I hate to give away my age, but I actually saw this broadcast live on Saturday Night Live when it originally aired. We were all so blown away to see these two together on one stage. The breakups of The Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel were still relatively fresh at that point. They also did S&G's "Homeward Bound", again singing beautiful harmonies. Thanks for bringing this back!
I saw it too with a couple of friends. We just finished smoking a number when they came on. I was speechless at the end. It ranks as one of the greatest live performances ever on television.
@@pamalaalford1081 Me too and I'm sure glad I was. They did Here Comes the Sun, and Homeward Bound. They were great together. We're talking 2 of the greatest guitarist/singer/songwriters in the business here. Below is the full clip. Enjoy ua-cam.com/video/KEgBMTMUanU/v-deo.html
George was always my favorite. I loved his voice and guitar playing. Paul Simon is perfect with him. But now I understand the wonderful guitar playing. Because of your videos I always now have a new way of hearing songs and understanding of the music.
This was an SNL performance and I remember watching it. Amazing how good George sounded with Paul Simon. Great harmonies. This Paul could hit the highs of the “other Paul”.
I think people want to compare Paul with Artie, and since Artie is otherworldly, they conclude Paul wasn't a great singer. He had a great voice and excellent control.
George is my hero. As a kid I went over this record endlessly with a guitar to get the guitar part. There is a "groove" to it: you're picking out the melody as you strum up and down, the timing of the strum has to be right while timing and attack of the melody notes also have to be right; and then it all has to sound effortless and almost accidental. It took me a long time but it becomes a chop. But you can lose it if you don't play it regularly. He's wildly underrated because he wasn't flashy, but incredibly musical - although when he later started playing slide, he _could_ be flashy.
There is a video here on YT. Where Eric Clapton was with George walking in the garden and Mr.Harrison starting playing this. Genius. Georges son was attending Brown University in Providence Rhode Island. I stopped into a small coffee shop there. And George was sitting at a corner table.He was with another person. I wanted to go over and thank him for his music but respected his privacy. On my way out our eyes locked I nodded and he returned with a smile. I think I did the right thing.Always loved George it's a shame he suffered so much in his last years RIP Mr.George Harrison.
Beautiful story. I congratulate you on the way you handled it. As an absolute Beatle maniac, I would have had a hard time not talking to him, but I wouldn’t have either. I did see him briefly in his car. I was walking on the sidewalk just past Friar Park and he was returning home. He was driving fast, naturally! But he looked at me and I thought he was scowling, but I think I was just paranoid! 😄 I have met Paul and Ringo twice and George Martin and others, but I wish I’d met George and John.
I think that's part of why it's so hard to hate on him. Plus, since he wasn't able to get much of his stuff onto Beatles albums, he had a massive amount of stuff to release afterwards.
And that they did come along for so many years..but then it imploded within two years after they stopped live performances as the creative energy turned into destructive one.
Who doesn't like the sun. I found George to be the most harmonious and sophisticated of the Beatles with his song writing( and without the POP element) which is great. You are absolutely correct, he had his own style. Seems like a great song to learn on the guitar. Thanks for sharing.
I wish the Beatles had stuck around for a few more years. George's songs were really starting to stand out among the last few albums especially Abbey Road. I'm not too familiar or particularly drawn in to each of the member's solo careers. As a musician myself (hobby), I seem to come up with the most interesting compositions working with other people... the kind of stuff I wouldn't have come up with otherwise. I guess it depends who you are playing with. Imagine if George still had the rest of the Beatles to influence his compositions for a few more years.
I don't know about sophisticated. HIs musicianship was more subtle, for certain. The chord progressions he used were, from the very beginning, were most dissonant and least easily assimilated by a popular audience.
@@SRMoore1178 I love all of George’s solo albums. His music was so unique and interesting with its Indian influences. He was so stifled with the Beatles. Their breakup was the best thing that could have happened to him at the time.
@@SRMoore1178 I agree with you completely when composing or writing music alone, or with someone. I've been playing guitar and other stringed instruments, for many years, but my (seemingly) best moments were always jamming and pulling from another musicians, style and skill. One of my good friends in College was a linguistics major, not a musician at all, but he would try to decode, dead or archaic, rarely spoken languages. He would grunt and growl, trying to revive words, not spoken for maybe a thousand years. I would try to put musical sounds to his guttural attempt at a thesis. I'm pretty sure we brought beauty and life to many dead and forgotten Gaelic rhymes. Or perhaps...... we contributed to their 'earlier demise'. LOL That being said, it was always a learning experience. Many a great musician or songwriter, is only as good as the sum of their part's. Every song about love was written before any of us was born. All we do, is find a way to rephrase, the love that we feel. It's amazing how many ways we keep finding a new twist or turn, or a melody, that catches us all off-guard and makes love, new again.
That is still one of my most favorite performances. Paul Simon and George Harrison rocked the universe that night on the SNL stage. It's a video all humans should witness in every generation.
Most people underestimate the importance of the lead riffs in Beatle songs. For example, what would "And I Love Her" be without those opening four notes on the guitar? Or imagine how bare "In My Life" would be without that lead guitar intro. Or how about that lead guitar drop in "Help!" Or the intro to "Day Tripper". Or listen to the intro to "Michelle", where Harrison combines lead and rhythm guitar to "set up" the rest of the song (very much the same way he does in "Here Comes The Sun"). These guitar riffs are the connective tissue of almost every Beatle song. They're hugely important in making the song memorable, yet they're rarely mentioned in analyses of the Beatles' music.
Totally - even as a kid - I always looked forward to those short but creative solos and riffs in my favorite Beatles tunes - such as the small solo in "Good Morning Good Morning" on Sgt. Pepper. I was never a fan of rock bands with interminable lead guitar solos that added nothing to the song.
