Product Description
Cherished by fans and collectors since its first publication in 1980, I, Me, Mine is now available in paperback. The closest we will come to George Harrison's autobiography, it features George in conversation with The Beatles' spokesperson Derek Taylor, discussing everything from early Beatlemania to his love of gardening. The lyrics to over 80 of his songs, many in his own hand, are accompanied by his uniquely intimate and humorous commentary. Fifty archival photographs of George with The Beatles and solo capture a journey of creative and spiritual transformation. Brimming with the wit, warmth, and grace that characterized his life, and with an introduction by his wife, Olivia, I, Me, Mine is a treasured portrait of George Harrison and his music. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (51)

I like George Harrison a lot, but this thick book is really thin
I was turned on to this book by the very good "A Hard Day's Write", in which each Beatles song is detailed in chronological order. Since there were several references to "I, Me, Mine" from that book, I thought I'd read the book itself rather than just the bits taken and put into "A Hard Day's Write".

The book starts off with some light autobiographical stuff. George is largely prodded by Derek Taylor who interrupts George's writing with background information of his own. This gives the biographical start of the book a jarring feeling. While most fans probably know a bit about George, there wasn't enough here to fully call this a biography, but since I was mostly interested in the book for the individual song histories anyway, I actually preferred that the biographical section was kept light. There's a couple of great stories by George with the highlight being about some of the hectic touring the Beatles did. Still, the writing has a lazy feel to it. George is fairly economical with his words, which can make his songs simple yet enjoyable, but for actual storytelling it's much less effective.

The middle section of the book consists of photographs. Most, if not all, seem culled from George's personal collection and are a rare treat. They are all in black-and-white which is fine for most but a few color shots would have broken the monotony of the section as well as embellished some of the darker and less enjoyable photographs. What really detracts from this section are the lack of captions for the photos. There's not a single caption, so it's hard to determine who is in each photograph (die-hard fans probably will know all of George's friends and acquaintances, but I do not). Again, this just seemed lazy to not caption any photos.

The last section of the book, and thickest, consists of a write-up of each individual song that George wrote, starting with "Don't Bother Me" and ending with "Blow Away". Perhaps there is a compendium of the songs beyond 1980 that George wrote, some of which were his best. In any case, George is quite frequently short on descriptions of the songs, sometimes offering a deep full-page commentary on a song but mostly merely referencing an instrument he was using or the time frame the song was written. While the photos in the middle section lacked captions, the songs in this last section lacked headings. The neat thing was that George included each of his handwritten lyrics for the song, which, when you could make out the writing, showed how the song had evolved into what was eventually recorded. Great stuff -- but again, the reader will find themselves turning the page and seeing notes on a song and the handwritten version and not actually know what song they are referencing until reading through the page. It just seemed that some type of heading at the start of each song would help make indexing much easier.

Overall, some interesting stuff here, especially the photographs and a couple of the stories, but mostly a book that just about wrote itself between Derek Taylor's writing/prodding, photographs, and reprinted song lyrics. Beyond that, there's just not enough of George himself.

for collectors only
NOT AN AUTOBIOGRAHY :3 parts here #1. Parts of an interview with D. Taylor puttings the pieces together.Not that enlightning.#2.Photos=nice.#3. George's songs with notes about why and how the somg was written-nice.

I, Me, Mine is a Must Read
The late, great George Harrison is justifiably most remembered for his contributions to the world of music.However, if one only listens to the music without reading this book, than you are only getting part of the picture.The majority of this tome is devoted to discussions of George's songs, how he wrote them and what he was trying to convey.This is an unprecedented peek into a great songwriters ways, his method and his intentions.What comes out is a man who was serious about his craft and serious about his pursuit of God.At the same time, you get the idea that George had a wonderful sense of humour and would have been a good guy to know regardless of the status he achieved.For George Harrison it was not all about himself and he wanted to share that insight with all of us; Thank God for George Harrison!

Great Book, Great Seller...
The book was in better shape than expected, arrived on time and was a fair price.

Like finding a box full of gems in the attic...
This books deserves nothing less than 5 stars. The collection of handwritten lyrics PLUS the stories behind said songs would've been a great book in-and-of itself, but with pictures and a bio/interview to boot, this book is wonderful. It's a great little bio for new fans, though I might suggest other bios as a starting point to get all the insight and angles. I would suggest the Rolling Stone book full of photos and interviews for another amazing read. ... Read more

Product Description
A comprehensive collection of 24 of Harrison's best songs: All Things Must Pass * All Those Years Ago * Apple Scruffs * Badge * Bangla Desh * Blow Away * Crackerbox Palace * Dark Horse * For You Blue * Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) * Here Comes the Sun * I Me Mine * Isn't It a Pity * My Sweet Lord * Piggies * Savoy Truffle * Something * This Song * Wah-wah * Wake up My Love * What Is Life * When We Was Fab * While My Guitar Gently Weeps * You. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

a review of the other three reviews from Feb 2002
The version of MSL is (surprise!) not from the Bangla Desh concerts. It's the version heard round the world as a single from All Things Must Pass album; in other words it's the version that you most likely would like to play. Good collection of tunes by one of the greatest songwriters. It's not an 'accu-tab' book; some of those great horn riffs are not included or transcribed to guitar.
And Beware of Darkness is omitted, but this is a valuable book fora George fan. As to the other reviewer, I guess you going to have to learn the Bangla Desh version elsewhere.

Waste of money
If you've looked at this book and you think it's complete - you're right - it's completely wrong.Many of the songs have incorrect tab and chord listings.I have compared many of the songs in the book to how Harrison plays them in the Concert for Bangladesh and the chords are definitely wrong. If you're looking for George Harrison guitar tablature that is correct don't buy this one.

don't buy it
Don't buy this book. The chords and notations are incorrect. If you have seen the Concert for Bangla Desh you will know the song My Sweet Lord is incorrect. Songs like Here Comes the Sun are difficult to read. If you are looking for George Harrison guitar tab find another book!

don't buy it
Don't buy this book. The chords and notations are incorrect. If you have seen the Concert for Bangla Desh you will know the song My Sweet Lord is incorrect. Songs like Here Comes the Sun are difficult to read. If you are looking for George Harrison guitar tab find another book! ... Read more

Product Description
Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller

For the first time, rock music’s most famous muse tells her incredible story

Pattie Boyd, former wife of both George Harrison and Eric Clapton, finally breaks a forty-year silence and tells the story of how she found herself bound to two of the most addictive, promiscuous musical geniuses of the twentieth century and became the most legendary muse in the history of rock and roll. The woman who inspired Harrison’s song “Something” and Clapton’s anthem “Layla,” Pattie Boyd has written a book that is rich and raw, funny and heartbreaking–and totally honest.Amazon.com Review
A Q&A with Pattie Boyd, Author of Wonderful Tonight

Why are you writing the book now?

I have been asked for the last 15 years to write a book, and it is only now that I feel the time is right. My confidence in myself was restored after two successful exhibitions of my photography, and it occurred to me that I was finally ready to take a look at the unique experiences of my life and to share them--including all the ups and downs.

Tell us about the first time you met George Harrison.

