<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> 2002 reissue cover </Td> </Tr> <P> "My Sweet Lord" is a song by English musician George Harrison . It was released in November 1970 on his triple album All Things Must Pass . Also issued as a single, Harrison's first as a solo artist, "My Sweet Lord" topped charts worldwide and was the biggest - selling single of 1971 in the UK . In America and Britain, the song was the first number - one single by an ex-Beatle . Harrison originally gave the song to his fellow Apple Records artist Billy Preston to record; this version, which Harrison co-produced, appeared on Preston's Encouraging Words album in September 1970 . </P> <P> Harrison wrote "My Sweet Lord" in praise of the Hindu god Krishna, while at the same time intending the lyrics to serve as a call to abandon religious sectarianism through his deliberate blending of the Hebrew word hallelujah with chants of "Hare Krishna" and Vedic prayer . The recording features producer Phil Spector's Wall of Sound treatment and heralded the arrival of Harrison's much - admired slide guitar technique, which one biographer described as being "musically as distinctive a signature as the mark of Zorro". Preston, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, and the group Badfinger are among the other musicians appearing on the recording . </P> <P> Later in the 1970s, "My Sweet Lord" was at the centre of a heavily publicised copyright infringement suit, due to its similarity to the Ronnie Mack song "He's So Fine", a 1963 hit for the New York girl group the Chiffons . In 1976, Harrison was found to have subconsciously plagiarised the earlier tune, a verdict that had repercussions throughout the music industry . He claimed to have used the out - of - copyright "Oh Happy Day", a Christian hymn, as his inspiration for the song's melody . </P>

Who played slide guitar on my sweet lord