I have always been amazed at the coincidence of 4 young geniuses from a small city, indeed some living blocks apart, should wind up together in the same seminal band, vying in their own way to put forward their own individual talents within the 4-piece band while contributing to the band as a whole. I always felt that the overwhelming personas of J-P&R pushed George into somewhat of the background despite the brilliance of his musicianship and song-writing capabilities. He should never have laboured under the J-P rule of "two songs per album". I always felt, of the four, that the break-up must have been incredibly liberating for him. The Travelling Wilburys and other entities allowed him to show his own brilliance.
The problem for George, in my opinion, was his age. Being the youngest he just got to “tag along “, not intentionally. Realize that John and Paul aren’t elder statesmen at this point and they’re just finding their sea legs if you will! You could make the point that J&P pushed George to become who ended up being. Ultimately they are best example of the whole being better than the sum if the parts.
Given their musical stats and influence the Beatles were either very very lucky or very very good, as a musician of 50 yrs I know which one I believe to be true
Wow. . . so good! Such a gentle delivery. These two blend together so well. They also performed Paul's song, "Homeward Bound." They did a great job on that song too. I love the gentle delivery. . . beautiful. Thanks Fil.
Could not love this any more, thank you Fil! Aside from your amazing analysis, what stands out to me is Paul Simon's signature vocal harmony trill during the Sun-Sun-Sun, Here it Comes phrase, emphasis on the "comes" note. Paul's a brilliant guitarist as well. It's lovely how he allows George to really shine in this performance.
Beautifully melodic, understated, and surprisingly sophisticated (for rock) player: George Harrison bequeathed an entire vocabulary of stylings that one can hear in artists ranging from Fogerty to Prince, Honeyman Scott and even to Page (the arpeggios and restrained, narrative-driven, and motif-oriented soloing on Stairway echoes Harrison's late-period Beatleisms on albums such as Abbey Road). In a circa 2001-era joint interview with Page, Jeff Beck said of Harrison, "Now THERE'S the guy..." Indeed. And given Harrison's uncanny, Indian-influenced bottleneck slide guitar -- and Beck's own masterfully idiosyncratic bottleneck stylings-- I'd say Jeff had it just about right: every note in the right place, Jeff, in that praise for "THAT guy" whose work embodied, well, every note in just the right place.
Sweeeeet! It's so refreshing to hear a real musician break down and explain real music. Now here's a challenge for you... Wes Montgomery. Solo's, jazz, or big band, what makes his music so incredible? I heard "Bumpin' On Sunset" in 1967, and listened to nothing but jazz for the next 25 years. From Detroit... Rock on dude!!
Hi Fil, long time since I last commented. George wrote my favourite Beatles songs especially Something and While my Guitar Gently Weeps. Paul Simon right up there with the Beatles for song writing. Can you believe that Simon & Garfunkel, Led Zep, Black Sabbath et al played a small rugby club in W Wales in Briton Ferry in the 60's and early 70's. I was 10 yrs too young to see this, people forget superstars from that time had to go out and play. Tommy Emmanuel was also a regular player in S Wales pubs before he made it.
From an interview with The Beatles: "McCartney pointed out that “George is the one of us who is interested in the instrument” and “the other three of us are more interested in the sound of the group.” But Harrison noted that he didn’t even practice. “To be a guitarist, you’re supposed to practice a couple of hours a day,” he said. “But, I mean, I don’t do that.” To be anything, you’re supposed to practice a couple of hours a day,” chimed in Starr. “Well you know, I mean, the thing is . . . individually we’re all . . . I suppose we’re all crummy musicians, really,” said Harrison" In another interview, Harrison said something like "I think I could be quite good if I practiced".
My fave beatle everything George did was magical, & the most spiritual. Beautiful acoustics, in fact his whole best of album is brilliant🎼🎵🎶 Thanku Fil, inspired to play this ~
The original Beatles version and the acoustic version in the Concert for Bangla Desh are both capoed at the 7th fret and played A in a D shape. Maybe 5th fret fit better to Paul's and perhaps to George's a little bit aged voice.
@@michaelharrington75 I agree. The slide guitar on John Lennon song gimme some truth made that song. I found out it was George playing that about 20 years after it was released which made it sound even better.
George learnt to play slide while doing a mini tour with Delaney and Bonnie in 1969. If you want to hear a great slide cameo by George listen to The Bluest Blues by Alvin Lee
Great analysis. "It seems easy but it is not". For us, young kids trying to play guitar in 1969, this song was a challenge. So great and so easy at first hearing but also so complex. I must add that the vibe in the guitar playing needs to be a little mellow while the singing needs to be a little more intense. Seems easy but it is not. That's why the Beatles are still in the top.
This is as powerful seeing/hearing this now as it was when I saw it live on TV (I think this is from SNL) when I was just 13 years old. Another fantastic anaysis, Fil! Thank you kindly.
George found his own style of playing guitar in a very unique way. To me, he's always been the finest musician of Fab Four. Paul here playing and singing so comforting.
When I watched this, tears ran down my face because I miss the REAL song writers. What a beautiful moment. Both really talented acoustic guitar players. Although they weren't known for that. Being a guitar player 51 plus years, I recognized their chord content and melody melted within it. Both in their own right. I truly miss this time.
George was my favorite Beatle. When I took up the ukulele, I played more Beatles songs than anything else. When I found out that George also played the ukulele, I was over the moon!
It makes me sad to think that the greatest of our musicians are getting older and then before we know it, they're gone. Wish that music wasn't so ephemeral sometimes... sigh.
