George Harrison Wrote ‘Not Guilty’ About the ‘Grief’ He Got From Paul McCartney and John Lennon While Making ‘the White Album’
George Harrison said he wrote “Not Guilty” about the “grief” he received from his fellow Beatles, Paul McCartney and John Lennon, during the making of The White Album. The “Taxman” singer was getting increasingly angry with his bandmates at the time and needed to vent his frustrations.
It all came out in a song.
The Beatle had to fight to record his songs
George wrote his first song, “Don’t Bother Me,” in 1963. Paul and John immediately agreed to keep The Beatles’ songwriting to themselves.
When George came to John, Paul, and producer George Martin with his songs, they only allowed him a couple on an album. Eventually, George grew tired of having to push, so he started stockpiling.
He told WABC-FM New York’s Howard Smith (per Beatles Interviews), “It was the way the Beatles took off with Paul and John’s songs, and it made it very difficult for me get in. And also, I suppose at that time I didn’t have as much confidence when it came down to pushing my own material as I have now. So it took a while.
“But now, the output of songs is too much to be able to just sit around waiting to put two songs on an album. I’ve got to get ’em out, you know.
“It was whoever would be the heaviest would get the most songs done. So consequently, I couldn’t be bothered pushing, like, that much. You know, even on ‘Abbey Road’ for instance, we’d record about eight tracks before I got ’round to doing one of mine.
“Because you say, ‘Well, I’ve got a song,’ and then with Paul — ‘Well I’ve got a song as well and mine goes like this — diddle-diddle-diddle-duh,’ and away you go! It was just difficult to get in there, and I wasn’t gonna push and shout.”
George wrote “Not Guilt” during the making of The White Album. It became one of the many songs that got stockpiled for later.
George Harrison wrote ‘Not Guilty’ about the ‘grief’ he got from Paul McCartney and John Lennon while making ‘The White Album’
In his 1980 memoir, I Me Mine, George wrote that “Not Guilty” was about the period during which The Beatles recorded The White Album. “Paul-John-Apple-Rishikesh-Indian friend, etc.,” he wrote.
During a 1987 interview with Timothy White at Musician Magazine, George expanded on that. He said it was more about the “grief” Paul and John were giving him at the time.
“It was me getting pissed off at Lennon and McCartney for the grief I was catching during the making of ‘The White Album,'” George said. “I said I wasn’t guilty of getting in the way of their careers. I said I wasn’t guilty of leading them astray in our all going to Rishikesh to see the Maharishi.
He continued, “I was sticking up for myself, and the song came off strong enough to be saved and utilized.”
The Beatles did record “Not Guilty.” However, it was a complicated song. They did 102 takes but never released it. George later released “Not Guilty” on his 1979 album, George Harrison.
Why George was upset while writing ‘Not Guilty’
George said he wasn’t guilty of getting in the way of John and Paul’s careers. He might’ve felt that his bandmates resented him because he was always trying to get them to do his songs. As he sang, though, George shouldn’t have felt guilty about coming forward with them. They were a band, but Paul and John only cared about doing their tunes.
As for Rishikesh, George could’ve felt that he’d led his bandmates astray when it came to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi because some rumors had come out about the guru. John promptly fled Maharishi’s ashram in India after someone at the retreat told him Maharishi had been inappropriate with some of his female devotees. They felt betrayed, but George never truly believed the rumors, and they were never confirmed either.
The Beatles were not getting along in 1968. None of them wanted to work together anymore. So, being unable to come forward with his songs and after the mess of Rishikesh, George must have felt horrible. However, as he sang in “Not Guilty,” none of it was his fault.
