Watch Footage from the George Harrison Tribute Concert

It feels as if September 2014 has been a month dedicated to the late and former Beatle, George Harrison.

It all began with Capitol Records revealing plans to re-release Harrison’s first six record and never-before-released material in a box set titled, George Harrison: The Apple Years 1968-1975 which was released last week.

After that, plans were revealed for a one-night tribute concert to take place at the end of the month, last night in Los Angeles to honor Harrison.

Then, not to be outdone, Conan O’Brien dedicated last week to Harrison with all his guest performers including Beck, Norah Jones, and Harrison’s son Dhani, playing tracks from the late Beatle.

Last night, George Fest hit L.A.’s  El Rey Theatre with a long list of performers which included previously confirmed acts such as Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne and Steven Drozd, Spoon’s Britt Daniel, Brian Wilson, “Weird” Al Yankovic, The Killers’ Brandon Flowers and Mark Stoermer, members of The Strokes, Weezer and Norah Jones.

Watch some of the videos directly from the concert.

Brian Wilson– “My Sweet Lord”:

“Weird” Al Yankovich– “What is Life”:

Conan O’Brien– “Old Brown Shoe”:

Brandon Flowers– “Got My Mind Set on You”:

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club– “Art of Dying”:

A hundred percent of the profits from “George Fest” will be donated to Sweet Relief, a charity that offers financial assistance to struggling musicians.

Star-Studded George Harrison Tribute Concert To Take Place Later This Month

Some beetles might have though that George Harrison was worthy of having a tree dedicated to him, but many musicians have thought otherwise.

It was announced that Harrison will be honored later this month in the form of a one-night tribute concert.

Reportedly, performances of the evening will include The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne and Steven Drozd, Spoon’s Britt Daniel, Brian Wilson, “Weird” Al Yankovic, The Killers’ Brandon Flowers and Mark Stoermer, members of The Strokes, Weezer and Norah Jones. For those who are not familiar Harrison and Jones’ father, sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar became friends when Harrison began to experiment with that type of sound and became interested in the sitar.

Also set to appear at the event are the Cold War Kids, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Harrison’s son (and almost twin) Dhani, Heart’s Ann Wilson, as well as members of The Cult, Guster, Velvet Revolver and many more. The event promoters have also revealed that more special guests will be announced within the weeks leading up to the show.

The one-night affair will take place on Sept. 28 at Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre.
Tickets for the show will go on sale beginning today, Sept. 5. According to the release, 100% of the profits from “George Fest” like it has been dubbed, will be donated to Sweet Relief, a charity that offers financial assistance to struggling musicians.

News of the tribute concert comes on the heels of Harrison’s estate announcing plans to reissue the musician’s first six solo albums. The reissues will include several unreleased tracks as well as alternate versions of the songs that had been previously released.

The George Harrison: The Apple Years 1968-1975 box set is set to be released on Sept. 23, just a week or so before the star-studded concert is set to take place.

George Harrison’s Tree Destroyed by Beetles

In what might be one of the funniest twist of fates, a tree that was planted in memory of George Harrison has died after being infested with beetles. 

Yes, beetles; we can’t make this stuff up. 

The pine tree was planted at Los Angeles’ Griffith Park near the Griffith Observatory in 2004 as a tribute to the late Beatles guitarist who passed away three years before in 2001, in the city. 

Sadly, the tree which was measured at 12 feet had been under siege by bark beetles and ladybug beetles. These same insects have also been responsible for attacks on other nearby trees.

“Trees in Griffith Park have occasionally been the victims of bark beetles and ladybug beetles, among other tree-unfriendly creatures,” the Los Angeles Times reported. 

The LA Times also reports that councilman Tom LaBonge has promised that a new tree will be planted in its place to honor Harrison. 

Funny enough, the plaque on Harrison’s tree read “For the forest to be green, each tree must be green.”

Apparently, those beetles beg to differ. 

Ron Howard to Produce Beatles Documentary

The Beatles are one of the most influential bands to have ever graced the music world, and now director Ron Howard has gotten the rights to produce a documentary about the fab four.

Howard who coincidentally named his production company which he co-founded with Brian Grazer is named “Imagine” after John Lennon’s iconic song.