So many memories. The Beatles were amazing and they will always be my favorites. I have to add that I see the enjoyment in your face when you play these wonderful recordings again. ☮️💖
That's what I was going to say. Although in this video playing with Paul, the capo is on the 5th fret therefore played in G. The original by the Beatles has the capo on the 7th fret making it played in A. I think they must have lowered it so that it fit Paul's vocals better.
Buddy who left us far far to early had his own style of playing. However, hearing the Beatles doing, That Will Be The Day and Words of Love, one tends to hear similar guitar work in both these songs originally performed by Buddy Holly. Harrison was not only spot on note for note, the tone was about the same too? In other words you could close your eyes and swear Holly was playing those chords...?
You started out the video being blurred, and I thought that Wings of Pegasus was blocking Fil!! It's too bad, I'll go look at the video. Great analysis of my favorite song for when I'm down.
If pressed to name my choice for Greatest Song from the classic rock era, I usually call a tie for 1st place between "Here Comes The Sun" by Harrison, and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon. I love this pairing of these two masters in this video, and would love to hear hours more from the duo. I was a young lad and fanatical music lover when both of these men reached their creative prime in the late '60s and early '70s, and I am eternally grateful for that blessing.
The most impressive things about Georeges guitar playing is how willing he was to let the other guy really shine. Really seemed to love playing with people "better than him" and Paul seems delighted at singing with George such a lovely laid back preformance.
I thought UA-cam was censoring your image when the video started lol. I was wondering, if you had a monitor on the wall behind you, to play the video you're critiquing, maybe, the video would fly under the radar?
So right! To perform that song you really need to cover the guitar playing exactly, because the guitar melodies or counterpoints ARE the song. To me anyway. And the guitar part is somewhat hard to learn, but good to try. Even if not to play the song, it's good for one's expansion and grip on the guitar. Thanks, great video!
Can’t believe you can’t show the video. I was watching Beat Club videos from the 60’s last night. It’s unbelievable the artists you can watch performing live.
ive been a beatles fan for a long time and never imagined harrison to be deceptive in any way with his ability ,,he was the real deal there is no hidden secret or trickery to his playing ,,,terrable video title,,,i was really taken aback by it ,,,I guess its clickbait
Nothing like watching two well-known musicians who blend their skills together and have mutual respect for each other, P. S. I thought for a moment your image had become copyright block right after your intro. Hee-hee!
Thanks for a George Harrison video. My absolute favourite artist of all time. His guitar work is truly underrated (and undervalued) when I can clearly hear the man was a meticulous perfectionist about guitar. And what he played, and did not play. I dare anyone to find a more flawless guitar recording than "Your Love Is Forever" from 1979. There may be one, but I know there is not one missed note that entire song on what is the basic "riff" of it. Flawless. Every chord change is struck the same. I don't know. Being a musician, and hearing his guitar part on "Your Love Is Forever", makes me say I have a LONG way to go before I get as good as George Harrison.
One tricky part of the “Sun, sun, sun…” section is the seamless time signature change to 3/8 (I think). George, like the rest of the Beatles would do this type of thing all the time. Sometimes a time sig change, or just some times a quick bar of 2/4 thrown into a pre-chorus or bridge. They would do them so well that they become hard to notice. When most other musicians do things like that, they usually are noticeable, not with the Beatles.
George Harrison was a master of his craft! That is why all the other musicians and bands requested he played on their tracks in a supporting way! The man knew what he was doing and everyone knew it too! R.I.P. George you and your talent are sorely missed!
Oh come on UA-cam ffs, surely this doesn't need blocking and should be under fair use. It's a small screen size and not great audio so chill out youtube and copyright holders. Great video BTW....just annoying when youtube does this. Surprised they even left the music alone tbh. 😋
While George Harrison's material was largely excluded from Beatles albums, when the band split up he had enough material to release the first triple album by any of The Beatles!
@Tracy Zimmerman, I notice that too right after fil's intro at 0:12 second the right side of the screen goes blurred. at first, I thought Fil had become copyright blocked then I realize it was for the performance of George Harrison and Paul Simon. after a long day Fil had yesterday one bound to make a mistake.
Phil. love your reactions. I know your lips move because you tallk, and I love it Should I drink every time you go from stone face to huge smile? come on man. surely everyone else sees' this? try a half smile, a sniker,, a something other than ..."gee grand ma....this is what i always wanted" smile.
Love this performance - it is one of my favorites...perfect timing because it has been a stressful day for me so happy to listen to your analysis of a chill but skilled performance.
The recent documentary on George Harrison has a really funny part where Ringo talks about George coming in and telling him he had a song with 7 1/2 time. The "sun sun sun here it comes" part is incredibly rhythmically complex. I've seen the official published written version of the song (I learned to play guitar from the Complete Beatles songbooks when I was about 12) and the transcribers had to jump through hoops to figure out how to write that rhythm out. I can't really link a picture of it but if you count it out in your head it jumps out of 4/4 into a kind of 9 (or 12)/8 measure, a 2/8 measure, a 4/4 measure, a 2/4 measure, then back into 9 (or 12)/8 and repeats. You don't notice how complex it is because of George's skill at writing the song so that it sounds completely smooth and natural. The song flows over this incredibly complex rhythmic structure so smoothly you don't consciously hear it. You'd think it would be jarring, but it isn't. A true genius at work.
The Beatles were the real first supergroup. It can be seen when you see other bands and their members when they attempt to a solo career. Case in point the Rolling Stones. For whatever reason some artists can't make it without the chemistry of the other band members. The Beatles, including Ringo, were all stars in their right. The fact that these young men all got together from a relatively obscure area in the UK was something of a minor miracle. I don't particularly care for Paul Simon's songwriting but his voice works here and I do think he was a good guitarist.
