George Harrison
The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992

(Capitol)

Part Three: Somewhere in England

First Appeared in The Music Box, May 2004, Volume 11, #5

Written by John Metzger

Somewhere in England
(Capitol)

Despite the turmoil surrounding the recording of Somewhere in England, the outing actually was reasonably strong, though it forever may be tagged with questions about what it could have become. Indeed, there were many behind-the-scenes tales about the creation of the album, most notably that it wasn’t the song cycle that George Harrison wanted to release, but Warner Bros. rejected his original concept on the basis that four tracks — Flying Hour, Lay His Head, Sat Singing, and Tears of the World — held no commercial viability. Then, as Harrison was reformulating the collection, John Lennon was fatally shot outside his New York City home, and the false pretenses of a reunion by The Beatles began circulating around the single All Those Years Ago. Granted, the remaining trio did perform on the song, but the collaboration was fabricated. The tune, along with the industry-bashing Blood from a Clone, the lighthearted Teardrops, and the spiritually enlightening That which I Have Lost replaced the four excised tracks, and all were given the peppy, pop-oriented sheen for which the label had been searching. The highlight, however, was Life Itself, a devotional ballad of utmost beauty. Oddly enough, instead of restoring the missing songs, only a hauntingly gentle demo version of Save the World is featured on the reissue, though a rendition of Tears of the World resurfaced as the bonus track for Thirty-Three & 1/3. ½

This is the third installment of a seven-part series, which will examine The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 album by album. The entire set is rated: ½

Part One: Thirty-Three & 1/3

Part Two: George Harrison

Part Four: Gone Troppo

Part Five: Cloud Nine

Part Six: Live in Japan

Part Seven: The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 DVD

Somewhere in England is available from Amazon.com.
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This album is also part of the box set
The Dark Horse Years 1976–1992 is available
from Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!

For Canadian orders, please Click Here!

For UK orders, please Click Here!

Ratings

1 Star:   Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!

Copyright © 2004 The Music Box