Working as a model, I occasionally went for castings, mainly for television commercials. I went for an interview with one of the directors I had worked with in the past, and he cast me in his first movie, A Hard Day’s Night, to play the part of a schoolgirl. When I first saw George on the set, I thought he was the best-looking man I’d ever seen. I was so surprised when he asked me out on a date at the end of my first day offilming.

Tell us about the first time you heard George Harrison's song, "Something."

George said he had written a song for me, and he played it on the guitar at home without the words. Then when I heard the song after it had been recorded I couldn’t believe how utterly beautiful it was. It was released on a single in October 1969, and I felt so thrilled and flattered.

Tell us about the first time you heard Eric Clapton's "Layla."

Eric invited me to his band's flat one day and played a rough recording of "Layla" on a cassette recorder. I was sitting on a sofa and he on the floor as it played, and he kept looking up at me for a reaction. I was stunned; the intensity, passion and tenderness came across so strongly--I knew, as he said, it was written for me.

Customer Reviews (288)

A Good Read
Really enjoyed Patty Boyd's up close and personal account of her relationships with famous rock stars and artists. She recalls conversations and details that
give incite into what they were like as people. Wished there were more of her photos.

great service
My book showed up in about 3 days, way before it's due date, and was in very very good cond. I would buy from this vendor again for sure.

Fascinating, Surreal Life
This was such an interesting book. 1st of all I'm surprised Patti Boyd never OD'd on anything. All the partying. 2nd what an insight into the private love lives of George Harrison and Eric Clapton. I couldn't put it down.

Patty provided great history on her life and the Beatles
I would give this a rating of 3.5 to 4.0. It was a good story. It was really interesting to hear about the lives of the Beatles as well as Patty's crazy life. I can't imagine living that kind of exciting life in those exciting times. It all sounded very genuine and real. Thanks for sharing!

Patty Gives It Her All
I read this right after finishing Suze Rotolo's A Freewheelin' Time: A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties, which disappointed me with its emotional distance from her early 60's time with Bob Dylan. I was pleasantly surprised by Patty Boyd's ability to make her past come alive. It's well written and engaging enough that even her early personal life (well before any rock stars come into the picture) is enjoyable.

I've always been a Beatles fan, so was more interested in the George Harrison part of her life, but I was so horrified by her description of life with Eric Clapton that the next book I read was Clapton's Clapton: The Autobiography. Clapton confirms, in essence and in many details, what Patty Boyd has to say.

Love and romance at the superstar level is apparently just as confusing and frustrating - and sometimes wonderful - as love and romance is for average people like you and me. For the most part Patty Boyd keeps her head, and all these years later has written a wonderful book about it.

There is one early chapter on modeling that wasn't so interesting to me, and the post-Clapton years go by quickly, as they should.

If you enjoy reading about the Beatles or Eric Clapton I'd recommend this. ... Read more

Product Description

George Harrison was one of the most adored and accomplished musicians of the rock & roll era. His brilliant, understated guitar playing helped define the sound of the Beatles, and his songs -- including "Something," "Here Comes the Sun" and "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" -- are among the group's finest. Harrison's lifelong quest for new sounds had a profound influence on the Beatles; he introduced the sitar and other Eastern instruments into the group -- and to rock & roll. In the late sixties he also led the Beatles to explore Eastern religion and embarked on a personal spiritual journey that continued for the rest of his life. In 1970, following the Beatles' breakup, Harrison released a solo masterpiece, All Things Must Pass, and the next year he pioneered rock's first large-scale charity event with the Concert for Bangladesh. Harrison launched a solo tour in 1974 and made a series of wonderful solo albums and side projects with friends like Eric Clapton, Ravi Shankar and fellow Beatle Ringo Starr. In the late eighties he formed the Traveling Wilburys with his friends Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne, but Harrison spent most of that decade and the nineties at home in England and Hawaii, tending to his garden, playing the ukulele and enjoying a quiet life with his wife, Olivia, and son, Dhani.

ROLLING STONE featured George Harrison on its cover three times for his post-Beatles work and eight times as a Beatle. He was also featured on the cover of a special commemorative issue, as well as on the magazine's regular edition, following his death from cancer at age fifty-eight, on November 29, 2001. Now, in a definitive tribute that features a new foreword by Olivia Harrison, the editors have drawn on their archives and hundreds of photographs, both the iconographic and the rarely seen, to celebrate the life and career of one of the most important musicians in rock & roll history.

Compiled by the editors of ROLLING STONE, Harrison chronicles the guitarist's life before, during and after the Beatles. Contributing editor Mikal Gilmore offers an expansive, thoughtful new essay, "The Mystery Inside George." ASCAP-Deems Taylor Award winner and ROLLING STONE senior editor David Fricke tells the stories behind Harrison's best-known songs, and offers a guide to twenty-five essential Harrison recordings. Harrison also features news stories and interviews with the guitarist from throughout ROLLING STONE's history -- from his first Q&A with the magazine, in 1968, to his last, a 1987 interview with ROLLING STONE contributing editor Anthony DeCurtis.

Harrison also collects more than one hundred photographs -- from intimate, never-before-seen family photos to iconic images of Harrison as a member of the world's most photographed band. The work of nine renowned photographers is featured in a stunning sixty-page gallery. Included among them are German photographers Max Scheler's and Jürgen Vollmer's early photos of the band's wild days in Hamburg. There is also the deeply personal work of Astrid Kirchherr, who shot the Beatles' earliest formal portraits in a Hamburg fairground and became a close friend of George's. P.J. Griffiths photographed the band for a newspaper article in 1963 on the Liverpool scene. David Hurn shot the filming of A Hard Day's Night and Help! Curt Gunther was one of the few photographers allowed to travel with the group during their 1964 North American tour. And Mark Seliger shot what became the definitive late-period portrait of Harrison for ROLLING STONE's twenty-fifth anniversary issue in 1992. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (27)

Harrison
Got to admit it I think he is great, wish I could have met him.
Very nice book, I am reading, Here comes the sun, that one is also good.

george lives
I saw this book in the public library of a naval air support station in crete...what an unlikely place! I was totally overwhelmed by it. George was 11 years older than I am but I was a fan of the beatles and the stones and the other supergroups of the seventies.
Photographs are beautiful, so are the forewords of Olivia Arias and the interviews from Rolling Stone over the years, so the reviews of his friends, especially the one of Paul Simon (I wished they had played toghether more thanthe 1976 appearance at Saturday night live) and the one by Elton John.
This book drove me to visit george's web sites ([...]) the latter one has great graphics in it. It drove me also to search on youtubealmost all you can find about him and his great son Dhani, (there's a lot of songs and interviews and bad gossip too).
So I will try to buy this book and I'll show it to other old friends of mine, because it portraits the life of one of our heroes that shaped our dreams during the '70ies.
peace and love to you all.

A Sage Among the Musicians
When reading about George, it is worth remembering that after a certain period, his life was sincerely oriented toward spiritual life. Rather than retiring entirely from the world, he kindly shared this dedication through many if not all of his creative works. George also had a wonderful sense of humor, to go along with his realization of the ephemeral, illusory nature of the material world. It is his, and our, great fortune that George remembered God in His most playful and attractive form as Krishna, and never forgot Him. Hare Krishna!

