Happy birthday, George Harrison

February 24, 9:15 PMBeatles ExaminerSteve Marinucci

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  Happy birthday, George Harrison. (White House Photograph
  Courtesy Gerald R. Ford Library/Wikipedia Commons)

He was the only Beatle with two birthdays. It was commonly thought to be Feb. 25th until he told an interviewer it was the 24th. That was thought to be a typical George Harrison bit of humor, but the evidence points to the 25th.

He was called the Quiet Beatle, but a better label would have been the Unknown Beatle. For most of his career during the lifespan of the group, his songs were pretty much in the background of the Lennon-McCartney superduo.

Until they couldn't be ignored. Frank Sinatra called "Something" "the best love song ever written," but was known to credit the song to Lennon and McCartney. Ah, that's life. Sinatra also gave the song a little Hoboken touch. "You stick around, Jack, it might show," he'd sing.

Harrison's songs during the Beatle years started out quietly. "Don't Bother Me," from the "Meet the Beatles" album, was almost childlike and simple. 

But he started improving right away. "I Need You" showed increasing lyrical complexity. "It's All Too Much" showed how much he'd developed as a composer. "Only a Northern Song" and "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" showed he'd really blossomed as a lyric writer.

But "Abbey Road was his crown jewel. Besides "Something," he had the also wonderful "Here Comes the Sun" on that album. But many of his songs had been lost in the mix during the Beatle years. He probably surprised a lot of people with the size -- three albums -- of "All Things Must Pass." He was making up for lost time.

His solo albums ran the gamut from electronic experimentation to Indian music to rock 'n' roll. My personal favorites are "All Things Must Pass," "George Harrison,"  "Cloud Nine" and "Brainwashed," but George really didn't have a huge quality drop on his solo albums. Some were better than others, but they were all good.

George Harrison would have been 66 in 2009. Actually, to talk of him in the past doesn't seem right. His spirit is still here. His spiritualism is still here, too.

Happy birthday, George. We'll think of you today ... while our guitars gently weep.

Two other Examiner columns about George Harrison you might enjoy:

• In ‘Pisces Fish’ George Harrison penned a perfect theme song – Happy birthday, Beatle George (Astrology Examiner)
• George Harrison: 'The Pirate Beatle,' the best Beatle (Pirate Examiner)