Wonderwall Music

Bobber (April 12, 2012)

I wasn't a big fan of all the Indian stuff before I listened to this album and I surely wasn't after that.

Bruce Beatlefan (July 14, 2007)

This is not an easy album to find, nor is it easy to buy--I paid more for this album (with the dreaded Import price tag) than I did for All Things Must Pass. George Harrison fans may wonder if they can claim to have the \"George Harrison Collection\" without having this album. My answer is, well, yes and no. Wonderwall Music is more accurately described as a compilation of pleasant noises and short exotic melodies than as actual songs.

Harrison was asked to provide the music for the movie by this title, an arty and exotic 1960\'s timepiece (which I have never seen) and he was happy to oblige. The nineteen tracks vary in time from one minute to as long as five minutes, and they vary in sounds from a heavy guitar riff (in the track \"Ski-ing\") to a jarring jingling piano (in the track \"Glass Box\"), but concentrating on Indian sounds, particularly the sarod (played by Ashish Kahn, who gets star billing on the musician credits).

The sounds are by and large pleasant, exotic, and they will remind you of the lighthearted and psychadelic elements of 1960\'s art, but without any pretentions--this stuff is pretty much good-natured fun. George Harrison does compose two melodies which could stand by themselves as legitimate instrumentals: \"Drilling a Home\", which sounds like a comical, speeded-up moment in the movie (and it contains the kind of unexpected skips and key-changes that Harrison fans will recognize in later songs \"His Name is Legs\" and \"Soft-Hearted Hana\"), and the excellent somber rocker \"Party Seacombe\". One track entitled \"Cowboy Music\" will pleasantly surprise fans of the Who as it is nearly identical to the \"We\'ll Soon Be Home\" part of their \"A Quick One While He\'s Away\" suite.

It is clear that though this was not a major undertaking for Harrison, it was one that he approached with earnestness, originality, and the intention to create quality art. There are many enjoyable moments.

BeatleBeatle (April 2, 2005)

Quite good, a lot of strong material from both Western and Eastern music. This is a very fun album to listen to.