Cloud Nine (1987)
1. Cloud Nine
2. That's What it Takes
3. Fish on the Sand
4. Just for Today
5. This is Love
6. When We was Fab
7. Devil's Radio
8. Someplace Else
9. Wreck of the Hesperus
10.Breath Away From Heaven
11.Got My Mind Set On You
No one expected Cloud Nine. By the time of its release in 1987, George Harrison’s solo career had been comfortably dormant for half a decade, and few believed he had anything left to prove—or, indeed, anything left to say. His last handful of records had ranged from ignored to forgotten, and the prevailing narrative was that Harrison had quietly withdrawn from music altogether. And then, against all odds, Cloud Nine arrived—not as a nostalgic retread or a contractual obligation, but as a fully-formed, stylish, and immensely listenable pop album that revitalized not only Harrison’s career but his artistic identity.
Much of the credit belongs to Jeff Lynne. Former mastermind of Electric Light Orchestra, Lynne brought with him a distinct sonic sensibility—clean, compressed, multi-tracked, and unmistakably modern without surrendering melody. What seemed an unlikely pairing at first quickly revealed itself to be a kind of perfect alchemy. Lynne's lush production met Harrison’s melodic instincts at precisely the right moment, lending structure and sheen to a set of songs that might otherwise have remained sketches.
And what a set it is. From the opening bars of the title track, it’s clear Harrison is operating with renewed energy. Cloud 9 (as stylized) glides along on slick guitars and a laid-back vocal that suggests Harrison is, for the first time in years, genuinely enjoying himself. The big hit, Got My Mind Set on You, a cover of an old James Ray tune, is an anomaly only in origin. It is a piece of pure pop joy, complete with a quirky, era-defining video, and it topped charts on both sides of the Atlantic. Its success was no fluke. The rest of the album is built with the same care and confidence.
When We Was Fab is perhaps the most striking track—a wistful nod to Beatlesmania that manages to avoid sentimentality by bathing itself in psychedelic textures and self-aware irony. It is pastiche, yes, but deeply affectionate, and features Ringo on drums and Jeff Lynne channeling mid-period George Martin with uncanny precision.
Elsewhere, Harrison dips into more introspective waters. Just for Today and Someplace Else are among the most emotionally resonant tracks he ever recorded—quiet, mournful, and delivered with a humility that belies their craft.
Guitar work throughout is impeccable, with guest appearances from Eric Clapton, whose touch is often so subtly integrated it becomes hard to separate from Harrison’s own. There is a fluidity to the playing that speaks to genuine collaboration.
If there are missteps, they are minor. Wreck of the Hesperus pushes its horns a little too aggressively, and Breath Away from Heaven edges into mystical murkiness. But these detours never derail the record. They merely add texture to an album that, for all its polish, remains unmistakably personal.
In the final tally, Cloud Nine is not merely a comeback—it is a reclamation. It showed that Harrison, so often typecast as the reluctant Beatle or the spiritual Beatle, could still make vibrant, contemporary pop music without compromising his identity. That it also laid the foundation for the formation of the supergroup The Traveling Wilburys only deepens its significance.
It was, above all, good to have George back. And for once, he sounded like he was glad to be there too.
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