Living in the Material World

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For the documentary film by Martin Scorsese, see George Harrison: Living in the Material World.
Living in the Material World
Studio album by George Harrison
Released 30 May 1973 (US)
22 June 1973 (UK)
Recorded October 1972–January 1973, February 1971
FPSHOT, Oxfordshire; Apple Studio, London; Abbey Road Studios, London
Genre Rock
Length 43:55
Label Apple
Producer George Harrison, Phil Spector
George Harrison chronology
The Concert for Bangladesh
(1971)		 Living in the Material World
(1973)		 Dark Horse
(1974)
Singles from Living in the Material World
  1. "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)"
    Released: 7 May 1973 (US); 25 May 1973 (UK)

Living in the Material World is a studio album by George Harrison, released in 1973 on the Apple Records label.

Contents

[edit] Background

As a follow-up to 1970's favourably received All Things Must Pass and his mammoth charity project, The Concert for Bangladesh, Living in the Material World was among the most highly anticipated releases of 1973.

One inspiration for the album Harrison himself said: "Living in the Material World, as I wrote in I Me Mine, was influenced by Srila Prabhupada. He's the one who explained to me how we're not these physical bodies. We just happen to be in them. Like I said in the song, this place is not really what's happening. We don't belong here, but in the spiritual sky: As l'm fated for the material world, Get frustrated in the material world, Senses never gratified, Only swelling like a tide, That could drown me in the material world."[1]

The Bangla Desh experience left Harrison exhausted and frustrated, as he was kept busy for a whole year ensuring that the money that had been raised could find its way to those in need.[2] He was not able to begin recording a new album until the latter part of 1972, which he undertook alone – without Phil Spector this time – partly at The Beatles' Apple Studio in London, but mostly at his state-of-the-art home studio at Friar Park, according to bassist Klaus Voormann.[3] Once again, Harrison engaged the aid of musician friends such as Voormann, Ringo Starr, Jim Keltner, Nicky Hopkins, Gary Wright and Jim Horn. The backing track for "Try Some, Buy Some" had been recorded at Abbey Road Studios back in February 1971, with Spector co-producing, in Harrison's efforts to give Ronnie Spector a hit single. Liking the song, he decided to use the same music track for his own rendition. The orchestration for this track and the new recordings on the album were by John Barham. (David Bowie recorded "Try Some, Buy Some" on his 2003 album Reality with an arrangement relatively similar to the original version.)[4]

The closing track, "That Is All", was covered by Andy Williams on his Solitaire album, which was released shortly after Harrison's version. Harry Nilsson also recorded the song on his 1976 album ...That's the Way It Is.

[edit] Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 4/5 stars[5]
Blender (magazine) 4/5 stars link
PopMatters 6/10 stars[6]
Rolling Stone (favourable)[7]
MusicHound 3.5/5 stars[8]
Robert Christgau C[9]

Preceded by the uplifting acoustic number "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" – Harrison's second US number 1 hit − Living in the Material World appeared in June 1973 to brisk initial sales, reaching number 2 in the UK and spending five weeks atop the US charts (having knocked off Paul McCartney and Wings' Red Rose Speedway in the process). The critical reaction, however, was less euphoric than that which had greeted All Things Must Pass. More somber in tone, Living in the Material World was distinguished by Harrison's philosophical and religious ruminations, making it clear he was in distress with the state of the world and where it was headed. Subsequently, the feeling was that Harrison had gradually lost much of the enormous momentum he had going for him since The Beatles' 1970 break-up. In hindsight, most contemporary reviewers now consider Living in the Material World to be a very worthwhile release with many fine moments; author Simon Leng refers to it as a "forgotten blockbuster" and the last album to capture the same confident spirit that had characterised the 1960s.[10]

[edit] Reissue

On 26 September 2006, Living in the Material World was reissued on CD and in a deluxe CD/DVD package by Capitol Records and EMI. The remastered album features two additional tracks, the B-side "Deep Blue" from the 1971 single "Bangla Desh", and "Miss O'Dell", the B-side to "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)".

The DVD rounds up rare performance footage of "Give Me Love" from Harrison's 1991 Japanese tour with Eric Clapton, behind-the-scenes film clips shot during the 1972−73 sessions for "Living in the Material World" and previously unreleased versions of "Miss O'Dell" and "Sue Me, Sue You Blues" set to archival film clips.[11]

[edit] Track listing

All songs written by George Harrison.

[edit] Side one

  1. "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" – 3:36
  2. "Sue Me, Sue You Blues" – 4:48
  3. "The Light That Has Lighted the World" – 3:31
  4. "Don't Let Me Wait Too Long" – 2:57
  5. "Who Can See It" – 3:52
  6. "Living in the Material World" – 5:31

[edit] Side two

  1. "The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord)" – 4:34
  2. "Be Here Now" – 4:09
  3. "Try Some, Buy Some" – 4:08
  4. "The Day the World Gets 'Round" – 2:53
  5. "That Is All" – 3:43

[edit] Bonus tracks (2006 remaster)

  1. "Deep Blue" – 3:47
  2. "Miss O'Dell" – 2:33

[edit] Bonus DVD

  • "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)" (Recorded at Tokyo Dome 15 December 1991)
    • Audio:
      • PCM Stereo
      • Dolby Digital 5.1
      • DTS 5.1
  • "Miss O'Dell" (alternative version)
  • "Sue Me, Sue You Blues" (acoustic demo version)
  • "Living in the Material World"

