Concert For Bangladesh at the Smithsonian
1 July 2010
As part of the Smithsonian Institution’s new exhibition Up Where We Belong: Native Musicians In Popular Culture, George Harrison’s Concert For Bangladesh footage and photos will be featured. The 1971 concert that George organized to help victims of the Bangladesh floods produced an extraordinary contribution to UNICEF exceeding $15 million.
Among the musicians performing that night along side George, Ravi Shankar, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Ringo Starr and others was guitarist and Native American Jesse Ed Davis. From the Kiowa tribe, Jesse Ed was a session musician who played on a vast array of albums for artists including George Harrison, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Harry Nilsson, Taj Mahal and more.
As part of the exhibition, opening Friday July 2nd at the Smithsonian’s Washington DC National Museum Of The American Indian, will be photos of Jesse Ed playing along side of George Harrison at Madison Square Garden on April 1, 1971 during the Concert For Bangladesh, as well as footage from that night of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Waiting For You All.” Ringo Starr and Eric Clapton also supplied quotes about Jesse Ed Davis for the exhibit.
Many other musicians with Native American lineage are honored including Jimi Hendrix, Rita Coolidge, Robbie Robertson, Stevie Salas, Link Wray and many others.
