 Harrison was a popular British songwriter, musician and film producer best known as a member of the Beatles.
Harrison married twice. His first wife was the model, Pattie Boyd, for whom Harrison is sometimes supposed to have written the song "Something"; that marriage ended in divorce.
Harrison married for a second time to Olivia Trinidad Arias, in September 1978.
The ceremony took place at their home, with Joe Brown acting as best man.
They had one son, Dhani Harrison, born the previous month.
Born in Liverpool, England, and raised as a child at 12 Arnold Grove, he first attended school at Dovedale Infants, just off Penny Lane.
Later on, he attended the Liverpool Institute, a "smart school", but was regarded as a poor student, and contemporaries described him as someone who would "sit alone in the corner".
In the mid-1950s he knew Paul McCartney (also a Liverpool Institute student) and beginning in February 1958 played lead guitar in the band (initially called the "Quarry Men") that eventually became "The Beatles".
At the height of "The Beatles" popularity, he was often characterized as the "Quiet Beatle", noted for his introspective manner and his growing interest in Hinduism.
In the mid 1960s he began playing the sitar, which influenced the sound of "The Beatles" music in such songs as "Norwegian Wood", "Love You To", and "Within You Without You".
George Harrison's experimentation with the instrument brought him into contact with the sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar, who became a close friend and mentor, along with Shankar's famed poet friend Zakir Raman.
George Harrison was a fluent, inventive and highly accomplished rhythm and lead guitarist, whose influences included Chuck Berry, Carl Perkins and Chet Atkins.
Although George Harrison was a highly creative soloist, several of his famous "Beatles" guitar solos were recorded under specific directions from Paul McCartney, who on occasion demanded that George Harrison play what he envisioned virtually note-for-note.
George Harrison and John Lennon were the first two of the Beatles to try LSD in 1965, when they were unwittingly "dosed" by their dentist at a party in London. For a short time George Harrison used the drug regularly and became an enthusiastic advocate, although he later renounced the use of drugs.
George Harrison formed a close friendship with Eric Clapton in the late 1960s and they co-wrote the song "Badge", which was released on Cream's farewell album in 1969. This song was the basis for Harrison's composition for "The Beatles" "Abbey Road" album, "Here Comes The Sun", which was written in Clapton's back garden.
George Harrison married model Pattie Boyd in 1966, but in the late 1960s Clapton fell in love with her. Clapton famously poured out his unrequited passion on the landmark Derek &The Dominoes" album "Layla" and "Other Assorted Love Songs" (1971), but soon after its release Boyd left her husband and she and Clapton subsequently married. Despite this, the two men remained close friends.
Notable George Harrison compositions from "The Beatles" oeuvre include: the intricate "If I Needed Someone", ; "I Want To Tell You" the Indian-influenced "Love You To"; the acerbic "Taxman" (later referenced in "The Jam's" "Start"); the much-maligned "Within You, Without You", which is arguably a foundation stone of the world music genre; "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", which was strongly influenced by the music of his friend Roy Orbison and featured a guitar solo by his close friend Eric Clapton; "Piggies", which later featured inadvertently in the notorious Charles Manson murder case.
"Here Comes the Sun" and "Something" are probably Harrison's two best-known "Beatles" songs. "Something" is considered one of his very best works, and was even covered by Frank Sinatra. George Harrison's increasing productivity, coupled with his difficulties in getting "The Beatles" to record his music, meant that by the end of the group's career George Harrison had amassed a considerable stockpile of unreleased material.
After "The Beatles" split in 1970, George Harrison released a number of albums that were critically and commercially successful, both as solo projects and as a member of other groups. After years of being limited in his contributions to "The Beatles", George Harrison released a large number of the songs he had stockpiled in the first major solo work released after the breakup.
The first year of the 90's saw a new "Traveling Wilburys" album, despite the sad death of Roy Orbison. The band had allegedly approached Del Shannon about replacing Roy, but he also met an untimely death.
The album was recorded as a four-piece.
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