I'm glad I lived in the 60s and 70s when so many of these gifted musical geniuses were in their prime. Years ago, I was playing guitar with a young guy who asked me, "But did the Beatles have much competition?" DID THEY HAVE COMPETITION! Looking back, it's really astounding how many extremely capable and talented people were producing and competing back then. I just noticed that in June, Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson both turned 80, two days apart. Yes, LOTS of musical geniuses born back in the 40s, which is hard for many of today's young people to even imagine.
I'm so old I saw them do this duet live on SNL. ... I was a teenager but already a Musician and I was in AWE seeing the two of them play live together. Muchos gratias for bringing this great moment back!!
Fil, thanks for the analysis especially the guitar "lesson." Recommend you check out the MonaLisa Twins' cover of this song. They just dropped it in UA-cam this morning. Rock steady.
I would describe George as a considered guitarist. Not someone who immediately knows what to play but crafts his music and songs like a good writer and who needs time and space to do it. Paul may have been too pushy for him towards the end. I may be wrong. Also, I have always greatly admired Paul Simon's musical ability. Any who has tried playing guitar to his songs knows he was very talented. And he was singing as well!
Great work once again Fil! I just love your work! I’d subscribe again, but I already did that the first time I found your channel! I forget if it was the Righteous Brothers or the Everly Brothers or Bobby Darin or just what it was (everything has been fabulous!). You’ve even helped me to begin to appreciate music I thought I hated! Auto tune, not so much, but I never felt you were a fan of it either but you did educate us a great deal on how that actually “works,” and why we can’t get our musical “fix” from so much of this modern musical “noise” (did I just turn into my Dad?)… In regard to the “copyright censorship” of the performance video, I wonder if you cropped the images by, say 25%, if it could then be construed as “found art.” Fair warning! Don’t bother asking SCOTUS! All the best always Fil… Your pal, Glenn
George Harrison was, and STILL IS, the most accomplished of the four....and We don't care who says otherwise. And, I wasn't a particularly big fan of Paul Simon's, but wow, he was a perfect accompaniment
You always do a great job explaining what's happening. I love all your videos.. And this is a Great song, I remember watching it for the first tie back in 1976 on SNL.. Originally with The Beatles, George played with capo on 7th fret. That how I learned the tune. 🌞 🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂❤
It sounds, and is a simple folk song, yet listening to the complexities of melodies and harmonies brought about in the construction of the chords is the realization of a timeless ballad. And as Fil mentioned the contribution of the vocals.
I've never seen this performance before, and wow! They sounded great together, both vocally and instrumentally. Makes me wish they had collaborated more!
George is such a joy to hear. He was the equal of his brethren in songwriting, and a proper guitarist. Plus he gave us "Life of Brian"! What a hero.
I hate to give away my age, but I actually saw this broadcast live on Saturday Night Live when it originally aired. We were all so blown away to see these two together on one stage. The breakups of The Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel were still relatively fresh at that point. They also did S&G's "Homeward Bound", again singing beautiful harmonies. Thanks for bringing this back!
Ah, go ahead and show your age - I was there too!
I saw it too with a couple of friends. We just finished smoking a number when they came on. I was speechless at the end. It ranks as one of the greatest live performances ever on television.
@@pamalaalford1081 Me too and I'm sure glad I was. They did Here Comes the Sun, and Homeward Bound. They were great together. We're talking 2 of the greatest guitarist/singer/songwriters in the business here. Below is the full clip. Enjoy
ua-cam.com/video/KEgBMTMUanU/v-deo.html
So did I!
@@JackFalltrades I was there for that too ... good times!!
George was always my favorite. I loved his voice and guitar playing. Paul Simon is perfect with him. But now I understand the wonderful guitar playing. Because of your videos I always now have a new way of hearing songs and understanding of the music.
This was an SNL performance and I remember watching it. Amazing how good George sounded with Paul Simon. Great harmonies. This Paul could hit the highs of the “other Paul”.
I think people want to compare Paul with Artie, and since Artie is otherworldly, they conclude Paul wasn't a great singer. He had a great voice and excellent control.
Love that song -Here comes the sun”. Always loved it, one of my favorites❤️💞
George is my hero. As a kid I went over this record endlessly with a guitar to get the guitar part. There is a "groove" to it: you're picking out the melody as you strum up and down, the timing of the strum has to be right while timing and attack of the melody notes also have to be right; and then it all has to sound effortless and almost accidental. It took me a long time but it becomes a chop. But you can lose it if you don't play it regularly. He's wildly underrated because he wasn't flashy, but incredibly musical - although when he later started playing slide, he _could_ be flashy.
There is a video here on YT. Where Eric Clapton was with George
walking in the garden and Mr.Harrison starting playing this. Genius.
Georges son was attending Brown University in Providence Rhode Island.
I stopped into a small coffee shop there. And George was sitting at a corner
table.He was with another person. I wanted to go over and thank him for his
music but respected his privacy. On my way out our eyes locked I nodded and he
returned with a smile. I think I did the right thing.Always loved George it's a shame
he suffered so much in his last years RIP Mr.George Harrison.
Thanks for your little nice story.
George was and is my favorite Beatle.
You absolutely did the right thing. Your nod said it all.
Wow! Aren’t you lucky. I’m jealous, lol.
Beautiful story. I congratulate you on the way you handled it. As an absolute Beatle maniac, I would have had a hard time not talking to him, but I wouldn’t have either. I did see him briefly in his car. I was walking on the sidewalk just past Friar Park and he was returning home. He was driving fast, naturally! But he looked at me and I thought he was scowling, but I think I was just paranoid! 😄 I have met Paul and Ringo twice and George Martin and others, but I wish I’d met George and John.
George Harrison is a legend..... the quiet Beatle....love his music and song writting.
I think that's part of why it's so hard to hate on him. Plus, since he wasn't able to get much of his stuff onto Beatles albums, he had a massive amount of stuff to release afterwards.
