Harry Nilsson
Encyclopedia
Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994) was an American singer-songwriter
who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson. He is known for the hit singles "Without You", "Everybody's Talkin'
" and "Coconut
".
He was awarded Grammys
for two of his recordings; best male contemporary vocal in 1969 for "Everybody's Talkin'", the theme song to the Academy Award-winning movie Midnight Cowboy
, and best male pop vocal in 1972 for "Without You".
section of Brooklyn
, New York, in 1941. His paternal grandparents were Swedish circus
performers and dancers, especially known for their "aerial ballet" (which is the title of one of Nilsson's albums). His father, Harry Edward Nilsson, Jr., abandoned the family when he was three. An autobiographical reference to this is found in the opening to Nilsson's song "1941":
Nilsson's "Daddy's Song" also refers to this period in Nilsson's childhood.
Nilsson grew up with his mother Bette and his younger half-sister. His younger half-brother Drake was left with family or friends during their moves between California
and New York, sometimes living with a succession of relatives and stepfathers. His Uncle John, a mechanic in San Bernardino
, California
, helped Nilsson improve his vocal and musical abilities.
He had a half-brother and a half-sister through their mother. He also had three half-sisters and one half-brother through his father.
Due to the poor financial situation of his family, Nilsson worked from an early age, including a job at the Paramount Theatre
in Los Angeles. When the Paramount closed, Nilsson applied for a job at a bank, falsely stating he was a high school graduate on his application (he only completed ninth grade). He had an aptitude for computers, which were beginning to be employed by banks at the time. He performed so well that the bank retained him after discovering the lie about his education. He worked on bank computers at night, and in the daytime pursued his songwriting and singing career.
. He had made early attempts at performing while he was working at the Paramount, forming a vocal duo with his friend Jerry Smith and singing close harmonies in the style of the Everly Brothers. The manager at a favorite hangout gave Nilsson a plastic ukulele, which he learned to play, and he later learned to play the guitar and piano. In the 2010 documentary Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)
, Nilsson recalled that when he could not remember lyrics or parts of the melodies to popular songs, he created his own, which led to writing original songs.
Uncle John's singing lessons, along with Nilsson's natural talent, helped when he got a job singing demos for songwriter Scott Turner in 1960. Turner paid Nilsson five dollars for each track they recorded. (When Nilsson became famous, Turner decided to release these early recordings, and contacted Nilsson to work out a fair payment. Nilsson replied that he had already been paid — five dollars a track.).
In 1963, Nilsson began to have some early success as a songwriter, working with John Marascalco
on a song for Little Richard
. Upon hearing Nilsson sing, Little Richard reportedly remarked: "My! You sing good for a white boy!" Marascalco also financed some independent singles by Nilsson. One, "Baa Baa Blacksheep", was released under the pseudonym "Bo Pete" to some small local airplay. Another recording, "Donna, I Understand", convinced Mercury Records
to offer Nilsson a contract, and release recordings by him under the name "Johnny Niles."
In 1964, Nilsson worked with Phil Spector
, writing three songs with him. He also established a relationship with songwriter and publisher Perry Botkin, Jr.
, who began to find a market for Nilsson's songs. Botkin also gave Nilsson a key to his office, providing another place to write after hours.
Nilsson's recording contract was picked up by Tower Records, which in 1966 released the first singles actually credited to him by name, as well as the debut album Spotlight on Nilsson
. None of Nilsson's Tower releases charted or gained much critical attention, although his songs were being recorded by Glen Campbell
, Fred Astaire
, The Shangri-Las
, The Yardbirds
, and others. Despite his growing success, Nilsson remained on the night shift at the bank.
, which was a critical (if not commercial) success. Music industry insiders were impressed both with the songwriting and with Nilsson's pure-toned, multi-octave vocals. One such insider was Beatles
press officer Derek Taylor
, who bought an entire box of copies of the album to share this new sound with others. With a major-label release, and continued songwriting success (most notably with The Monkees
, who had a hit with Nilsson's "Cuddly Toy" after meeting him through their producer Chip Douglas
), Nilsson finally felt secure enough in the music business to quit his job with the bank. Monkees member Micky Dolenz
maintained a close friendship until Nilsson's death in 1994.
