As George Harrison strived to carve his creative identity within The Beatles, frustration often brewed beneath his calm exterior. One such moment arose during the creation of While My Guitar Gently Weeps. “I worked on that song with John, Paul, and Ringo one day, and they were not interested in it at all,” Harrison once shared. “And I knew inside of me that it was a nice song.”
Feeling his bandmates’ indifference, Harrison invited Eric Clapton to the studio to lay down the guitar parts, a move that added a layer of brilliance to the track. Today, the song stands as one of The Beatles’ most beloved compositions, proving Harrison’s instinct was right.
This dynamic wasn’t unusual for Harrison. Despite being a prolific songwriter, his contributions often took a backseat to John Lennon and Paul McCartney’s dominance. After The Beatles dissolved, Harrison unleashed his creative energy, recording a treasure trove of material he had long held back. His triple album, All Things Must Pass, became an enduring classic and featured his first solo single, My Sweet Lord.
Harrison described My Sweet Lord as a mantra-inspired piece. “The thing about a mantra,” he explained, “is that it’s a mystical sound vibration encased in a syllable. It has this power within it. It’s just hypnotic.”
While My Sweet Lord soared in popularity, it became embroiled in legal controversy. The Shirelles accused Harrison of plagiarizing their hit He’s So Fine, leading to a landmark copyright case. Harrison maintained that the similarities were unconscious, yet John Lennon had a different perspective.
“Well, he walked right into it,” Lennon remarked during an interview with Playboy. “He knew what he was doing.” When pressed for clarification, Lennon elaborated, suggesting Harrison could have made subtle changes to avoid the lawsuit. “He’s smarter than that,” Lennon said. “He could have changed a couple of bars, and nobody could have touched him, but he just let it go and paid the price. Maybe he thought God would just sort of let him off.”
Despite the controversy, Harrison’s legacy as an artist of deep spiritual and musical resonance remains untarnished. My Sweet Lord continues to inspire, embodying the transcendental themes that defined his post-Beatles career.
