Bob Dylan once pinpointed George Harrison’s “uncanny ability”
Bob Dylan first met George Harrison when he was still a member of The Beatles, but it wasn’t until years later that their friendship became a profound one. The pair became bandmates in The Traveling Wilburys alongside Roy Orbison, Jeff Lynne, and Tom Petty. This musical alliance allowed their relationship to prosper and understand the brilliance of one another close-up.
The chance to work with each other was necessary for Dylan and Harrison. The former Beatle had become tired of the political nature of the music industry and wanted to go back to basics with a band, stimulated by the sole purpose of having fun with his friends. Dylan, meanwhile, had found himself in a similar quandary in his career, and being part of The Traveling Wilburys was an opportunity to revitalise his love of making music.
While the band only made two albums and never toured, it was an incredibly beneficial exercise for both artists. Not only did it strengthen their friendship, but it also gifted Dylan and Harrison the fortune of understanding the inner workings of the creativity of their collaborator and fully understanding their talent. During their time together, Dylan became overawed at one particular skill of Harrison’s, which he referred to as an “uncanny ability” and said nobody else was capable of doing the same.
Speaking to Rolling Stone in 2007, he said: “George had an uncanny ability to just play chords that didn’t seem to be connected in any kind of way and come up with a melody and a song. I don’t know anybody else who could do that, either. What can I tell you? He was from that old line of playing where every note was a note to be counted.”
In the same interview, Dylan explained why he believed Harrison was hamstrung by his bandmates in The Beatles. The legendary singer-songwriter remarked: “George got stuck with being the Beatle that had to fight to get songs on records because of Lennon and McCartney. Well, who wouldn’t get stuck? If George had had his own group and was writing his own songs back then, he’d have been probably just as big as anybody.”
Whether Harrison could have been “as big as anybody” without The Beatles is Dylan’s opinion and impossible to prove or disprove. However, Harrison’s innate skill at effortlessly combining chords with melody is the ingredient that made him such a devastatingly brilliant artist that everybody wanted to work in a studio with.
Following Harrison’s death, Dylan paid an emotional tribute to his late friend in 2002 during a concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden by playing The Beatles track ‘Something’. Before starting the cover, he said of George to the audience: “He was such a good buddy of mine.”
Watch the poignant moment below.
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