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Contained in the box are all of George’s studio albums released
after the fold of Apple Records in the mid-70’s, up until the
time of his death (not including a “best of” compilation
and his work with the Traveling Wilburys). While each disc is also
available separately, the box contains an added incentive in the
form of a DVD containing many of George’s promotional videos
of the era, as well as bonus interview and concert footage. With
remastered sound, expanded inserts and bonus tracks, the set promises
to be the Holy Grail for George buffs. On many levels, it succeeds,
and on some it falls a bit short. To examine where, let’s take
a guided tour of the box.
DISC ONE - Thirty Three and 1/3: Released in
1976, this was George’s age at the time, as well as the speed
at which a record album (remember those?) played. Loaded with trademark
slide guitar, the album marked a return to form following the disappointing
Extra Texture and a greatest hits album that Capitol saw fit to
load up with Beatles tracks. Just missing the top 10 (it went to
#11), it contained the singles (remember those?) “Crackerbox
Palace” and “This Song”, a mini-mockumentary about
George’s tribulations in the “My Sweet Lord” / “He’s
So Fine” lawsuit. A very well recorded album for its day, it
sparkled on CD the first time around and sounds even better here.
Peculiarly, the Somewhere In England album out take, “Tears
Of the World” was selected as a bonus track and is tacked on
the end.
DISC TWO – George Harrison: This self-titled
1979 release was perhaps George’s purest “pop” outing,
cracking the top 20 (#14 this time around) and featuring the hit
single “Blow Away”. Many were drawn to the curiosity of
“Here Comes The Moon”, clearly a nod to his Beatle classic
“Here Comes The Sun” (presented here in demo form as a
bonus track as well), but the real throwback was “Not Guilty”,
originally composed and recorded during the 1968 “white album”
sessions.
DISC THREE – Somewhere In England: While
not the most solid record George ever recorded, it is the one with
the most troubled past. Rejected by Warner Brothers (the distributor
for Dark Horse) in its original form, the album was reworked, dropping
four songs and adding replacements, including the absolutely scathing
opener “Blood From A Clone” in response to what George
no doubt considered a major slap in the face. Upon release in 1981,
much of the album’s warm reception was due to the touted “Beatle
reunion” of George, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr on the tribute
to recently slain band mate John Lennon, “All Those Years Ago”
(which made it all the way to #2 on the singles chart). This time
around, we see the album’s original cover art (that too was
originally rejected upon its submission). While we get a demo of
the album track “Save the World” as a bonus cut, be sure
to check out “Unconsciousness Rules” which runs over half
a minute longer than it did in it’s original form. Peculiarly,
the four songs dropped from the original unreleased lineup are not
presented here as the bonus tracks. Moreover, it might have been
interesting to present both album lineups in context.
DISC FOUR – Gone Troppo: No doubt soured
by the treatment by his record company last time around, and fundamentally
at odds with the new phenomenon known as MTV, George did absolutely
zero promotion for this album. The result was his first album to
fail to break the top 100 since the experimental Electronic Sound
from 1969. The box set gives us a chance to revisit this overlooked
album, which contains many fine tracks, including “Mystical
One” (also presented here in demo form as a bonus track), “Dream
Away”, “That’s The Way It Goes” and the sunny
title track. The “fab” moment here is the tune “Circles”,
written back in 1968 and currently in circulation among collectors
in demo form.
DISC FIVE – Cloud Nine: George’s top
10 comeback from 1987 is adorned here with two bonus tracks from
the ill-fated movie Shanghai Surprise featuring the then Mr. &
Mrs. Sean Penn. Having been George’s first album issued in
the CD era, I find this to be a bit jarring, in that I’ve only
ever known it in CD form (I guess on the other catalog reissues,
bonus cuts are so commonplace as to be near obligatory). A great
album top to bottom (perhaps his best single disc release), it featured
the #1 single, “Got My Mind Set On You” and the irresistible
“When We Was Fab”, an affectionate look back at the sixties.
DISC SIX – Live In Japan: Recorded in 1991,
this collection was largely passed over, and perhaps would have
enjoyed a warmer reception if the “with Eric Clapton and his
band” subtitle had been more prominently emphasized. Listening
back, it does sound a bit “sterile” and off center with
the female backup vocalists on many tracks (I liken it to “the
George Harrison revue”). Don’t believe the company line
about there not be any bonus material available for this release;
both “Love Comes To Everyone” and “Fish On The Sand”
were performed on the brief tour, and were not included on either
the original release or this reissued edition.
DVD: The main attraction here for the collector,
this disc contains the promo videos for “This Song”, “Crackerbox
Palace”, “Faster”, “When We Was Fab” (stunning
and hilarious), “This Is Love” and two versions of “Got
My Mind Set On You”. In addition, we get four live performances
from the Japan tour, “Taxman”, “Cloud Nine”,
“Devil’s Radio”, and “Cheer Down”, as well
as interview clips, movie bits and in-studio footage from the recording
session for “Shanghai Surprise”.
So, what’s not to like? Frankly, nothing. What
is here is mostly first-rate, but as collectors and enthusiasts
are prone to do, let’s look at a few “what might have
beens”.
First off, the DVD could have easily accommodated George’s
three remaining videos from the era, “True Love”, “Blow
Away” and of course “All Those Years Ago”. Nothing
subjective here, it just would have closed the loop nicely and given
the fans something truly special. This is to say nothing of adding
some truly rare TV material (like the Saturday Night Live appearance
with Paul Simon).
As for the bonus tracks, the unreleased demos and alternate
tracks are indeed a treat (most notably the exquisite “Here
Comes The Moon”), but their alignment here leaves many gaps
in the story. Earlier, I mentioned the four tracks left off Somewhere
In England. OK, we get one here (tacked on to 33 1/3, yet). We had
gotten one previously (“Lay His Head” as the b-side of
“Got My Mind Set On You”, over 15 years ago. Why would
that not be included here?). As for the other two (“Flying
Hour” and “Sat Singing”), they remain available only
in the limited edition Genesis Songs By George Harrison book and
CD sets (and on various bootlegs, of course). Most noticeably absent
are the three tracks exclusive to the 1989 (you guessed it –
out of print) Best Of Dark Horse album, “Cheer Down”,
“Poor Little Girl” and “Cockamamie Business”.
The point is, these and several other stray tracks might better
have been compiled on to a “bonus disc” for inclusion
in the box, instead of scattering the bonus tracks and thereby leaving
the album releases in their original context.
Perhaps some of these stray bits and leftover video
clips may be compiled in the long-promised Portrait of a Leg-End
anthology. Until then, there is much here to enjoy (getting past
the presentation and compilation issues detailed here). For those
of us who miss George every single day, the recent releases and
accolades are something to savor.
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