Living in the Material World is the third studio album by George Harrison, released in 1973 on the Apple Records label. As the follow-up to 1970's acclaimed All Things Must Pass and his pioneering charity project, The Concert for Bangladesh, it was among the most highly anticipated releases of that year.
Living in the Material World was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America just two days after release, on its way to becoming Harrison's second number 1 album in the United States, and spawned the international hit "Give Me Love (Give Me Peace on Earth)". It also topped the charts in Canada and reached number 2 in the United Kingdom and in other countries around the world. Remastered in 2006, Living in the Material World is notable for the uncompromising lyrical content of its songs, reflecting Harrison's struggle for spiritual enlightenment against his status as a superstar, as well as for what are generally considered to be the finest guitar performances of his career.
On release, Rolling Stone magazine described it as a "pop classic", a work that "stands alone as an article of faith, miraculous in its radiance". Most contemporary reviewers consider Living in the Material World to be a worthy successor to All Things Must Pass, even if it inevitably falls short of Harrison's grand opus. Author Simon Leng refers to the album as a "forgotten blockbuster", representing "the close of an age, the last offering of the Beatles' London era".
Read more about Living In The Material World: Background, Content, Production, Release, Reception, Album Artwork, Reissue, Personnel
Famous quotes containing the word material:
“Who shall set a limit to the influence of a human being? There are men, who, by their sympathetic attractions, carry nations with them, and lead the activity of the human race. And if there be such a tie, that, wherever the mind of man goes, nature will accompany him, perhaps there are men whose magnetisms are of that force to draw material and elemental powers, and, where they appear, immense instrumentalities organize around them.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)