Customer Reviews

I Me Mine

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Be warned that this is not an autobiography in its entirety. However, it contains the most true biographical content you will find in print about George Harrison. This book is made up of three parts. The first is a short biographical section written by George himself, and by a man by the name of Derek Taylor, a very close friend of George's. While that section is far shorter than any curious fan of George's would like, it is none the less very entertaining, and funny. A true "Must Read", if you will. The second section is the words to nearly all of his songs that were written prior to 1980, when the book first came out. Along with the words are a comment from George about each song. Many of the comments are quite amusing and insightful. The third section is made up of photographs. This edition also comes with an introduction to the writing of this book by George's wife, Olivia, that is truely endearing. If you want to begin to get an idea of George Harrison's sense of humor and personal views on a wide variety of subjects, and if you just plain love George Harrison, GET THIS BOOK! Amen.

As an inveterate Beatles' fan, it comes as no surprise that I would heartily endorse this book. Long dubbed the Quiet Beatle and other similar cliches, George Harrison does indeed offer his voice and reflections in this work. Always a private man, George's wordings here can be described as almost cryptic.

This work provides readers with a "glimpse" of George growing up; the former Beatle describes his working class roots in Liverpool, his musical muse and later, his work as a gifted composer, guitarist and lyricist. Indeed, George Harrison has expanded musical horizons; in 1965 he became enamored of the sitar and included it on several songs on "Rubber Soul" and later collections.

His lifelong quest for spiritual knowledge and core belief system are explored; indeed, it is in his own words he explains that he does not follow an "organized" or "traditional" religion, but rather bases his spiritual feelings around his internal beliefs.

I like the input the artist's wife Olivia offered; her words are a welcome and added treat to this work. Indeed, it is Olivia's contribution that make the reissue of this work even better and more effective in touching readers.

I was lucky to find an old copy of this in the library about five years ago. With respect to a few changes, this new edition is the same book, though. The different cover is a great improvement, and Olivia Harrison's introduction is fabulous. I Me Mine is long on class & presentation. Unfortunately, it's also a little short on autobiography.

George's wit and surreal humor shines through (such as the sitar being called a cheese sandwich in the picture captions), but I felt frustrated that I didn't know much more about the man and his motivations than I did before.

It's no secret that George was obsessed with Krishna. Being an agnostic, I would like to know as to how & why his belief became so strong. In interviews, George had intimated that with chanting the Krishna mantra a person could "see God, play with Him...." I think George was a great songwriter and an interesting guy and I mean no disrespect, but couldn't it have just been the drugs? It would have definitely been interesting to read George's descriptions of events like this.

Another regret is that George doesn't describe his relationships with the other Beatles more. I've read that he was frequently irritated by Paul and apparently had a complex friendship with John. Maybe there was a concern that such an approach would be gossipy, but I would like to know why Lennon/McCartney balked at such great songs as All Things Must Pass, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Not Guilty, etc., etc. George's perspective on this would have been most welcome.

Along with these quibbles, there is much more to admire. George's dry wit is manifest on every page, and the handwritten lyrics are a great bonus. Derek Taylor's comments are also very witty and insightful. This is a definite must-have for admirers of the Dark Horse. I hope Olivia Harrison eventually writes an autobiography; it would be the perfect companion to I Me Mine.

It has never been acceptable merely to be passionate about The Beatles collectively: You MUST have a personal favorite. John Lennon was always mine, by dint of his court jester persona and his wordsmithing, with George Harrison a close second. Being shy myself, I identified with the so-called Quiet Beatle and liked his scornful "don't bother me" attitude, which was integral to so many of his songs. Harrison's meticulous and versatile guitar work, never show-offish and always tasteful, was my main inspiration for wanting to learn to play, too. The Beatle least comfortable with his immortality, Harrison could be openly contemptuous of Beatlemania and often referred to himself ruefully as Beatle George, a title he felt he could never live down. Off-putting to some, maybe, his cantankerousness only made Harrison more interesting to me.

Predictably, Harrison takes a larkish approach to telling his life story. In his foreword, he facetiously calls "I Me Mine" (named after a forgettable tune from "Let It Be") "a little ego detour," but the book's tone is actually rather self-effacing. It's not an autobiography per se, although there is a six chapter text section that hits the high points of Harrison's life up until that time (late Seventies) and allows the mystical Beatle to rhapsodize on some of his passions: spirituality, gardening and, surprisingly, Formula One motor racing. Written by Harrison in a conversational style, with extensive "notes" by longtime Beatles confidant/press officer Derek Taylor, the text is a rambling sketch of a very private man determined to stay that way. (A clue to Harrison's reticence is found in the book's "backword," where he includes the cryptic quote, "Tell not all that you know because he who tells all that he knows, often tells more than he knows.") Luckily for his admirers, Harrison would more forthcoming, particularly on Beatle matters, in "The Beatles Anthology".

The photo section (48 black and white plates) is extraordinary, with lots of unique snaps that haven't seen print before in countless other Beatle books. Two of my favorites: a box of Good News chocolates, the inspiration for Harrison's "Savoy Truffle" from "The White Album," and a cancelled check for one million pounds paid to Inland Revenue, which the notorious taxman-baiter calls "punishment for being cheeky and making lots of money."

