Song of the Day 6/25: George Harrison, “Wah Wah”

Here’s another song that, for reasons I can’t fathom, has never been employed for its obvious calling as a TV commercial. It’s Hoagiefest time at the region’s favorite convenience store, and though the chain has in the past used Beatles-esque music and Peter Max-style visuals, it has never made the no-brainer decision to use the first song Harrison recorded when the Beatles broke up.

Granted, the song uses “wah wah” in place of a more dismissive term; Harrison wrote it the day he briefly quit the band during the “Get Back” sessions over Paul McCartney’s criticism of his playing and John Lennon’s dismissive attitude toward his songwriting. The first song recorded for the triple “All Things Must Pass” album, it employed an entire battalion of backing musicians — Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Klaus Voorman, all the members of Badfinger, plus Delaney and Bonnie’s horn section. Unfortunately, Harrison hated the result once Phil Spector applied his Wall of Reverb production style, though he said years later that he had grown to like it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usGObvP42GM

Many people prefer the Concert for Bangladesh version, which opened the two concerts at Madison Square Garden.