He was the best of them in all ways.
Michael Palin thought calling George “the quiet one” was funny. Said George “could talk for England!”
Crazy how much talent was in the Beatles. John , Paul , George , and Ringo.
Who is this group, Beatles, you speak of?
Lol
By the end of it Ringo said he was sick of it. They were no longer a band.
Ringo?
@@pateagle7191 He also said he would have carried on with the Beatles.
And that they did come along for so many years..but then it imploded within two years after they stopped live performances as the creative energy turned into destructive one.
Glad your giving a nod to George Harrison. A beautiful artist, one that is difficult to over appreciate.
Who doesn't like the sun. I found George to be the most harmonious and sophisticated of the Beatles with his song writing( and without the POP element) which is great. You are absolutely correct, he had his own style. Seems like a great song to learn on the guitar. Thanks for sharing.
I wish the Beatles had stuck around for a few more years. George's songs were really starting to stand out among the last few albums especially Abbey Road. I'm not too familiar or particularly drawn in to each of the member's solo careers. As a musician myself (hobby), I seem to come up with the most interesting compositions working with other people... the kind of stuff I wouldn't have come up with otherwise. I guess it depends who you are playing with. Imagine if George still had the rest of the Beatles to influence his compositions for a few more years.
I don't know about sophisticated. HIs musicianship was more subtle, for certain. The chord progressions he used were, from the very beginning, were most dissonant and least easily assimilated by a popular audience.
@@SRMoore1178 I love all of George’s solo albums. His music was so unique and interesting with its Indian influences. He was so stifled with the Beatles. Their breakup was the best thing that could have happened to him at the time.
@@SRMoore1178 I agree with you completely when composing or writing music alone, or with someone. I've been playing guitar and other stringed instruments, for many years, but my (seemingly) best moments were always jamming and pulling from another musicians, style and skill. One of my good friends in College was a linguistics major, not a musician at all, but he would try to decode, dead or archaic, rarely spoken languages. He would grunt and growl, trying to revive words, not spoken for maybe a thousand years. I would try to put musical sounds to his guttural attempt at a thesis. I'm pretty sure we brought beauty and life to many dead and forgotten Gaelic rhymes. Or perhaps...... we contributed to their 'earlier demise'. LOL That being said, it was always a learning experience. Many a great musician or songwriter, is only as good as the sum of their part's. Every song about love was written before any of us was born. All we do, is find a way to rephrase, the love that we feel. It's amazing how many ways we keep finding a new twist or turn, or a melody, that catches us all off-guard and makes love, new again.
Harry Nilsson.
That is still one of my most favorite performances. Paul Simon and George Harrison rocked the universe that night on the SNL stage. It's a video all humans should witness in every generation.
Edit; that is an edited video, or they took out the breakdown. "Sun Sun, Sun, here it comes" - that part.
Most people underestimate the importance of the lead riffs in Beatle songs. For example, what would "And I Love Her" be without those opening four notes on the guitar? Or imagine how bare "In My Life" would be without that lead guitar intro. Or how about that lead guitar drop in "Help!" Or the intro to "Day Tripper". Or listen to the intro to "Michelle", where Harrison combines lead and rhythm guitar to "set up" the rest of the song (very much the same way he does in "Here Comes The Sun"). These guitar riffs are the connective tissue of almost every Beatle song. They're hugely important in making the song memorable, yet they're rarely mentioned in analyses of the Beatles' music.
Totally - even as a kid - I always looked forward to those short but creative solos and riffs in my favorite Beatles tunes - such as the small solo in "Good Morning Good Morning" on Sgt. Pepper. I was never a fan of rock bands with interminable lead guitar solos that added nothing to the song.
And chords-like the one that starts “All I Got to Do.”
my fave in that area is Ticket to Ride. And then we can't forget what Paul claimed was the first fuzz guitar in pop - I Feel Fine.
I always get a chuckle when people say George was over rated as a guitarist. I honestly cant think of anyone that was more under rated
No doubt. Keith Richards has been playing the same three Chuck Berry riffs for 62 years.
I wish George would have formed a band with Paul Simon. Can you imagine ?
Fil, you are a great guitar instructor !
His playing was so clean and precise, so…….impeccable.
Yes. My brother, also a musician, described George's playing as elegant.
I have always been amazed at the coincidence of 4 young geniuses from a small city, indeed some living blocks apart, should wind up together in the same seminal band, vying in their own way to put forward their own individual talents within the 4-piece band while contributing to the band as a whole. I always felt that the overwhelming personas of J-P&R pushed George into somewhat of the background despite the brilliance of his musicianship and song-writing capabilities. He should never have laboured under the J-P rule of "two songs per album". I always felt, of the four, that the break-up must have been incredibly liberating for him. The Travelling Wilburys and other entities allowed him to show his own brilliance.
@@tomb2315 ?
Great 5 chord rock pop artists. None were musical geniuses. Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, and Mozart were musical geniuses.
The problem for George, in my opinion, was his age. Being the youngest he just got to “tag along “, not intentionally. Realize that John and Paul aren’t elder statesmen at this point and they’re just finding their sea legs if you will! You could make the point that J&P pushed George to become who ended up being.
Ultimately they are best example of the whole being better than the sum if the parts.
Given their musical stats and influence the Beatles were either very very lucky or very very good, as a musician of 50 yrs I know which one I believe to be true
@@jamesthompson316 Not mutually exclusive. It's both.
The best thing that came out of Beatles breakup was George got to shine, and shine he did.
You rock keep it up,this was unbelievable awesome 👌
Wow. . . so good! Such a gentle delivery. These two blend together so well. They also performed Paul's song, "Homeward Bound." They did a great job on that song too. I love the gentle delivery. . . beautiful. Thanks Fil.
