The George Harrison White Album Song By Song Appreciation Thread

Like when we was fab

 

Circles

Background and composition


Meditation caves at Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's former ashram in Rishikesh (pictured in 2006)


"Circles" was one of several songs that George Harrison wrote in Rishikesh, India, when he and his fellow Beatles were attending Maharishi Mahesh Yogi'sTranscendental Meditation course in the spring of 1968. Aside from providing an opportunity to progress with meditation techniques, the two-month stay marked Harrison's return to the guitar after two years of studying the Indian sitar, partly under the tutelage of Ravi Shankar.Harrison biographer Simon Leng considers that "Circles" was composed on an organ, however, as most of Harrison's Indian-inspired melodies since 1966 had been.Leng writes of "fugue-like keyboard parts" on the song and "bass figures" that partly recall the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Author Ian Inglis considers that "Circles" "displays a direct connection with the unspoken psychedelia" of Harrison's Beatles tracks "Blue Jay Way" and "Long, Long, Long".
The song's lyrical theme is reincarnation, in keeping with its composer's absorption in Hindu philosophy– a preoccupation that had led the Beatles to the Maharishi's teachings and would result in Harrison's introduction to the Hare Krishna movement in December 1968.[Harrison had first taken reincarnation as his theme for "Art of Dying", which he began writing in 1966 and it would continue to be the focus of many of his compositions as a solo artist, notably the 1973 hit "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)". Theologian Dale Allison highlights "Circles" as the only Harrison song to use the term "reincarnate", however, and he also notes the composer's use of the word "soul" "in its proper metaphysical sense".
Allison describes the lyrics as "a clear statement of reincarnation", as well as "the most blatant example" in the Harrison canon of the singer's desire to pass on to a "'higher' and better world" at death, and so escape the cycle of rebirth in the material world. In the song's choruses, the lines "He who knows does not speak / He who speaks does not know" quote the Chinese sage and author Lao-Tse,whose work Tao Te Ching inspired Harrison's 1968 composition "The Inner Light". Elsewhere in the lyrics to "Circles", Harrison contemplates the changing nature of friendship as, over the course of lifetimes, according to Inglis, "our enemies become our companions, affections turn into hatred".
Lindsay Planer of All Music writes that Harrison carried out "significant lyrical embellishments" after debuting the song in 1968. On the released recording, he concludes with a statement on how to break the circle of repetition: "When loss and gain and up and down / Become the same, then we stop going in circles." Allison interprets this conclusion, and Harrison's worldview generally, as espousing the need to recognize the illusory nature of the material world, saying: "All the multiplicity and diversity are in truth manifestations of the one hidden and divine reality … opposites are not opposites. To understand that up is down and that gain is loss is to be … on one's way to escaping from the material world."
Musically, Leng views the "chromatic melodic web" of "Circles" as appropriate for conveying the "repetition and entrapment" of reincarnation, as the soul passes through one human life to another. The song is in the key of F major, although, in Leng's estimation, the melody "yearns for resolution in E minor....revolving in dissonance like a lost soul awaiting its place in the reincarnation checkout line".

The Beatles' demo
"Circles" was one of five Harrison compositions that the Beatles demoed before recording their 1968 double album,The Beatles, also known as the White Album.The song was taped in late May 1968 at Kinfauns, Harrison's home in Esher, using his Ampex four-track recorder. Although never released officially, the demo began circulating on bootleg compilations in the early 1990s.
Harrison played organ on the track, taping two parts on the instrument.The use of keyboards contrasted with the mainly acoustic-guitar backing otherwise employed on the Beatles' Esher demos; author and critic Richie Unterberger describes the keyboard sound as "an eerie organ that seems to have been dragged out of a dusty, disused church closet". In his book Revolution in the Head, Ian MacDonald credits the instrument as a harmonium and writes that, rather than performing the song alone, Harrison was "shadowed by a tentative … bass-line" fromPaul McCartney.
As with another Harrison composition inspired by the Beatles' time in Rishikesh – "Sour Milk Sea" – the group did not attempt to record "Circles" for the White Album. With the band's songwriting output at an unprecedentedly high level, Harrison's "Not Guilty" was similarly left off the album, even though the group had completed a recording of that track.

 

The demo is one of the 'Beatles' scariest recordings of all time.. can you imagine how much more eerie side 4 of The White Album would have been if this had taken the place of 'Savoy Truffle'? It's the closest 'real' Beatles song there is to the uneasy mystique of 'Peace of Mind/The Candle Burns' imo.

