We had our last real update about Martin Scorsese‘s documentary on Beatles guitarist George Harrison - titled George Harrison: Living in the Material World - a year ago, and that’s been way too long. For me, the idea of one of my favorite directors of all time helming a documentary about my favorite member of one of my favorite bands of all time is one that’s almost too good to be true. I wouldn’t hesitate to call this one of my three most anticipated movies of 2011, in fact. The frequent word was that it would see a release in 2011, but we’re almost halfway through the year without so much as a trailer. And while this next piece of news isn’t a much bigger revelation than anything from before, it at least a) comes from someone extremely close to the production, and b) alludes to a big announcement.

George‘s widow, Olivia Harrison was at the fifth anniversary performance of the Beatles/Cirque du Soleil collaboration Love, where she was asked about the project’s current status. She said that the release date should be announced “sometime soon,” but at least clarified that it would happen this year. It may very well be completed, as she mentioned that she “just came from New York” and that on Monday she’s “going to see it again.” [The LA Times]

That’s all that was said — and while it may not seem like much, it’s the biggest thing we’ve gotten wind of in over a year. This will have new footage of the legendary Beatles guitarist, songwriter, and singer, while also featuring unreleased recording material (which I’ve heard will see its own album release). In addition to that, interviews have been conducted with some of his colleagues and close friends, an illustrious list that includes the aforementioned Olivia, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Eric Idle, Tom Petty, Yoko Ono, and record producer/cocktail waitress murderer Phil Spector.

Harrison is arguably the Beatle most deserving of the documentary treatment, as he was both an incredible musician and a deeply spiritual man. His writing and performing work with the band is absolutely masterful — songs like “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” or “It’s All Too Much,” to only name two, are some of my favorite songs of all time. So much of his solo career has been overshadowed by his ex-bandmates, and while most of that is also good, his output has always struck the most significant chord (no pun intended) with me. The title itself is a reference to his 1973 album, Living in the Material World.

For everyone else, Scorsese‘s music documentaries alone are enough to make any sane man thrilled to check this out. There’s The Last Waltz, which focuses on The Band‘s final concert, and possibly holds the title of greatest concert film ever. Then we have No Direction Home, an account of Bob Dylan‘s early life and career; that’s one of my favorite documentaries of all time. His third and most recent is the Rolling Stones concert, Shine a Light, which is a little weak compared to his other documentary fare, but still well above the average concert movie. I have almost no doubt that this will fall into the same league as his first two entries into the genre, and I’m so happy that I’ll find out if I’m right by the end of this year.

Are you excited for this documentary? Are you a fan of Scorsese’s documentary work, and of Harrison’s music?