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 BRAIN
WASHED may be the posthumous successor to 1987's CLOUD NINE,
but the 15 years George Harrison took to put this collection of
songs together was time well spent. Featuring a small group of musicians
including son Dhani, fellow Wilbury Jeff Lynne, and
Jools Holland, Harrison's last legacy showcases some of his
finest playing wrapped around the kind of weighty topics expected
from someone with terminal cancer.
1. Any Road
2. Vatican Blues (Last Saturday Night)
3. Pisces Fish
4. Looking For My Life
5. Rising Sun
6. Marwa Blues
7. Stuck Inside A Cloud
8. Run So Far
9. Never Get Over You
10. Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea
11. Rocking Chair In Hawaii
12. Brainwashed
"One of the most warm, melodically rich albums in a career
pockmarked by personal frankness and professional indifference in
its latter years, Harrison finds rewarding ways to reconcile bitter
assessments of the material world with more fleshy concerns, as
his jaunty take on the Arlen-Koehler chestnut "The Devil and
the Deep Blue Sea" ably demonstrates.
Pushing the singer's distinctive dry voice to the forefront,
and with Harrison's trademark slide guitar riffs as sinewy as ever,
Lynne's production is spot-on and refreshingly restrained, while
Dhani brings his own fresh, touchingly personal insights to the
record.
He double-tracked his own voice onto an old recording
of his father chanting the traditional "Namah Parvati"
and appended it as the album's spiritual benediction, a touching
reminder that while musicians come and go, music can truly embody
their spirit forever."
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George Harrison (vocals, acoustic &
electric guitars, dobro, ukulele);
Isabela Borzymowska (spoken vocals);
Jeff Lynne (acoustic, electric & 12-string
guitars, piano, Wurlitzer piano, keyboards, bass, background
vocals);
Dhani Harrison (acoustic & electric
guitars, Wurlitzer piano, background vocals);
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Jane Lister (harp);
Jools Holland, Jon Lord (piano);
Mike Moran, Marc Mann (keyboards);
Jim Keltner (drums);
Bikram Ghosh (tabla);
Sam Brown (background vocals).
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 Lynne's
production steers clear of its usual heavy-handed tendencies and
instead allows Harrison's playing to shine and come to the fore
on cuts like the crying instrumental "Marwa Blues" and
the slide guitar-fueled sweetness of "Rocking Chair in Hawaii."
The late great one even snags a ukulele and delivers a light and
easy version of the standard "Between the Devil and the Deep
Blue Sea."
Appropriately enough, Harrison's interest in Eastern
religious thought finds its place in the album-ending title track
via a reading from the Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali, lending a fitting
epilogue to the last new work from the Quiet Beatle.
Included in Rolling Stone's 50 Best Albums of 2002
3 stars out of 5 - ...Harrison's songs and singing represent a burst
of form....These songs are what George wanted to say at the end,
and they say it well...
It's suffused with the quiet Beatle's trademark warmth, candor,
and good-will....It's an aptly poignant conclusion to the career
of this longtime spiritual seeker... - Rating: B+
Entertainment Weekly (11/22/02)
BRAINWASHED is a mature and often profound record,
comprising some of his most thoughtful songs since ALL THINGS MUST
PASS...
BRAINWASHED is a warm, frank goodbye, a remarkably poised record
about the reality of dying, by a man on the verge... Rolling Stone
(12/12/02)
 A
Tribute Concert was held featuring Clapton, Ringo &
other close friends, and a DVD
and a Book has been
released from that show.
The single "Any Road"
has also been released, and the video is fantastic! "Brainwashed"
has also been re-issued into a box set. Check out the new updated
website for more info - georgeharrison.com
Visit
the Dhani Harrison Interview page
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Track
listing
