A Bite of Harry Nilsson 🍪
A Bite of Harry Nilsson 🍪
Talking with this witty, hopeful music pioneer in my dreams
Monday Bites are bite-sized spotlights on artists I love, designed to counter the Monday blues. By Grace Lilly.
• 3 min read •
I had a dream about Harry Nilsson
We were in his studio and he was explaining to me how overdubbing works. He put on my favorite of his albums, the 1977 magnificence known as Knnillssonn.
In my waking life, I’d learned that Nilsson considered it to be his favorite album too.
It was particularly important for him because it was the first time in years his voice was strong again. Back in 1973, he’d ruptured a vocal cord at a late night jam session while recording Pussy Cats with John Lennon.
In my dream, he talked to me about patience and perseverance. I love Knnillssonn because it’s a bright, beautiful example of his dedication to art, his inspiring don’t-give-up attitude that makes you wonder what you can do too.
As Nilsson used to say, “Hope is practical.”
Harry Nilsson
The basics
🤝 American singer-songwriter
🤝 b. 1941 (Brooklyn, NY) - 1994 (Agoura Hills, CA)
🤝 Invented the remix album and was a pioneer of the Los Angeles studio sound
Why you should know him: No. 62 in Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time; was “a crucial bridge” between 1960s psychedelia and the 1970s singer-songwriter era
If you like
✨ The Beatles
✨ David Bowie
✨ Vampire Weekend
✨ Paul Simon
✨ Randy Newman
Known for
🏆 His extraordinary three-and-a-half-octave range, catchy melodies, and witty lyrics
🏆 2 Grammy Awards, 2 certified gold records
🏆 Pioneered vocal overdub experiments (recording additional sounds on an existing recording); Nilsson Sings Newman is reputed to feature 118 separate vocal tracks
🏆 A skilled composer, synthesized elements of rock & pop but couldn’t be pigeonholed into definite categories
🏆 Created the first remix album, Aerial Pandemonium Ballet (1971) and recorded the first mashup song “You Can't Do That” (1967)
🏆 One of few artists to achieve significant commercial success without touring or performing live
Bite-sized facts
🍪 Born in Bed–Stuy, Brooklyn, moved to LA as a teen to escape his family's poor financial situation
🍪 Worked nights as a computer programmer at a bank, pursued music during the day
🍪 Created his own lyrics and parts of melodies to popular songs when he couldn’t remember them, led to writing original songs
🍪 Never performed in concert, known as a “singer-composer who is heard but not seen”
🍪 Sometimes called “the American Beatle,” close friends with John Lennon and Ringo Starr, joined them in the Hollywood Vampires drinking club
When John Lennon and Paul McCartney held a press conference in 1968, Lennon was asked to name his favorite American artist. He replied, "Nilsson." McCartney was then asked to name his favorite American group. He replied, "Nilsson."
🍪 Was profoundly affected by the death of John Lennon, took a hiatus from music & campaigned for gun control in response to his 1980 murder
🍪 In 1990, was left with only $300 in the bank after his financial advisor embezzled all the funds he’d earned as a recording artist
In film & TV
📺 Wrote all the songs for Robert Altman's movie-musical Popeye (1980)
📺 Paul Thomas Anderson’s Punch-Drunk Love (2002) features the song “He Needs Me”
📺 Created an animated film, The Point (1971) with Fred Wolf; Nilsson self-produced an album of songs from the film, “Me and My Arrow” became a top 40 single
Songs & dates
♫ 1967 His first album with RCA Victor, Pandemonium Shadow Show, becomes a critical success
♫ 1968 “Everybody's Talkin’” becomes his first US top 10 hit and is prominently featured in the Academy Award winning film Midnight Cowboy (1969)
♫ 1969 “I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City” becomes a Top 40 single off his first album to hit the charts, Harry (1969)
♫ 1970 Releases Nilsson Sings Newman, an entire album dedicated to Randy Newman compositions, helps put Newman on the map
♫ 1971 His most commercially successful album, Nilsson Schmilsson produces the international top 10 singles “Without You” (earned him his 2nd Grammy) and “Coconut”
♫ 1972 The single “Spaceman" becomes a Top 40 hit and the album Son of Schmilsson reaches No. 12 on the Billboard 200
♫ 1974 Creates Pussy Cats, a collaborative album with John Lennon
♫ 1994 While recording his last album, Losst and Founnd, he dies of a heart attack; in 2019, the final album is released
He said
⭐ “For despair, optimism is the only practical solution. Hope is practical. Because eliminate that and it's pretty scary. Hope at least gives you the option of living.”
⭐ “The point is that love is the most powerful force on Earth.”
Whatta story
Why George Harrison screamed “fuck you” at Nilsson’s funeral
“There was the time at Harry Nilsson’s funeral… we are all sad and sullen and standing around the grave and George goes, ‘Fuck You.’ And we are all shocked, and we thought he was having some kind of angst. And then he says, ‘That was always my favorite song: You’re Breaking My Heart, Tearing it Apart, Well Fuck you,’ so then we all joined in and sang it.”
-Mark Hudson, record producer
My Nilsson Playlist
I gathered my fav Nilsson songs, from me to you with love. Like & save on Spotify and listen all week 💗
Where to start
Rare TV appearance from 1970
Nilsson performing and chatting about his music on The Smothers Brothers Summer Show (July 8, 1970)
〰️
BBC, “The Music of Nilsson”
Treasured by his fans, this TV special broadcast on New Year's Day 1972 features performances of some of Harry's greatest songs.
Down the rabbit hole
If you wanna dive even deeper:
Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him)? (2006)
In this definitive documentary on the Grammy award winning music legend Harry Nilsson, friends, family and colleagues delve into the acclaimed singer-songwriter's music, creative process and personal demons.
🍿 Watch on Peacock, Apple TV, Youtube, Amazon
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What people are saying
〰️ “This is my favorite post yet.”
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