George Harrison

Item: Brainwashed
Author: Olin Jenkins

Brainwashed

(2002)

Reviewed by Olin Jenkins

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Spotify

Label Dark Horse Records / Capitol RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2002

classic rock pop rock

As a prerequisite to this review, please read Steve Stockman's March 2001 Pick of the Month feature on the re-mastered, re-packaged All Things Must Pass. Stockman notes that the breakup of the Beatles allowed George Harrison, the Fab Four's guitarist, to compile his songs that never made it to the group's albums into All Things Must Pass, the unequivocal masterpiece from the man who will always be known as "the quiet" or "the mystical" Beatle.

I'll go a step farther to underscore that Harrison was bothered by being pushed for "product" in post-Beatles years, and he even sang about it ("Blood from a Clone" and Ringo Starr's final top 40 hit, "Wrack My Brain"). Being forced to complete a project, his nadir was most certainly Dark Horse, recorded while in the throes of laryngitis. He took a sweet amount of time after Somewhere in England to complete the perfectly delightful Cloud Nine and had tremendous amounts of fun with the Traveling Wilburys. The latter two projects were collaborations with Jeff Lynne (formerly of Electric Light Orchestra).

And to the present and Brainwashed, Jeff Lynne has made two things clear: the project was incomplete, and Lynne -- as producer along with Harrison and George's son Dhani -- added much to Brainwashed when he surmised George wanted the project "raw." I immediately expected lots of "When We Was Fab," but the closest this collection comes to that endeavor is "Rising Sun," which borrows heavily from "Blue Jay Way."

There are elements about Brainwashed -- particularly from the point of view of Harrison and/or Beatles fans -- that will evoke tremendous emotions. From the get-go, "Any Road" is musically and lyrically one of the brightest, most upbeat moments we have ever heard from Harrison. Embattling cancer while writing many of these songs, Harrison is probably as introspective as he had wanted to be at this point. A lyric from this song that seems to sum up the entire project very well is "But oh Lord, we've got to fight with the thoughts in the head with the dark and the light. No use to stop and stare. And if you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there."

It shouldn't surprise me, but this is Harrison's project where he uses the word "Lord" and "God" in so many songs, often reverently, and sometimes lightly (but never in vein). I surmise Harrison knew these were going to be his last songs and was indeed singing to God (for anyone new to Harrison, he was still deeply devoted to the Hare Krishna faith). On the other side of the emotional track is the title track, which personally maddens me in trying to decide whether he's serious, joking or if this is a lighthearted swipe at John Lennon's "Working Class Hero." The song segues into a fade-out that sounds like it's straight from Wonderwall Music.

For the fan of Harrison's beautiful slide guitar, Brainwashed is a requirement, not an option. The best news about this project is that the slide guitar is prominently featured on all songs, with exception to "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" (yes, the Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler song; Jools Holland plays piano on this one!). Lynne's production is not overpowering, and for the most part, the band is George, his son Dhani Harrison (guitars and backing vocals), Lynne (the remainder), and drummer Jim Keltner.

There are wonderful moments here: the aforementioned "Any Road" and "Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," along with "Pisces Fish," the instrumental "Marwa Blues," and upbeat "Stuck Inside a Cloud." For the most part, Brainwashed reminds me of the 1979 self-titled George Harrison (with "Blow Away"), a very solid but not ground-breaking work. Harrison did leave us with a good parting gift in Brainwashed.

A limited edition box set, including a "making of the album" DVD single is available.

3.5 tocks