George Harrison's Life in Pictures
This is a beautiful and lovingly produced book of George Harrison's life in pictures with comprehensive articles and tributes written about George and heaps of great photographs and more. George's wife, Olivia Harrison wrote a moving personal Foreword that brings tears to the eye and touches chords of hearts. No George Harrison fans could miss this much sought-after item. However, whether or not you are a George Harrison or Beatles fan, this is a great book to read and a wonderful gift to give.

my favority beatle
Geroge is consider one of the quiet one in the band "i think" but not on the music, his talent surpass any
other musician and is really sad not to have him anymore . In this book you'll find a great deal of pics since
the Beginning and from his solo career , a must have book to put in your collection ... Read more

Product Description

"Many well-known artists have touched people's hearts with their music, but few have ever succeeded in touching people's souls. That was George's gift, and his story is described here with affection and taste. A wonderful book."
—Mia Farrow

"There is a palpable excitement to this book that made me feel I was there, with George, on his journey. . . . Extraordinary."
—Martin Rutte, coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Soulat Work

"The depth of insight into Harrison's inner life is great."
—Yoga Journal

Here Comes the Sun tells the story of George Harrison's musical and spiritual journey with more detail and immediacy than in any other book about Harrison or the Beatles. Like his fellow Beatles, Harrison escaped the streets of working-class Liverpool, survived a tough musical apprenticeship in underground clubs, and became one of the most famous and successful musical artists in history. Before long, though, disillusioned with both the price and rewards of celebrity, he began the journey that would transform his music and redefine the rest of his life. Joshua Greene, who studied meditation with the legendary Beatle, draws on personal remembrances, recorded conversations, and firsthand accounts to create a moving portrait of Harrison's spiritual life and his profound musical vision. This is a fresh and highly rewarding book for Beatles fans as well as for any reader interested in the spiritual path. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (33)

definite recommendation if you want the lowdown on George's spirituality
This is such a great book I bought a copy for a friend. This is written by a former Hare Krishna follower who knew George and is compiled from interviews and research (though George was gone by the time this was written). It doesn't delve deep into George's psyche or try to, but it doesn't leave any other stone unturned in an easy to read and addictive history. Everything you wanted to know about George's spirituality is pretty much here. The book focuses heavily on George's time with the Beatles and the beginning of his solo career and gets sparse for the 80's & 90's, but being based on interviews nobody was interested in George at the time so much so he didn't get the coverage he did earlier. Not touring for 20 years also kept him out of the limelight. There's a lot I learned from this book, like how spirituality meant George was bored with Sgt. Pepper and led to his quiting the band. But, there's a lot not here. You won't find out about each album he made and the reunion with Paul and Ringo to record a couple new songs for the Anthology is basically a sentence. You also aren't given much into the other Beatles. This is not an author trying to rip apart each individual and compare them, which may or may not meet your expectations. But, if you want to know about George or are researching George this book is a definite.

My Sweet Lord! What a good read!!!
When it came to my education on my favorite Beatle, Mr. George Harrison, I began reading his "autobiography" I Me Mine. It was an intimate but brief illumination into the life of George, but after ingesting it, I was hungry for much more.

I decided to check out Here Comes the Sun. Admittedly I skipped over the first chapter, covering the beginnings and basics of George and the Beatles, and I jumped head first into his personal life, his love for India, he seclusion, his loves, and his religion. It was inspiring to no end. I like him more as a person than as a musician. Someone I'd love to strive to be like in some respects, though his somewhat closed off demeanor at times is unfortunately not very becoming, especially in regards to personal and romantic relationships.

That aside, this was an amazingly well-researched, well written, very engaging book. I read it through the course of 2 days, which is unheard of for a normally slow/ADHD reader like myself. I'm interested in reading more books on George but afraid of way too much overlap.

Poorly Written Book About A Wonderful Guy
This book introduced me to George the human being.I don't regret having read it.But imagine that there's a really great book about George out there, which a 10th grader reads and then writes a report about.This book is like that report.A slightly sophomoric retelling of a great story.

The author just doesn't braid together a well-told biography.

Still worth reading, don't pay full price.

Skillfully executed, thoughtful and enlightening
Biography is a particularly difficult genre for a writer. This is because who you are can (and often does) depend largely upon who you ask. Consider your own life in this regard. Friends, family, associates and lovers old and new would all have different, sometimes radically different, takes on "who you really are." Then, of course, there's your own opinion. And that's just us ordinary folks. Now let's say you're an internationally famous, gifted and influential musician like George Harrison. Now the task becomes even more daunting, but Joshua Greene in his book, Here Comes The Sun: The Spiritual and Musical Journey of George Harrison, surpasses the expectation of common biography by painting a portrait of Harrison's spiritual progress that is thoughtful, engaging and, at times, quietly revelatory.

Greene manages the nearly impossible task of being compassionate to his subject while keeping, by and large, the objectivity necessary for good biography intact. The Harrison that emerges from these pages is a man caught up in life's big questions and seriously attempting, musically, artistically and intellectually, to grapple with those questions. Greene narrows his focus principally to George's spiritual quest and while such narrowness of focus could be seen as a weakness in standard biographies, here it is a definite strength. A fascinating collection of anecdotes and personal recollections offers a devotees' perspective on a rock and roll icon. (And Harrison is not the only one: consider Elvis' connection to kriya yoga chronicled on page 57) Although ultimately Harrison may not have been entirely successful in getting his friends to join him on his spiritual journey, Greene, through well-crafted prose and occasional humor, certainly takes the reader along for the ride. Skillfully handled too is the account of George's later years, his spiritual maturity and apparent fearlessness in the face of death.

It's fashionable today to look back on the 1960s as a decade characterized by the emergence of a powerful youth culture that rapidly evolved into a hedonistic, often self-destructive, paradigm against a background of "sex, drugs and rock and roll." That aspect of the times is covered by George's disillusionment with the Haight-Ashbury scene as he experienced it. Still, it's the other side of the times, the "light side" that was so profoundly influential to those who experienced it, that is really brilliantly captured here. That amazing time when many people actually believed that a spiritual consciousness could serve as the antidote to the cynicism and greed of a materialistic culture--that things as simple as music and chanting could change the world. How sad that, in an age where spiritual books and ideas have become so widely disseminated and music can now be downloaded and consumed instantly, Madonna's faddish obsession with kabbalah seems the best we have to offer. Yet it is precisely this tendency toward spiritual bankruptcy among many of today's most prominent popular musical acts that makes Here Comes The Sun required reading for anyone interested in music's undeniable power to elevate one's consciousness toward something more divine.

Just what I hoped it would be!
As a George fan, I really wanted to know how George's spiritual life started and developed. I had heard many things, and knew he had been influenced by ISKCON (International Society of Krishna Consciousness), but I didn't know how it all came about. This book answers those questions in as great a detail as one could expect.

I feel I know George much better after reading this book, and that is a good thing. There are no sordid events here, although I'm sure some author will dig them up and make a fortune some day. I am not interested in reading that kind of book. I'm sure George was quite human and did his share of unsavory and unenlightened things. Don't we all? But this book focuses on George's desire to know God, and his interest in spreading the word about God and trying to enlighten the rest of us, as he tried to enlighten himself. He wanted his friends to come with him on his spiritual journey. For the most part his fellow Beatles did not, and he was disappointed in that. But I think after awhile he came to realize that people come to this when they are ready and one just has to wait for them to decide to be ready.

