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7.02pm
20 December 2010
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ScrambledEggs said
Does anyone know what George is trying to tell through Within You Without You ?
I think George is trying to make us all realize that we need to search our inner self and that the material world is not as important as drawing closer to God . He once said, ‘everything else can wait but the search for God cannot wait and love one another’. I always found it interesting at 24 years old he was writing lyrics such as ‘Within You, Without you’ and some of his other spiritual song including ‘Isn’t It A Pity ‘ which he wrote in 1966. He’s songs for me always made me think about the direction in my life.
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1.25pm
22 December 2013
Offline Inner Light said
ScrambledEggs said
Does anyone know what George is trying to tell through Within You Without You ?I think George is trying to make us all realize that we need to search our inner self and that the material world is not as important as drawing closer to God . He once said, ‘everything else can wait but the search for God cannot wait and love one another’. I always found it interesting at 24 years old he was writing lyrics such as ‘Within You, Without you’ and some of his other spiritual song including ‘Isn’t It A Pity ‘ which he wrote in 1966. He’s songs for me always made me think about the direction in my life.
There’s something to the ‘Within You Without You ‘ lyric that’s very elemental to George’s spiritual makeup, a “contradiction is balance” approach to every aspect in life which is reflected throughout many of the Eastern teachings that he’d adopted. You can trace it amongst many George Harrison lyrics post-1966, such as “I want a love that’s right but right is only half of what’s wrong”, (right/wrong, short/long, within/without, etc.). In ‘Within You Without You ‘ I always felt that essentially he’s saying to us that whatever you experience on the inside will inevitably manifest itself on the outside while warning us how any attempt to “Hide Behind a Wall of Illusion” will cause one further imbalance in life. While the lyrics here may raise many “Miscellaneous questions” upon first listen, further study reveals some very clear answers that are so obvious and staring us in the face that many miss out on them, much like experiencing “God ” itself.
John Lennon wasn’t one to praise George’s words very often, but during one of his last interviews he spoke very highly of ‘Within You Without You ‘ when he said:
JOHN 1980: “One of George’s best songs. One of my favorites of his, too. He’s clear on that song. His mind and his music are clear. There is his innate talent. He brought that sound together.”
I believe that when he says “clear on that song” he’s referencing the purity of George’s unadulterated by ego message portrayed in the lyrics, lyrics that have touched countless souls in a place that very few songs ever have..:-)
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20 December 2010
Offline Very well said!
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2.02am
19 June 2014
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I just realised that, even if George were alive, I might not be able to see him in concert. He hated touring and doing shows (even though he did all the Bangladesh publicity), right? I can’t remember ever hearing of a George Harrison concert from the 90s or whenever recent. Presumably he toured after Cloud Nine , but I don’t even know, and was that the last time he was out? Did he tour as part of the Travelling Wilburys? When were his last concerts? Were they world-wide? Has anyone seen him in concert and was he good, funny, fun? I wish I could have met him; I never will.
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2.30am
Reviewers
17 December 2012
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@Crinsk George would occasionally guest throughout the ’80s. In December 1991 he did a series of shows backed by Eric Clapton and his band, which were his first headlining shows since the 1974 tour, which produced the Live in Japan album. His very last headlining show happened in the run-up to the 1992 UK General Election, when he played a concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 6 April raising funds for the Natural Law Party (a political party based on the teachings of Marharishi) where he was backed by Gary Moore because Eric was busy elsewhere, and was joined by Ringo for a couple of numbers. His final live performance was in October 1992 when he joined many others paying tribute to Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden.
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The Beatles Bible 2020 non-Canon Poll Part One: 1958-1963 and Part Two: 1964-August 1966
3.20pm
15 June 2014
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May be he stopped touring after ’92 because he was busy with Anthology and later due to his health problems?
3.33pm
28 May 2014
Offline StrawberryFieldsForever said
May be he stopped touring after ’92 because he was busy with Anthology and later due to his health problems?
Probably yeah. And that time the guy attacked George.
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3.42pm
Reviewers
17 December 2012
Offline @StrawberryFieldsForever No, George wasn’t keen on live after the Beatlemania years. He did the Bangladesh concert, toured the US in 1974, made occasional guest appearances after that, agreed to the Japan series of shows with EC in 1991, then did a fundraiser in early ’92, followed by a last concert appearance for the Dylan show later that year. In that record of his live performances, there is nothing to suppose he would have made more live appearances in the ’90s had it not been for cancer. George lost his love of performing live, unlike Paul and Ringo. I very much doubt there would have been anything more than occasional guest appearances. He never toured after 1974 – the Japan gigs were all at one venue.
