George Harrison

All Things Must Pass shows that George was initially liberated by the Beatles' breakup. This was originally released as a three-record set; Harrison had a backlog of songs that didn't pass muster with John and Paul (the superb title track among them), along with a barrage of new material. The beauties include "Isn't It a Pity," "What Is Life" and the international No. 1 "My Sweet Lord," which remained a radio staple for the remainder of the 1970s. Producer Phil Spector knew when to go orchestral and when to keep things simple. Brilliant -- but George wouldn't try this hard again.

As a slave of the very "MAYA" (pidgin Hindi for the concrete world) Harrison warns against, I am obliged to point out that playing headsie with the Universal Mind is not introspection and that the International Pop Music Community is not a group. Presumably, the featurelessness of these three discs--right down to the anonymity of the multitracked vocals--reflects Harrison's notion of Truth, and he's welcome to it. But he's never been good for more than two songs per album, and after "My Sweet Lord" I start to get stuck. (Grade: C)