Mixing George Harrison: Paul Hicks Discusses Working on the 'Living in the Material World ...
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of George Harrison’s fourth solo album, 1973 album, Living in the Material World made available in two configurations, a 2-CD collection and a Super Deluxe Edition box set, each culling new mixes and previously unreleased material numbering outtakes and alternative versions.
Leading the charge on the sonic front is renowned Grammy-Award-winning engineer and long-time family friend Paul Hicks, who had previously worked on archival projects by The Beatles, Harrison and John Lennon. With Living In The Material World, Paul was responsible for remixing the original album and uncovering a flurry of revelatory outtakes. We spoke with Paul, who served as our guide behind this seminal release.
Rock Cellar: Paul, you worked on George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass, and then you moved onto this record, Living in the Material World. They’re two entirely different records. Sonically, Living in the Material World is a much more stripped-down and intimate record.
Paul Hicks: Yes, absolutely, you’ve hit the nail on the head. Obviously, every project is different and this album was a totally different beast to All Things Must Pass. The way we do it is I get the multi-tracks, listen and then I do a mix match as close as possible to the old mix and then I take a step back. I ask myself, “OK, what do we think we can improve here? What’s good about it?”
Obviously, with All Things Must Pass, from knowing George, Dhani and Olivia, George wanted less reverb on things. That was the mission with that album.
Source: rockcellarmagazine.com/Ken Sharp