Thanks Fil.. beautiful rendition ..George under rated on guitar, very melodic in his solos, like Clapton or James Burton or Glen Campbell and others
George may not have been able to play very many notes very fast.
But, like Ringo, he had a gift for playing the RIGHT ones, and that's more important.
I am always impressed with your demonstrations and explanations of the music, which enhance my enjoyment of the performances you analyze. THANK YOU!!
Could not love this any more, thank you Fil! Aside from your amazing analysis, what stands out to me is Paul Simon's signature vocal harmony trill during the Sun-Sun-Sun, Here it Comes phrase, emphasis on the "comes" note. Paul's a brilliant guitarist as well. It's lovely how he allows George to really shine in this performance.
"George & Paul make it look easy"... now THAT'S an understatement. oh to have the talent they have in their pinky
Beautifully melodic, understated, and surprisingly sophisticated (for rock) player: George Harrison bequeathed an entire vocabulary of stylings that one can hear in artists ranging from Fogerty to Prince, Honeyman Scott and even to Page (the arpeggios and restrained, narrative-driven, and motif-oriented soloing on Stairway echoes Harrison's late-period Beatleisms on albums such as Abbey Road). In a circa 2001-era joint interview with Page, Jeff Beck said of Harrison, "Now THERE'S the guy..." Indeed. And given Harrison's uncanny, Indian-influenced bottleneck slide guitar -- and Beck's own masterfully idiosyncratic bottleneck stylings-- I'd say Jeff had it just about right: every note in the right place, Jeff, in that praise for "THAT guy" whose work embodied, well, every note in just the right place.
Sweeeeet! It's so refreshing to hear a real musician break down and explain real music. Now here's a challenge for you... Wes Montgomery. Solo's, jazz, or big band, what makes his music so incredible? I heard "Bumpin' On Sunset" in 1967, and listened to nothing but jazz for the next 25 years. From Detroit... Rock on dude!!
Hi Fil, long time since I last commented. George wrote my favourite Beatles songs especially Something and While my Guitar Gently Weeps. Paul Simon right up there with the Beatles for song writing.
Can you believe that Simon & Garfunkel, Led Zep, Black Sabbath et al played a small rugby club in W Wales in Briton Ferry in the 60's and early 70's. I was 10 yrs too young to see this, people forget superstars from that time had to go out and play. Tommy Emmanuel was also a regular player in S Wales pubs before he made it.
From an interview with The Beatles:
"McCartney pointed out that “George is the one of us who is interested in the instrument” and “the other three of us are more interested in the sound of the group.” But Harrison noted that he didn’t even practice.
“To be a guitarist, you’re supposed to practice a couple of hours a day,” he said. “But, I mean, I don’t do that.”
To be anything, you’re supposed to practice a couple of hours a day,” chimed in Starr.
“Well you know, I mean, the thing is . . . individually we’re all . . . I suppose we’re all crummy musicians, really,” said Harrison"
In another interview, Harrison said something like "I think I could be quite good if I practiced".
Absolutely love this song. You do a fantastic job !!! Would enjoy hearing you play the whole song. Thank you for a fantastic analysis!!
My fave beatle everything George did was magical, & the most spiritual. Beautiful acoustics, in fact his whole best of album is brilliant🎼🎵🎶 Thanku Fil, inspired to play this ~
The original Beatles version and the acoustic version in the Concert for Bangla Desh are both capoed at the 7th fret and played A in a D shape.
Maybe 5th fret fit better to Paul's and perhaps to George's a little bit aged voice.
Do you think that George's studying the sitar with Ravi Shankar improved his playing? Especially his slide work. Loved this video!
Most of George's slide guitar playing was after the Beatles. He was so good at it, it seemed as if he'd been playing slide for years!
@@michaelharrington75
I agree. The slide guitar on John Lennon song gimme some truth made that song. I found out it was George playing that about 20 years after it was released which made it sound even better.
George learnt to play slide while doing a mini tour with Delaney and Bonnie in 1969. If you want to hear a great slide cameo by George listen to The Bluest Blues by Alvin Lee
Great analysis. "It seems easy but it is not". For us, young kids trying to play guitar in 1969, this song was a challenge. So great and so easy at first hearing but also so complex. I must add that the vibe in the guitar playing needs to be a little mellow while the singing needs to be a little more intense. Seems easy but it is not. That's why the Beatles are still in the top.
This is as powerful seeing/hearing this now as it was when I saw it live on TV (I think this is from SNL) when I was just 13 years old. Another fantastic anaysis, Fil! Thank you kindly.
George found his own style of playing guitar in a very unique way. To me, he's always been the finest musician of Fab Four. Paul here playing and singing so comforting.
Possibly the best musical performance ever on SNL. They also did a version of "Homeward Bound."
When I watched this, tears ran down my face because I miss the REAL song writers. What a beautiful moment. Both really talented acoustic guitar players. Although they weren't known for that. Being a guitar player 51 plus years, I recognized their chord content and melody melted within it. Both in their own right. I truly miss this time.
How in the world is Paul Simon not known for playing acoustic guitar. That is exactly what he is known for
George was my favorite Beatle. When I took up the ukulele, I played more Beatles songs than anything else. When I found out that George also played the ukulele, I was over the moon!
I think they all did, as they were all fans of George Formby.
@2wayplebney Yeah but George was a master ukulele player. Anyone can strum a uke
Another excellent analysis of the chords and melody Fil, now I know why I like this song so much
This happens to be the most streamed song by The Beatles. Such a joy to listen to. This was awesome ❤️
Wow. I have a pretty good vocabulary, but am at a loss for words to describe how much I love this analysis video...every single thing about it.
