George Harrison: The notes you never hear

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George Harrison: The notes you never hear
By Vidette Editor and Gianna Annunzio
October 27, 2014

Dhani Harrison, son of former Beatle George Harrison, recently sparked conversation regarding his father’s guitar playing while rehearsing his song “Let It Down.”

The discussion began when one of Harrison’s band members overheard him playing his father’s solo, telling him he was playing the notes wrong.

According to Pitchfork’s website, Harrison said he was “doing my own solo, not the one in the song, and he couldn’t take it.” In a playful manner, Harrison decided to go back and figure out what was missing.

George’s guitar playing, within both the Beatles and his solo career, are nigh impossible to recreate. Dhani said because of this, in his early life, he tried not to learn his father’s songs.

Today, Dhani has moved past this defiance. Currently, his efforts to preserve and protect his father’s legacy are widely known.

If one ever hopes to encapsulate the guitar playing George Harrison once presented, your second-best window to his talents lives within Dhani.

“My father said to me, ‘I play the notes you never hear,’” Harrison said. George focused on touch and control, being sure he would not blow a solo due to hitting off notes or buzzing strings.

George’s lead guitar was never actually “leading,” in a sense. It was usually paired perfectly with background harmonies or a distant orchestra. His solos exhibited qualities of both lead and foreground tunes simultaneously.


Dhani with george in 1999