George Harrison - Dark Horse & Extra Texture Thread

You mean 2010 ones? They sounds much better than 2014 ver. 2014 ATMP is too compressed, imo.

 

Clever video of George's cover version of "True Love" with Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly's scene from the film "High Society".

 

One of the great cover versions of all time, imo.

 

I only have ye olde Capital Fat Boy so I'm willing to roll the dice.

 

Got it. That makes sense then.

 

Post-1970? Yes. If we are examining all Harrison s albums, then I would take away either "George Harrison" or Cloud 9" and add "Wonderwall Music" to his top five....

 

Glenn, this line:

"I respect nothing more in a pop song than a good synth trombone line." is one of the funniest lines I have read on the forum this year!

 

I really enjoy "Dark Horse". I have two copies of it on LP and the latest re-mastered CD SHOULD be here today.

I also don't mind "Extra Texture".

 

Has anyone listened to the new Dark Horse reissue (2014). I have been listening to it in my car, and I can't say I like it much, sounds kinda dull (am I just having a bad day??), but I am not sure if I am reacting to the mix ? the original track has been compressed to hell?? or exactly what the issue is.. drums don't seem to have any punch at all..
I haven't pulled out the early CD version or the original LP (I have both), but if I do I will update.
Any other opinions ?
I don't consider my ears golden at all, and don't want to point someone in the wrong direction needlessly.

 

It sounds great as compared to the previous CD I owned. The two tracks wit LA express sound a little muddy to me though

 

I like this album better after reading Simon Jung's (SIC?) While My Guitar Gently Weeps. It really apes some of the prevailing mid seventies trends.

"This Guitar" has the "big strings" Like The Stones "Angie" or Bread's "Guitar Man"

For instance "Can't Stop Thinking About You" has the repetition of War's "Why can't we be friends".

I like the album and George gets some nice understated licks in. "Tired of Midnight Blue" is a real lost gem. The only really problem I have with it is the songs all seem to go on a little too long....and "His Name is Legs" is a pretty lousy album closer.

The remaster is great. The record feels warmer to me.

 

I like "Tired Of Midnight Blue" also and as I mentioned in my post about the album, after listening to it again a couple of days ago after quite awhile, I liked the album now more than I did in the past.
Regarding the length of songs, I think George and Paul and many other artists were all guilty of padding out songs longer than necessary.

The amazing thing to me when I listen to early Beatles songs now is.., many of them are like... 2:30 long, yet nothing seems abrupt, nothing seems missing. Six minutes of "C'Mon People"
or six minutes of "His Name Is Legs ( Ladies and Gentlemen)" ( or however long they are) don't make them better, just longer.

And.. a few of George's albums only have ten songs on them and one or two of them might be an old recycled song from the Beatles era ( "Circles", "Not Guilty",etc.) or a cover version of something. This from a guy that complained about his big backlog of songs that he wished the Beatles would have given a chance. I can understand his angst and unhappiness not being treated as a songwriting equal in the Beatles, but after clearing his backlog of songs with All Things Must Pass and Living In the Material World, it doesn't seem like he had songs coming out of his ears.

 

I absolutely love Extra Texture...I have a perfect original copy on vinyl.....am I missing anything that the new CD can offer?

 

Well, if he didn't make ATMP a triple (technically double) album and used all of the unfinished songs from the Get Back sessions and ATMP, he'd have at least 4 albums worth of material including LitMW.

 

Yep. In retrospect, it's amazing that his first solo album after the Beatles was a TRIPLE album set, although the jam album doesn't really count as far as using up actual songs .

 

I don't get why he never used those extra songs from the sessions because they sounded great - Dehra Dun and I Live For You too. He could've had a real triple album if he wanted to.

EDIT: Yeah, when I think of how many songs he wrote in that short '69-'70 period, it's pretty crazy.

 

I last week listened to both these albums for the first time. Dark Horse, I thought, was pretty bad and Dimg Dong outright terrible. Extra Texture, however, was quite good and the bonus track fantastic.

 

George's peak as a songwriter, with regard to quality AND productivity, had to have been from about 1968 to 1973. Maybe he really felt the need to try to match John and Paul, especially after the trip to India in early 1968. (All of the 3 songwriting Beatles in fact had a songwriting bonanza in India). George wrote so many songs during that time that he never got around to all of them, and he gave many good tunes away to Billy Preston, Ronnie Spector, Doris Troy, and others. For whatever reason, he was inspired to write a lot of songs and the vast majority were excellent. And after that, he was able to concoct 9-10 songs for an album every few years, but the songs did not come profusely anymore.

There is also the theory that most of the greatest work (in music, or science, or literature, etc.) is done by people in their mid- to late twenties. Of course, there are exceptions [like me!!!---I'm twice that age but my posts here are peaking!! ], but George was at the right age in 1968-73 for this "rule" to adhere.

Arnie

 

I actully like the opening track. "Simply Shady" is a good track but the vocal is pretty rough and pretty much ruins it.. I don't care for "So Sad" it has a bad vocal and lacks a melody.

"Maya Love" and "It is He" are strong tracks imo. "Ding Dong" is is silly but I view it as George's only glam track so it gets a pass, plus it is catchy as hell. I just wish the vocal wasn't so horse. The same goes for the title track, the vocal is a bit off putting. I think if George had been able to give Dark Horse a good vocal it would have been another top 5 hit for him.

As far as the remaster...I really like the album artwork and liner notes... I never owned the original LP so I never had the orginal artwork until now. I love the Dark Horse demo on this release.

Overall the strongest tracks have the hoarsest vocals and that really makes this album problematic.

I also do not believe that "Bye Bye Love" and "I Don't Care Anymore" should have every been released. Both are the low points of George's solo career.

 

For me, EXTRA TEXTURE is George's worst (something's gotta be on the bottom). Really whiney singing, and tired-sounding songs. I do like "You", "Answer's At The End", and especially "This Guitar", though.

DARK HORSE would have been better if George's voice was in better shape. DH is still one of my least-favorite Hari albums though. Along with the title song I like "Simply Shady", "So Sad", and "Ding Dong, Ding Dong".

 

I also liek Ding Dong, Ding Dong. The guitar work is super cool. I just wish George's voice wasn't so shot on the vocal.

 

"Ding Dong Ding Dong" would be an outstanding instrumental. I actually would have welcomed a "Stack-O-Tracks" version of the whole Dark Horse album, because the music is terrific. It's the singing that drags much of it down.

 

If we are talking about Dark Horse, then you mean: "Rack-O-Hacks"... Arnie