Today’s entry is by request. The video above is an acoustic version with tribute clips to George Harrison, who wrote the song.
While My Guitar Gently Weeps was released in November of 1968 off the band’s 9th album, self titled, but most commonly known as The White Album. Lead guitar was done by Eric Clapton, though he was not formally credited.
Harrison stated that the inspiration for the song came from reading I Ching, also known as ‘Classic of Changes’. The idea of the book, as Harrison said, “seemed to be based on the Eastern concept that everything is relative to everything else… opposed to the Western view that things are merely coincidental.” Using these ideas, he wrote the song on the first thing he saw upon opening a random book – as it would be relative to that moment, at that time. “I picked up a book at random, opened it, saw ‘gently weeps’, then laid the book down again and started the song.”
Rolling Stone Magazine rated the song #136 on their list 500 Greatest Rock Songs of All Time, #7 on 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time, and #10 on The Beatles 100 Greatest Songs.
In 2012, it was also voted the best of Harrison-Beatle Era songs on a Guitar World magazine online poll. So what do you think? Is this your favorite Harrison song?
