GRAEME THOMSON – George Harrison: Behind the Locked Door (Omnibus Remastered)

RELEASE YEAR: 2025
BAND URL: https://omnibuspress.com/

Author Graeme Thomson composed the brilliantly evocative Small Hours: The Long Night of John Martyn five years ago, which captivated and inspired this scribe immensely, and once Omnibus Press announced that his Behind the Locked Door opus had been included in the publisher’s recently launched Remastered series, anticipation and excitement were running rampage on the part of this devotee.

As impeccably researched and thoroughly in-depth as they come, Thomson’s study and discussion of all things Harrison is quite literally as vivid and eye-opening as one could have hoped for, and the attention to detail without necessarily losing focus on the bigger narrative, nor losing the momentum for that matter, is a wonder to behold. The almost infinitely complex nature of the Beatle and his intriguing qualities loom large at all times throughout, but Behind the Locked Door gets you closer to the enduring mystery, and there are few portraits of the guitarist and songwriter that are as intimate and informative as Thomson’s is. The childhood years are studiously uncovered and laid bare, the pages detailing the reign (and inevitable demise) of The Beatles lack neither substance nor surprises, and the chapters devoted to Harrison’s private life and life-long quest for spiritual transcendence and meaning beyond the grave are truly exciting and revelatory. Perhaps the most enjoyable aspect of the book is the proper examination of (and space devoted to) the musically timeless masterpiece that is All Things Must Pass and how that sprawling piece of work was conceived. Those pages alone are worth the price of admission, but so are the ones that put the dynamics within The Beatles into a proper framework.  

All eras of George’s creative exploits are examined and dissected in a perfectly balanced manner regardless of whether the talk revolves around the work of the Fab Four, his solo outputs, or the uplifting song material penned by the Traveling Wilburys – all of which makes this a must-have book – but one could also argue that its unique ability to put all of his personal relationships as well as business dealings into perspective makes it an unparalleled pleasure to immerse oneself in. Quite literally a superbly written gem that anyone with a mere passing interest in the skilled guitarist who was hardly a “quiet Beatle” ought to add to their list of books to devour.