THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
942) George Harrison — “Dehra Dun”
This charming little number that George Harrison wrote during the Beatles’ visit to Rishikesh — but never released — may appeal to children is actually quite sophisticated. It’s about the neighboring town of Dehradun and some in India think it was written as a paean. For example, “[t]he words of the haunting song capture the gypsy-like spirit of the town, especially as it used to be in the sixties.” (Deemagclinic, https://deemagclinic.com/2020/05/24/dehradun-song/) However, Harrison’s motivation might have been anything but. Hannah Wigandt writes:
A frustrated George Harrison wrote [“Dehra Dun”] during The Beatles’ Trip to India in 1968. [As we all know, they] attended a retreat at the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s ashram in Rishikesh to learn about Transcendental Meditation. However, George and John Lennon were the only students who completely committed themselves to learning. . . . Dr. Jenny Boyd interviewed her former brother-in-law . . . . [and] George recalled [that s]everal people went off to shop and flit about. He found it amusing because the ashram had everything to offer them, yet they still looked elsewhere for pleasure. They didn’t know they had a good thing right in front of them. The Maharishi . . . was offering to teach them valuable skills. However, all they wanted to do was go shopping and site seeing. . . . George explained. . . . “[t]here is an expression ‘beggars in a goldmine,’ and that’s what we are.[“] . . . [George] said [the song] was about “seeing people going along the road trying to head for this place called Deradune.” “Everyone was trying to go there for their day off from the meditation camp[.] I couldn’t see any point in going to this town. I’d gone all the way to Rishikesh to be in meditation and I didn’t want to go shopping for eggs in Deradune!” A verse in the song included: “See them move along the road/ In search of life divine/ Unaware it’s all around them/ Beggars in a goldmine.” . . . George was not pleased that Paul McCartney spent most of his time at the ashram writing songs instead of meditating, which was the whole point of going to India.
https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/george-harrison-unreleased-song-tragic-human-nature-wrote-during-the-beatles-trip-india.html/
Oh, and Christine Pemberton writes: “[T]his awful ditty . . . is now firmly stuck in my head. . . . To be honest, the lyrics aren’t that bad – it’s that wretched chorus, “Dehra Dehra Dun Dehra Dun Dun Dehra Dehra Dun Dehra Dun Dun”. (https://christinepemberton.me/?p=22580)
Here is George performing a snippet for the Anthology doc:
Pay to Play! The Off the Charts Spotify Playlist! + Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock Merchandise
Please consider helping to support my website/blog by contributing $6 a month for access to the Off the Charts Spotify Playlist. Using a term familiar to denizens of Capitol Hill, you pay to play! (“relating to or denoting an unethical or illicit arrangement in which payment is made by those who want certain privileges or advantages in such arenas as business, politics, sports, and entertainment” — dictionary.com).
The playlist includes all the “greatest songs of the 1960’s that no one has ever heard” that are available on Spotify. The playlist will expand each time I feature an available song.
All new subscribers will receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock magnet. New subscribers who sign up for a year will also receive a Brace for the Obscure 60s Rock t-shirt or baseball cap. See pictures on the Pay to Play page.
When subscribing, please send me an e-mail (GMFtma1@gmail.com) or a comment on this site letting me know an e-mail address/phone number/Facebook address, etc. to which I can send instructions on accessing the playlist and a physical address to which I can sent a magnet/t-shirt/baseball cap. If choosing a t-shirt, please let me know the gender and size you prefer.
Just click on the first blue block for a month to month subscription or the second blue block for a yearly subscription.
Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! / Off the Charts: 60s Rock Revelations😊 