Rock history is full of great stories about the ways in which iconic tunes came into being. One of my favorites is the tale of George Harrison’s writing “Here Comes the Sun,” a favorite of our singers in the Summer Rocks 2025 session. Sometimes it just takes a moment of inspiration, and the right conditions, for an idea to take wing and fly.

In April 1969, George Harrison was burned out on being a Beatle and, one might bluntly say, rather lost. He had temporarily quit the group, had been busted for possession of marijuana and had had his tonsils removed. In addition, February and March of 1969 had been particularly cold and dreary in southern England—a reflection in the weather, you might say, of George’s general malaise. To make things worse, the Beatles’ longtime manager, Brian Epstein, had died, and the Beatles were left to wrangle their business matters with Apple Records largely by themselves. These activities felt to the Fab Four—who were primarily musicians, not suits—like endless meetings and contract negotiations, and they were dragging George down further still.

Even in the darkest of times, there are things that can restore our beleaguered souls. One of these is friendship. Another is good weather. Both of these factors came into play one April morning when George played hooky from the business meetings to see his friend Eric Clapton. George said later in “I, Me, Mine,” his 2002 book:

“‘Here Comes the Sun’ was written at the time when Apple was getting like school, where we had to go and be businessmen: ‘Sign this’ and ‘sign that.’ Anyway, it seems as if winter in England goes on forever, by the time spring comes you really deserve it. So one day I decided I was going to sag off Apple and I went over to Eric Clapton’s house. The relief of not having to go see all those dopey accountants was wonderful, and I walked around the garden with one of Eric’s acoustic guitars and wrote ‘Here Comes the Sun.’”

Now, just to set the stage: this is no ordinary house. Eric Clapton’s former residence in the county of Surrey, southwest of London, is in the rural parish of Ewhurst, just south of the Surrey Hills National Landscape.

Clapton lived then, and still lives (part of the year) in the place called Hurtwood Edge Estate, in Ewhurst. It’s set in classic, picturesque English countryside; Clapton bought the place as a refuge from the chaos and drama of the London rock scene. He wrote “Layla” there and rehearsed there with many of his bands. The two-story Italian villa is set on sprawling grounds, secluded and far away from the bustling city.

Here’s a photo that I found of George and Eric outside with their guitars on a sunny day. I have no idea if this picture is from that fateful morning when George got inspired to write “Here Comes the Sun,” but it’s a delightful shot in any case, from the “Singing Steets” YouTube channel.

Martin Scorsese’s 2011 documentary “George Harrison: Living in the Material World” includes this lovely recollection:

Clapton said that he himself would never walk around outside playing guitar but ‘this is what George brought to the situation.’ Clapton added: ‘He was just a magical guy and he would show up, get out of the car with his guitar and come in and start playing … I just watched this thing come to life. I felt very proud that it was my garden that was inspiring it.’

George and his wife Pattie went to Sardinia for vacation in May. While there, he essentially finished “Here Comes the Sun,” finalizing the lyrics and writing them out on his personal stationery with a Hindu drawing and a smiling picture of a sun. I’m imagining that Sardinia provided them with yet more sunshine, as May is the month when Sardinia starts to feel more summery, with more sunshine and pleasant temperatures in the high 60s or low 70s during the day. (If you’ve spent the winter in England, this likely seems like paradise.)

There’s an excellent chapter excerpt from Kenneth Womack’s book, “Solid State: The Story of Abbey Road and the End of the Beatles,” which tells more of the story about George’s evolution as a songwriter. There had been a disappointment when, in 1967, one of his songs had been rejected by producer George Martin for the Sgt. Pepper album. George bounced back from that failure with the brilliant “Within You Without You,” which did make the cut.

“Here Comes the Sun” was a standout song on the iconic Beatles’ album, Abbey Road.

Allow me to leave you with a suggestion. When you have sunshine in your heart, be like George: share it with others!