It makes me sad to think that the greatest of our musicians are getting older and then before we know it, they're gone. Wish that music wasn't so ephemeral sometimes... sigh.
Thank God we have their albums !
So many memories. The Beatles were amazing and they will always be my favorites. I have to add that I see the enjoyment in your face when you play these wonderful recordings again. ☮️💖
They did Homeward Bound the same night. Also awesome
Every Beatle song is a testament to Harrison's virtuosity.
I love their subdued vocal delivery at the 2:31 mark when they’re singing the “Sun Sun Sun” part in the chorus.
George's solo on Alvin Lee' "The Bluest Blues" is epic, as is Alvin's. PLEASE review and react.
The song is played on the 7th fret actually which automatically gives it that beautiful unique sound 😎
That's what I was going to say. Although in this video playing with Paul, the capo is on the 5th fret therefore played in G. The original by the Beatles has the capo on the 7th fret making it played in A. I think they must have lowered it so that it fit Paul's vocals better.
Indeed ...their voices had to match.
Buddy who left us far far to early had his own style of playing. However, hearing the Beatles doing, That Will Be The Day and Words of Love, one tends to hear similar guitar work in both these songs originally performed by Buddy Holly. Harrison was not only spot on note for note, the tone was about the same too? In other words you could close your eyes and swear Holly was playing those chords...?
Keeping in mind that the Abbey Road version is in A while this version is in G. Great video and a drag about copyright issues with the visual.
Capo in 7th.
In "Here Comes The Sun"; George also made early use of a synthesizer in the bridge portion of the song; long before synths were common.
You started out the video being blurred, and I thought that Wings of Pegasus was blocking Fil!!
It's too bad, I'll go look at the video. Great analysis of my favorite song for when I'm down.
Thank you Fil for another educational analysis video. Perhaps George Harrison never got the props he deserved as a guitarist.
If pressed to name my choice for Greatest Song from the classic rock era, I usually call a tie for 1st place between "Here Comes The Sun" by Harrison, and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Simon. I love this pairing of these two masters in this video, and would love to hear hours more from the duo. I was a young lad and fanatical music lover when both of these men reached their creative prime in the late '60s and early '70s, and I am eternally grateful for that blessing.
The most impressive things about Georeges guitar playing is how willing he was to let the other guy really shine. Really seemed to love playing with people "better than him" and Paul seems delighted at singing with George such a lovely laid back preformance.
I thought UA-cam was censoring your image when the video started lol. I was wondering, if you had a monitor on the wall behind you, to play the video you're critiquing, maybe, the video would fly under the radar?
So right! To perform that song you really need to cover the guitar playing exactly, because the guitar melodies or counterpoints ARE the song. To me anyway. And the guitar part is somewhat hard to learn, but good to try. Even if not to play the song, it's good for one's expansion and grip on the guitar. Thanks, great video!
Hey music lover ! Thumbs up and Hare Krishna!
Can’t believe you can’t show the video. I was watching Beat Club videos from the 60’s last night. It’s unbelievable the artists you can watch performing live.
ive been a beatles fan for a long time and never imagined harrison to be deceptive in any way with his ability ,,he was the real deal
there is no hidden secret or trickery to his playing ,,,terrable video title,,,i was really taken aback by it ,,,I guess its clickbait
Fascinating! I only learned recently that ALL the guys were amazing musicians and ALL wrote songs.
Nothing like watching two well-known musicians who blend their skills together and have mutual respect for each other, P. S. I thought for a moment your image had become copyright block right after your intro. Hee-hee!
Great artists, great song, incredible guitar playing and analysis! Thank you, Fil! 🙂
Thanks for a George Harrison video. My absolute favourite artist of all time. His guitar work is truly underrated (and undervalued) when I can clearly hear the man was a meticulous perfectionist about guitar. And what he played, and did not play. I dare anyone to find a more flawless guitar recording than "Your Love Is Forever" from 1979. There may be one, but I know there is not one missed note that entire song on what is the basic "riff" of it. Flawless. Every chord change is struck the same. I don't know. Being a musician, and hearing his guitar part on "Your Love Is Forever", makes me say I have a LONG way to go before I get as good as George Harrison.
Two real Legends together...fantastic.
One tricky part of the “Sun, sun, sun…” section is the seamless time signature change to 3/8 (I think). George, like the rest of the Beatles would do this type of thing all the time. Sometimes a time sig change, or just some times a quick bar of 2/4 thrown into a pre-chorus or bridge. They would do them so well that they become hard to notice. When most other musicians do things like that, they usually are noticeable, not with the Beatles.
George Harrison was a master of his craft! That is why all the other musicians and bands requested he played on their tracks in a supporting way! The man knew what he was doing and everyone knew it too! R.I.P. George you and your talent are sorely missed!
Oh come on UA-cam ffs, surely this doesn't need blocking and should be under fair use. It's a small screen size and not great audio so chill out youtube and copyright holders.
Great video BTW....just annoying when youtube does this. Surprised they even left the music alone tbh. 😋
I fingerpick this song, capo the 5th, and it always sounds lovely, the d / g / a7 ..... just my way. Don't know why. Thank you and God bless you.
While George Harrison's material was largely excluded from Beatles albums, when the band split up he had enough material to release the first triple album by any of The Beatles!
Yes, and that's a part of why his post-Beatles career had so much production.
You blurred yourself out at the beginning...huh. I don't know if this was noticed. Anyways I loved this song. The harmonies are awesome.
Yes noticed but too late to change!🙂
It wasn't Blur, it was George Harrison and Paul Simon.
@Tracy Zimmerman, I notice that too right after fil's intro at 0:12 second the right side of the screen goes blurred. at first, I thought Fil had become copyright blocked then I realize it was for the performance of George Harrison and Paul Simon. after a long day Fil had yesterday one bound to make a mistake.