 

Good point. It does sort of have that" Peace Of Mind" vibe, and once again I prefer George's Esher demo over the song as it appears on Gone Troppo.

 

Despite the crudeness of the recording (and it is just organ accompaniment - not harmonium and bass), I kind of dig this track. It has that peculiarly George "ethereal mysterioso" vibe, with a typically sweet melodic hook. Maybe a little too similar in tempo and mood to "Long, Long, Long" to warrant inclusion on the LP, but glad that it exists at least in demo form.

 

Hmm. I always thought this song was in the key of C minor which give it its somber tone. I am not sure what version he is referring to.

 

Ahhh, finally!!!

I always loved "Circles". As others have mentioned, it has that eerie vibe as "Long Long Long", which draws you in at the same time.

 

I am no fan of the Gone Troppo version of "Circles." The Esher demo is interesting, but not a satisfying listening experience for me except on a once in a great while basis.

There does seem to be some potential there, though.

I wonder if it could have been brought to life (returned to life?) by a complex 3 or even 6 part George Martin harmony arrangement, ala "Because", but more chromatic, and even eerier than "Because."

And maybe Clapton could have dropped by again with his guitar to do a searing, minor keyed solo, or maybe McCartney could have lent one, ala "Taxman," or maybe we could have had both solos, ala the aborted "Let It Be" concept.

Alas, I'll probably never hear a version of "Circles" I totally like.

 

I suspect the reaction the others had was "Dude, we already did Blue Jay Way"....

 

It's a pretty safe bet that if "Not Guilty" didn't make the cut , the others weren't exactly licking their chops looking forward to recording "Circles", huh ?

 

I absolutely adore "The Inner Light" & "Dehradun", which are in a somewhat similar vein (at least thematically), but "Circles" is a Harrison song that I think is just sub-par & not one of his best.

 

Sour Milk Sea

"Sour Milk Sea" was one of several songs that George Harrison wrote while at Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's ashram in Rishikesh, India, during February to April 1968. Having first travelled in India in September 1966, following the Beatles' final concert tour, Harrison was enamoured with the teachings of the Maharishi and had led his fellow Beatles to Rishikesh to study Transcendental Meditation two years later. With Life magazine labeling 1968 "the Year of the Guru" the Beatles' stay generated wide interest in Transcendental Meditation, and Eastern spirituality generally, among Western youth. Author Simon Leng writes that with "Sour Milk Sea", Harrison now adopted "the role of advertising executive" to further promote meditation. Leng adds: "At the time, it was the enlightened artist's job to share their insights with 'the people,' which makes 'Sour Milk Sea' an obvious companion to 'Within You Without You.'
The way George is going he will be flying on a magic carpet by the time he's forty … I would like to know how far I can progress with [Transcendental Meditation]. George is a few inches ahead of us.
–John Lennon in Rishikesh, 1968


In his autobiography , I, Me, Mine, Harrison says that the song espouses meditation as a means to improve one's life, as well as conveying the message: "if you're in the ****, don't go around moaning about it; do something about it." He also explains that he named the composition after a picture titled Kalladadi Samudra, which reflects the theme of Vishvasara Tantrain sacred Hindu texts, particularly regarding "the geological theory of the evolution of organic life on earth". Singer Jackie Lomax, whose debut solo album Harrison had agreed to produce before departing for India, said that the eponymous Sour Milk Sea symbolizes "a fallow period" during each of the Earth's 26,000-year evolutionary cycles, before the planet begins its process of regeneration.

The Beatles' demo
After his time in Rishikesh, Harrison's output as a writer had become prolific, although he continued to be overshadowed in the Beatles by the band's primary songwriters, Lennon and Paul McCartney. Referring to the competition for space on their self-titled 1968 double album, also known as the White Album, author Mark Hertsgaard writes that the group were "confronting the paradox of having too much talent for their own good". Along with other new material that was considered for the White Album, the Beatles recorded a demo of "Sour Milk Sea" at Harrison's Esher home, Kinfauns, in May 1968.
The demo was taped on Harrison's Ampex four-track recorder. The performance features Harrison singing falsetto throughout, and a musical backing that includes guitars and various percussion– all played with "real enthusiasm", in Leng's description. Author and critic Kenneth Womack writes of this and the 22 other songs demoed at Kinfauns: "the Esher Tapes witness the Beatles working in unison and exalting in the pure joy of their music." The demo has appeared on bootleg albums, including Acoustic Masterpieces (The Esher Demos).
As with several of the songs taped at Kinfauns, the Beatles did not return to "Sour Milk Sea" during the White Album sessions. Although the group announced on 15 June that their association with the Maharishi had been "a public mistake", Allison writes that, for Harrison, "the guru's teachings did not leave him." Harrison decided to give the song to former Undertakers singer Jackie Lomax – a fellow Liverpudlian and one of the first artists signed to the Beatles' nascent record label, Apple Records, in early 1968. In a 2004 interview, Lomax said that he was fortunate to have Harrison's help, adding: "even on a big project like The White Album he only had four songs. I think he was feeling held back [in the Beatles]."

