Latest 5 Reviews Here is what people are saying about the George Harrison - Living in the Material World
"George Harrison's best"
2009-09-08
- Reviewed By User: A3E1LAHCRWCQKP
I love George Harrison and I am replenishing my cd collection. This cd is by far some of his greatest work.
"George Harrison: Living in the Material World."
2008-08-01
- Reviewed By User: A1PEYH5IMQTVHC
I had this original album. There will never be another guy like him. Nobody does anything like him or probably ever will again. He is sorely missed. This is timeless stuff & from the Golden Era.
"The Courage Of His Convictions"
2008-04-04
- Reviewed By User: A2SYP47BL4TP9Q
I always admired George Harrison for not being afraid to sing and speak about spirituality. Not many artists back then were brave enough to take the risk of alienating their young party-hearty fanbase. Dylan (for example) wouldn't get around to writing overtly about spiritual topics until 1979's "Slow Train Coming". Maybe that's because he had a later "awakening", if you will, but my point is this: by that time he was a long-established star with nothing to lose. Dylan knew his fans would stick with him.
Harrison, on the other hand, came right out of the gate wearing his convictions on his sleeve. This was remarkable considering he had yet to prove he was worthy outside the confines of the Beatles. Though he was famous, no one knew what he was capable of on his own.
When he released "All Things Must Pass" (1970) after the Beatles break-up, the safe thing to do would've been to load it up with inoffensive pop/rock songs. Instead he chose to champion spirituality over materialism, and asked timeless questions like "What Is Life?" His thirst for knowledge and his love for Krishna (God) was un-abashedly declared on "My Sweet Lord". He could've easily encountered consumer indifference and fallen flat on his face. It's a testament to his talent that it didn't happen. Not only didn't it happen, but the 3-record set became the most talked about biggest hit of the year.
Harrison followed it up with "Concert for Bangladesh", while his fans eagerly awaited his next studio album. Their patience was finally rewarded with "Living In The Material World" (1973). Was it worth the wait? For me, the answer was a resounding "yes". In fact, I liked it even better than "All Things Must Pass". Heresy, I know. It wasn't as weighty and intimidating as his "magnum opus". I liked that it was only one record instead of three, and found it to be a succinct and beautiful "summing up" of everything I enjoyed about him. His singing and guitar playing, music and lyrics were all top-notch. Every song on it was great, which I couldn't quite say about ATMP.
Having said that, these two albums were his peak. Subsequent releases had good songs on them, but were not as consistent. The best of his later efforts were "Thirty-Three and 1/3", "George Harrison", and "Cloud Nine". If you are entirely new to him, the compilation "The Best Of George Harrison" is a good one. It contains some of his Beatles recordings and the early solo hits, while "Best Of Dark Horse (1976 to 1989)" covers later ground.
The world was a better place with Harrison in it. It turned out the "quiet" Beatle had a lot to say - and said it well. I suspect we'll be waiting a long time for another artist to assume his mantle.
"honestly, it's great"
2008-02-20
- Reviewed By User: A2582KMXLK2P06
Yes, George Harrison's ultimate example of emotional songwriting genius is on All Things Must Pass. We all know that. But to be totally honest this album really isn't a step down.
People keep telling me All Things Must Pass is the only George Harrison album I need, and I simply refuse to believe that's true when the man was capable of writing emotionally soothing and melodic songs all throughout his career.
Living in the Material World is another fantastic album by a great musician. Really, give the album a chance. You'll find yourself enjoying the vocal melodies and falling in love with George Harrison's gentle voice and caring lyrics. Just because this album isn't his very best album doesn't mean it's not worth listening to. That's just not true. Come on. Give this album a chance.
Imagine if we all said Led Zeppelin's fourth album was the only album worth listening to because it's the best album they ever made. We'd be ignoring other classic albums in the process. That's why I can't agree with people who think All Things Must Pass is the only George Harrison album worth owning. When you like a bands style, you enjoy much more than just the classic stuff. That's the truth.
Though some of the lyrics are a bit preachy, I like most of them. The guitar work and compositions are great. I especially enjoy "Be Here Now" (acoustic + piano + ... ), the poignant harmonics for "The Day The World Gets 'Round", the flanged guitar in "That is All", the horn section in "The Lord Loves The One ..." and the slide guitar on the vitriolic "Sue Me, Sue You Blues".
The lyrics have a definite Hindu/Hare Krishna tilt, which is fine by me. In "The Lord Loves ..." he attempts to skewer politicians by saying they're "acting like big girls" but frankly big girls tend to be much more mature than the politicians he would have been pointing at, so I found this a little derogatory in some sense, I hope he didn't think of it that way (most religions still tend to think of women as a lower social caste), but times have moved on.
If you like George's playing and his general philosophical bent, you'll love this album. I enjoy every single song, and come back to the songs mentioned above frequently still, after 30+ years of listening to it!
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"George Harrison's best"
"Georgie Boy"