George Harrison as a Lead Guitarist -- What do you all think?

Message Bookmarked

Bookmark Removed

We all know Paul was a killer bass player and Lennon a great rhythm player, but this really stumps me...was he any good? I cannot stand "Let It Be" but have always loved the solo, still I'm not sure about him overall...examples would be greatly appreciated

― douglas eklund (skolle), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:24 (nineteen years ago)

That little descending arpeggio thing at the end of the intro to "Help!" is cool.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:33 (nineteen years ago)

Also, the album version of "Let It Be" (orig. Phil Spector album) is the one with the cool solo, I think.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:35 (nineteen years ago)

My favorite George Guitar Hero moments: "I Feel Fine," "And Your Bird Can Sing," "I Want To Tell You, "Old Brown Shoe," and, um, I have to think of a couple more.

As a solo artist his mastery of slide guitar edged towards the generic, i.e. "insert beautifully restrained solo HERE." John's lead work shreds in a way that George's doesn't; compare John's work on "Walking on Thin Ice" to George's on, say, "Blow Away" and you hear two different approaches to play an economical solo.

(now I await Tim's polite evisceration)

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:45 (nineteen years ago)

the closing hammer-on riff on the tail end of 'strawberry fields' converted me to the church of Harrison. The last 30 seconds of that song are entirely genius.

― J. Grizzle (trainsmoke), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:46 (nineteen years ago)

I really think he did a lot with tone on those records, Alfred. I wondered for a long time what kind of equipment he was using on the late '70s/early '80s records and just recently saw him with the Les Paul in the "Blow Away" video which I think makes sense.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:51 (nineteen years ago)

The first 2 and a half seconds of She Said She Said, assuming that's him rather than Lennon playing.

― Scourage (Haberdager), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:54 (nineteen years ago)

"'Til There Was You!"

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Friday, 18 August 2006 22:56 (nineteen years ago)

I generally prefer his older stuff to the later. His slide tone did become very predictable on his solo recordings.

― Ice Cream Electric (Ice Cream Electric), Friday, 18 August 2006 23:25 (nineteen years ago)

All the different fills in between the verses of "Please Please Me" are what made me realize how good he was, right out of the gate.

― bendy (bendy), Friday, 18 August 2006 23:58 (nineteen years ago)

He has more taste than most guitarists, and a very lyrical sense.

I actually mean both of these, but I realize that they are both relatively generic compliments.

― Esquire, Bitch. (Big Loud Mountain Ape), Saturday, 19 August 2006 00:19 (nineteen years ago)

He was great. Would that more players had his sensibility and taste.

― Steve Go1dberg (Steve Schneeberg), Saturday, 19 August 2006 00:53 (nineteen years ago)

Best thing about him was he knew when not to overplay.

― Ice Cream Electric (Ice Cream Electric), Saturday, 19 August 2006 01:17 (nineteen years ago)

i'm not usually a fan of his signature sound, but he was much much much better than his legions of imitators.

― you want pastrami? (Jody Beth Rosen), Saturday, 19 August 2006 03:14 (nineteen years ago)

It's a trip to compare the three Beatles trading guitar solos on "The End" -- the McCartney and Lennon solos are fine, but it's so obvious that Harrison's conception is a class above, in terms of tone, phrasing, etc. His guitar sings in a whole different way.

― lurker #2421, inc. (lurker-2421), Saturday, 19 August 2006 04:10 (nineteen years ago)

There's some amount of discussion of this over on the George Harrison: Search & Destroy thread. I think he's pretty consistently great - with the exception of "I Need You" (which I hate on in that thread, before backing off somewhat) I can't think of a single Beatles guitar part of his that sucks, and there are tons that completely lift the song up into something much better than it would have otherwise been.

Solo, he seems to lose his way to an extent. I know the slide is cool and all, but man, why couldn't he put the stupid thing down once in a while? On the other hand, there aren't too many other musicians who actually have two instantly recognizable signature sounds, and that's probably to his credit.

― Doctor Casino (Doctor Casino), Saturday, 19 August 2006 05:37 (nineteen years ago)

I think his slide guitar is fine on his solo records. Where's he let down is in the production - he needed Phil Spector to bring out the best in him.

― Bob Six (bobbysix), Saturday, 19 August 2006 05:41 (nineteen years ago)

Best guitar solo *ever* = All My Loving. Takes the songs from a pop song into a country song & back in like 10 seconds.

― harvey.w (harvey.w), Saturday, 19 August 2006 06:33 (nineteen years ago)

New George Harrison band called:

George Harrison and the Bears

― A Cracker Jack On Crack (Bimble...), Saturday, 19 August 2006 06:38 (nineteen years ago)

Great Harrison guitar stuff:

Fixing a Hole
the backwards leads on Tomorrow Never Knows and I'm Only Sleeping
most of the second half of Abbey Road
lots of Hard Day's Night
the little riffs in between phrases on She Loves You and I Want to Hold Your Hand
that one Badfinger album
Badge
I'm a Loser (actually lots of awesome twangy Carl Perkins type stuff of Beatles For Sale)

― darin (darin), Saturday, 19 August 2006 07:20 (nineteen years ago)

All My Loving. Takes the songs from a pop song into a country song & back in like 10 seconds.