Some of the albums from Derek Taylor's box eventually ended up with the Beatles themselves, who quickly became Nilsson fans. This may have been helped by the track "You Can't Do That", in which Nilsson covered one Beatles song but added 22 others in the multi-tracked background vocals. When John Lennon
and Paul McCartney
held a press conference in 1968 to announce the formation of Apple Corps
, John was asked to name his favorite American artist. He replied, "Nilsson". Paul was then asked to name his favorite American group. He replied, "Nilsson".
Aided by the Beatles' praise, "You Can't Do That
" became a minor hit in the US, and a top 10 hit in Canada.
When RCA had asked if there was anything special he wanted as a signing premium, Nilsson asked for his own office at RCA, being used to working out of one. In the weeks after the Apple press conference, Nilsson's office phone began ringing constantly, with offers and requests for interviews and inquiries about his performing schedule. Nilsson usually answered the calls himself, surprising the callers, and answered questions candidly. (He recalled years later the flow of a typical conversation: "When did you play last?" "I didn't." "Where have you played before?" "I haven't." "When will you be playing next?" "I don't.") Nilsson acquired a manager, who steered him into a handful of TV guest appearances, and a brief run of stage performances in Europe set up by RCA. He disliked the experiences he had, though, and decided to stick to the recording studio. He later admitted this was a huge mistake on his part.
Once John Lennon called and praised Pandemonium Shadow Show, which he had listened to in a 36-hour marathon. Paul McCartney called the following day, also expressing his admiration. Eventually a message came, inviting him to London to meet the Beatles, watch them at work, and possibly sign with Apple Corps.
Pandemonium Shadow Show was followed in 1968 by Aerial Ballet
, an album that included Nilsson's rendition of Fred Neil
's song "Everybody's Talkin'
". A minor US hit at the time of release (and a top 40 hit in Canada), the song would become extremely popular a year later when it was featured in the film Midnight Cowboy
, and it would earn Nilsson his first Grammy Award
. The song would also become Nilsson's first US top 10 hit, reaching #6, and his first Canadian #1.
Aerial Ballet also contained Nilsson's version of his own composition, "One"
, which was later taken to the top 5 of the US charts by Three Dog Night
. Nilsson was also commissioned at this time to write and perform the theme song for the ABC
television series The Courtship of Eddie's Father
. The result, "Best Friend", was very popular, but Nilsson never released the song on record; an alternative version, "Girlfriend", did appear on the 1995 Personal Best anthology. Late in 1968, The Monkees
' notorious experimental film Head
premiered, featuring a memorable song-and-dance sequence with Davy Jones
and Toni Basil
performing Nilsson's composition "Daddy's Song." (This is followed by Frank Zappa
's cameo as "The Critic," who dismisses the 1920s-style tune as "pretty white.")
With the success of Nilsson's RCA recordings, Tower re-issued or re-packaged many of their early Nilsson recordings in various formats. All of these re-issues failed to chart, including a 1969 single "Good Times".
(1969), was his first to hit the charts, and also provided a Top 40 single with "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City" (written as a contender for the theme to Midnight Cowboy
), used in the Sophia Loren movie La Mortadella
(1971) (US title: Lady Liberty). While the album still presented Nilsson as primarily a songwriter, his astute choice of cover material included, this time, a song by a then-little-known composer named Randy Newman
, "Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear." Nilsson was so impressed with Newman's talent that he devoted his entire next album to Newman compositions, with Newman himself playing piano behind Nilsson's multi-tracked vocals. The result, Nilsson Sings Newman
(1970), was commercially disappointing but was named Record of the Year by Stereo Review magazine and provided momentum to Newman's career.
Nilsson's next project was an animated film, The Point!
, created with animation director Fred Wolf
, and broadcast on ABC television on February 2, 1971, as an "ABC Movie of the Week
". Nilsson's album of songs from The Point! was well received, and it spawned a hit single, "Me and My Arrow".
Later that year, Nilsson went to England with producer Richard Perry
to record what became the most successful album of his career. Nilsson Schmilsson
yielded three very stylistically different hit singles. The first was a cover of Badfinger
's song "Without You" (by Pete Ham and Tom Evans
), featuring a highly emotional arrangement and soaring vocals to match, a performance that was rewarded with Nilsson's second Grammy Award
.