I LOVED this book and will probably read it again some day.

However, the book is not perfect. Some have pointed out that there are a few errors about dates in the book. I did not notice that, but to me the book wasn't about dates, it was more about the history of George's inner evolution.

One thing that did bother me, and I am guessing it was caused by the book having been rushed to be published (?), is that the last few chapters in particular have a lot of jumping around in time. The author is talking about the late 70's and then on the same page jumps forward to the 80's. This occurs a number of times and it becomes confusing. If the author had kept it all "in order" it would have been better, and although it is unlikely, I would like to see the author go in and correct that and publish a "corrected" version. But I am not going to deduct a star for that because it was a minor annoyance and the book overall gave me great pleasure to read.

I highly recommend this book, for any George fan. ... Read more

Product Description
Horse Talk is a fun, informative, and handy guide, dedicated to helping people understand Thoroughbred racing and training terminology. Over 207 words or phrases defined, explained and used in a creative sentence by the opinion of the author.With the exception of some track conditions, betting terms, and medications. ... Read more

Product Description
George Harrison was always known as the 'quiet Beatle' As part of the biggest band in pop history, he took a back seat to Paul McCartney and John Lennon, but his talent shone through in the composition of classic songs such as 'Something' and 'Here Comes The Sun'. In his solo career he occasionally threatened to eclipse both John and Paul on the world stage, and he joined forces with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and Jeff lynne to create the massively succsessful supergroup the Traveling Wilburys. However, the success of his professional life was often met by turmoil in his private life, and the loss of first wife Patti to best friend Eric Clapton, the traumatic attempt on his life by a knife wielding intruder and his final struggle against cancer meant that George Harrison's life was nothing if not dramatic. Bestselling author Marc Shapiro has exclusively interviewed friends and former colleagues of the enigmatic guitar legend.This revealing biography reaffirms Harrison's importance as an innovative and hugely talented musician and shows that, as a member of the most important band ever, as well as in his mult-faceted career after the Beatles, George Harrison was no ordinary man. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Not So Run of the Mill
I thought this was a decent biography of George Harrison.As an inveterate fan of the Youngest Beatle, it was only natural that I would want to read this book.This one is better than Shapiro's other Harrison biography, "Behind Sad Eyes."

I like the way the people who figured largely in George's life were described; I really liked the way the senior Harrisons and their early lives together in Liverpool were outlined.One gets a "sense" of these people, without actually having known them personally.One also gets a sense of young George and the world in which he grew up.

This book has a nice selection of photographs and will certainly reign in and maintain the interest of avid Beatle fans.Still, even though not much in the way of new material is presented, what is presented is well done. ... Read more

Product Description
Far from being "the quiet one," George Harrison was a writer and arranger of terrific power and beauty, and his guitar playing was fundamental to the Beatles' sound and success.Now fully revised and expanded, this new edition of While My Guitar Gently Weeps: The Music of George Harrison is the most comprehensive evaluation of George Harrison's musical career ever published. Treating each of Harrison's songs with unprecedented analysis, author Simon Leng reveals Harrison's eclectic approach - from teenage Nashville twang through Indian raga, psychedelia, gospel, soul, and pure pop - and thoroughly defines Harrison's role in the Beatles. First-hand accounts of the Concert for Bangladesh and the making of All Things Must Pass take the reader deep into the most fertile and controversial periods of Harrison's long solo career that culminated with Brainwashed.Enhanced with insights from key figures who worked closely with Harrison throughout his extraordinary career, While My Guitar Gently Weeps is a remarkably stirring study and portrait of a great artist whose musical and spiritual quest changed the lives of millions of people around the world while redefining popular music and rock 'n' roll. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

like George? yes? So you must buy this book!
Very good biography from george harrison. I believe george's fans should read this and "I me mine" too.I, Me, Mine

Great Book But........
Good book. I find myself constantly picking it up, opening it to whatever page and reading it. It is full of facts and more importantly- to me- the names of the musicians on most of the tunes. Leng is thorough in his research but he tends to let his own personal opinions get in the way. He uses million dollar words that not even the most intelligent person would understand nor ever use. He also has a tendency to dig way too deep in to the songs as if each and every one Harrison wrote post-Beatles was an attempt to find the path to God or at least should have. For example, he states that "Teardrops" adds nothing to "Somewhere In England" and sounds like a hack job. Well, that tune was written under pressure from the clueless guys at Warner Brothers who nixed the sure fire hit "Flying Hour", but Harrison did a great job on "Teardrops" and it isn't a throwaway like the writer insinuates. What makes it worse is that he goes on to praise "Got My Mind Set On You"- which is the most "forced pop" tune that Harrison ever recorded- velveeta drums and all. The author tries his best to paint a less than favorable picture of both John Lennon & Paul McCartney. Let's face it, George Harrison was brought to us via Rock / Pop music and had it not been for those two, George Harrison as well as Ringo Starr would be complete unknowns. Of course, no one is perfect either- not even George Harrison. What annoys me is that Leng makes it sound as if it's a travesty if Harrison dared to write songs with hits in mind. He tries to paint a picture of Harrison as if he really was that guy standing on top of the mountain with the wind blowing through his hair like the "Yellow Submarine" film portrays. Had George Harrison hated the material world as much as Leng believes, he would've given away his multi-million dollar forty acre property and everything else and gone to live at the feet of Krishna's statue in India. Alas, that never happened, did it?

I like what Leng has to say about my favorite song of all time "Flying Hour", but he lists the track time as 4:32. This is NOT the version which was intended for the "Somewhere In England" LP in 1980. With that in mind, I wonder if Leng has ever actually heard the superior version Harrison deliberately edited and sped up for release? Also, he goes on to say that "Grey Cloudy Lies" would've been better off as an unreleased track. Not happening! Another bone of contention I must bring up is Leng's statement that Harrison's solo on the originally unreleased Beatles tune "Leave My Kitten Alone" is "the greatest solo of his entire career". This is what I mean about letting his personal opinions get in the way. Besides, is this guy kidding? The solos on "Old Brown Shoe", "My Sweet Lord", Lennon's "Gimme Some Truth" and "How Do You Sleep?" and even Harrison's doinky "That Which I Have Lost" are ample proof that he is way off. By the way, he states that Harrison played lead guitar on "Back In The USSR". No, he does not. It's Paul McCartney.

Oh well. It's still a good read. :)

The definitive guide to George Harrison's solo career
If you're a Beatles fan, there are so many books that discuss their music that a newcomer could easily be paralyzed by the sheer volume of choices. If you are a GEORGE HARRISON fan, however, there are relatively few books available, and this is a good thing, because Simon Leng's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is all you need for critical analysis of his work. The book moves chronologically, skimming over the Beatles years and digging in around 1969, when George became a solo artist and producer-for-hire. Each album is discussed, track by track, and unreleased recordings and guest spots for other artists are also covered. The original hardcover first came out in 2001, so get the newer softcover, which received a considerable re-write and is updated for George's final album, "Brainwashed." Leng is clearly a George fan, and he does fawn and over-defend some lesser work, but the book is still an invaluable guide to the underrated solo career of the Quiet Beatle.

an achievement
This book provides an insightful description and analysis of Harrison's music and his era. It's really an achievement. Leng is a mature, sensitive and intelligent writer: his knowledge of Harrison and his wonderful music is evident, as is his affection for the subject. Leng traces Harrison's solo work, how it evolved and why. He also places Harrison's work in context: Can you imagine a time when songs about peace, love and spiritual yearning topped the pop charts? And if you are just a bit too young to know why, say, Bob Dylan, was such a big deal, then read this book. Harrison's music and his spiritual growth were a big deal, too, and rightfully so - and Leng should be commended for recognizing and illuminating this.