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Charts

[edit] Chart positions

Chart (1973) Position
Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart[12] 2
Belgium Albums Chart[13] 2
Canadian RPM Albums Chart[14] 1
Dutch Mega Albums Chart[15] 5
French SNEP Albums Chart [16] 10
Italian Albums Chart[17] 4
Japanese Oricon LP Chart[18] 9
Norwegian VG-lista Albums Chart[19] 4
Spanish Albums Chart[20] 8
Swedish Albums Chart[13] 2
UK Albums Chart [21] 2
United States Billboard Pop Albums[22] 1
West German Media Control Albums Chart [23] 20

[edit] Chart positions (reissue)

Chart (2006) Position
Japanese Oricon Albums Chart[24] 33
U.S. Billboard Catalog Albums[25] 36

[edit] Year-end charts

Chart (1973) Position
Australian Albums Chart[12] 24
French Albums Chart[26] 16
Italian Albums Chart[17] 34
U.S. Billboard Top Pop Albums[27] 43

[edit] Certifications

Region Certification
United States (RIAA)[28] Gold

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Meditation: Chant and Be Happy - The Power of Mantra Meditation by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada". Harekrishna.com. http://harekrishna.com/col/books/YM/cbh/. Retrieved 2011-09-19. 
  2. ^ George Harrison, I Me Mine, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA, 2002), p. 220.
  3. ^ Simon Leng, While My Guitar Gently Weeps: The Music of George Harrison, Hal Leonard (Milwaukee, WI, 2006), p. 126.
  4. ^ Peisner, David (2003-07-15). Bowie Back With "Reality" "September set features Modern Lovers, Ronnie Spector covers". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/bowie-back-with-reality-20030715 Bowie Back With "Reality". Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  5. ^ Eder, Bruce. "Review: Living in the Material World". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r39991. Retrieved 7 November 2009. 
  6. ^ Lundy, Zeth (8 November 2006). "Review: Living in the Material World". PopMatters. http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/george-harrison-living-in-the-material-world/. Retrieved 7 November 2009. 
  7. ^ Holden, Steve (19 July 1973). "Review: Living in the Material World". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/living-in-the-material-world-19730719. Retrieved 7 November 2009. 
  8. ^ Gary Graff & Daniel Durcholz, MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide, Visible Ink Press (Farmington Hills, MI, 1999), p. 529.
  9. ^ Christgau, Robert. "George Harrison > Consumer Guide Reviews". Robert Christgau. http://robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=1983&name=George+Harrison. Retrieved 30 April 2007. 
  10. ^ Leng, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, pp 124, 141.
  11. ^ "Billboard Bits: George Harrison, Family Values, Antony", Billboard.com, 21 June 2006 (link)
  12. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0646119176. 
  13. ^ a b Billboard - 18 August - 1973. http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=LQkEAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=george+harrison#. Retrieved 2012-02-12. 
  14. ^ Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2012-02-11
  15. ^ "dutchcharts.nl George Harrison - Living in the Material World" (in Dutch) (ASP). dutchcharts.nl. MegaCharts. http://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=George+Harrison&titel=Living+In+The+Material+World&cat=a. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  16. ^ "InfoDisc : Tous les Albums classés par Artiste > Choisir Un Artiste Dans la Liste" (in French) (PHP). infodisc.fr. http://infodisc.fr/Album_H.php. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  17. ^ a b "Hit Parade Italia - Gli album più venduti del 1973" (in Italian). hitparadeitalia.it. http://www.hitparadeitalia.it/hp_yenda/lpe1973.htm. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  18. ^ a-ビートルズ "- Yamachan Land (Archives of the Japanese record charts) - Albums Chart Daijiten - The Beatles" (in Japanese). 2007-12-30. http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/~yamag/album/al_beatles.html a-ビートルズ. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  19. ^ "norwegiancharts.com George Harrison - Living in the Material World" (ASP). http://norwegiancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=George+Harrison&titel=Living+In+The+Material+World&cat=a. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  20. ^ Billboard - 24 November - 1973. http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=EwkEAAAAMBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=Goodbye+yellow+Brick+Road. Retrieved 2012-02-12. 
  21. ^ "George Harrison - Living in the Material World" (PHP). UK Albums Chart. http://www.chartstats.com/release.php?release=37562. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  22. ^ Allmusic - George Harrison > Living in the Material World > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
  23. ^ "Album Search: George Harrison" (in German). Media Control. http://www.charts.de/search.asp?search=george+harrison&x=0&y=0&cat=a&country=de. Retrieved 2011-09-12. 
  24. ^ ジョージ・ハリスン-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック "Highest position and charting weeks of Living in the Material World (reissue) by George Harrison" (in Japanese). oricon.co.jp. Oricon Style. http://www.oricon.co.jp/music/release/d/670147/1/ ジョージ・ハリスン-リリース-ORICON STYLE-ミュージック. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  25. ^ "Catalog Albums - Billboard.com". billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/charts/catalog-albums?chartDate=2006-10-14&order=gainer. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  26. ^ "Les Albums (CD) de 1973 par InfoDisc" (in French). infodisc.fr. http://www.infodisc.fr/B-CD_1973.php. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  27. ^ "Top Pop Albums of 1973". billboard.biz. http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/charts/archivesearch/article_display/855834?imw=Y. Retrieved 2012-02-11. 
  28. ^ "American album certifications – George Harrison – Living in the Material World". Recording Industry Association of America. http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?artist=%22Living+in+the+Material+World%22. Retrieved 2012-02-11.  If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH

[edit] External links

Preceded by
The Dark Side of the Moon
by Pink Floyd		 Canadian RPM Top 100 number-one album
23 June – 28 July, 1973		 Succeeded by
The Dark Side of the Moon
by Pink Floyd
Preceded by
Red Rose Speedway
by Paul McCartney & Wings		 Billboard 200 number-one album
23 June – 27 July 1973		 Succeeded by
Chicago VI by Chicago
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Living_in_the_Material_World&oldid=481207176"
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