CONCERT FOR GEORGE
CONCERT FOR GEORGE
George sadly died on 29th November 2001 after a battle with cancer, which he put down to his lifetime enjoyment of cigarettes. Like John, nobody except his nearest and dearest know where his final resting place is. This is particularly fitting for George, who was such an intensely private person away from the public glare. It would be repugnant for him that his final destination became a tourist attraction. One year after his death a ‘Concert for George’ was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. It was organized by his wife Olivia and his son Dhani with all proceeds from the concert (the ensuing DVD and CD) going to George’s Charitable Trust ‘The Material World Charitable Foundation’. His charity was established in 1973 to sponsor diverse forms of artistic expression and to encourage the exploration of alternative life views and philosophies. The foundation also supports other charitable organizations with consideration to those with special needs and after George’s death royalties continue to pour in from copyrighted work connected to George. The musical director was George’s dear friend Eric Clapton and he assembled a star-studded cast of artists who were in effect George’s closest friends. Ravi Shankar, as he did at the Concert for Bangladesh opened the first part of the proceedings and a plethora of stars took to the stage to pay tribute including Jeff Lynne, Eric Clapton, Gary Booker, Joe Brown, Tom Petty, Jim Keltner, Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Albert Lee, Andy Fairweather-Low, Jools Holland, Ray Cooper and of course Paul and Ringo. Dhani, his son later joined the ensemble playing guitar. To acknowledge George’s acute keen sense of humour and his patronage of many of their projects, The Monty Python team ran through a number of George’s favourites including ‘The Lumberjack Song’ and ‘Sit On My Face’. The atmosphere on the evening was not morose or indeed sad. There was an optimistic uplifting atmosphere that pervaded the entire proceedings and this writer vividly remembers how strange it felt, laughing out loud on so many occasions. The evening was a celebration of the life of George Harrison and included not only his work as a Beatle and a solo performer but his whole philosophy of life that illustrated both humorous and serious aspects of his nature. How fitting that those staging the concert should be those whose lives were enriched by knowing him so well. It was left to Olivia to observe “The tribute to George will resound not only within the Albert Hall, but hopefully reach the spirit of man so loved by his friends who will be performing and attending”.
Artwork painted and owned by ©SHANNON
CONCERT FOR GEORGE
George sadly died on 29th November 2001 after a battle with cancer, which he put down to his lifetime enjoyment of cigarettes. Like John, nobody except his nearest and dearest know where his final resting place is. This is particularly fitting for George, who was such an intensely private person away from the public glare. It would be repugnant for him that his final destination became a tourist attraction. One year after his death a ‘Concert for George’ was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. It was organized by his wife Olivia and his son Dhani with all proceeds from the concert (the ensuing DVD and CD) going to George’s Charitable Trust ‘The Material World Charitable Foundation’. His charity was established in 1973 to sponsor diverse forms of artistic expression and to encourage the exploration of alternative life views and philosophies. The foundation also supports other charitable organizations with consideration to those with special needs and after George’s death royalties continue to pour in from copyrighted work connected to George. The musical director was George’s dear friend Eric Clapton and he assembled a star-studded cast of artists who were in effect George’s closest friends. Ravi Shankar, as he did at the Concert for Bangladesh opened the first part of the proceedings and a plethora of stars took to the stage to pay tribute including Jeff Lynne, Eric Clapton, Gary Booker, Joe Brown, Tom Petty, Jim Keltner, Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Albert Lee, Andy Fairweather-Low, Jools Holland, Ray Cooper and of course Paul and Ringo. Dhani, his son later joined the ensemble playing guitar. To acknowledge George’s acute keen sense of humour and his patronage of many of their projects, The Monty Python team ran through a number of George’s favourites including ‘The Lumberjack Song’ and ‘Sit On My Face’. The atmosphere on the evening was not morose or indeed sad. There was an optimistic uplifting atmosphere that pervaded the entire proceedings and this writer vividly remembers how strange it felt, laughing out loud on so many occasions. The evening was a celebration of the life of George Harrison and included not only his work as a Beatle and a solo performer but his whole philosophy of life that illustrated both humorous and serious aspects of his nature. How fitting that those staging the concert should be those whose lives were enriched by knowing him so well. It was left to Olivia to observe “The tribute to George will resound not only within the Albert Hall, but hopefully reach the spirit of man so loved by his friends who will be performing and attending”.
Artwork painted and owned by ©SHANNON
CONCERT FOR GEORGE
George sadly died on 29th November 2001 after a battle with cancer, which he put down to his lifetime enjoyment of cigarettes. Like John, nobody except his nearest and dearest know where his final resting place is. This is particularly fitting for George, who was such an intensely private person away from the public glare. It would be repugnant for him that his final destination became a tourist attraction. One year after his death a ‘Concert for George’ was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. It was organized by his wife Olivia and his son Dhani with all proceeds from the concert (the ensuing DVD and CD) going to George’s Charitable Trust ‘The Material World Charitable Foundation’. His charity was established in 1973 to sponsor diverse forms of artistic expression and to encourage the exploration of alternative life views and philosophies. The foundation also supports other charitable organizations with consideration to those with special needs and after George’s death royalties continue to pour in from copyrighted work connected to George. The musical director was George’s dear friend Eric Clapton and he assembled a star-studded cast of artists who were in effect George’s closest friends. Ravi Shankar, as he did at the Concert for Bangladesh opened the first part of the proceedings and a plethora of stars took to the stage to pay tribute including Jeff Lynne, Eric Clapton, Gary Booker, Joe Brown, Tom Petty, Jim Keltner, Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Albert Lee, Andy Fairweather-Low, Jools Holland, Ray Cooper and of course Paul and Ringo. Dhani, his son later joined the ensemble playing guitar. To acknowledge George’s acute keen sense of humour and his patronage of many of their projects, The Monty Python team ran through a number of George’s favourites including ‘The Lumberjack Song’ and ‘Sit On My Face’. The atmosphere on the evening was not morose or indeed sad. There was an optimistic uplifting atmosphere that pervaded the entire proceedings and this writer vividly remembers how strange it felt, laughing out loud on so many occasions. The evening was a celebration of the life of George Harrison and included not only his work as a Beatle and a solo performer but his whole philosophy of life that illustrated both humorous and serious aspects of his nature. How fitting that those staging the concert should be those whose lives were enriched by knowing him so well. It was left to Olivia to observe “The tribute to George will resound not only within the Albert Hall, but hopefully reach the spirit of man so loved by his friends who will be performing and attending”.
Artwork painted and owned by ©SHANNON