For any musician, a handful of songs usually seem to be the go-to “show-off” tunes. Even though they might not be the most celebrated hits in an artist’s discography, getting them under one’s belt comes with a certain level of respect from other artists who’ve been around the block a couple of times. While rock and roll was still finding its sea legs in the early 1960s, this early rock and roll track was essential for George Harrison becoming part of musical history.
When looking at the way that any of The Beatles came together, it almost seemed like fate was pointing them in the right direction. Although the band’s origins date back to John Lennon fronting his band The Quarrymen for the first few years of his adolescence, things began to change when a young musician named Paul McCartney went to see him play at a festival in town.
Wanting to show his stuff, Paul McCartney would meet Lennon during a break in their set, where he began to play a handful of their instruments. Impressed that McCartney knew all the lyrics to Eddie Cochran’s ‘Twenty Flight Rock’, Lennon thought it would be interesting to bring him into the group.
Operating as two individual frontmen, the duo would spend their time honing their craft as songwriters. Following in the footsteps of artists like The Everly Brothers and Gerry Goffin and Carole King, the duo would eventually write songs for each other to finish, putting the basis of a track together and even gaining a small following of fans in their native Liverpool venues like The Cavern.
As McCartney began working with Lennon, Harrison was still honing his craft as a guitar player. Becoming enamoured with the instrument after hearing ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ on the radio, Harrison would spend his time practising his soloing skills, wanting to play songs by his idols like Chuck Berry and Carl Perkins to perfection.
Since McCartney knew Harrison from his days at school, he suggested that Harrison audition for the group. While none of the guitarists in the band could solo, McCartney invited Harrison to hang out with the group after one of their shows, after which he was able to pick up one of their guitars.
Recalling that time, McCartney remembered Harrison playing the song ‘Rauchy’ by Bill Justus, recounting in The Beatles Anthology, “I said, ‘Well he can play ‘Rauchy’ perfectly’, and we all loved that song. So we’re all sitting on the top deck of a double-decker bus, just us. I said, ‘Go on, George, get your guitar out, show ’em’. And he plays it, [and we said], ‘You’re in’”.
While Lennon would be a little embarrassed to take on Harrison as a member because of how young he looked, his friendship with the young guitarist would become one of the foundational elements of The Beatles. Looking up to Lennon as a big brother figure, Harrison often asked Lennon for help finishing songs like ‘Taxman’ while also finding time to play on his solo hits like ‘Gimme Some Truth’. Lennon and McCartney may have been able to put a couple of chords together to create musical magic, but Harrison gave them the last piece of the melodic puzzle that set them on the path to rock and roll stardom.
https://youtu.be/YSES0Vukle4