The bulk of the book is devoted to examining Harrison's songs, beginning with "Don't Bother Me" from "Meet the Beatles" (1964) through "Blow Away" from the excellent "George Harrison" LP (1979). For each song, Harrison provides a brief (usually) insight into his inspiration and shares his original, handwritten lyric sheets, replete with notes and illustrations. While words were never really Harrison's forte, it's still fascinating to glimpse a Beatle's creative process in such detail. The book includes the final versions of Harrison's songs as they were recorded, and it's interesting to compare them to the working models. "Taxman," in particular, was very rough indeed until Lennon offered Harrison the use of his acid pen - a fact Harrison curiously fails to mention here.

TRIVIA NOTE: The book's first edition was a signed, limited edition of 2,000 numbered copies, hand-bound in leather, by Genesis Publications, Ltd., Guildford, Surrey, England. My humble copy of "I Me Mine" is a 1980 Simon and Schuster edition, a birthday present from my sister (George was her favorite Beatle) in 1983.

It was refreshing to read an autobiography which was not ghost written by a professional writer. George's personality, wit, and humor shine through on the page and amplify his songs. The all too brief section of the book which was composed of his memoirs alternates sections written by George with passages by Derek Taylor, a long time confidante of George and the Beatles. Derek's passages provide a narrative structure that George's more free form achronological writing hangs onto.

As a life-long Beatle fan, I found the book fascinating. This isn't the first book that you want to read about the Beatles or George, but it is one which indispensable for any serious fan. I particularly liked the back half of the book where he has the lyrics of many of his Beatles songs and solo career songs, brief comments on the songs, and reproductions of the original notes for the songs. This back half is more of resource, something to flip through while listening to one of George's albums. It probably isn't something you would want to read straight through.

I remember when the book was first published in as a limited run leather bound book. It was prohibitively expensive and I was happy when a friend lent me his copy. It only took me 20 years to get one of my own - even if it isn't leather bound.

This book doesn't spend too much time on trivial gossip, or that other Beatle junk with the obsession on Jelly Babies and cutsie matching suits. This is real. George only goes into his life in 60 pages, which tells of his growth as a spiritual human being. His feelings on the whole Beatlemania stuff, and what is really important. The emphasis are on his songs that he wrote from "Don't Bother Me" up until 1980, when this book came out. I remember being a teenager going to the library and reading this book several times over. I am always facinated with what inspires a person with a particular song, and with many of these songs, it can be as simple as waiting for a friend to show up to your home, or warning another friend about his ruining his teeth with candy, or it can be something greater than our selves and be about a relationship with God. One thing I remember (and I might be wrong) is that the layout of the original book is different from this one. I seem to remember there being pictures throughout the book, and this new edition, they are all at the front, with the captions at the back. I like the addition of the new preface by his widow.

George Harrison was always looked over in the Beatles, with John and Paul being the biggest songwriters. However, after you read this book, you'll see that George was arguable the most important author of the group. The first part is a lovely introduction by Harrison's widow Olivia, who was with him for more than 20 years. The second part is George and Derek Taylor collaborating on a small biography of the former character. Next are a selection of humorous and nice pictures, including some rarely-seen classics. Then the heart of the book: George tells us the stories behind all of his released songs up to the 1979 George Harrison album (with the exception of the two songs he wrote for the Beatles' "Help!" album).

This book by the late George Harrison is quite an effort. It is beautiful for the simplicity of it, yet it is far from just being a simple book. Where the book fails in attempting to be an autobiography, it more than makes up for it in many other areas.
There are plenty of pictures for the nostalgia buff. There are plenty of notes, which accompany 'hand-written' lyrics from his many songs. There are funny anecdotes and serious ponderings.
This is an odd assortment of stuff, which somehow works wonderfully, almost magically. This is an absolute must for any fan of the Beatles and for music fans in general.

I went to the book store to find an autobiography on George Harrison; and I came across this. 10% of this book is about the life of George, 20% of this book were pictures; & 70% of the rest were songs. This is not considered an autobiography in my opinon. An autobiograph is a story about your whole life, from when you were a little kid, to your present time. This book didn't live up to what it was suppose it be. I gave it 3 stars because, I found the last part very interesting, on why & how he wrote his songs & what they mean; and I liked what his wife wrote in the introduction too. If you want to get this for your George Harrison collection, then this is for you, but I would get it at the library first before buying this. I still love you George.

I loved it from the minute I started reading it. It so interesting to hear about him from him. It feels like he's talking directly to you. I liked in the forward where it says "I suffered for this book now it's your turn." That is so George it's perfect. I've gotten so much out of it not just from the reading but the pictures I've drawn a couple of them. For instance the picture of George in Hamburg when he was 17. There's a scan of it on my web site. I have also gotten alot out of the information on the songs, I thought that was very cleaver. It helps you understand him in a way and where he's coming from on many things. It's a heard find and expensive, very much worth it for many Beatle and George fans to Enjoy!