George's own Revolution In the Head
The review title refers to the monumental critical analysis by Ian MacDonald, Revolution in the Head: The Beatles' Records and the Sixties, which this book closely resembles both in structure and style. I think it is, in a word, AWESOME that a solid critical appreciation of George Harrison's entire body of work has been issued.Simon Leng has done a truly commendable job of treating Harrison's solo discography with the respect and attention is deserves.There is, in fact, much more to George's post-Beatles ouput than "All Things Must Pass" (though that is certainly the peak of his accomplishments) and Mr. Leng offers opinions of it all, song by song.

As with the Ian MacDonald work, this book is written by someone who is obviously a major fan - but not a fanboy.A clear-eyed objectivity is (more or less) maintained as Leng analyzes Harrison's music.I didn't agree with every single opinion of every single song - but it did inspire me to relisten to George's music from a different perspective.Ultimately, I believe that's exactly what this type of book should do.The focus is squarely on the music (though some biographical information is included in between discussing the albums, which is welcome - especially since George's career isn't as well known or documented as Lennon and McCartney's).

If you're a longtime fan of Harrison's work, you're likely to find something new to listen for.If you're a newcomer, you're likely to want to immediately acquire any of music you aren't familiar with. ... Read more

Product Description
George Harrison war ein Suchender. Er hat die Beatles durch seine spirituelle Reise in die indische Mythologie beeinflusst und war dabei auch einer der Wortführer der 1968er-Bewegung, die glaubten, in das Zeitalter des Wassermanns einzutreten. Der George der frühen 1970er Jahre, der vom Glauben erfüllt war, hat viele spirituelle Lieder geschrieben, und damit die Hitparaden gestürmt. Aber auch bei den Beatles trugen die charakteristische Art seines Gitarrenspiels, die er sich hart erarbeitet hatte, und seine sanft harmonisierende Stimme zum typischen Beatles-Sound teil. George wurde von den anderen Beatles, aber auch von der Öffentlichkeit als Komponist unterschätzt. Bekannt geworden ist hier vor allem die Aussage von Frank Sinatra, das Lied Something" von Lennon/-McCartney" sei eines der schönste Liebeslieder der letzten fünfzig Jahre. Geschrieben aber hatte es Georgeneben zahlreichen anderen Klassikern vor allem der späteren Periode wie While My Guitar Gently Weeps", Taxman" oder Here Comes The Sun". ... Read more

Product Description
Shrouded in a sea of mystery, the elusive George Harrison has long been the most private and enigmatic member of the Beatles.From his hard knock childhood in Liverpool to his ascendance into rock infamy, George Harrison's life has been a torpid ride filled with legendary success and heart crushing defeat.

New York Times bestselling author Marc Shapiro sheds new light on this paradoxical rocker, whose reputation for unusual religious practices and drug abuse often rivaled his musical notoriety.

A man whose desire was to be free rather than be famous, Harrison's battle against conformity lead him to music making, a soulful and creative expression that would be his ticket to success and the bane of his existence. Behind Sad Eyes is the compelling account of a man who gave the Beatles their lyrical playing style and brought solace to a generation during turbulent times.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

behind sad eyes: the life of george harrison
this bio was an easy read on george.disappointed that it did not cover more on his days with the beatles, the songs he performed with the beatles & the music he wrote while a beatle.otherwise it was a good read for beatle fans.

PISS POOR WRITING.
Having read about 200 books on the Beatles, this is among the worst.There's nothing insightful or informative about this book.The only original material seems to be unsupported speculation.An entire waste of time.

George Harrison desrves better than this!
Not only is this a terrible biography of Harrison, it's possibly the worst biography I've ever read. As other reviewers have mentioned, NO ONE close to Harrison was actually interviewed except Delaney Bramlett. But that's not the worst of it. I began to wonder if anyone actually checked any of the alleged facts Shapiro states. For instance, at one point he mentions how the other Beatles denied Harrison's request to record his original songs on any albums before Rubber Soul, yet any Beatles fan knows that Harrison recorded "Don't Bother Me" for With the Beatles, as well as "I Need You" and "You Like Me Too Much" on the Help! soundtrack album, both of which were released before Rubber Soul. Shapiro then goes on to say that Harrison's first use of sitar on a Beatles song was "Norwegian Wood", which is true, but says the song appeared on Revolver. But what made me finally put the book down for good was Shapiro's claim that it was George's fault that Eric Clapton fell into heavy heroin addiction!

If those factual errors weren't bad enough, some of the typos, grammar and syntax make it read like something a high school student would write - and even then, a poorly educated high school student.

Save your money, and spend it on the Concert for Bangladesh or Concert for George DVD.

Don't Bother Me
Evidently hashed together upon the death of George, to cash in on the uptick in interest, this short bio clipjob lacks interviews with anyone of any significance. It relies on a lot of speculation by the writer about what George "must have thought" etc etc. "It's a good bet that..." is one of his fave phrases. Still, this tells the extremely familiar story in telescoped form for anyone who doesn't already know it. I expected more.

I'm Speechless....it's really that bad!
Thank heavens I checked this book out of our library before I wasted my money. I probably could have written a better book about George Harrison. Even though the author admitted that no interviews were conducted by any remaining Beatles, it is my belief that if you write a biography about someone, you'd better darn well check your "facts" (and I use the word losely) before committing it to print, or just save it for the gossip rags! Example: Shapiro's account of George finding out about John Lennon's death; I got the feeling Shapiro wanted to make this sad incident more dramatic or mystical or something. Every other account I've ever read has said that George's wife Olivia received a phone call and had to break the news to George. Shapiro's account states that Harrison had a strange foreboding or some other such nonsense. Another example of "poetic license" was Shapiro's recounting of George and Olivia's meeting: Shapiro says that George is so paranoid about people's intentions that he has Olivia "checked out," in other words, INVESTIGATED. This is nonsense. Having spoken on the phone with Olivia, he was having her checked out (what does she look like?) by a friend, much like a smitten teenager. Olivia Harrison herself has retold their meeting in an interview, saying, "He was flirting!"
Besides the factual errors, I found editing errors, which is pretty awful for a legitimately published book: as I was reading I double-checked to see if this was a "vanity press" book! Yiiikes!
All of this aside, it is obvious that Shapiro really didn't have a feeling at all for George Harrison's personality, only the preconceived NOTION of it. By all other accounts, Harrison was a witty, multi-faceted man who packed a whole lot of living into his short life. If he was as dour and one-dimensional as Shapiro portrays him, there is no way he would have made as many friends from all over the world as he did, let alone be as loved by his them as he was. Shapiro should have interviewed them instead of concocting such a tale. ... Read more

Product Description

The Words and Music of George Harrison is an in-depth appreciation of this often underappreciated musician, following Harrison's development as a singer-songwriter from his earliest songs with The Beatles through his final album, Brainwashed, released after his 2001 death from brain cancer.

