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Sun 4 January 2026 20:01, UK
Despite being a member of The Beatles and one of the most famous guitarists on the planet, it seems George Harrison is one of the hardest of the four to find information about. When digging a little deeper, you uncover that he was an incredibly unique person and never shied away from discussing his musical influences, one of which he said was “capable of playing almost any type of music”.
Harrison was a phenomenal guitar player, performing with a majesty about him and writing riffs that would make people dance in the short term and inspire them in the long. But the likes of ‘And I Love Her’, ‘Here Comes the Sun’ and ‘If I Needed Someone’ don’t come out of nowhere. Harrison was incredibly passionate about what he wrote and drew from his influences extensively when perfecting his craft.
Meanwhile, Chet Atkins was an artist known as ‘Mr Guitar’, a nickname which, though a bit on the nose, tells you everything you need to know about the man. He was an American musician who was partly responsible for the creation of the Nashville sound, which is country-heavy but with pop elements that appealed to audiences across the US.
Harrison cites Atkins as being a tremendous influence, someone he admired greatly not only for his ability as a musician but also for his execution as a performer. The two artists had the chance to work together on the 1966 album Chet Atkins Picks on the Beatles, an LP in which Atkins put his own twist on a selection of Beatles songs.
“I have appreciated Chet Atkins as a musician since long before the tracks on this album were written,” writes Harrison on the sleeve notes, “In fact, since I was the ripe young age of 17. Since then I have lost count of the number of Chet’s albums I have acquired, but I have not been disappointed with any of them.”
The steely eyes of Chet Atkins. (Credit: Anefo)
Harrison goes on to say: “For me, the great thing about Mr Atkins is not the fact he is capable of playing almost every type of music but the conviction in the way he does it.”
Harrison was a big fan of the album he worked on with Chet and uses it as an opportunity to highlight Mr Guitar’s ability as a musician. He jokes that the songs he interprets sound as though they have been written with Atkins in mind, which they haven’t, proving his unbelievable versatility as an artist. “The perfect example being ‘Yesterday’,” continues Harrison, “Chet, by himself, gets far more out of this than some of the people known as ‘class’ singers do with a full orchestral arrangement to boot!”
The work Harrison would continue to produce may have been spurred on by hearing Atkins play his own songs. He notes: “Chet Atkins did not get to be a great guitarist by writing sleeve notes, but by years of devoted practice on the instrument he so obviously loves.” As such, Beatles fans have Atkins to thank, not only for Harrison being so devoted to the guitar in the first place but for a continued devotion throughout his entire career.
Chet Atkins wasn’t just a virtuoso guitarist; he was a sonic architect who reshaped the way the instrument was played. His influence rippled across generations, and few felt it more keenly than George Harrison. As The Beatles’ lead guitarist, Harrison absorbed Atkins’ fingerpicking finesse, blending it seamlessly with rock ‘n’ roll to forge his own distinctive style. Tracks like ‘All My Loving’ and ‘I’ll Be Back Drip’ with Atkins’ influence, showcasing Harrison’s deft hybrid picking and melodic fluidity.
But it wasn’t just technique. Atkins’ smooth, expressive tone and effortless command of the instrument gave Harrison a new perspective on what the guitar could be. With that, Harrison would become one of the most unique and underrated guitarists of his generation.
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