George Harrison’s pivotal project The Concert for Bangladesh is now available on streaming platforms for the first time. Stream the full album below.
This massive event took place in 1971 and pioneered the concept of large-scale music benefit shows. The acclaimed concert took place over two shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden and saw Harrison welcome the likes of fellow Beatle Ringo Starr, Bob Dylan, virtuoso instrumentalist Ravi Shankar, and Eric Clapton throughout the event. Focused both on raising money for UNICEF and awareness of the humanitarian crisis of the Bangladesh Liberation War (which had not been covered in-depth by Western media), “The Concert for Bangladesh” was considered a major success.
The album went on to win Album of the Year at the 1973 Grammy Awards, and the concert is often references as a turning point in major stars using their voices, platforms, and concerts for a larger purpose. In the decades since, “The Concert for Bangladesh” has become a North Star for people hoping to rally audiences for important causes. Over 250,000 copies of the album were bought in its first week; to date, it’s reportedly sold over 1 million copies worldwide.
The recordings from the event were then packaged into a 3xLP box set (grab your copy here), and a concert film opened in theaters the following year, with all proceeds going to UNICEF. More than 50 years after the concert, any sales or streaming revenue will continue to benefit the cause — specifically through The George Harrison Fund for UNICEF.
Since the original concert date, this project has generated millions of dollars for UNICEF. “George and his friends were pioneers,” remarked former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Revisit our retrospective on The Concert for Bangladesh here.
Earlier this year, it was revealed a four-part film series about The Beatles is in the works from director Sam Mendes, who is working on securing complete approval and musical rights to create a biopic focusing on each member of the band.