While some of George’s best material can be found on the much heralded ‘All Things Must Pass ‘ album, ‘Brainwashed‘ IS his best album from start to finish, in my opinion.  I don’t get people’s fears of “over-production” which I would’ve thought should’ve been laid to rest after Jeff Lynne’s stunning work on ‘Free As A Bird ‘, why is it that these same people were so readily accepting of Phil Spector’s ‘Wall of Sound’ treatment of ‘All Things Must Pass ‘?  They need not worry for Dhani Harrison made certain that Jeff Lynne followed George’s last wishes for this stunning swansong disc, I’d take it over McCartney’s ‘New’ CD (which I also really like) in a heartbeat, not only is ‘Brainwashed‘ George’s best album, but it rivals ‘John Lennon Plastic Ono Band’, ‘Band On The Run ‘ & ‘Ringo’ as the best solo album by ANY Beatle, it really is THAT good.  Very rarely have I gone a week or two without spinning it from beginning to end since it came out in 2002, also, if you haven’t checked out the ‘Concert For George’ from November 29, 2002, go find it ASAP for it’s also excellent, Jeff Lynne & Dhani Harrison do a pretty darned good version of ‘The Inner Light ‘ with Ravi Shankar’s daughter Anoushka backing them near the beginning of the show…:-)

acmac said

Funnily, my least favorite song is the title track.
 

The title track is one of my favourites and an excellent “signing-off”, in my opinion, by one of the most prolific musicians of our time.  George’s discontent with the state that the world was in when he left it was no secret to those who knew and loved him so dearly.  On the song ‘Brainwashed‘, he makes mention to all his bones to pick with society “down on BullShit Avenue” in a most humorous and satirical way that’s pure George while inserting his plea to “God , God God !” inbetween barbs as the only way out of the mess as he sees it.  “They even got my Grandma when she was working for the Mob” among other fantastic one-liners pick up on the tone set by ‘P2 Vatican Blues (Last Saturday Night)’ earlier on in the album.  The eerie chant set against the Eastern arrangement at the end, with Dhani backing, is George saying one last farewell to us all before he departs this world.  It’s one of many very emotional moments present throughout the disc and George was never really one to show much emotion really.

He shows a certain vulnerability on this album, fueled obviously by his battle with cancer at the time of its recording, never before seen in a George Harrison collection.  The “Talking to myself, crying aloud” lyric in ‘Stuck Inside A Cloud’ gives me the impression that part of him was dreadfully fearful of death, eventhough he’d long discussed the topic of death candidly in interviews as something he’d been spending most of his life preparing for, almost as though he welcomed it as some sort of a natural progression to his spiritual development.  The “How come nobody really noticed how the white smoke knocked me out” line in P2 Vatican Blues (Last Saturday Night)’ is an obvious reference to the effect that cigarettes had on his deteriorating health, the album at times is very hard to listen to without feeling George’s pain on the physical plane.

The pain and anguish is well rounded throughout ‘Brainwashed‘ by George’s pension for seeing the funny side of things, or a “laughter is the best medicine” approach to tackling the obstacles of life, eventhough he likes to promote the pathway to God at every turn, this was George’s balancing act which he did so well and it’s never been more apparent than on this album.  Perhaps my earlier comparisons to Paul McCartney ‘s ‘New’ are a little unfair, but John & Paul’s work has always traditionally been a measuring stick to George’s successes, and with every Paul & Ringo release nowadays being potentially their last, I can’t help but measure their latest works to George’s last.  One strong advantage George’s ‘Brainwashed‘ has over ‘New’ is that the album succeeds with very little recording “tricks” prevalent.  ‘New’s exotic production is one of the big reason’s for its success, in my opinion.  When it comes to lyrics, songwriting and the performances themselves, ‘Brainwashed‘ is noticeably better in just about every way when I listen to it, but that’s just me of course…:-)  

trcanberra said

Kel said
I just FINALLY purchased ‘Brainwashed‘.

Hard to believe it took me so long… George Harrison provided the soundtrack of my life.

Call me a wuss, but I will probably cry listening to it.

Same – but it is on my ever-growing stack – which I am chipping away at chronologically.  I do like the songs I have heard from it though.

 

I’m astonished that so many haven’t heard this album yet, it was a “no-brainer” day-one purchase for me that I couldn’t wait to load up into the disc tray.  I mean, a new album by George?!  While he’s no longer with us!?  That first listen back in November 2002 was a very memorable one for me, as I said all ready, “‘Brainwashed‘ IS his best album”!…:-)