Scorsese’s “George Harrison: Living in the Material World” will debut on HBO in two parts Oct. 5 and 6.
The new clip shows Harrison’s deep spirituality, his introspection and his belief that the temporal world was fleeting.
And most importantly, it shows his amazing sense of humor. Despite his deep feelings, he never took anything too seriously, least of all himself.
Harrison died in 2001 from brain cancer, but he left behind a large musical heritage that included such songs as “Here Comes the Sun,” “Something” and “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.”
Although Paul McCartney and John Lennon received much of the attention for the Beatles’ success, Harrison was probably the best musician in the group.
He played lead guitar, but the more famous the Beatles became, the more frustrated he felt, musically. His songs were often shunted aside on albums to make room for Lennon-McCartney hits.
His influence on the group, however, is unquestioned. He introduced the Beatles to Eastern spiritualism, and the Western world to sitar music.
And, when the Beatles infamously broke up in 1970, Harrison probably felt the most liberated. He was finally free to pursue his own musical interests, and they were varied.
Harrison used a backlog of his music for his widely successful triple album All Things Must Pass in 1970, which included classic singles, “My Sweet Lord,” “Isn’t It a Pity,” and “What Is Life”.
Harrison co-wrote two hits for Ringo Starr, as well as songs for the Traveling Wilburys, the supergroup he formed in 1988 with Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne and Roy Orbison.
Scorsese is a masterful documentarian, especially when it comes to music.
He previously directed 2005’s “No Direction Home” about Bob Dylan and 1978’s “The Last Waltz,” with Robbie Robertson, Muddy Waters, Neil Young and Van Morrison, detailing The Band’s last concert.
The documentary comes on the 10th anniversary of Harrison’s death. Scorsese worked on it for four years and drew on such contemporaries as Eric Clapton. Both living Beatles McCartney and Starr also contributed.
Check out the video below: