George Harrison Brings Little FSor Nostalgia Fans
By Jack Llyod
The Philadelphia Inquirer
December 17, 1974
George Harrison would obviously like to forget his past association with the Beatles, and you get the impression that he would like his fans to forget his former alliance too well. OK, one can respect the man's feelings in the matter, except for the fact that if it had not been for the Beatles, there would not be a near-capacity crowd on hand at the Spectrum Monday night with more of the same anticipated for two shows tonight.
Harrison probably thought of it in different terms, but for most of those who showed up, this event marked the return of the Beatle, minus John Paul and Ringo. But if they were expecting nostalgia, there was only a taste of it. Since George's chores with The Beatles were rather limited, they were kept in the background as a result of the dominance of Lennon and McCartney's writing.
That was a long time ago, of course, and since the Beatles broke up about five years ago, George has emerged as the most serious musician of the lot, if not the most prolific. Since beginning his current tour, which began November 2 and concludes later this week in New York,( a total of more than 50 concerts) Harrison and the troupe have taken lumps from the audience and the critics. But Harrison's opening night in Philadelphia was greeted with more than a little enthusiasm. If the crowd came looking for a Beatle, they settled for George Harrison and the show he had prepared for the folks.
It opened 35 minutes late with Harrison, and the band composed of such high caliber musicians as Jim Horn and Tom Scott on reeds, Jim Keltner on drums, and Billy Preston on keyboards, laying on an instrumental. Then quickly came some nostalgia, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Something" from the Beatles era.
The voice was a trifle horse, just a touch of Joe Cocker from the grind of touring for the first time in eight years. A few more newer songs, and then Harrison stepped aside for the Ravi Shankar group, minus Shankar, who was still recuperating from the illness which knocked him down in Chicago last week.
A half-hour of Indian music was tolerated, perhaps even appreciated, by most of those in the audience with surprisingly good manners, contrary to reports from other cities. After an intermission, Harrison was back with "For You Blue," sung in The Beatles Let It Be album. Then, "Give me Love". But basically, this was a George Harrison concert on his terms, at least, he gave the audience Billy Preston and the Shankar delegation and Tom Scott .Yes, and George Harrison mostly as Harrison now stands, take it or leave it, and it wasn't bad.
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