All Things Must Pass

Pre-production reportedly began on May 20, 1970 and the first formal session was at EMI on May 26, with backing tracks taped on eight-track between late May and mid-June, Spector recording mostly live. Derek and the Dominos grew out of sessions at Apple in June. Spector's erratic behavior, Harrison's trips to Liverpool and EMI's cost worries slowed things, and Harrison finished overdubs at Trident on August 12, largely without Spector; John Barham's orchestrations were recorded from early September. Harrison later felt the Spector reverb and overdubbing were excessive. Players include Eric Clapton, Gary Wright, Bobby Whitlock, Klaus Voormann, Jim Gordon, Carl Radle, Ringo Starr, Billy Preston, Pete Drake on pedal steel, Badfinger and Ginger Baker.

It was number one in the UK for eight weeks, in the US for seven, in Canada for nine and in Australia, certified seven times platinum by the RIAA, and "My Sweet Lord" was number one on the Hot 100 for three weeks. Ben Gerson in Rolling Stone in 1971 called the sound Wagnerian and Brucknerian, and Richard Williams in Melody Maker compared its impact to Garbo's first talkie. AllMusic and Mojo gave it five stars and Pitchfork 9.0, and it entered the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014. A 30th anniversary edition in 2001 was overseen by Harrison; the 50th anniversary edition of August 6, 2021 ran to seven formats and up to 70 tracks, with 47 demos, and won the 2022 Grammy for best boxed or special limited edition package.