The Words and Music of George Harrison sheds new light on Harrison's 40-year career, examining his music output in the context of the enormous personal and professional changes he underwent, from the early days in Liverpool and the global explosion of Beatlemania through a solo career marked by spiritual concerns, political activism, and high-profile collaborations. As the book shows, at every stage, George Harrison's songs posed questions, provided commentaries, and looked for solutions, with results that add up to a remarkable music legacy.

Customer Reviews (1)

This is Serious!
This excellent book provides readers with the words and music of George Harrison's outstanding compositions.

A nonpareil guitarist, the youngest Beatle wrote deep, introspective lyrics that spoke to vast intelligence.Readers coming into George Harrison will gain a greater appreciation for the man who wrote intense songs like 1966's "I Want to Tell You;" "Taxman;" 1969's "Here Comes the Sun" as well as his solo career.

Sadly, George's voice was stilled by cancer in 2001.Fortunately, his voice will live on in the hearts and ears of his listeners and followers. ... Read more

Product Description
Do You Want to Know a Secret? is the story of the Official George Harrison Fan Club, the only independent fan club sanctioned by one of the Beatles. A 16 year old when it all started, Pat ran into many problems with the Beatles organization, and became friends with George’s family before it all ended abruptly in 1972. Along the way, Pat made many life-long friends and took the fan club’s sponsored child from Thailand into her own family. Pat spent many years trying to uncover the “Secret” of why George and the Harrison Family eventually shut her out of their lives. Rare photos taken by the author. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Real Quick Read
Very interesting to have the fan club story from a first generation person but there's a little too much gossip about other fan club repsfor my tastes.Read it is you liked Apple Scruff Waiting For The Beatles.

A nostalgic look at Beatle fandom
I was a member of Pat Kinzer's fan club for George Harrison from 1968 to its demise in the early '70s. It was one of many Beatles fan clubs to which I belonged, in fact. But Kinzer's was one of the sharpest. The newsletters were better written than most, and the goodies available to members were interesting. Plus, she actually met Harrison a couple of times. What's more her club sponsored a child in Asia. So it was fun for me to read about how Kinzer started the club, how she met George and followed the Beatles and other groups of the era, and how the club met its sudden end, which Kinzer found it hard to forgive Harrison for. This book is a fun read for anyone who lived through that era.

I thought I was a George fan.....
This was a little tricky to rate.The writing was simple, but the author's experiences made up for it.Her parents had to be saints, taking her and friends to all these concerts and helping her with her fan club.They sounded like great people.The author had amazing access to George and his family.It certainly was a simpler time.George seemed like a complex guy.Very sweet on the one hand, paranoid about being used on the other.Once the Beatles legal battles began, the crankiness seemed to take over.When the Beatles broke up, the forced all official fan clubs to disband, which left a lot of hurt feelings.The author started this fan club on her own early on and was not a sanctioned fan club initially, but once things took off for the Beatles, she was required to join up.Then, she was forced to disband and it left her heartbroken and confused.Luckily, she has been able to move on with her life, but it took awhile.I would recommend this book for people who want a close up look at a George Harrison fan club or a nostalgic glance at a simpler time for music fans.

The Answer's At the End
"Scan not a friend with a microscopic glass.
You know his faults, now let his foibles pass.
Life is one long enigma, my friend.
So read on, the anwer's at the end."-- George Harrison, 1975

This is the book Harrison/Beatle fans have long awaited.It is the keys to the kingdom of the Official George Harrison Fan Club and interesting information about George and his relatives.

Pat Kinzer has a wonderful writing style and an interesting history in re fame and the Sixties Scene.An avid fan of Annette Funicello, the most famous Mouseketeer in the 1950s, Kinzer soon graduated from the Mickey Mouse Club to attending "American Bandstand," (AB) a decades long running popular show featuring au courant artists and songs.By 1963, Kinzer is deeply involved with the then current rock and when AB stopped filming in Philadelphia, she is crushed.It is on AB where she met the original Mouseketeers and fully recognized her attraction to fame.

Thanks to AB, Kinzer discovered the Beatles.Two Beatle songs were played during a show she attended during the winter of 1963-64 and she became a raving Beatlemaniac, which is understandable.For the remainder of the decade, Kinzer and her various friends attended many concerts, including the Beatles' famous Shea Stadium concert on August 15, 1965.Her delightful anecdotes about the concerts and the friends she made during those formative years round out and fill out her accounts and make for some very interesting reading.

In 1964, Kinzer became an avid collector of things Beatle; she even started a George Harrison fan club!Her enterprise soon became a family business with her parents helping her print out her newsletter and sorting through her fan club mail.As a bonus Christmas 1964 present, she received a card from Louise & Harold Harrison Sr., who willingly answered questions their son's young fan asked.Before long, Kinzer had a regular correspondence with the senior Harrisons and made several trips to England throughout the late 1960s, after her 1966 graduation from high school.

From her small town Pennsylvania high school, Kinzer secured a job in an office at a local college where she worked for several years.She also met her then future husband there.She provides rich detail of the friends she made and kept along the way, including a pen pal in Germany named Marianne whom she corresponded with since 1966!They met in 1992 and traveled throughout Germany and England.The history and current picture of the former East Germany and the haunts the Beatles knew in Hamburg (West Germany) was very interesting.

Kinzer first met George Harrison in August of 1968 and several photographs she took of the youngest Beatle appear in this book.Readers are also treated to pictures of George's nephew and the senior Harrisons.She shares wonderfully friendly conversations she and her friends had with George and his awareness of her club.I love the parts about the senior Harrisons and other relatives, such as George's cousin Hilary and his siblings, nieces and nephews, including neighbors who knew George as a young boy.From all accounts, the Harrisons were quite loving and supportive and delighted in their son's talent and success.

Kinzer, always enterprising and resourceful sponsored several children during her 1964-72 creation of the Official George Harrison Fan Club.These endeavors proved fruitful as she sponsored two sisters in Liverpool and in Thailand.The girls in Thailand became the Club's sponsor children.After jumping through many legal hoops and cutting through long yards of red tape, Kinzer and her husband Tony raised Noi, the child who was the Club's sponsor child.Noi would later graduate from nursing school and, along with members of her family become part of Kinzer's growing, extended family.This was very heartwarming.

On a serious note, George's mother, Louise passed away on July 7, 1970 from a brain tumor.Kinzer rallies forward with words of comfort and raises money from Club members to donate money to the Clatterbridge Hospital in her memory.In July of 1971, the donation is made and Harold, Sr. gives this his blessing.Within one year, George would become upset as he feared Kinzer was taking people to the grave, thus upsetting the family privacy he cherished.According to Kinzer, George felt this was a form of exploitation.While those feelings are understandable, Kinzer made it plain that at no time did she ever provide any information about the resting place, which was best all around.Sadly, this fear George expressed led to an unfortunate falling out.

The Official George Harrison Club was dissolved in 1971-72.The irony of it all was that George signed a charter for the Club in 1966 and 1968; he initially gave the Club his blessing.Things started to go awry in 1968 when Kinzer received a Cease & Desist letter; by 1970, when the Beatles had disbanded, she was told to dissolve the Club as it was not part of the Beatles (USA) Ltd.Legal issues were trotted out; by 1971-72 the George Harrison Fan Club became history.

