The All Things Must Pass Orchestra, a mighty 10-piece band dedicated to the music of George Harrison, has been performing successfully since 2014. Each year, as part of their annual tour, the band performs at the Kenton Theatre in Henley-on-Thames, from where Friar Park, George Harrison’s estate, is only a short walk away. And just down the road, in a small village called Stoke Row, there is a pub and music venue called The Crooked Billet, where George used to dine frequently with his family.
The pub’s landlord, who knew about the All Things Must Pass Orchestra’s concerts in Henley, got in touch with bandleader Alex Eberhard to ask if he could perform a solo concert of George Harrison’s music at his venue.
Alex offered to do the show as a duo, together with his friend and colleague Bernd Rest on guitar. A date was arranged for May 2020, but then Covid threw a spanner in the works. After a few attempts to reschedule, the concert was set to take place in May 2021, in a huge marquee that made social distancing possible.
A few weeks before the shows (because of great demand for tickets the duo were booked to play two consecutive nights) the landlord dropped another email, informing Alex and Bernd that George’s son, Dhani Harrison, had booked a table for the second evening.
The big day arrived and Dhani was indeed in the audience. During most of the concert he listened intently with his eyes closed, and for the last couple of songs he got up and danced in the aisles with his partner. After the show, the landlord came backstage with Dhani and introduced him to Alex and Bernd.
Dhani was full of praise for the duo’s musicianship and thanked Alex for paying his dad so much respect. To get Dhani Harrison’s approval was an incredible boost for the two musicians and showed that all their hard work and dedication had paid off, and that it is indeed possible to present George Harrison’s incredible music as a duo, stripped back to two guitars and two vocals.
Alex and Bernd will be performing their programme at The Cranleigh Arts Centre on Saturday, 28th October 2023. Book Now!
