Paul McCartney – All Things Must Pass

No, I didn’t type the artist wrong.

It was touching to see Paul cover this great George Harrison song in the Concert For George…a year after George passed away. I don’t think Paul really got this song until he performed it. Not only did he do it in that concert but he would play it live occasionally after that. He knocks it out of the park with this version.

It’s simply one of the best songs George ever wrote. It was the title track of his debut album released in 1971. The song was worked up with the Beatles during the Get Back sessions and started to sound really good. It wasn’t rejected…they just moved on with different songs. There were songs they worked up that ended up on McCartney’s debut album as well. The same with John Lennon’s Gimme Some Truth.

A few days before George passed…Paul and Ringo joined him and talked about old times. George also told Paul to start getting along with Yoko because as he very well knew…life is too short. Paul did just that.

Paul McCartney: “I sat with him for a few hours when he was in treatment just outside New York. He was about 10 days away from his death, as I recall. We joked about things – just amusing, nutty stuff. It was good. It was like we were dreaming. He was my little baby brother, almost, because I’d known him that long. We held hands. It’s funny, even at the height of our friendship – as guys – you would never hold hands. It just wasn’t a Liverpool thing. But it was lovely.”

Eric Clapton: The only minor difficulty arose over who should sing “Something.” Olivia thought I should sing it. Paul McCartney had been doing it on the ukulele in his shows and wanted to do it that way, and I wanted Paul to sing “All Things Must Pass,” which I considered the key song of the whole event. In the end, we compromised and Paul and I did “Something” as a duet, and later in the show he performed a brilliantly soulful version of “All Things.” It was a great night, and everybody who was there or has seen the DVD agrees that it was the perfect sendoff for a man we all loved, and who gave us over the years so much beautiful music.

 ‘Those guys’ (Beatles) inability to express love for one another was classic, the exception is Ringo, who says [in the film], ‘I love George, and George loved me.’ That wouldn’t have been so easy for Paul.’”

 “Paul had to admit that he didn’t know ‘All Things Must Pass,’ and that was an awful thing to confront. It was huge humble-pie stuff for Paul to be among these people who he may have thought had a better relationship with George than he did.

“But I believe Paul missed George as much as — if not more than — anybody.”

All Things Must Pass

Sunrise doesn’t last all morningA cloudburst doesn’t last all daySeems my love is up and has left you with no warningIt’s not always gonna be this grey

All things must passAll things must pass away

Sunset doesn’t last all eveningA mind can blow those clouds awayAfter all this, my love is up and must be leavingIt’s not always gonna be this grey

All things must passAll things must pass away

All things must passNone of life’s strings can lastSo, I must be on my wayAnd face another day

Now the darkness only stays the night timeIn the morning it will fade awayDaylight is good at arriving at the right timeIt’s not always gonna be this grey

All things must passAll things must pass awayAll things must passAll things must pass away

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball fan, old movie and tv show fan... and a songwriter, bass and guitar player.

33 thoughts on “Paul McCartney – All Things Must Pass”

  2. It only takes a mention of this song to make me emotional. When I hear it start to play, I’m wiping away a tear or several. It’s a special one from George. Paul does a great job with it. However, I’m not sure if I could start getting along with Yoko, even if George had asked me to. Paul clearly has a greater capacity for tolerance and forgiveness than I.

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    1. Yea it would be hard because…not becasue I believe she was the sole cause of the Beatles arguing… no it’s because from a lot of people…she is a cold person.

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      1. Agreed. If nothing else, her shunning of little Julian, and insistence that John basically shun him, was cruel and unforgivable, imo. I remember reading that John was preparing to leave her and reconnect with Julian, right before his life was cut short. I badly want it to be true. It may be the biggest tragedy and injustice about his murder.

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      2. Oh yes…I’ve read that and I believe it’s true. She was seeing Sam Havadtoy before John was killed and after for years. And John said some wicked things about Yoko to friends. I do think they would have got a divorce soon.

        Even when they were separated in the early to mid seventies most people said the same thing…he seemed happier than he had been in years with May Pang….and she has said he would sneak phone calls to him up until he died.

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      5. Just watched most of it, Lisa, great! It’s incredible how much Dhani reminds me of George – not only the physical resemblance, but also the voice. I thought the most moving moment was to see Brian Wilson and Al Jardine perform “My Sweet Lord”- that kind of got to me!

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      6. So happy you got a chance to watch it. I agree with you about Dhani, and he looks more like him (and sounds like him) every day. I loved seeing/hearing the guy from The Strokes sing Wah Wah. Also Ann Wilson’s Beware of Darkness.

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  5. Time changes everything and it is easier to get along with people than it is to hold grudges. I can understand people being against Yoko, but John loved her, and she was not the worst person on Earth, so George gave Paul some great advice.

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  6. I can’t imagine how tough it must have been for all of them, to do the concert after Geo had been gone only a year. At the same time, with George’s beliefs, the assembled must have felt his presence there. A beautiful song to share this Sunday, Max.

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    1. Glad you liked it. It must hae been hard on Paul…they made up a decade before but all of that time wasted between both of them. When I saw him he didn’t play this but both times he played Something.

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  8. Just giving it a listen now, seems a pretty good take on it. Definitely a very good song from George, when I saw ‘Get Back’ it made me wonder why the Beatles didn’t pick it up and if they had, what it would have sounded like, but it turned out well as it was. George’s messages to Paul and I bet, the others, just shows how he took his lyrical philosophy to heart – peace and love. Rather like what Ringo now exudes.

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    1. I LOVE what they where going with it…Geez Dave their backups were awesome in that song…I wish they would have finished it. It would have been more simple probably…but no…Spector produced that also.
      Yea I just read where it’s been called…the best song the Beatles never recorded….and the best pure song by an ex-Beatle… that is saying a lot…but the melody and message is great.

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    2. Whenever there is a breakup of any sort a little time gives you a different perspective. When time is limited its better to smile and look at what was good in the bonds that held you together rather than kick over the ruins of the past. Let it go.

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  9. That photo you chose could not be any sweeter. ♥️ As for Yoko, she had an oddly strong hold on John.. I really don’t believe he could’ve ever done alright without her. (I tried to not speak against her, but that was as good as it got.. 🙄)

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      1. I think he saw himself in her, but emotionally winning. Or, stronger– but yes, maybe the more apt word is “cold.” Julian got a raw deal — but he’s too Cynthia to say that. ☺️ All our beloved Liverpudlians had nice kids.. I’m not surprised, are you?

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