As of now, the documentary about the Liverpool boys will concentrate on the band’s years of hectic touring around the world which all began at the Cavern Club in their hometown of Liverpool. The film will also chronicle their fame explosion after appearing on The Ed Sullivan show in 1964 and wrap with their show at Candlestick Park in San Francisco in 1966.

“I am excited and honored to be working with Apple and the White Horse Pictures team on this astounding story of these four young men who stormed the world in 1964,” Howard said in a press statement about the upcoming project. “Their impact on popular culture and the human experience cannot be exaggerated.”

The documentary will be produced by Apple Corps and White Horse Pictures, like Howard had confirmed as well as Imagine. At the moment, the production team has the full cooperation of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, as well as Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison.

Howard, though is not a stranger to these kinds of documentaries; this will be his second venture into this kind of storytelling. In 2013, he produced a documentary of Jay-Z’s  all-star concert, Made in America which has grown from one event in Philadelphia to two completely different shows; one still in Philly and the other in Los Angeles, making its debut this year.

Grammy Hall of Fame Reveal Newest Inductees

The Recording Academy has announced that songs by Neil Young, U2, Run-D.M.C., the Sugarhill Gang, Gil Scott-Heron, and the Rolling Stones are just some of the inductees for this year’s Grammy Hall of Fame.

“Memorable and inspiring, these recordings are proudly added to our growing catalog — knowing that they have become a part of our musical, social, and cultural history” said The Recording Academy head Neil Portnow, in a statement.

With these new addition, the Grammy Hall of Fame now houses a total of 960 recordings. All of them had to go through a special committee of industry figures and receive final approval from the Recording Academy’s National Board of Trustees. Last year, Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” Whitney Houston’s self-titled 1985 debut album, and AC/DC’s 1980 full-length Back In Black were all inducted into the Hall of Fame alongside many others.

See the full list of 2014 Grammy Hall of Fame inductees below.

• After the Gold Rush, Neil Young (Reprise, 1970)
• All Things Must Pass, George Harrison (Apple, 1970)
• The Chicago Transit Authority, Chicago (Columbia, 1969)
• Cosmo’s Factory, Creedence Clearwater Revival (Fantasy, 1970)
• Doc Watson, Doc Watson (Vanguard, 1964)
• “Fortunate Son,” Creedence Clearwater Revival (Fantasy, 1969)
• “Georgia (On My Mind),” Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra (Victor, 1930)
• “Get Up — I Feel Like Being a Sex Machine,” James Brown (King, 1970)
• “Honky Tonk Women,” The Rolling Stones (London, 1969)
• “Jolene,” Dolly Parton (RCA, 1973)
• The Joshua Tree, U2 (Island, 1987)
• Kristofferson, Kris Kristofferson (Monument, 1970)
• “Low Rider,” War (United Artists, 1975)
• Mary Poppins — Original Cast Sound Track, Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, and Various Artists (Buena Vista, 1964)
• “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen,” Louis Armstrong and the All Stars (Decca, 1938)
• “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head,” B.J. Thomas (Scepter, 1969)
• “Rapper’s Delight,” Sugarhill Gang (Sugar Hill, 1979)
• Relaxin’ With the Miles Davis Quartet, Miles Davis (Prestige, 1958)
• “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised,” Gil Scott-Heron (Flying Dutchman, 1970)
• “Strange Things Happening Every Day,” Sister Rosetta Tharpe (Decca, 1945)
• “Sweet Home Chicago,” Robert Johnson (Vocalion, 1937)
• “3 O’Clock Blues,” B.B. King (RPM, 1952)
• “Under the Boardwalk,” The Drifters (Atlantic, 1964)
• “Walk This Way,” Run-D.M.C. (Profile, 1986)
• “Wonderful World,” Sam Cooke (Keen, 1960)
• Woodstock — Music From the Original Sound Track and More, Various Artists (Cotillion, 1970)
• “Yardbird Suite,” Charlie Parker Septet (Dial, 1946)

But this is just the beginning for the Grammys because the nomination special for the big show which airs in late January is just around the corner. On Dec. 6, CBS will air  The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown to Music’s Biggest Night, a live telecast from Los Angeles’ Nokia theater where the nominees for the Grammys will be revealed. LL Cool J will once again take the role of the host of the event while performers such a Robin Thicke and Macklemore have been confirmed.