The crowning blow for Kinzer was when she sent out her final newsletter announcing that George's sister was moving to England.The newsletter was mailed to George's home as his sister did not leave the US for England; this allegedly upset George and Harrison, Sr. wrote Kinzer expressing his dismay over the club's dissolution and his concern that his son was being blamed for this.In his letter, Harold, Sr. expressed concern that Kinzer's newsletter was suggesting that George did not need his fans, which he said just wasn't so.It was during this time that the Harrisons no longer maintained contact with Kinzer, which embittered her.Her bitterness precluded her from enjoying the former Beatle's solo works; in an incredible show of irony in 1974, she attended the Dark Horse Concert.When the show ended, she saw George and Harold, Sr. on stage and reviled them from behind a curtain.

Despite these setbacks, Kinzer's growing extended family kept her from sinking completely into depression.Noi's successes, thanks in part to the Club and ties to old friends and people who, later in her life emerged as Beatle fans kept the spirit of All Together Now going.By the end of the book, Kinzer has reconciled her anger with George, which is in part the "secret" to which she refers.She reconnects with Lou, George's sister at Beatle conventions and, let's just say comes to a peaceful point in her Long & Winding Road.

I just love this book and cannot recommend it highly enough.It is power packed with George stories that any Harrison fan will love.Read on...The Answer's At the End.

... Read more

Product Description
Mystical One: George Harrison

After the Break-Up of the Beatles

This biography covers the years 1969 to the present day and celebrates George Harrison’s career as both a musician and independent film producer. Mystical One focuses on the music found in the solo albums that Harrison released from 1970, his sporadic tours and live appearances, his work with The Traveling Wilburys, and the fascinating catalogue of unreleased songs lying in his vaults, and his latest record, Brainwashed. The book also delves into the personal life of the least written about Beatle, covering such fascinating episodes as the high profile break-up of his marriage to Pattie Boyd and the "My Sweet Lord" plagiarism case, the reformation of The Beatles and his battles with cancer, plus the traumatic events of 1999 that saw him nearly killed by a mad intruder into his Oxfordshire home. This is the very first in-depth critique of George Harrison’s solo career leading up to the days of his untimely death on the 29th November 2001.

Elliot J. Huntley is a writerbased in Sheffield, England. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

George is God; eveyone else sucks (especially the Beatles Clapton & the Stones)
This is not a professional publication; it's someone's personal essay.The author has the unique viewpoint that everyone else, and I mean everyone else, is terrible.I am an avid Bealtes fan with George my favorite and I deeply regret the $$$ and time spent on this so called mystical book.Mystical it ain't.

Great Beatles writing--Poor editing--Still worthwhile
This book is well-written, well-researched, thorough, entertaining, and rewarding.Beginning with the break-up of The Beatles, Huntley focuses on the rest of George Harrison's all too brief life; his approach to recording; his relationships with Paul, John, and Ringo; his family life, and the three great tragedies of his later years:John Lennon's murder, George's near-fatal stabbing at the hands of a deranged home intruder, and his final battle with cancer.

Although I'm glad this book finally exists, the editing is the sloppiest I've ever seen in a published work.Although I'm not a grammar prig, every other page seemed to feature a misused apostrophe, strange tense shift, a sentence with an extra or missing word, or a basic flub--for example, "Sang (sic) with genuine emotion, this song was a deserved number one hit on the American charts." This publisher might also want to consider adding an author biographical note in order to establish Huntley's credibility, especially because Huntley freely offers his often scathing opinions on other musicians, including John Lennon and Eric Clapton.An index would also be a welcome addition to future printings.

An interesting read, but not much new material
Huntley's book is adequate for a passing fan, but in terms of new material or insight it seems a bit lacking. That is not said as a major flaw of the book. On balance, the factual material seems to be there.

I do realize this is an "essay," but I wish he had left out the overly editorial comments particularly those reflecting his opinions of the musicians George Harrison chose to back him on tour and in the studio. Such commentary did not add a bit to my appreciation for this work.

Great book.
I've been a George fan for many years, and although I knew most of the info, the format of this book put the events of his personal and musical life in a sequence that I hadn't picked up from reading other books.Definitely recommend this to George fans.

post-Beatle stories finally collected in one place
I can not fault the research done on this book. It is pretty solid. Most public highlights in George Harrison's life are explained in detail here.I would say go ahead and read this book to fill in the gaps or to clarify your understanding of George Harrison, but do so with some caution.

There are two incidents about George Harrison I had hoped would be explained in much greater detail.Unfortunately, having read this book I still have questions about (1.) why George started visiting Hawaii in the 1970s (At the time I read disturbing reports in magazines about George's safety in the U. K. resulting in these trips!) and (2.) the frustrating and abrupt termination of his business partnership with Denis O'Brien resulting in the end of Handmade Films and reports of serious financial problems.

I had also hoped to have the tenets of George's religious affiliations explained in detail.I never once heard George refer to himself as a Hindu (he would call himself a devotee of Krishna but never use the term Hindu) in spite of his near-lifelong study of the Hindu religion.Everyone who knows about George knows he was facinated by the religion native to the Indian subcontinent but know precious little about its beliefs. Here would have been a good place to help readers learn more about about this Faith.

The thing that made me uncomfortable with this book was the fact that genuinely harmless people close to George, including Ravi Shankar and Billy Preston, are victims of unkind words made at their expense, possibly just for the sake of humor, but hurtful just the same. ... Read more

Product Description
55 songs from Harrison's record label, including: Breath Away from Heaven * Got My Mind Set on You * Just for Today * That's the Way It Goes * This Is Love * When We Was Fab * and more. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Harrison Treasure
A songbook of extraordinary caliber.The chords are presented accurately and the pictures make a good book even better.Harrison fans will no doubt treasure this one.A keeper!

Excellent Songbook
This is a wonderful songbook. The correct chords and lyrics. Be forewarned... there are alot of those crazy George chords inside :) Beautiful pictures and printing. I couldn't ask for it to be any better than it is. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

George and Clapton Live in Japan
Buying this book is about the only way to find the 2 CD set.George borrowed Eric's band (Eric returning the favor, having earlier borrowed George's wife), and the music is incredible.Clapton's band and back up singers perform spectacularly, as do Eric and yes, even George.Update renditions of George's favorite tunes, with screaming Japanese fans in the background.And the book's not bad either! ... Read more

Product Description
From his days as the "quiet Beatle" - a tag he quite disliked - to his immensely successful and critically admired solo career, George Harrison produced one of the most memorable bodies of music in modern times. His "Something" and "Here Comes the Sun" can certainly lay claim to being the best offerings on The Beatles' Abbey Road, while his 1970 album "All Things Must Pass" introduced new musical styles to rock and roll. Harrison was the pioneer in making mainstream rock a vehicle for religious convictions. In this respect, he is a forerunner of bands such as U2 and Creed. People often criticized him for being preachy or didactic. Reviewers over the years exhibited either an anxious disinclination to say much about his evangelistic lyrics or showed a condescending tendency to dismiss them. His devotional language was not their language. They regularly thought him sanctimonious and full of irrelevant religious platitudes. Allison's book views Harrison's religious bent as his most interesting trait.Harrison should be admired for having something distinctive to say, and for saying it while knowing that many would not understand and that others who might understand might not be sympathetic. He had the courage of his convictions, to sing to the public what he sang to himself in his heart. Allison traces Harrison's religious pilgrimage from Liverpool Roman Catholicism to a brand of philosophical Hinduism. He sorts through Harrison's musical corpus - through its mixed bag of fragmentary feelings, religious poetry, secular love songs, perceptions of the world, and anxieties about life, to interpret what matters most to Harrison. In short, this is a book about Harrison's religious sentiments as they surface in his songs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Excellent information, if not that well written
After getting this book at the library I decided to buy it because I must have it in my Beatles book collection.

