early days of The Beatles when they were known as the fab four. It also featured psychedelic sounds that The Beatles popularized in the 1960s.
Lynne isn’t the only famous musician who appeared on this song, as Harrison brought in his former bandmate Ringo Starr to play drums. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Lynne said working on “When We Was Fab” was “magical” as it gave him the feeling that he was making a Beatles song.
“I decided to pack it in 1986. About six months later, George Harrison got in touch with me to ask me to work on his new album,” Lynne said. “A few days after he met me, he said, ‘Let’s go on holiday. I’m going to Australia for a while.’ He took me to the Grand Prix in Adelaide, which was amazing.”
Source: Ross Tanenbaum/cheatsheet.com
Today, June 25, is Global Beatles Day - an annual celebration honouring the ideals of the Beatles.
Decades ago, four young lads from Liverpool - John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr - changed music as we knew it and changed the world. Formed following a chance meeting between John Lennon and Paul McCartney at the Woolton Village Fete, in 1957, they released their first album, Please Please Me, in 1962.
The band went on to have 17 number ones in the UK as well as dominating the US charts and in later years solo careers and endeavours. To mark Global Beatles Day, we've delved into the archives to rediscover these brilliant photos of The Beatles in Liverpool in the 1964.
Source: Jess Molyneux/liverpoolecho.co.uk
George Harrison rarely performed live after The Beatles broke up, and he once explained to Tom Petty the main reason why he despised going on tourWhile The Beatles were the most famous band in the world during the 1960s, they stopped touring in 1966. George Harrison famously never liked going on tour, which extended to his solo career. His friend, Tom Petty, once explained why the former Beatle was against going on the road. George Harrison had an essential role with The Beatles, but John Lennon and Paul McCartney were the band’s prominent leaders. However, Harrison was a genius songwriter who only got his chance to shine with The Beatles on a few occasions, with songs like “Something” and “Here Comes the Sun”. When the band ended, he proved how gifted he was with his first album, All Things Must Pass, which featured his No. 1 hit “My Sweet Lord”.
Source: Ross Tanenbaum/cheatsheet.com
