George Harrison in the Words of Friends and Family

"He told me he really, really admired John. He probably wanted John's acceptance pretty bad, you know?" -Tom Petty

Harrison with Lennon during the filming of 'Magical Mystery Tour'

"Sometimes I felt a thousand years old. It was aging me. It was a question of either stop or end up dead." -George Harrison

Harrison in London, England in 1991

"If you had something like two million people screaming at you, I think it would take a long time to stop hearing that in your head. George was not suited to it." -Olivia Harrison

Harrison during the filming of 'A Hard Day's Night'

"George talked a lot about his nervous system, that he just didn't want to hear loud noise anymore. He didn't want to be startled. He didn't want to be stressed." -Olivia Harrison

"George wasn't seeking a career. He didn't really have a manager or an agent. He was doing what he wanted. I don't think he valued rock stardom at all." -Tom Petty

"The only things I felt I had to do in my life are to be happy and meditate." -Dhani Harrison

Dhani and Olivia Harrison at the posthumous ceremony honoring George Harrison with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in April, 2009

"Every time George had a joint and a few beers he would start talking about touring. I think once or twice we even had serious talks about it, but nobody would really commit to it. We never thought we were gonna run out of time." -Tom Petty

Harrison and Petty at the 1992 Billboard Music Awards

"He didn't want to have any obligations. He kept writing and recording songs in his home studio, but turned down offers to appear on award shows, or to do almost anything." -Olivia Harrison

Harrison in 1991

"He would say, 'Look, we're not these bodies, let's not get hung up on that. I just want to prepare myself so that I go the right way, and go to the right place.' I'm sure he's got that worked out." -Tom Petty

Harrison and Eric Clapton in 1999 at the Christie's Auction benefiting Clapton's Crossroads Centre in Antigua

Quotes excerpted from the September 15, 2011 issue of Rolling Stone.