 

Great demo of a track whose selection I would have preferred over either "Savoy Truffle" or "Piggies" for the LP. A couple of points - this is the only track of all the Kinfauns demos where there's electric bass, and while Harrison does sing a lot in falsetto here, it's actually not for the entirety of the track.

 

Yeah, I just cut and paste the Wiki stuff on these songs as a starting point for discussion.I don't go through the info and correct it. I leave that to everyone else .

I love the backing of Jackie's version of this song, but I've never cared for Jackie's vocals, so I was happy when somebody morphed George's demo vocal over Jackie's backing instrumental.

 

The Jackie Lomax version is one of the greatest unheralded Beatle tracks. If Tony Sheridan could get on Anthology 1 ("My Bonnie") because the Beatles backed him up in Hamburg, then this song with Jackie should have been included on Anthology 3. Even though George isn't the lead singer, it is the Beatles (minus John) rocking out in their later-era prime (1968). Backing up Jackie are George, Paul and Ringo along with Eric Clapton and Nicky Hopkins. Wow!!

 

Basically either the Beatles or solo version of Circles would be the weakest track on Gone Troppo

 

I'm sort of staying with the Beatles versions of these songs, but seeing that three Beatles are on Jackies record, here's the Wiki info on that:

WIth Harrison as his producer, Lomax recorded "Sour Milk Sea" for release as a single. The sessions for the song began at EMI's Abbey Road Studios on 24 June 1968, before moving to Trident Studios, to use that facility's superior, eight-track recording equipment. Speaking to Melody Maker in September that year, Harrison described the recording as a "glorified jam session" . The line-up consisted of Lomax on vocals, Harrison and Eric Clapton on guitars, Nicky Hopkinson piano, McCartney on bass, and Ringo Starr on drums. McCartney was absent from the initial session, however, only returning on 25 June from an Apple-related business trip to California.


"With Eric Clapton playing on it, it was on fire. When the backing tape was played back, I thought it worked as an instrumental. "You want me to sing on top of that?!"
– Jackie Lomax, 2010

While Apple projects typically featured one member of the Beatles, "Sour Milk Sea" is the only track where more than two members of the band appeared on another artist's recording.Lomax later said that he thought the song "worked as an instrumental", and he recalled his nervousness when it came to overdubbing the vocal part: "There I am in the studio and there are three Beatles in the control room watching me ... I guess I was nervous at first, but after a couple of takes I was into it."
Recording was completed on 26 June. In addition to supplying acoustic rhythm guitar on the song Harrison played the electric guitar solo, beside Clapton's lead guitar part. Hammond organ was also added over this instrumental break,[ although the part is uncredited. Like Clapton and Hopkins, Lomax went on to contribute to the Beatles' White Album sessions,[ singing backing vocals on "Dear Prudence".
Leng identifies "Sour Milk Sea" as marking three important "firsts" in Harrison's career. It was the first song Harrison "gave away" to another artist, a sign that his output as a songwriter had outgrown the quota of tracks typically allocated to him on Beatles releases.[ The Lomax album project also marked the first time that Harrison served as producer for another artist,having already produced sessions in London and Bombay for his own debut solo album,Wonderwall Music. In addition, although Clapton had contributed to Wonderwall Music earlier in the year,"Sour Milk Sea" is the first example of him and Harrison sharing the lead guitarist's role on a recording. Later in 1968, the pair co-wrote Cream's final hit single, "Badge", while their guitar combination would be a feature through much of Harrison's solo career, as well as on Derek and the Dominos' first single, "Tell the Truth".

 

That would have been a great idea: To release the backing instrumental track on Anthology 3. If we could get the instrumental tracks of "Eleanor Rigby" and "Within You, Without You" on Anthology 2, this would have been a very cool thing to do for "Sour Milk Sea".