When George Harrison called U2 “egocentric”
Whilst late Beatles guitarist George Harrison was known as the ‘Quiet One’ in the band, do not be fooled into thinking he was unafraid to speak his mind. Just like his bandmates John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, Harrison could also be scathing, in an inversion to the widely held belief that he was solely about peace and love. Somewhat surprisingly, one band that felt the sting of his blow was Irish stadium rockers U2.
Ironically, his biting account of U2 came in 1997 after he was asked by the French publication Le Figaro (via The Independent) whether he liked other prominent acts of the time, such as Oasis and Texas. He said: “Rubbish! They aren’t very interesting. It’s OK if you’re 14 years old. I prefer to listen to Dylan.”
The former Beatles guitarist proceeded to tear into the state of modern music and what he perceived as the dominance of ego in it. He even went as far as to say, “Bono and his band are so egocentric”.
He said: “You know what irritates me about modern music, it’s all based on ego. Look at a group like U2. Bono and his band are so egocentric. The more you jump around, the bigger your hat is, the more people listen to your music. The only important thing is to sell, and make money. It’s nothing to do with talent.”
According to The Independent in their 1997 report, Harrison’s critique of Oasis, and by connection U2, was his second in the media. Reportedly, he had said that the Britpop band could do without “the silly one”, in reference to frontman Liam Gallagher. Following this, Harrison maintained that his old band, The Beatles, “had a value which will last forever”.
Tearing into U2 again, Harrison continued: “Today there are groups who sell lots of records and then disappear … will we remember U2 in 30 years? Or the Spice Girls? I doubt it. The good thing about them is that you can look at them with the sound turned down.”
Whilst Harrison made his scathing thoughts on U2 very clear, this didn’t stop Bono and the band from sharing their love of Harrison and The Beatles. After Harrison’s death aged 58 in 2001, when speaking to CNN, Bono discussed the brilliance of the late rock hero and openly addressed his hate for U2.
Asked for his comment about Harrison’s death, Bono said: “Well, he didn’t like U2 very much. But we loved him. We really did love him”.
He continued: “And, I mean, The Beatles, you know, wrote the map for a group like U2. And he was a quintessential part of it. You know, brought a special songwriting genius that’s easily overlooked.”
“And I think there’s a sort of unknowable quality, a kind of mysterious quality about his music which made him a very attractive character and gave The Beatles an extra dimension, really,” Bono concluded.
Watch the report on George Harrison’s U2 comments below.
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