I was once asked to name a person that I looked-up to or admired, someone that was influential in my life. Put on the spot, having to think fast, I could only think of one name, George Harrison.  Ok, I know what your thinking, a Beatle, come on you can do better than that!  Well, sorry but its true!  Call me shallow but, its George.  I even strongly considered naming our son Harrison.  I’ve always been a Beatles fan since the very first time I saw them on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964.  Sitting around the TV, as we did almost every Sunday night, Ed with his classic “stone-faced” delivery….. 

“Now, yesterday and today, our theater’s been jammed with newspapermen and hundreds of photographers from all over the nation, and these veterans agree with me that the city never has witnessed the excitement stirred by these youngsters from Liverpool who call themselves the Beatles,’’ the audience went wild. Barely able to be heard he continued… “Now tonight you’ll be entertained twice by them—right now and in the second half of the show. Ladies and gentlemen, the Beatles!” 

Listen to an NPR story on the “Beatles Coming to America” in celebraton of the 40th anniversary.

It is hard to explain the influence the Beatles had on my generation.  Each album and TV appearance was an eagerly anticipated event, often one that had an evolutionary if not revolutionary impact on music and popular culture. Take their appearance on The David Frost show of “Hey Jude” in Sept 1968 for instance. What could better capture the spirit of the era than that setting and song, it has taken on an almost “anthem-like” status in American culture. When Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band was released the sound was so revolutionary that it was shocking and not easy to assimilate. I didn’t like it and promptly put it away, not listening to it again for months.  Now, of course, it is regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time.

George was always my favorite Beatle.  There was something intreging about George. Certainly there were better guitar players and song writers, yet if you look at the body of his work and listen carefully you realize how terrific he really was. He wasn’t flashy but like many of the “greats” he always seemed to do the right thing, add just the right lick at just the right time to make everything work.  If you are a Harrison fan I highly recommend watching the Concert for George DVD. What an incredible concert! When you hear other fabulous musicians (Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynn, Billy Preston, Ringo, Paul, among others) playing George’s songs you get a whole new perspective on his music. Watching it inspired me to write this story!

Beatles fans will recall that the group got involved briefly with Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1968.  For the rest of the band this was a fleeting encounter with Eastern thought and practice but for George it was the beginning of a life-long journey. George wrote and sang about the spiritual life about seeking enlightenment, about God.  At a time when many of us were questioning conventional religion, rejecting our own our religious upbringing George was talking openly about seeking God (the Hindu ones that is).

Forgive me lord
Please, those years when I ignored you, hmm
Forgive them lord
Those that feel they can’t afford you, hmm

Help me lord, please
To rise above this dealing, hmm
Help me lord, please
To love you with more feeling, hmm

“Hear Me Lord”
From: All Things Must Pass

Tyler Swan, 2003For me this helped opened the door to a spiritual quest of my own influenced by such books as:The Natural Mind, Be Here Now, The Autobiography of a Yogi, The Psychedelic Experience: A Manual Based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead , The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,  The Doors of Perception  among others (hey, I’m a child of the 60s, what do you expect!). Of course I won’t go into the gory details (perhaps at another time) but I credit George, in part,  with inspiring my journey as misdirected as it has been at times.  Now, as you have read elsewhere in this site, I’m back home where I belong, the Orthodox Church… namaste George!

When you’ve seen beyond yourself-
then you may find, peace of mind, Is waiting there-
And the time will come when you see
we’re all one, and life flows on within you and without you

“Within You Without You”
From: Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band

Early Beatle clip “I Saw Her Standing There” at Google Video
Concert for George Website
Concert for Bangladesh  See some great clips from the concert
GeorgeHarrison.com  Flash intensive site with some great media
All Things Must Pass  Shockwave and Flash intensive and a bit too far-out but some interesting tidbits on this amazing album.
George Harrison Lyrics