@@wingsofpegasus it took me off guard not seeing you clearly 😁
I always like to see your smiling face.
@@drewpall2598 Fil was copywriter block by himself 😂😂😂.
Yes he did have a long day and night yesterday.
That was sublime. Thanks!
Phil. love your reactions.
I know your lips move because you tallk, and I love it
Should I drink every time you go from stone face to huge smile?
come on man. surely everyone else sees' this?
try a half smile, a sniker,, a something other than ..."gee grand ma....this is what i always wanted" smile.
This is my favourite song in the world 😎
Love this performance - it is one of my favorites...perfect timing because it has been a stressful day for me so happy to listen to your analysis of a chill but skilled performance.
The recent documentary on George Harrison has a really funny part where Ringo talks about George coming in and telling him he had a song with 7 1/2 time. The "sun sun sun here it comes" part is incredibly rhythmically complex. I've seen the official published written version of the song (I learned to play guitar from the Complete Beatles songbooks when I was about 12) and the transcribers had to jump through hoops to figure out how to write that rhythm out. I can't really link a picture of it but if you count it out in your head it jumps out of 4/4 into a kind of 9 (or 12)/8 measure, a 2/8 measure, a 4/4 measure, a 2/4 measure, then back into 9 (or 12)/8 and repeats. You don't notice how complex it is because of George's skill at writing the song so that it sounds completely smooth and natural. The song flows over this incredibly complex rhythmic structure so smoothly you don't consciously hear it. You'd think it would be jarring, but it isn't. A true genius at work.
George was such a genius.
OK, this has to be the 1976 Saturday Night Live performance. It was something special at the time.
The Beatles were the real first supergroup. It can be seen when you see other bands and their members when they attempt to a solo career. Case in point the Rolling Stones. For whatever reason some artists can't make it without the chemistry of the other band members. The Beatles, including Ringo, were all stars in their right. The fact that these young men all got together from a relatively obscure area in the UK was something of a minor miracle. I don't particularly care for Paul Simon's songwriting but his voice works here and I do think he was a good guitarist.
I'm glad I lived in the 60s and 70s when so many of these gifted musical geniuses were in their prime. Years ago, I was playing guitar with a young guy who asked me, "But did the Beatles have much competition?" DID THEY HAVE COMPETITION! Looking back, it's really astounding how many extremely capable and talented people were producing and competing back then. I just noticed that in June, Paul McCartney and Brian Wilson both turned 80, two days apart. Yes, LOTS of musical geniuses born back in the 40s, which is hard for many of today's young people to even imagine.
Fil, have you come across Leonid & Friends? Have a listen to their version of EW&F's "In the Stone".
Do a video on Lindsey Buckingham playing “ Big Love” live from “The Dance” tour
Love Harrison’s music…33 and a third, cracker box palace, great albums too
I'm so old I saw them do this duet live on SNL. ... I was a teenager but already a Musician and I was in AWE seeing the two of them play live together. Muchos gratias for bringing this great moment back!!
I came to hate my playing because I was over using monotonous chords. Thanks for being out some of the magic of the Beatles
Fil, thanks for the analysis especially the guitar "lesson." Recommend you check out the MonaLisa Twins' cover of this song. They just dropped it in UA-cam this morning. Rock steady.
...he was also great on slide!
Oh wow love me some George Harrison he was a great guitar player great performance with Paul Simon and great analysis
I would describe George as a considered guitarist. Not someone who immediately knows what to play but crafts his music and songs like a good writer and who needs time and space to do it. Paul may have been too pushy for him towards the end. I may be wrong. Also, I have always greatly admired Paul Simon's musical ability. Any who has tried playing guitar to his songs knows he was very talented. And he was singing as well!
I remember watching this live and thinking what a treat it was. I think they also did Homeward Bound
Great work once again Fil! I just love your work! I’d subscribe again, but I already did that the first time I found your channel! I forget if it was the Righteous Brothers or the Everly Brothers or Bobby Darin or just what it was (everything has been fabulous!). You’ve even helped me to begin to appreciate music I thought I hated!
Auto tune, not so much, but I never felt you were a fan of it either but you did educate us a great deal on how that actually “works,” and why we can’t get our musical “fix” from so much of this modern musical “noise” (did I just turn into my Dad?)…
In regard to the “copyright censorship” of the performance video, I wonder if you cropped the images by, say 25%, if it could then be construed as “found art.”
Fair warning! Don’t bother asking SCOTUS!
All the best always Fil…
Your pal, Glenn
Harrison was a great guitarist. He did not play fast but he played like a real guitarist. He was genius.
George Harrison was, and STILL IS, the most accomplished of the four....and We don't care who says otherwise. And, I wasn't a particularly big fan of Paul Simon's, but wow, he was a perfect accompaniment
That blurring because of copyright issues is useless, stupid and does no one any good.
You always do a great job explaining what's happening. I love all your videos.. And this is a Great song, I remember watching it
for the first tie back in 1976 on SNL.. Originally with The Beatles, George played with capo on 7th fret. That how I learned the tune. 🌞 🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂🚶🏿♂❤
It sounds, and is a simple folk song, yet listening to the complexities of melodies and harmonies brought about in the construction of the chords is the realization of a timeless ballad. And as Fil mentioned the contribution of the vocals.
Yes! And don't forget the time changes.
The time changes are what made Steely Dan unique. George is underrated on guitar.
Funny how the lead guitarist of one of the best bands ever is a good guitar player.
I think I need new glasses, everything looks blurry !
Lol
they also did Homeward Bound in this performance. please react to it as well
I've never seen this performance before, and wow! They sounded great together, both vocally and instrumentally. Makes me wish they had collaborated more!