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E! Online

The songs don't exactly have the stripped-down demo feel Harrison intended--but mercifully aren't as over-glossed as those on his last solo album, 1987's Cloud Nine.

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PopMatters

Brainwashed is a rich musical treasure trove well mined in execution and production.

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All Music Guide

Brainwashed isn't just a success, it's one of the finest records Harrison ever made.

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Entertainment Weekly

Stacks up remarkably well against the rest of his oeuvre. [22 Nov 2002, p.76]

Billboard

Beautifully fatalistic and unimposingly pedagogical, Brainwashed is quite possibly Harrison's next-to-best album and a sober reminder that his passing is a loss too large to measure.

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Rolling Stone

Brainwashed is a warm, frank goodbye, a remarkably poised record about the reality of dying, by a man on the verge.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

Harrison never seemed to recognize the difference between philosophical profundities and the sound of a catchy song, and that may have been his greatest gift to the world. Brainwashed offers a fine, final reminder of that gift.

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Mojo

A mature and often profound record. [Dec 2002, p.102]

Launch.com

Brainwashed is rich in warm Harrison vocals, couple with his distinctive slide guitar style. Unfortunately, it's also rife with often too-glossy production.

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Village Voice

It's a low-key and playful exit, without highs or lows.

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Dot Music

The result is pretty much what you'd expect from an album bearing Lynne's name on the credits.

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Austin Chronicle

The sad thing about Brainwashed is that for the first time in as long as one can remember, it leaves the listener with high hopes for what Harrison would have done next.

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Uncut

Although brass and strings add muscle, a certain monotony creeps in towards the end. And there aren't enough strong tunes from the least melodically facile Beatle. [Dec 2002, p.134]

Blender

Brainwashed suggests that Harrison's last years were largely comfortable, slow-paced and unaffected by any worries about his relevance. [#12, p.144]

Q Magazine

About as well-rounded and polished as albums get. [Dec 2002, p.100]

Stylus Magazine

The album certainly holds enough strong melodies and well-written songs to elevate it above the majority of Harrison’s uneven solo career, but is somewhat brought down by Lynne’s posthumous production.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.6 (out of 10) based on 42 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Moe G gave it a10:
This album is an education, on may levels!

Dante B gave it a10:
This is an absolutely beautiful set of songs. It brings tears of joy (at the gift of hearing them) and sadness (over the fact that we didn't get more work like this from George over the last two decades of his life, and that no more will be forthcoming). It is certainly among the best solo albums release by any of the former Beatles. A classic by a towering talent.

Rev. Rikard gave it a9:
It is quite easy to rate this album through the eys of sentimentality rather than with a critical ear. After all, his death was a tragic loss. However, Harrison's last album ranks among his best. His acoustical songs reveal flashes of the greatness that wrote "Here Comes the Sun," and "My Sweet Lord". Harrison allows his deep spirituality to baptize his lyrics and melodies with what I call, for lack of a better word, "sweetness." This is not a party album. Like all of Harrison's late and post-Beatles work, the songs are intended to create introspection, and to remind us that we are more than a collection of molecules and cells. This last albumn accomplished what Harrison desired. If we fail to understand "why" he wrote his songs "it is a pity and shame."

Brian gave it a10:
I'm stunned people would call this over-produced. Perhaps that's just the critics' anti-Lynne bias showing. This album has some really high points, an only a couple low ones. It might not measure up to All Thing Must Pass, but neither did Babe Ruth hit 60 HR every season.

al sdert gave it a10:
better than cloud 9 which means as good as all things...marwa blues..rising sun....piches fish...looking for my life...slide guitar...warm lyrics...beautiful sounds..meaningful songs...just beautiful and unforgetable..and melancholic

Jan V gave it a10:
I wish he was still between us!

Gabriel gave it a10:
Excelente!

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