Sydney, AU. (EMI MUSIC Australia) - EMI is proud to announce the reissue of
George Harrison's 'Living In The Material World' album on Saturday 23rd
September 2006.
The CD will be issued in two formats. Both will contain the album, which has been re-mastered at Abbey Road studios from the original analogue tapes. The new version also includes two additional tracks. These are 'Deep Blue' (originally a B side from 1971) and 'Miss O'Dell' (the B side of 'Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)).
The regular jewel case version will contain a booklet with lyrics and extra photographs. There will also be a special limited edition that will include an expanded 40-page booklet and a very unique DVD featuring:
• Rare footage of George performing 'Give Love (Give Me Peace On from his 1991 Japanese tour with Eric Clapton.
• A mini-feature using film commissioned by George in 1973 of the album production in Britain and America.
• Previously unreleased versions of 'Miss O'Dell' and 'Sue Me, Sue You Blues' set to visuals of unseen archival material.
Historical Notes - Kevin Howlett Living In The Material World was George's second solo album of new songs following the Beatles' break-up in 1970 and its lyrical focus revealed his continuing mission to explore spiritual themes. Many people would hear his message. Five weeks after its release in May 1973, the LP and its single 'Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth)' simultaneously occupied the number one positions on the US albums and singles charts.
The success of the album continued a winning streak that had begun with the release of All Things Must Pass. Featuring the worldwide number one 'My Sweet Lord', the triple LP set had topped the US album chart at the beginning of 1971. Later that year, George masterminded two remarkable concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York to help raise awareness and money for the starving refugees from Bangladesh. The commercial success of the Concert For Bangladesh live album was emphatic and unprecedented - another triple LP box set that was a best seller around the world - and it won an 'Album of the Year' Grammy Award.
For Living In The Material World, George assembled a core group in the Apple Studio in London consisting of Nicky Hopkins and Gary Wright on keyboards, Klaus Voormann on bass and Jim Keltner on drums. They recorded backing tracks which received varying degrees of enhancement through subsequent overdubs. The most complex musical arrangement on the album is heard on the title track. Having played together at the Concert For Bangladesh, Ringo Starr and Jim Keltner perform their 'double drums' on 'Living In The Material World' and the brass parts were played by Jim Horn with help from Klaus Voormann on tenor saxophone. The gentler sections of the song feature tabla virtuoso Zakir Hussein and Jim Horn on flute and recorders.
The slide guitar playing heard throughout All Things Must Pass had quickly become associated with the George Harrison 'solo' sound and it is equally prominent on Living In The Material World. The exquisite dual harmony slide guitar parts on 'Give Me Love' were integral to that track's gentle power and on 'Sue Me, Sue You Blues', George revealed a bluesy side to his playing - more bottleneck than Hawaiian in its style.
The four gentle ballads - 'Be Here Now', 'The Day The World Gets Round', 'The Light That Has Lighted The World' and 'Who Can See It' - are heartfelt reflections on how to live a spiritual life in the turmoil of the material world - 'where there's so little chance to experience soul'. The joyous 'Don't Let Me Wait Too Long' picks up on the 'really want to see you' theme of 'My Sweet Lord'. The spiritual nature of these songs is mirrored in the artwork on the gatefold LP sleeve, which featured an illustration from the Bhagavad-Gita.
At the foundation of Living In The Material World are George's unwavering sincerity and integrity. These are rare qualities in mainstream popular music and should be treasured and nurtured wherever they are discovered.
This is a welcome and timely re-issue.
