
Today would be George Harrison’s 78th birthday, so I built a short playlist (5 songs) to honor the occasion:
- "Something": George’s most famous song, from Abbey Road. It was one side of a double-A side single (with "Come Together"), and reached #1 in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. By the end of the ’70’s it had been covered oer 150 times.
- "Crackerbox Palace": A fun song (and even more fun video) from his 1976 album Thirty-Three & 1/3. It reached #19 on the Hot 100.
- "Blow Away": From his eponymous 1979 album. It was a song he wrote on a rainy day when the roof in his house was leaking. He realized that getting upset over it was just making it worse, and it reminded him that he loved everybody and he needed to be more optimistic. Reached #16 on the Hot 100 and #2 on the Adult Contemporary charts.
- "All Those Years Ago": From 1981’s Somewhere In England, this was George’s tribute to John Lennon. Ringo played drums, while Paul, Linda and Denny Laine sang backup, stoking rumors that the band was getting back together. Reached #2 in the US behind Kim Carnes’s "Bette Davis Eyes" and topped the Adult Contemporary chart as well as reaching #1 in Canada.
- "When We Was Fab": From 1987’s Cloud Nine, a fond look back at the days of Beatlemania. Co-written by Jeff Lynne, who produced the album, the song features Ringo on the drums and some elements of psychedelia and Indian music. The video is priceless. Reached #2 on the Mainstream Rock chart, #10 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and #7 on the Canadian Adult Contemporary chart.
Happy birthday, George!