The original album has been remixed and will arrive in multiple formats this fall
Living in the Material World, George Harrison’s highly praised second solo album of original music following The Beatles’ 1970 dissolution, recently marked its 50th anniversary. Lovingly overseen by Dhani and Olivia Harrison, Living in the Material World has been completely remixed from the original tapes for a stunning suite of 50th anniversary releases. Remixed by triple Grammy Award-winning engineer Paul Hicks (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, John Lennon), the new mix elevates the album with a sonic upgrade, delivering a sound that’s brighter, richer, and more dynamic than ever before.
The first taste of the collection comes in the form of an acoustic version of “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth) (Take 18),” which is available now.
Available November 15th via Dark Horse Records/BMG, Living in the Material World 50th Anniversary Edition will be available in several physical and digital formats including a Super Deluxe Edition Box Set. Limited to 5,000 units globally, the Super Deluxe Edition box set features the album on a double 180-gram LP and 2 CDs, which includes the newly remixed original album and a bonus disc containing 12 previously unreleased early renditions of every song on the main album. Additionally, the set includes a Blu-ray of all album tracks and previously unreleased tracks in Dolby Atmos, and an exclusive seven-inch single of the never-before-heard recording of “Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond),” featuring Robbie Robertson, Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, and Rick Danko from The Band, alongside Ringo Starr.
Housed in a rigid slipcase, the box set contains a beautiful 60-page hardcover book curated by Olivia Harrison and Rachel Cooper, with unseen imagery and memorabilia from the era, handwritten lyrics, studio notes, and tape box images. Also included is a 12-page Recording Notes booklet, drawing from original Living in the Material World production notes, photographs, and reel-to-reel session tapes housed in the George Harrison Archive. For the first time, the Harrison archive team offers an in-depth, chronological account of the album’s creation, revealing insights that have never been shared with the public before.
Alongside the super deluxe format, the album will also be available in 2 LP and 2 CD Deluxe Editions, which pair new mixes of the original album with session outtakes. The 2 LP Deluxe Edition will be presented in a gatefold sleeve with a 12-page booklet, while the 2 CD Deluxe Edition comes in a clamshell box with two printed wallets, a 20-page booklet, and a poster. The main album will also be offered individually as a single CD, single LP, and limited edition single color vinyl exclusives available from the official George Harrison online store (Purple Color Vinyl), Amazon (Clear Color Vinyl) and Barnes & Noble (Orange Color Vinyl).
Living in the Material World, made in the midst of one of the most remarkable phases of his musical career, offered a brilliant glimpse of who its creator was, how unique his talents always were and how his search for certainty and truth beyond the every day put him years ahead of his time.
The album’s creation began with a purposeful period at Apple Studios at the end of 1972, where, nearly four years before, The Beatles had done the conclusive work on the project eventually known as Let It Be. You can sense the prevailing atmosphere of these sessions in the music, manifested in flowing, sensitive musicianship, lovely attention to detail, and the album’s overarching set of themes. George not only sang but contributed almost all the guitar parts. He was backed by a tight-knit group of virtuosos, including drummer Jim Keltner, keyboard players Nicky Hopkins and Gary Wright, bassist Klaus Voormann and saxophone/flute player Jim Horn.
To understand the album, you have to go back to George’s experience of 1971 – a watershed 12 months full of events that would be explored in his songwriting. By that summer, he was deep into his response to the mounting humanitarian tragedy in Bangla Desh. After repeated shuttling between Los Angeles and New York and endless phone calls and meetings, he presented two concerts at New York’s Madison Square Garden. They combined performances by Ravi Shankar and three supporting musicians with sets led by George that also featured Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Leon Russell, and Bob Dylan, among others.
“It was a very emotional period for me,” George later said, “because a lot of people had helped with its success, which made me very optimistic about certain things. At the same time, I felt slightly enraged because, let’s face it, the whole problem of how to solve [the Bangla Desh crisis] lies within the power of governments and world leaders, yet they choose to squander it on weapons and other objects that destroy mankind.”
His feelings would inevitably surface in his songs. In late 1971, while he was back in New York, he recorded several demos at the Plaza Hotel. They included an initial version of “Who Can See It,” and the earliest known recording of “Give Me Love (Give Me Peace On Earth),” complete with a very telling plea: “Help me cope with this heavy load.”
When recording sessions finally started, these compositions were joined by an array of other new tracks. “Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long,” powered by a drum duet between Keltner and Starr, was one of the most straightforwardly joyous pieces of pop music Harrison had ever recorded. “The Light Has Lighted The World” and “The Day The World Gets Round,” by contrast, were deeply emotional and insightful songs that went to the core of the album’s most profound ideas.
The remixing of the original LP gives a new definition to these already accomplished and intimate recordings, while the extra material further highlights what a creatively fertile period this was for Harrison. Thanks partially to the music’s newfound clarity, Living in the Material World resonates more than ever in 2024. Amid the noise of social media, the sense of someone yearning for enlightenment in a world of confusion rings loud and true. So does the undercurrent of the songs about the machinations and distractions of governments and politics. Moreover, in an era when meditation, yoga and so-called mindfulness have probably never been more popular, the fundamental points the songs raise align with the daily search for what is worthwhile. We all face the challenges of the material world throughout our lives, and in its questioning, restless way, this album holds out the prospect of finding a way through them.
CD 1:
- Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) (2024 Mix)
- Sue Me, Sue You Blues (2024 Mix)
- The Light That Has Lighted the World (2024 Mix)
- Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long (2024 Mix)
- Who Can See It (2024 Mix)
- Living in the Material World (2024 Mix)
- The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord) (2024 Mix)
- Be Here Now (2024 Mix)
- Try Some Buy Some (2024 Mix)
- The Day the World Gets ‘Round (2024 Mix)
- That Is All (2024 Mix)
CD 2:
- Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) (Take 18; Acoustic Version)
- Sue Me, Sue You Blues (Take 5)
- The Light That Has Lighted the World (Take 13)
- Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long (Take 49; Acoustic Version)
- Who Can See It (Take 93)
- Living in the Material World (Take 31)
- The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord) (Take 3)
- Be Here Now (Take 8)
- Try Some Buy Some (Alternative Version)
- The Day the World Gets ‘Round (Take 22; Acoustic Version)
- That Is All (Take 24)
- Miss O’Dell (2024 Mix)
- Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond) *CD Only
7″ Single:
- Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond)
- Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond) [Instrumental]
Blu-ray:
- Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) (2024 Mix)
- Sue Me, Sue You Blues (2024 Mix)
- The Light That Has Lighted the World (2024 Mix)
- Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long (2024 Mix)
- Who Can See It (2024 Mix)
- Living in the Material World (2024 Mix)
- The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord) (2024 Mix)
- Be Here Now (2024 Mix)
- Try Some Buy Some (2024 Mix)
- The Day the World Gets ‘Round (2024 Mix)
- That Is All (2024 Mix)
- Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth) (Take 18; Acoustic Version)
- Sue Me, Sue You Blues (Take 5)
- The Light That Has Lighted the World (Take 13)
- Don’t Let Me Wait Too Long (Take 49; Acoustic Version)
- Who Can See It (Take 93)
- Living in the Material World (Take 31)
- The Lord Loves the One (That Loves the Lord) (Take 3)
- Be Here Now (Take 8)
- Try Some Buy Some (Alternative Version)
- The Day the World Gets ‘Round (Take 22; Acoustic Version)
- That Is All (Take 24)
- Miss O’Dell (2024 Mix)
- Sunshine Life For Me (Sail Away Raymond)