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The Beatles Bible 2020 non-Canon Poll Part One: 1958-1963 and Part Two: 1964-August 1966
3.55pm
28 May 2014
Offline Ron Nasty said
@StrawberryFieldsForever No, George wasn’t keen on live after the Beatlemania years. He did the Bangladesh concert, toured the US in 1974, made occasional guest appearances after that, agreed to the Japan series of shows with EC in 1991, then did a fundraiser in early ’92, followed by a last concert appearance for the Dylan show later that year. In that record of his live performances, there is nothing to suppose he would have made more live appearances in the ’90s had it not been for cancer. George lost his love of performing live, unlike Paul and Ringo. I very much doubt there would have been anything more than occasional guest appearances. He never toured after 1974 – the Japan gigs were all at one venue.
There’s your perfect answer.
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10.34pm
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1 May 2011
Offline Does George bookend solo-Beatle number ones with My Sweet Lord (1971) and My Sweet Lord in the US and UK (It Don’t Come Easy was #1 in Canada and no doubt a song hit #1 in another country somewhere in the world at some point out with those dates)?
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2.50am
1 November 2012
Offline Sometimes when I dial up a Tube I see accompanying the song what appears to be something like a music video. Quite a few of Harrison’s solo songs come up that way. My question is, is this particular Tube of “All Those Years Ago” showing a music video which George himself originally chose to put out at the time (and if so, did George create the video himself?) — or is it something some fan put together for YouTube?
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2.25pm
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1 May 2011
Offline I think thats the official one put out by George, heavily featuring John. Looks to be taken from a tv broadcast.
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9.38pm
Reviewers
14 April 2010
Offline Yep – someone recorded that from MTV.
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10.22pm
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1 May 2011
Offline Read in Keith Badmans book ‘Beatles After the Break-Up: 1970 – 2001’ that the ATYA promo was never screened in the UK which is quite a surprise.
"I told you everything I could about me, Told you everything I could" ('Before Believing' - Emmylou Harris)
2.31pm
7 December 2011
Offline meanmistermustard said
Read in Keith Badmans book ‘Beatles After the Break-Up: 1970 – 2001’ that the ATYA promo was never screened in the UK which is quite a surprise.
Not surprising really if you think about it.
The only music programmes broadcast in the UK at the time were Top Of The Pops and The Old Grey Whistle Test, and since the single didn’t reach the Top 10 (it peaked at 13) then there probably wan’t an opportunity to promote the single before it started dropping out of the charts.
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3.22am
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1 May 2011
Offline Heard an interview with Dhani taking about how George would keep saying to him to protect his nervous system and then earlier today heard “nervous system” in ‘Cockamamie Business’ which got me wondering in how many of his songs does George mention the “nervous system”? I can think of three:
- ‘Cockamamie Business‘ – “There are too many things stressing out the nervous system”
- ‘Rising Sun‘ – “Crippled by the boundaries, programmed into guilt, til your nervous system starts to tilt
- ‘Horse To The Water – “But first he turned on me, then he turned off his nervous system”
Are there any others?
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4.07am
22 December 2013
Offline Can’t think of any other songs off hand but he does say that “The Beatles gave their nervous systems” when discussing the many sacrifices made by them during the ‘Anthology’ interviews…:-)
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19 June 2014
Offline I have a question or 2 about George’s sound. It never occurred to me when I was younger, but I hear it now: George uses the same notes, the same guitar tone, the same kinds of musical phrases over and over and over through the years in his music. I don’t know his catalog very well, so every time I hear his songs I think “gee, that sounds like all the others”.
I have heard about how some composers got stuck on a particular phrase or theme and couldn’t let go of it all their lives, like they were obsessed. Did this happen to George?
Or, with all his spiritual and mystical beliefs, did he find some sort of “sacred” sound, or a sound that he believed was his own, or that channeled goodwill or godly energy or something, that he had to play over and over and give to the public?
Why?
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10.50pm
20 December 2010
Offline George played a lot of minor and augmented chords and notes in his melodies but I don’t feel they sound the same in all or most of his songs. He had his own style of playing just like all artists. I do believe his songs always except for a few, had a spiritual message, something you could apply to your daily life. He often said he wanted to write a song when he had something to give or say and not to just write to sell records.
I would say that if you don’t like spiritual messages, slide guitar playing or songs which invoke deep thought, you probably wouldn’t like his music. He enjoyed playing the rock n’ roll back in the 50’s & 60’s but as he grew up and especially after he found God and Hinduism, his musical direction took a new turn which changed the course of his life.
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1.22pm
2 September 2014
Offline ScrambledEggs said
Does anyone know what George is trying to tell through Within You Without You ?
In George’s words (quoted in Off The Record): “There are so many people who don’t understand the sentiments of ‘Within You Without You ’. They can’t see outside themselves, they’re too self-important and can’t see how small we all are. ‘Within You Without You ’ was just my way of trying to make a Western pop song, using some of those instruments and some of those sounds.”
(Hello everybody, by the way; I’m new to the forum, though not to The Beatles, having been a Beatlemaniac/George girl since the mid-90s… Always nice to encounter other fans! :))
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