Sunday, July 5, 2009

THANK YOU GEORGE

A few days ago, my wife and I lost one of our beloved cats. We took her to the vet, she had cancer. It was quick, but devastating, we loved her a lot. You can never be prepared for the quick death of a loved one, animal or human. One thing that I did find some comfort in was the music of George Harrison. Solo, with The Beatles, and with The Traveling Wilburys, he's written songs that somehow made me feel better. "Here Comes The Sun," "Beware Of Darkness," "End Of The Line," "Any Road" from Brainwashed, "Horse To Water" (one of very best songs which he wrote for a Jools Holland album) and especially "All Things Must Pass" made me feel a bit better. Thank you George.

Brainwashed is that rare album by an artist who knows that it will be his last statement. Not a bullshit retirement thing, but by someone who knows that their time is truly running out, like Warren Zevon's The Wind and Queen's Innuendo. I knew that there were a lot of extra songs from the album, because I interviewed the late Traffic drummer Jim Capaldi, and he talked about stuff that he played on for the then-years-away George Harrison album that was never released. So I was glad to hear that Jeff Lynne and Dhani Harrison, who finished up Brainwashed, will finish up the rest of George's songs for a future release. I ain't mad at that.

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