FARK.com: (6844738) This day in 1970, George Harrison goes to #1 with "He's So Fine/My Sweet Lord"

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		This day in 1970, George Harrison goes to #1 with "He's So Fine/My Sweet Lord" (youtube.com)		51
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cnocnanrionnag

2011-12-26 10:00:03 AM

Link

For reference.

Discuss

Wrong_Intentions

2011-12-26 10:06:26 AM

May I just say, please: fark the people who sued him? George Harrison writes a beautiful, personal declaration of his spiritual discovery in life, and they claim it's just a ripoff of a sugary pop song.

Keys dude

2011-12-26 10:09:02 AM

That version of that song always makes me joyful.

Generation_D

2011-12-26 10:13:30 AM

This song has nothing Bright about it.

vudukungfu

2011-12-26 10:28:49 AM

Hairy Krishuer?

FriarReb98

2011-12-26 10:31:02 AM

Wrong_Intentions: May I just say, please: fark the people who sued him? George Harrison writes a beautiful, personal declaration of his spiritual discovery in life, and they claim it's just a ripoff of a sugary pop song.

Amazing if you think about it. He did it genuinely in 1970, and the lame-assed Mr. Gwenyth Paltrow & Co. do it forty years later and we hate them for it and worship Harrison. Not that we shouldn't hate that band for its lameness and generic nature, and not that Harrison doesn't deserve worship, but still.

Great_Milenko

2011-12-26 10:32:04 AM

vudukungfu: Hairy Krishuer?

Pear pimples for hairy fishnuts?

LewDux

2011-12-26 10:41:28 AM

vudukungfu: Hairy Krishuer?

Hairy Krishna?

mikemoto

2011-12-26 10:43:22 AM

Also may have ripped off a part of this song, though Edwin Hawkins never sued : Link (new window)

Wrong_Intentions

2011-12-26 10:57:00 AM

FriarReb98: Wrong_Intentions: May I just say, please: fark the people who sued him? George Harrison writes a beautiful, personal declaration of his spiritual discovery in life, and they claim it's just a ripoff of a sugary pop song.

Amazing if you think about it. He did it genuinely in 1970, and the lame-assed Mr. Gwenyth Paltrow & Co. do it forty years later and we hate them for it and worship Harrison. Not that we shouldn't hate that band for its lameness and generic nature, and not that Harrison doesn't deserve worship, but still.

Wait, what do we hate somebody related somehow to the broad from Duets for?

Dear Jerk

2011-12-26 11:13:56 AM

Nice. That's from the Concert for Bangladesh. That's Eric Clapton on lead guitar. They also had Jesse Ed Davis there on lead guitar, in case Clapton showed up too full of heroin to play.

wiseolddude

2011-12-26 11:37:14 AM

Dear Jerk

Clapton was a much better when he was on heroin. After heroin "Wonderful Tonight" and "Lay Down Sally"

erratick

2011-12-26 11:38:38 AM

Great_Milenko: vudukungfu: Hairy Krishuer?

Pear pimples for hairy fishnuts?

I see what you did there- Opus lover- you probably like Steve Dallas too.

/nothing is obscure on Fark.

Jaykzo

2011-12-26 12:23:20 PM

It's pretty easy to subconsciously rip off a song... I highly doubt he intentionally copied the melody and chord changes of that song.

However, it is damn near identical up until the diminished chord.

tonguedepressor

2011-12-26 12:31:39 PM

I...I....I gots to know...whats a..diminshed chord?

LewDux

2011-12-26 12:38:28 PM

tonguedepressor: I...I....I gots to know...whats a..diminshed chord?

He tried to hide copying by playing one more piano?

LewDux

2011-12-26 12:39:08 PM

LewDux: one note more piano?

f

Dear Jerk

2011-12-26 12:59:41 PM

wiseolddude 2011-12-26 11:37:14 AM
Clapton was a much better when he was on heroin. After heroin "Wonderful Tonight" and "Lay Down Sally"

I contend he was best before he was on heroin.

downstairs

2011-12-26 01:14:01 PM

He's So Fine/My Sweet Lord comparison (new window)

downstairs

2011-12-26 01:18:27 PM

Wrong_Intentions: May I just say, please: fark the people who sued him? George Harrison writes a beautiful, personal declaration of his spiritual discovery in life, and they claim it's just a ripoff of a sugary pop song.

Its not only well known that he copied it, but the idea of copying that song wasn't even his idea. A friend of his used "He's So Fine" as a quick example of how you can turn any pop song into a religious song.

