GEORGE HARRISON'S BEST 10 ALBUMS!!

George Harrison's third solo album was written and recorded in the midst of a very stressful period in Harrison's life.  From the middle of 1973, with his marriage to Pattie Boyd in the rocks, Harrison immersed himself in helping two acts he would eventually sign to his new record label, Dark Horse Records − Ravi Shankar and an unknown group called Splinter. To add up, business issues related to the Beatles' company Apple Corps were also coming to a head during 1973–74, when Harrison, John Lennon and Ringo Starr became embroiled in litigation with former manager Allen Klein.

To ease the pressure, Harrison was drinking heavily and had returned to his drug-taking ways of the 1960's. His personal life was a complete chaos, a love affair soap opera involving his wife Patty Boyd, Ron Wood of the Faces, his friend Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr's wife Maureen Starkey and Wood's wife Krissy Wood. 

In January 1974, Harrison escaped his domestic problems by visiting India for two months, where Harrison and Shankar forged a plan for Harrison to sponsor an Indian classical-music concert tour of Europe, known as Ravi Shankar's Music Festival from India, and for Harrison and Shankar to then tour North America together at the end of the year. By May, Harrison had agreed distribution terms with A&M Records and was able to formally launch Dark Horse Records.

Physically and mentally exhausted. Harrison started work on his follow-up solo album. By the end of 1974, Harrison's voice suffered the most, and by the time he started his tour in November, it was almost gone.  Nevertheless and despite all the pressure, stress and physical exhaustion he managed to put out a great album in which he tells his story of heartache, deception, and his struggle between spirituality and earthly desires.  A personal album with impeccable musical performances.

Highlights: Hari's on Tour (Express)", "Simply Shady", "So Sad", "Māya Love", "Far East Man", "It Is 'He' (Jai Sri Krishna)"

1974 was a tough year for George Harrison. His marriage to Pattie Boyd crumbled, business and legal litigations, an ill-fated concert tour, health problems and a lukewarm reception to his recent album Dark Horse Tok a toll on George Harrison personal and public persona.

In 1975 George comes back with Extra Texture (Read All About It), collaborating with Gary Wright, David Foster, Jim Keltner, Jesse Ed Davis, Leon Russell and longtime friend Billy Preston, among others. Taking a different approach, Extra Texture lacks the spiritual message of prior albums (and subsequent albums) and incorporate elements of soul music, signaling a further departure from the rock and folk-rock sound of Harrison's popular early-1970s work. 

Although bad reviews and critics motived Harrison to turn the page of the disastrous 1974, it really wounded him. 1975 was no different as fans and critics expected a glorious return from the "quiet Beatle". As its predecessor "Dark Horse", the album's songs carry George's bitterness, frustrations and depressive mood, although the musicianship and composition is flawless, giving the album the honesty that makes it one of George Harrison's best albums.

Highlights:

You, This Guitar (Can't Keep from Crying), The Answer's At The End, Ooh Baby (You Know That I Love You), Can't Stop Thinking About You, Tired Of Midnight Blue

The first Rock music's all star charity concert, years before  Live Aid, Farm Aid, USA fro Africa and many others.  George Harrison organized this concert after being made aware by friend and musician Ravi Shankar of the gravity of the situation of the homeless Bengali refugees of the Bangladesh Liberation War, in what was then known as East Pakistan. Riding high with the recent success of his All Things Must Pass triple album, Harrison then headlined the all-star UNICEF benefit concerts, backed by a 24-piece band of musicians and singers, on Sunday, 1 August 1971. The star-studded line up include Ringo Starr, Klaus Voorman, Leon Russell, members of Badfinger, Jim Keltner, Jesse Ed Davis, Billy Preston, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan, among others. 

The concerts were highly successful in raising international awareness of the plight of the refugees and the media lavished praise on Harrison as an ambassador for rock altruism. George Harrison took Phil Spector's Wall of sound technique (Spector produced the album and supervised the live recordings) and applied it to a live setting. There were two separate concerts and the album was compiled from both performances.  The result is an amazing snapshot of music history and a confident, George Harrison whom definitely shined throughout the concert and established himself as a top performer.

A massive triple album with outstanding performances by the, until then, "quiet Beatle".

Highlights:  Wah-Wah, My Sweet Lord, That's the Way God Planned It (Billy Preston), While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Here Comes the Sun, Blowin' in the Wind (Bob Dylan) , Something, Bangla Desh.

George Harrison's final words to the world came in the form of "Brainwashed", his last album. Released posthumously on 18 November 2002, almost a year after his death, the album presents George Harrison's reflections on his life.  Although the tracks on the album were recorded as early as 1988, the album was completed almost a year after by George's son Dhani and Jeff Lynne. Work was delayed since the beginning by business problems with Harrison's former manager, Denis O'Brien, as well as his work with the Traveling Wilburys, Ravi Shankar, and his work on The Beatles Anthology. After recuperating from being attacked in his home on 30 December 1999, Harrison focused on finishing the album, simultaneously sharing his ideas in detail with his son Dhani, as Dhani helped to complete the album after his father’s death.  

Harrison underwent surgery to remove a cancerous growth from one of his lungs, and radiotherapy for lung cancer which had metastasized to his brain. Once he realised it was an irreversible situation, he worked further on the album's songs – in conjunction with Dhani and his old collaborator Jeff Lynne – until he was unable to do more. 

The album shows George musically sound and mature. Having come to terms with his past with The Beatles, the tumultuous 70's, the cruelty of the music industry and fame and embracing his imminent death. Beautiful album with lyrics that will make you miss George even more.

In 2004, Brainwashed's "Marwa Blues" won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. The album was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album, as well as Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for the track "Any Road".

Highlights: Any Road, P2 Vatican Blues (Last Saturday Night), Pisces Fish, Looking for My Life, Stuck Inside a Cloud, Run So Far

After being disillusioned with the music business after his 1982 Gone Troppo album, George Harrison took a break from the music business to pursue other interests like film producing and gardening. Feeling the need to make some music, he got together with Jeff Lynne and in 1987, carne up with Cloud Nine. The album re-established Harrison as a critically acclaimed and commercially significant recording artist and unfortunately was Harrison's last solo studio album released during his lifetime, as his next studio album, Brainwashed, was released in 2002, almost a year after his death.

Recharged, George and Lynne recorded backing tracks for seventeen songs between January and March 1987, completing it in August 1987. Other artists involved in the sessions included his trusty drummers Jim Keltner and Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton on guitar and both Gary Wright and Elton John on piano.  With new-found enthusiasm, Harrison actively promoted the album.

Harrison's cover of Rudy Clark's "Got My Mind Set on You" quickly reached #1 in the United States and #2 in the United Kingdom, opening the door to the highly anticipated album, which was welcome with favorable critical reception. Rolling Stone magazine described it as "an expertly crafted, endlessly infectious record that constitutes Harrison's best album since 1970s inspired All Things Must Pass". 

And we agree!! George's guitar playing is bluesy, edgy, and yet subtle and delicate when it needs to be. Eric Clapton provides the perfect complement to George's playing. His "Beatlesque" When We Was Fab, the infectious Devil's Radio and Got My Mind Set On You and the delicate eastern-influence Breath From Heaven are only glimpses of a great album that puts Cloud Nine not only as one of George Harrison's best album but one of the best albums made by any of the former Beatle!!