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Dyah (pronounced Dee-yah) is a Senior Author at Collider, responsible for both writing and transcription duties. She joined the website in 2022 as a Resource Writer before stepping into her current role in April 2023. As a Senior Author, she writes Features and Lists covering TV, music, and movies, making her a true Jill of all trades. In addition to her writing, Dyah also serves as an interview transcriber, primarily for events such as San Diego Comic-Con, the Toronto International Film Festival, and the Sundance Film Festival.
Dyah graduated from Satya Wacana Christian University in October 2019 with a Bachelor's degree in English Literature, concentrating on Creative Writing. She is currently completing her Master's degree in English Literature Studies, with a thesis on intersectionality in postcolonial-feminist studies in Asian literary works, and is expected to graduate in 2026.
Born and raised between Indonesia and Singapore, Dyah is no stranger to different cultures. She now resides in the small town of Kendal with her husband and four cats, where she spends her free time cooking or cycling.
Four year afters The Beatles broke up in 1970, the Fab Four kept themselves busy with solo projects. For lead guitarist George Harrison, this transition had already begun before the band officially split. Prior to their separation, Harrison had released two records under his name, making him the first Beatles to launch a solo project. During his post-Beatles era, Harrison won the hearts of audiences with his landmark 1970 album All Things Must Pass. However, he had to work twice as hard to separate himself from his image as the former Beatles guitarist and redefine himself as a world music artist. Unfortunately, when you are one-fourth of a global phenomenon like The Beatles, it is difficult to distance yourself from such a towering legacy.
George Harrison and Ravi Shankar's 1974 North American Tour Was Met with Public Scrutiny
On November 2, 1974, Harrison embarked on the North American Dark Horse Tour, a joint venture with Indian sitarist Ravi Shankar (the father of jazz singer Norah Jones). Stretching for 45 stops, the concert setlist was primarily comprised of two parts alternating between the two artists. For Harrison, he played a mix of his solo songs from All Things Must Pass, Living in the Material World, and even material from his delayed album Dark Horse. As for Shankar, his set included an ensemble of top Indian classical musicians, all of whom had performed at Shankar's Musica Festival from India tour of Europe.
Unfortunately, much of the audience was not pleased that a significant portion of the concerts was devoted to Shankar's orchestra — an understandable choice given the tour's collaborative nature. It also didn't help that Harrison was struggling with a bad case of laryngitis, which explained his scratchy, strained vocals during his North American run. Many concertgoers also expected Harrison to lean into Beatles nostalgia. Although Harrison was opposed to relying on his Beatles past, he ultimately performed only four Beatles songs: his own compositions "Something," "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," and "For You Blue," as well as the John Lennon and Paul McCartney track "In My Life."
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George Harrison's Touring Member Had Mixed Feelings About the Fateful Tour
Apart from concertgoers, several individuals close to Harrison also had opinions about the tour. One of them was blues and jazz guitarist Robber Ford, who was personally selected by Harrison to join the tour. Fresh out of Joni Mitchell's backing band, playing for a former Beatle in his early twenties was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Although playing Harrison's songs did not require advanced technical skill, Ford did share his observations about Harrison's perceived lack of leadership behind the scenes.
“George was uncomfortable being a bandleader, and he didn’t really have any bandleader chops. Because of that, we were all just kind of on our own.
“He also didn’t come to a lot of rehearsals. We’d be there for rehearsal, but he wouldn’t show up for hours and hours. So it was kind of a drag, and because of that, the whole tour had a very loose kind of quality to it and didn’t feel glued together. Basically, George played guitar and I played guitar, and that was that.”
Despite the Criticism, George Harrison Opened the Door to World Music
Harrison's former bandmate also had a few comments about the concerts. A year later, Lennon, who was still in communication with Harrison, remarked that the tour "wasn't the greatest thing in history." However, Lennon also acknowledged, based on his experience in the Beatles, that musicians go through cycles of public favor. At one point, they are "in," and at another, they are "out," depending largely on public and media opinion. In Harrison's case, Lennon suggested that he was simply "out" at the time, and that no matter what he did on tour, it would not have changed the situation.
Unfortunately, Harrison would not tour again until his brief Japanese tour with Eric Clapton in 1991. Despite retreating from the spotlight, Harrison did not stop championing world musicians. Shankar was not a random Indian prop chosen to help Harrison appeal to the hippie movement. Three years before the Dark Horse tour, Harrison and Shankar organized Concert for Bangladesh, a pair of benefit concerts at Madison Square Garden aimed at raising awareness and providing relief for refugees from East Pakistan. Throughout his solo career, Harrison collaborated with artists such as Doris Troy, Billy Preston, Zakir Hussain, and Jim Horn. He genuinely sought to expand his creative horizons beyond his Liverpudlian origins while also giving space to other musicians, even if it meant distancing himself from expectations of Beatlemania-era audiences.
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