George Harrison Once Revealed Which of His Songs Was a Good Stadium Tune
George Harrison didn’t enjoy performing live but did reveal which of his songs he thought was a good stadium tune. However, most of George’s songs sound great over loudspeakers.
The former Beatle had a love-hate relationship with touring
George enjoyed playing all night to drunken sailors during The Beatles’ residency in Hamburg, Germany. He liked that the band could hone their performing skills. There was also the freedom to jam on anything they liked. That sort of performance stayed in George’s heart.
However, when Beatlemania commenced, George began to dread touring and performing. With screaming fans following their every move, The Beatles jumped from car to hotel room to stage on repeat. They couldn’t go out. Soon, George became paranoid that someone would hurt or even murder them.
Thankfully, The Beatles stopped touring in 1966. Still, that paranoia stayed with George, even when The Beatles split in 1970. Surprisingly, he plucked up enough courage and set aside his fears and distaste for touring and performing to organize the benefit, Concert for Bangladesh.
Even more interestingly, in 1974, George set out on a solo American tour. However, it went badly, and George’s displeasure with performing increased.
During an interview with Rolling Stone in 2002, George’s fellow Traveling Wilbury, Tom Petty, said that George was often hesitant about performing. “For a guy who loved music and people so much, he rarely played in public,” Rolling Stone pointed out. “He was never far from music,” Petty explained.
“I don’t think he had any interest in touring. He told me many times he was very uncomfortable being the guy up front having to sing all the songs. It was just not his idea of fun.
“I remember him visiting me on tour in Germany. He would come to the side of the stage and look out. But he really didn’t want to go on. He would go, ‘It’s so loud and smoky, and they are acting so crazy. I just feel better back here.'”
George once said he’d rather perform at a small Holiday Inn than play to a stadium full of fans. He briefly toured once more with Eric Clapton and Clapton’s band in 1991. However, the 12-show tour satisfied his ego for the rest of his life.
George Harrison on which of his songs was a good stadium tune
Somehow, George enjoyed that last tour with Clapton. He got to perform some of his songs for the first time. As for the ones he had, he got to perform them the way he wanted.
During a 1987 interview with Goldmine Magazine, George said performing “Cheer Down” was challenging, although a simple song to play. He explained that some bands and even Clapton tended to fill in spaces that didn’t need to be filled. Playing “Devil’s Radio” was also fun for George.
George also revealed that he thought “What Is Life” was a good stadium tune. He explained, “I had that on my rehearsal list because it’s an obvious kind of one, and Eric said, ‘Ahh, you can’t leave that one out!’ And it’s true, with the riff there at the beginning, it’s such a good stadium kind of song.”
George said the live version of ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ from his 1991 tour is better than the original recording
George and Clapton worked on “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” in the 1960s. However, they finally performed the song together during their 1991 tour. George said the song’s live version sounded better than the original recording.
“Well, the obvious one when Eric and I get together, which is the first song that we ever did together, which was ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps,’ and I’m particularly happy about the way it came out on the live version,” George told Scott Muni at WNEW-FM (per George Harrison on George Harrison: Interviews and Encounters).
“It’s far superior, I think, to the original studio recording, and Eric just plays his butt off. It’s really good.”
Most of George’s songs were good stadium tunes, but whether he wanted to play them in a stadium was another issue.
