George Harrison

Live In Japan

Great Concert - So-So Sonics

Review Score:

(6/10)
Harrison was notoriously uncomfortable on stage. "The Quiet Beatle" relished his privacy and tried vigorously to stay out of the spotlight. Perhaps that was part of the reason why he was relegated to 1 or 2 songs per Beatles album (although -- competing with Lennon & McCartney for songs would be a losing battle for any songwriter).

Harrison's solo career and his Beatles compositions are well represented on this album, and the band behind him is a solid collection of road-tested musicians who were clearly having a good time playing great songs behind a legendary front-man. Harrison's vocals aren't as strong as I would have liked, even to the point of occasionally sounding like someone doing a weak impression of him, but his strong band more than makes up for any of his vocal shortcomings. I'm not a big fan of Clapton's solo work in the past 10 years or so, but it is absolutely thrilling to hear him expanding on the classic solo of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps."

The redbook CD sounds similar to the previous release of this CD and is unremarkable. The original concert was not very well recorded, so the sound on the CD layer is a bit flat and muddy, including George's vocals. The SACD layer makes a good attempt at polishing the sound, and does so admirably, considering the source material. Harrison's vocals are still a little weak, but anchored to the center channel they are better focused and clearer. There is more immediacy to the music, better audience ambiance, and individual performances from the band are more clearly defined than previous editions of this CD.

The SACD is a definite improvement, and if you are a fan of George Harrison, then this is a must own.

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