The Concert for Bangla Desh
George Harrison's social and spiritual conscience had been an increasingly dominant force in theBeatles' final years, and his landmark 1970 solo album,All Things Must Pass, wasted little time giving it a remarkable,Phil Spector-produced forum. Harrison took the spotlight that album's success afforded and next turned it on the dire circumstances then afflicting the young nation of Bangladesh. Gathering most of the sidemen from theAll Thingsalbum, and a lineup of stellar friends (Bob Dylan,Leon Russell,Eric Clapton,Ravi Shankar) and former Apple cronies (Ringo Starr,Badfinger, Billy Preston), Harrison set about staging some hastily organized benefit concerts at Madison Square Garden. This album resulted, and while its sonic imperfections sometimes belie the show's haphazard organization, it's nonetheless still the one of the greatest efforts of its genre. TheAll Thingsmaterial gets a lively live workout, while Russell very nearly steals the show. The occasion also marked Dylan's return to live performance after a long absence.Jerry McCulley