The book has a ton of good information about the meaning of George's lyrics and the philosophy and beliefs that George studied and followed. For this reason I give the book 4 stars and do recommend it to anyone serious about George Harrison's music.

However I knocked off one star because, to me, the book is somewhat poorly organized. It jumps around so that the meaning of one song has to be found by reading different parts in different chapters. I would much rather have had the author discuss each song at length, organized around THAT one song. As it is the author divided the chapters around various aspects of George's philosophy such as "The Art of Dying" for example. Then, under that heading he discusses the songs that fit under that subject matter. But then later with a different chapter, he will discuss the same song's lyrics, emphasizing a different part of the song. While this is an acceptable way to deal with the meaning of George's lyrics, I do not feel it is the most efficient and best way to discuss his songs.

I would like to have seen him discuss each song in the order of its release, and discuss the lyrics in depth for each song. THAT would have made this a very valuable 5-star rated book!

So, yes, get this book, it's worth it. But I wish it had been organized differently.

Rising Sun
This book is like a sunrise in George Harrison literature and the Beatle Literati are quite pleased with this one.It is a brilliant look at how spirituality and art married well and how George Harrison's work showed this to be a match made in heaven.

This author celebrates George's art, core values, beliefs, religious views as how each had an affect on the art he created.I am glad to see more information provided in re George's view of Catholicism in adult life, indeed, a beautiful statue of Mother Mary graced his home at Friar Park.While this author suggests that George abandoned it and viewed the church as being corrupt, I don't quite get the sense that George jettisoned Catholicism out of his core values for good.While as a young man, George explained his disillusionment with people using church as a place to showcase new clothes and his questions about Jesus being God's only child, he still retains some seeds of Catholicism in the beliefs he would later embrace.

While he does take a bit of a poke at Catholicism in "Vatican Blues," where he questions the morality of church officials, I don't get the sense that he is critizing the faith, per se.Again, in this song, one hears a young George lamenting about how the priests in his boyhood neighborhood would knock on doors, requesting money and use it to build pubs as well as churches.It is the actions of people that George has criticized, not the faith itself.

In "Rising Sun," one gets the sense that George has reached a point of acceptance.In a somewhat ironic twist, my church (which is a Catholic church) uses a lot of George's songs for our prayer meetings and discussions.There are parishioners who have said that George's music helped them appreciate and recognize their own spirituality.It was George himself who said that our search for God cannot wait; he was making an inclusive statement and not one confined by any one religion or ideology.

Allison is truly a scholar and is brilliant in outlining George's view of life, death, religion and the beliefs of others with dignity and grace.It is always a treat to find genuinely good books about my favorite Beatles, the Messrs. Harrison & McCartney, but to find one of this caliber is a bonus treat.

First-class Harrisonology
Allison brings his considerable skills as an exegete of religious texts to Harrisonology. The results are stunning. See the blurbs below from the dust jacket.

"What have we here? A delightfully revealing analysis of George Harrison's songs by a world-class, religious scholar. An obvious labor of love, this book is as lively and as enlightening as its subject matter warrants. Fans of the former Beatle are certain to learn things about his songs that no ordinary rock historian could teach them -- and students of religion and culture will find a compelling introduction to a pop-icon whose imaginative work merits serious attention. It is enough to catch more than a glimpse of that elusive inner light Harrison himself hoped we would see." --Mark Allan Powell, Professor of New Testament (Trinity Lutheran Seminary) and author of The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music.

"A sensitive, thorough and fair-minded appraisal of the issues and beliefs central to George Harrison's life and art presented with great clarity. I welcome this addition to the newly formed genre of Beatles' theology!" - Steve Turner, author of The Gospel according to the Beatles

"For more than forty years fans have celebrated George Harrison's music, enjoying its poetry, sharp wit, and virtuosity. But as much as his songs delight, they also puzzle those not familiar with the Hindu inspirations behind them. Harrison enthusiast Dale C. Allison comes to the rescue with The Love There That's Sleeping, an accessible introduction to the religious and philosophical worldview that informs so many Harrisongs. Allison is well known for his careful analyses of religious texts and in this book he brings his considerable skills to the religious poetry of George Harrison, helping us appreciate Nelson Wilbury's art on yet another level." --Michael J. Gilmour, author of Tangled Up in the Bible: Bob Dylan and Scripture

I LOVE this book!
I just want to thank the author for this work on the spirituality of George Harrison's music. He was always my favorite Beatle and I came to love his solo music because of its spiritual expression. I have a very personal spiritual life myself, and very much enjoy the insights in this book regarding his lyrics and experiences. It is by far the most interesting work I've read about him aside from George's own words.

"Everything else can wait, but the search for God cannot."
This book is a study and a celebration of George Harrison's life, religion, and music, and will be a joy to read for any Beatle's fan or devotee.
Allison follows George's spiritual journey beginning with his childhood experiences of Roman Catholicism to Harrison's eventual discovery of his love of Hinduism. With knowledge and insight that only a scholar of his caliber could possibly offer, Allison does a grand job of sorting out the turmoil of George's feelings about this world and the afterlife with class and candor.
And not only is this book an insightful read on so many levels, it is also full of delight and entertainment for those who perhaps don't know very much about George's music or want to know a little something about Hinduism and his beliefs in general. Also, "The Love There That's Sleeping" will hold enchantment for those who just plain love classic rock.

Also, who knows what's wrong with the moron below who didn't realize this book could be purchased in paperback for $12.95. By no stretch of the word is this book a "rip-off."
... Read more

Product Description
Much has been written about the famous conflicts and battlegrounds of the East during the American Revolution. Perhaps less familiar, but equally important and exciting, was the war on the western frontier, where Ohio Valley settlers fought for the land they had claimed—and for their very lives.

George Rogers Clark stepped forward to organize the local militias into a united front that would defend the western frontier from Indian attacks. Clark was one of the few people who saw the importance of the West in the war effort as a whole, and he persuaded Virginia’s government to lend support to his efforts. As a result, Clark was able to cross the Ohio, saving that part of the frontier from further raids.

Lowell Harrison captures the excitement of this vital part of American history while giving a complete view of George Rogers Clark’s significant achievements. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Outstanding Concise History
This is a wonderful work; well written and well researched with superb insights into events of the American Revolution that are usually ignored or only given scant coverage.The only real weakness is the book's brevity which does not allow the full development of the author's ideas or enoough detail on important issues.The bibliographic essay is wonderful and provides an outstanding guide to the sources on this fascinating topic. ... Read more