Link (new window)

FTA:

Here as elsewhere in the film, Scorsese makes elliptical reference to things but doesn't give viewers the full story. We get Billy Preston giving a short account of how the song was written, while he and Harrison were on tour with Delaney and Bonnie. (This was an American hippie singing ensemble of the era. Clapton and Harrison unaccountably found them irresistible.) The Preston comments seem to be a nod to the real story of the genesis of the song, which doesn't reflect well on Harrison. According to an account given by Delaney Bramlett to later Harrison biographers, he had deliberately made up for Harrison a sort of nonce song to illustrate how you could take a well-known tune, like "He's So Fine," and turn it into a religious song by adding lyrics about god. That interaction is the genesis of Harrison's "My Sweet Lord." In other words, Harrison had not only known the song was plagiarized, he'd stolen the plagiarized idea from Bramlett.

gilgigamesh

2011-12-26 02:39:48 PM

tonguedepressor: I...I....I gots to know...whats a..diminshed chord?

Its a chord where instead of playing a 1-3-5 you play the one and drop the three and the five a semitone. So a C chords diminished will be a C-Eb-Gb.

If you need more explanation than that you'll have to look it up since I am not going to go into a full on explanation of theory.

Ablejack

2011-12-26 03:31:49 PM

if anyone is still not convinced (as if, right?) that George was the greatest Beatle, consider these two facts;
1. The only good Beatles stuff is the "George songs"
2. No other Beatle ever did anything worthwhile without him.

/I know what you're thinking, but even though Starr is quite amusing I still give the edge to Harrison.

scalpod

2011-12-26 03:49:10 PM

Successfully suing an artist for using the same chord progression? Pachelbel shakes his fist from the grave.

makjr33

2011-12-26 04:39:46 PM

If I remember correctly, George has 'fessed up to My Sweet Lord being consciously based not on He's So Fine, but on Oh Happy Day by the Edwin Hawkins Singers, as alluded to earlier.

Fett56

2011-12-26 04:49:38 PM

Jaykzo: It's pretty easy to subconsciously rip off a song... I highly doubt he intentionally copied the melody and chord changes of that song.

However, it is damn near identical up until the diminished chord.

I'm really good at this. Every "song" i come up with on guitar turns out to be lifted straight from something in my memory.

Latest two I ripped off subconsciously are teenage riot and a song from "on fire" by galaxie 500. Took me two years of playing the melody to teenage riot before I realized what it was.

And the funny thing is, I can't really play by ear that well. But I can note for note ripoff other artists from memory!

downstairs

2011-12-26 04:58:22 PM

makjr33: If I remember correctly, George has 'fessed up to My Sweet Lord being consciously based not on He's So Fine, but on Oh Happy Day by the Edwin Hawkins Singers, as alluded to earlier.

Wow, I never knew that. Just listened to that version, and indeed there are striking similarities. Got a source for that quote?

Not that I don't believe you, but "He's So Fine" and "My Sweet Lord" are almost note for note, harmony for harmony the same.

tequilasundae

2011-12-26 06:55:14 PM

Great_Milenko: vudukungfu: Hairy Krishuer?

Pear pimples for hairy fishnuts?

NICE!!
padresteve.files.wordpress.com

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-27 02:05:59 AM

downstairs: Its not only well known that he copied it, but the idea of copying that song wasn't even his idea. A friend of his used "He's So Fine" as a quick example of how you can turn any pop song into a religious song.

Link (new window)

I had to check to see if the Bill Wyman who wrote that article was the Bill Wyman who may have actually known George Harrison. It appears not. He seems bitter about it, too.

NDP2

2011-12-27 02:19:36 AM

Billboard Top 40 for week of December 26, 1970 (US)
#40 "WE GOTTA GET YOU A WOMAN" - Runt
#39 "GAMES" - Redeye
#38 "AFTER MIDNIGHT" - Eric Clapton
#37 "BORDER SONG" - Aretha Franklin
#36 "DO IT" - Neil Diamond
#35 "FIRE AND RAIN" - James Taylor
#34 "I'M NOT MY BROTHER'S KEEPER" - Flaming Ember
#33 "ROSE GARDEN" - Lynn Anderson
#32 "PATCH IT UP" - Elvis Presley
#31 "LOVE THE ONE YOU'RE WITH" - Stephen Stills
#30 "SHARE THE LAND" - The Guess Who
#29 "YOUR SONG" - Elton John
#28 "IMMIGRANT SONG" - Led Zeppelin
#27 "MONTEGO BAY" - Bobby Bloom
#26 "LONELY DAYS" - The Bee Gees
#25 "CAN'T STOP LOVING YOU" - Tom Jones
#24 "IF I WERE YOUR WOMAN" - Gladys Knight & The Pips
#23 "PAY TO THE PIPER" - Chairmen of the Board
#22 "ONE MAN BAND" - Three Dog Night
#21 "BE MY BABY" - Andy Kim
#20 "HE AIN'T HEAVY ... HE'S MY BROTHER" - Neil Diamond
#19 "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE" - Perry Como
#18 "GROOVE ME" - King Floyd
#17 "RIVER DEEP-MOUNTAIN HIGH" - The Supremes & The Four Tops
#16 "I'LL BE THERE" - The Jackson 5
#15 "WE'VE ONLY JUST BEGUN" - The Carpenters
#14 "FOR THE GOOD TIMES" - Ray Price
#13 "STONEY END" - Barbara Streisand
#12 "DOMINO" - Van Morrison
#11 "5-10-15-20 (25-30 YEARS OF LOVE)" - The Presidents
#10 "NO MATTER WHAT" - Badfinger
#9 "GYPSY WOMAN" - Brian Hyland
#8 "DOES ANYBODY REALLY KNOW WHAT TIME IS IS?" - Chicago
#7 "STONED LOVE" - The Supremes
#6 "I THINK I LOVE YOU" - The Partridge Family (Starring Shirley Jones & Featuring David Cassidy)
#5 "BLACK MAGIC WOMAN" - Santana
#4 "KNOCK THREE TIMES" - Dawn
#3 "THE TEARS OF A CLOWN" - Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
#2 "ONE LESS BELL TO ANSWER" - The Fifth Dimension
#1 "MY SWEET LORD"/"ISN'T IT A PITY" - George Harrison

