The Fab Four
Paul McCartney
George Harrison
John Lennon
Ringo Starr
Albums
Beatle Sites
George Harold Harrison was born Feb. 25, 1943 to Harry and Louise Harrison, which makes him the
youngest of the 4 Beatles. His family consisted of his mother, a housewife, his father, a bus driver, two brothers, Harold Jr. and Peter, and one sister Louise. George's interest in the guitar came
about slowly as his mom remembers starting to find drawings of guitars on his school things. She
eventually bought him a second hand guitar. Every year up until his 13th birthday, George would get
tonsillitis. One day he insisted his mother take him to the doctor and he was soon admitted into the
hospital with Nephritis, inflammation of the kidneys. That was the year he began to play the guitar. He
would practice all night until his fingers would start to bleed. He would imitate his brother and slowly
taught himself how to play.
|
George attended Dovedale Primary School, and was two forms behind John. Then he attended the
Liverpool Institute and was one year behind Paul. Paul and George took the bus together to school and
soon learned that they had a few things in common. Paul introduced him to the Quarrymen at age 14, but
he was not yet old enough to join the band. George and his brother Peter formed a skiffle band and had to
sneak out to play their first engagement. Once they played at a dance where the band didn't show up. They
only knew two songs, but repeated them over and over. George would go to as many as the Quarrymen shows
as possible. He would stand in the back room with his guitar in hopes that a guitarist would fail to show up and
he would be called to fill in. Eventually his dreams would come true and at the age of 15 he was invited to join the
group, at that time known as Johnny and the Moondogs.
|
|
|
George made a lasting mark on the Beatles as a songwriter, singer, and guitarist. His most famous
contributions included 'I Need You', 'Taxman', 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps', 'Something', and 'Here
Comes the Sun'. He introduced the sitar to the world of popular music in such songs as 'Norwegian
Wood'. In 1965 he met and became a pupil of Ravi Shankar, a noted Indian sitar player and composer.
George began to pursue Indian-based spiritual values and this eastern influence soon permeated the Beatles
music during their final years together.
|
After the break up, George said that he was happy to be his own boss. His first album, in fact a triple
album, entitle "All Things Must Pass" was a smashing hit. It included an enormous hit single 'My Sweet Lord'.
George's solo was the first to top the charts on both sides of the Atlantic out of all the Beatles. Others who
played on this triple album included Ringo Starr, Klaus Vooram, and Eric Clapton. In 1971 he staged a massive all
star benefit concert in New York to raise money for Bangladesh. Artistically it was a huge success although neither
Paul or John performed. In 1972 George released his second boxed triple LP, which was a recording of the benefit concert. The
proceeds from this release were supposed to benefit its cause, but the US revenue insisted on tax revenues from the release, which
caused a delay in the money reaching Bangladesh.
|
|
|
In 1973 George once again reached number one with a single entitled 'Give me Love' and the LP "Living
in the Material World." He launched his own record label, Dark Horse, and went on a US tour. Around this
time George was on the verge of losing his wife Patti Boyd to Eric Clapton, who apparently was in love with
her. In 1976 the courts ruled that George's 'My Sweet Lord' plagiarized 'He's so Fine', a 1963 hit by the Chiffons.
George's interest went beyond music and entered the production field. He helped with the production of "Monty
Python's Life of Brian", "The Time Bandits", and "With Nail and I."During the 1980's he created a new rock grouped
called The Traveling Wilburys with Bob Dylan, Jeff Lynee, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty. They recorded 2 albums together.
He even took some time off to pursue a new hobby of Grand Prix Racing. George eventually remarried to Olivia Arias and
gave birth to his son Dhani in Oct. 1978.
|
Tanya M. Brethour
Copyright 1998 All Rights Reserved
[Ringo Starr] [Albums] [Beatle Sites] [Main]