George Harrison
George Harrison is my hero. There are several heroes who have played a part in piecing me together, but at this precise moment I'd like to talk about this man.
Some of my earliest memories are of the music my family used to play. As a unit their taste could only be described as eclectic, but as individuals they had their own grooves. My Dad loved jazz and musicals of the forty's and fifties. My brother had his prog rocky Pink Floyd and Genesis. My sister was all about punk and new romanticism. They all however, loved the Beatles. I remember days where I'd wake up, pull on some stretchy pamper type nappy things and waddle into my sister's room. She would remove Never Mind the Bollocks from her portable red and beige vinyl record player and put on Magical Mystery Tour, or Sgt Pepper instead. The mad lyrics and close harmony of those albums in particular had enormous appeal to my tiny ears. As early as the age of 3 I'd decided George was my favourite Maybe because my sister loved the belligerent John, and my brother the straight laced Paul that I immediately picked the side of the one I saw as the talented, unsung underdog. That was that. George was my fave'.
As the years went on, events would unfold every now and then to vindicate my choice. By the age of ten, Monty Python was blowing my mind. Not their series so much as their films. I noticed they were all made by the same production company; Handmade Films. The founder was George Harrison. He had re mortgaged his house to ensure the completion of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
I learned about the Concert for Bangladesh, the way he approached the fact that his best friend had fallen in love with his wife in the most positive way, how he set up a humanitarian fund for UNICEF to help children caught in humanitarian emergencies. He would never seek limelight unless it was to use his name to help someone else.
It is his music which amazes me most of all. I don't think the vocabulary exists that can express how I 'see' it. There is an innocence, a simplicity, truth, love, boldness, a naked vulnerability in so many of his songs that they so often make me cry whilst smiling.
After his passing in 2001, his friends and family got together and held the Concert For George. It's a beautiful thing to see and hear as there is nothing but love in that concert hall.
Here's a few links to the concert. I defy you not to get at least a little bleary eyed.