I'm going to have to say OTM, because I woke up early today, am still very foggy in the head, and was still able to reach into my brain and pull this solo out, note for note, and it sounds great.

― Doctor Casino (Doctor Casino), Saturday, 19 August 2006 11:53 (nineteen years ago)

I'm surprised no one (including me) has praised his solo in "My Sweet Lord," which truly elevates the song.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Saturday, 19 August 2006 12:29 (nineteen years ago)

Why all the hate on for George's slide soloing?

His tone and precision was fantastic, and at the time he originated this signature approach (All Things Must Pass) no one was really playing slide like that. Sure, Allman was pretty melodic, but he wasn't stacking lines like Harrison was.

George will always be one of my favorite lead guitarists, mostly because he played lines you can sing. They are memorable. Just listen to the solo in Something.

Important to point out how damn good Paul was on lead (Taxman, Good Morning, Good Morning, etc.)

― Brooker Buckingham (Brooker B), Saturday, 19 August 2006 16:57 (nineteen years ago)

George was also discussed on this thread.

― My Little Ruud Book (Ken L), Saturday, 19 August 2006 17:20 (nineteen years ago)

His worst official moment was "words of love" but then it's a fairly pedestrian track so hey.

It would be "You know what to do" but they didn't go for it at the time so that's unfair.

― mark grout (mark grout), Saturday, 19 August 2006 17:57 (nineteen years ago)

Important to point out how damn good Paul was on lead (Taxman)

OTM

― Teh littlest HoBBo (the pirate king), Saturday, 19 August 2006 18:55 (nineteen years ago)

Geoff Emerick's new autobiography offers a revionist take on George-as-guitar-genius.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Saturday, 19 August 2006 19:12 (nineteen years ago)

I think he put down George Martin as well, Alfred, and I think there are some people out there publicly questioning some of the stuff in that book, Ken Scott for one.

― My Little Ruud Book (Ken L), Saturday, 19 August 2006 20:25 (nineteen years ago)

He would play anything you wanted him to play and if you didn't want him to play anything at all, he wouldn't. Whatever it was that would please you, he would do it.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Saturday, 19 August 2006 20:35 (nineteen years ago)

Ken Scott's musings

― My Little Ruud Book (Ken L), Saturday, 19 August 2006 20:39 (nineteen years ago)

I think he put down George Martin as well, Alfred, and I think there are some people out there publicly questioning some of the stuff in that book, Ken Scott for one.

It is, however, a splendid novel.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Saturday, 19 August 2006 21:05 (nineteen years ago)

Read carefully the April 11 post about "Taxman."

― My Little Ruud Book (Ken L), Saturday, 19 August 2006 21:12 (nineteen years ago)

Exactly.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Saturday, 19 August 2006 21:30 (nineteen years ago)

I fucking love George on "Sister Golden Hair".

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Sunday, 20 August 2006 05:23 (nineteen years ago)

needs more defenders here.

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Sunday, 20 August 2006 05:26 (nineteen years ago)

wait, shouldn't we all agree that "If I Needed Someone" is best???

do we not agree?

― Stormy Davis (diamond), Sunday, 20 August 2006 07:14 (nineteen years ago)

Don't know if this sounds like a stupid question, but regarding the guitar solos on "The End", who plays which solo?? I've had my guesses, but I've never known for sure.

― xgurggleglgllg (xgurggleglgllg), Sunday, 20 August 2006 10:01 (nineteen years ago)

I think he's perfect on the Beatles records. But his singing and overall dolorous vibe sink his 70s solo stuff for me, then & now.

― m coleman (lovebug starski), Sunday, 20 August 2006 12:37 (nineteen years ago)

There are some subtle slide fills he throws in on "What Is Life" and "If Not For You" that considerably augment already-great tracks.

― Joe (Joe), Sunday, 20 August 2006 12:46 (nineteen years ago)

I have a question: does George Harrison do the slide solo on Belinda Carlisle's "Leave a Light On For Me"? I thought I read that somewhere...

― Joe (Joe), Sunday, 20 August 2006 12:47 (nineteen years ago)

Yup! On the Belinda Carlisle thread I noted that he should have done extemporaneous shit like that more often.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn (Alfred Soto), Sunday, 20 August 2006 12:50 (nineteen years ago)

i think the end solos are paul, george, john, and so on

― kyle (akmonday), Sunday, 20 August 2006 13:52 (nineteen years ago)

Thanks.

― xgurggleglgllg (xgurggleglgllg), Monday, 21 August 2006 07:43 (nineteen years ago)

He hit his share of clams (hear him try, and try....and TRY to hit the mark during the intro to "Slow Down"), but the man certainly knew a thing or two about economy and restraint, which by itself makes him stand out. If all he'd ever done was to come up with the intro riff for "What is Life," he'd be a god.

― Dan Heilman (The Deacon), Monday, 21 August 2006 17:56 (nineteen years ago)

one month passes...

The accents he provides to the verses of Don't Let me Down are brilliant, in my opinion. That's what makes the song come alive for me; gives it atmosphere.

― B Jones (BigusJones), Tuesday, 26 September 2006 23:27 (nineteen years ago)

He was a lot better thn he thought he was. Something we can all aspire to.

― factcheckr (factcheckr), Tuesday, 26 September 2006 23:49 (nineteen years ago)

You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.