Why George Harrison Benefitted the Most from The Beatles Breaking Up
The Beatles had unprecedented levels of success during the 1960s. Many fans were heartbroken when The Beatles disbanded in 1970, leaving John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr to embark on solo careers. While each member had impressive solo careers, Harrison benefited the most from leaving the band, even if he wasn’t the most successful.
George Harrison only wrote a few songs while he was in The Beatles
Harrison was an essential part of The Beatles as a guitarist but isn’t credited with writing many of The Beatles’ songs. Primary songwriting duties were in the hands of McCartney and Lennon, who wrote most of the band’s hits, including “I Saw Her Standing There,” “Hey Jude,” “Can’t Buy Me Love,” and “Eight Days a week.”
Harrison is only credited with writing 25 Beatles songs, three of which were a full-band effort. However, he did write a few gems for the band, including “Something,” “Here Comes the Sun,” “Within You Without You,” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” “Something” was a No. 1 hit for the band, proving he could create commercially successful music.
Harrison was creatively liberated when The Beatles split
George Harrison didn’t have the same opportunity to show his talent with The Beatles that McCartney and Lennon had. He had a passion for spiritual and folk music, which the band wasn’t often associated with. There are a few times he was able to inject his ideas into Beatles songs. For example, he developed a love for Indian music and incorporated the sitar on a few Beatles tracks, such as “Norwegian Wood.”
However, Harrison often felt restricted by the business side of The Beatles, and the other members, especially McCartney. He even briefly left the group during the Let it Be recording sessions. In his autobiography, I, Me, Mine, Harrison said he felt restricted by the band and compared it to wearing a “straightjacket.”
“There was too much restriction [in The Beatles],” Harrison shared. “It had to self-destruct … I could see a much better time ahead being by myself, away from the band.”
His solo career showed people how talented he was as a musician and songwriter
George Harrison surprised many fans after The Beatles broke up. He acquired the nickname “dark horse” due to his immediate success in his solo career. In 1970, Harrison released the triple album, All Things Must Pass. The album featured the song “My Sweet Lord,” which reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, beating Lennon and McCartney to the punch in their solo careers.
He had two more No. 1 hits in his solo career: 1973’s “Give Me Love” and 1988’s “Got My Mind Set On You.” While McCartney did have the most commercial success of any Beatles, people weren’t surprised to see Paul flourish outside of the band. Harrison’s solo career not only changed the perception of him as an artist but forced people to look back at his contributions to The Beatles and how the band would have suffered if he were not involved.