tetzy

2011-12-27 02:21:23 AM

Fine song - a shining moment in a career filled with shining moments.

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-27 02:27:35 AM

NDP2: Billboard Top 40 for week of December 26, 1970 (US)

Interesting. I could probably sing 28 out of 40 of the songs word-for-word on that list, but I couldn't name a single song on today's top 40.

/is it me, or the music?
//listening to "If I Fell" Link (new window) as we speak
///can ya put a link in a slashie?

NDP2

2011-12-27 02:34:36 AM

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: NDP2: Billboard Top 40 for week of December 26, 1970 (US)

Interesting. I could probably sing 28 out of 40 of the songs word-for-word on that list, but I couldn't name a single song on today's top 40.

/is it me, or the music?
//listening to "If I Fell" Link (new window) as we speak
///can ya put a link in a slashie?

I think I know about 34 out of the 40 songs on that chart which isn't bad considering I was in kindergarten at the time.

/That still makes me feel old though.

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-27 03:44:59 AM

NDP2: I think I know about 34 out of the 40 songs on that chart which isn't bad considering I was in kindergarten at the time.

/That still makes me feel old though.

Ahh, yer still a young pup. I had already attained the fourth grade by 1970. :)

LeoffDaGrate

2011-12-27 09:08:38 AM

Ablejack: if anyone is still not convinced (as if, right?) that George was the greatest Beatle, consider these two ~~facts~~ Opinions;
1. The only good Beatles stuff is the "George songs"
2. No other Beatle ever did anything worthwhile without him.

/I don't know what you're thinking, ~~but even though Starr is quite amusing I still give the edge to Harrison.~~ and I have trouble distinguishing personal opinion from true facts, but we all have our favorites, and I'm obviously biased.

FIFY

Crewmannumber6

2011-12-27 12:49:04 PM

You're only as good as who you steal from. He's not the first, won't be the last.

StoPPeRmobile

2011-12-27 03:50:03 PM

Fett56: Jaykzo: It's pretty easy to subconsciously rip off a song... I highly doubt he intentionally copied the melody and chord changes of that song.

However, it is damn near identical up until the diminished chord.

I'm really good at this. Every "song" i come up with on guitar turns out to be lifted straight from something in my memory.

Latest two I ripped off subconsciously are teenage riot and a song from "on fire" by galaxie 500. Took me two years of playing the melody to teenage riot before I realized what it was.

And the funny thing is, I can't really play by ear that well. But I can note for note ripoff other artists from memory!

I'm the same way. People are always like, I know that song, and I'm clueless.

/time to practice

IlGreven

2011-12-27 05:08:31 PM

wiseolddude: Dear Jerk

Clapton was a much better when he was on heroin. After heroin "Wonderful Tonight" and "Lay Down Sally"

You dare insult the great Clapton? NO SOUP FOR YOU!

John Buck 41

2011-12-27 06:25:32 PM

NDP2: Billboard Top 40 for week of December 26, 1970 (US)

8th grade. Wow. Some great old memory floggers there. That is one helluva lot better list than the one from December '75 posted in the 'What People Wanted For Xmas...in 1975' thread from 2 or 3 days ago.

John Buck 41

2011-12-27 06:30:20 PM

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: NDP2: Billboard Top 40 for week of December 26, 1970 (US)

Interesting. I could probably sing 28 out of 40 of the songs word-for-word on that list, but I couldn't name a single song on today's top 40.

