In a not-so-distant, black-and-white age we clapped and screamed as four dark-haired lads from Liverpool ascended the dizzying ladder of gain and glory we now expect all our rock stars to climb. They got the hits and the headlines; got the money and the movie roles; got the cars, gorgeous girlfriends and wives. Then one of them – the youngest Beatle – reached one rung higher and got religion.

Or a deep spirituality, to be accurate. Today, when the name of one deity or another is so easily dropped in award speeches and CD liner notes, public acknowledgment of the divine can seem a rote exercise. When George Harrison began exploring spiritual matters, however, this seemingly trend-setting act derived from his eyes-wide, questioning nature. And it was that nature that ultimately lashed Harrison’s musical career to a spiritual pursuit.