Remember When George Harrison Became a Temporary Member of Deep Purple With a Little Help From Little Richard?

“George Harrison, Deep Purple, and Little Richard all walk into a venue” sounds more like the set-up for a Spinal Tap-esque joke than an actual reality. But in a roundabout way, one fateful night in 1984, these three musical legacies joined for an electric performance at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in Sydney, Australia.

Videos by American Songwriter

In a late 1980s interview, Harrison explained that he just happened to be in Australia at the same time that Deep Purple was coming through on tour. With the exception of the more obvious “Smoke On The Water”, Harrison didn’t know much about Deep Purple.

Interestingly, Harrison became the neighbor of two of its members, drummer Ian Paice and drummer Jon Lord. However, this was after Deep Purple temporarily disbanded. So, the men knew each other more as neighborhood friends than rock ‘n’ roll colleagues. That night in 1984, they became both.

George Harrison, Deep Purple, and Little Richard Combine

During a 2024 installment of his “Tales From The Tavern” series, Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore recounted the day that George Harrison asked if he could jam with the band. Blackmore knew his bandmates were Harrison’s neighbors, and obviously he knew Harrison as, well, the George Harrison. But the ex-Beatle was anything but grandiose when he made his request to play with the rock group.

“He said to me very politely, ‘Can I get up on stage with you and use your guitar?’” Blackmore recalled. “I said, ‘Of course. I was flattered.’”

That night, Harrison approached the stage and began interacting with vocalist Ian Gillan. Gillian pretended like Harrison was “auditioning” for the band and asked him his name. Harrison replied, “Arnold Grove from Liverpool,” a reference to his childhood home’s address. “This chap won the prize to come up and play with us,” Gillan told the crowd. When Harrison got under the spotlights and the audience realized who he was, the crowd started to roar.

With Harrison in tow, Deep Purple set off on a rendition of Little Richard’s “Lucille”. The performance was a unique moment in rock ‘n’ roll history, connecting the earliest forms of rock ‘n’ roll with two different bands that reigned over the genre at different points throughout the 21st century. The Little Richard number brought everything back to the basics: musicians playing the blues loudly.

“He was a very nice man, very serious, and very complimentary,” Blackmore recalled of Harrison. “It was very overwhelming to play with a Beatle. There will never be another band like The Beatles.”

Photo by Peter Carrette Archive/Getty Images