/is it me, or the music?
//listening to "If I Fell" Link (new window) as we speak
///can ya put a link in a slashie?

Early Beatles is better than later Beatles

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-27 07:08:59 PM

John Buck 41: Early Beatles is better than later Beatles

It's all good...

John Buck 41

2011-12-27 08:55:09 PM

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: John Buck 41: Early Beatles is better than later Beatles

It's all good...

Well...yeah. I didn't say that later Beatles suck.

Notabunny

2011-12-27 08:58:02 PM

Thanks, subby. You motivated me. I just got back from Skip's music w/ two acoustic guitars for my squabs, and one for myself. We all just learned our C and G7 chords. What an entirely pleasant way to top off Christmas.

Glenechocreek

2011-12-27 10:08:38 PM

Look what McCartney got away with- he stole the central riff from the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds album, and used it in Penny Lane, A Little Help From My Friends, Fixing a Hole, and Getting Better. Instead of suing him, Brian Wilson had a nervous breakdown.

makjr33

2011-12-28 06:18:05 AM

downstairs:

Here are three that I found quickly...

http://performingsongwriter.com/george-harrison-my-sweet-lord/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh_Happy_Day

http://books.google.com/books?id=BSZtZUWge-IC&pg=PA181&lpg=PA181&dq=G E ORGE+HARRISON+ADMITS+OH+HAPPY+DAY&source=bl&ots=RYX9UcDnGI&sig=oq_v2OR vAj4D71o8hPWrf-ml52g&hl=en&sa=X&ei=OPr6Tv6vKuLv0gGu9ezFDQ&ved=0CCoQ6AE wAg#v=onepage&q=GEORGE%20HARRISON%20ADMITS%20OH%20HAPPY%20DAY&f=false

nocturn

2011-12-28 06:24:07 PM

All I know is he created one of the greatest non-orchestral fantasy movie themes. Link (new window)

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-29 02:08:08 AM

John Buck 41: UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: John Buck 41: Early Beatles is better than later Beatles

It's all good...

Well...yeah. I didn't say that later Beatles suck.

Absolutely, you did not. However there is that divide between early Beatles and later Beatles, that sounds like two separate bands. From your profile, you have a lot of experience in the music business. I realize this thread is dead, but how do you account for the complete renunciation of their early identity and their embrace of an entirely new sound?

John Buck 41

2011-12-29 06:00:05 AM

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: John Buck 41: UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: John Buck 41: Early Beatles is better than later Beatles

It's all good...

Well...yeah. I didn't say that later Beatles suck.

Absolutely, you did not. However there is that divide between early Beatles and later Beatles, that sounds like two separate bands. From your profile, you have a lot of experience in the music business. I realize this thread is dead, but how do you account for the complete renunciation of their early identity and their embrace of an entirely new sound?

Marijuana.

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-29 01:00:34 PM

That's most prescient! I was just reading the 1975 Playboy interview with J. Lennon, and remembered I had queried you last night. I was here, when I referred back to see if you had replied:

PLAYBOY: What were you depressed about during the "Help!" period?

LENNON: The Beatles thing had just gone beyond comprehension. We were smoking marijuana for breakfast. We were well into marijuana and nobody could communicate with us, because we were just all glazed eyes, giggling all the time. In our own world. That was the song, "Help!." I think everything that comes out of a song -- even Paul's songs now, which are apparently about nothing -- shows something about yourself.

I would have guessed LSD, but it show's what I know... :)

John Buck 41

2011-12-29 05:20:49 PM

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER: That's most prescient! I was just reading the 1975 Playboy interview with J. Lennon, and remembered I had queried you last night. I was here, when I referred back to see if you had replied:

PLAYBOY: What were you depressed about during the "Help!" period?

LENNON: The Beatles thing had just gone beyond comprehension. We were smoking marijuana for breakfast. We were well into marijuana and nobody could communicate with us, because we were just all glazed eyes, giggling all the time. In our own world. That was the song, "Help!." I think everything that comes out of a song -- even Paul's songs now, which are apparently about nothing -- shows something about yourself.

I would have guessed LSD, but it show's what I know... :)

What's weird is that I think of 'Help!' as early Beatles. Shows what I know...:)

UNAUTHORIZED FINGER

2011-12-29 06:36:40 PM

John Buck 41: What's weird is that I think of 'Help!' as early Beatles. Shows what I know...:)

LOL, I guess you could call it their "Early Middish Late Pleistocene era", before Yoko, but after self-induced mind alterations. Oh BTW, if you're interested in the interview, (it is a great read) you can find it here: Link (new window) I can remember reading it when it was just published. It had a great sidebar in which John broke down every Lennon/McCartney song by who wrote what. However I've looked for it and can't find it. Thanks for discussing this with me, it was fun.

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