The second single was "Coconut
", a novelty calypso
number featuring three characters (the narrator, the sister, and the doctor) all sung in different voices by Nilsson. The song is best remembered for its chorus lyric, "Put de lime in de coconut, and drink 'em both up." Also notable is that the entire song is played using one chord, C 7th. "Coconut" was featured in Episode 81 (October 25, 1973) of The Flip Wilson Show
. The song has since been featured in many other films and commercials. It was also used in a comedy skit on The Muppet Show
, which featured Kermit the Frog
in a hospital bed. The song was also used during the end credits of Quentin Tarantino
's Reservoir Dogs
. George Carlin also made reference to "Coconut" in the live recording of "Occupation: Foole" dated 1973, singing "Put de lime in de coconut, de lemon in de Tidy Bowl." It also featured in the FOX television series Bones
, episode "The Hole in The Heart"; is said to be the favorite song of a character killed in the episode and is sung by the remaining characters as they load his coffin into a hearse for transport home to England.
The third single, "Jump into the Fire", was raucous, screaming rock and roll, including a drum solo by Derek and the Dominos
' Jim Gordon
and a bass
detuning by Herbie Flowers
. The song was used during the "Sunday, May 11, 1980", sequence in the 1990 film Goodfellas
- and also in the 2006 film A Good Year
.
Nilsson followed quickly with Son of Schmilsson
(1972), released while its predecessor was still in the charts. Besides the problem of competing with himself, Nilsson's decision to give free rein to his bawdiness and bluntness on this release alienated some of his earlier, more conservative fan base. With lyrics like "I sang my balls off for you, baby", "Roll the world over / And give her a kiss and a feel", and the notorious "You're breaking my heart / You're tearing it apart / So fuck you"- a reference to his ongoing divorce, Nilsson had traveled far afield from his earlier work. Still, the album reached 12 in the US Hot 100 and the single "Spaceman" was a Top 40 hit. However, the follow-up single "Remember (Christmas)" stalled at #53. A third single, the tongue-in-cheek C&W
send up "Joy", was issued on RCA's country imprint Green and credited to Buck Earle, but it failed to chart.
(1973). Performing a selection of pop standards by the likes of Berlin
, Kalmar
and Ruby
, Nilsson sang in front of an orchestra arranged and conducted by veteran Gordon Jenkins
in sessions produced by Derek Taylor. This musical endeavor did not do well commercially. The session was filmed, and broadcast as a television special by the BBC
in the UK.
1973 found Nilsson back in California, and when John Lennon
moved there during his separation from Yoko Ono
, the two musicians rekindled their earlier friendship. Lennon was intent upon producing Nilsson's next album, much to Nilsson's delight. However, their time together in California became known much more for heavy drinking and drug use than it did for musical collaboration. In a widely publicized incident, they were ejected from the Troubadour nightclub in West Hollywood
for drunken heckling of the Smothers Brothers
. Both men also caused property damage during binges, with Lennon trashing a bedroom in Lou Adler
's house, and Nilsson throwing a bottle through a thirty-foot-high hotel window.
To make matters worse, Nilsson ruptured a vocal cord during the sessions for this album, but he hid the injury due to fear that Lennon would call a halt to the production. The resulting album was Pussy Cats
. In an effort to clean up, Lennon, Nilsson and Ringo Starr first rented a house together, then Lennon and Nilsson left for New York.
After the relative failure of his latest two albums, RCA Records considered dropping Nilsson's contract. In a show of friendship, Lennon accompanied Nilsson to negotiations, and both intimated to RCA that Lennon and Starr might want to sign with them, once their Apple Records
contracts with EMI
expired in 1975, but would not be interested if Nilsson were no longer with the label. RCA took the hint and re-signed Nilsson (adding a bonus clause, to apply to each new album completed), but neither Lennon nor Starr signed with RCA.
Nilsson's voice had mostly recovered by his next release, Duit on Mon Dei
(1975), but neither it nor its follow-ups, Sandman
and ...That's the Way It Is
(both 1976) met with chart success. Finally, Nilsson recorded what he later considered to be his favorite album, 1977's Knnillssonn
. With his voice strong again, and his songs exploring musical territory reminiscent of Harry or The Point!, Nilsson anticipated Knnillssonn to be a comeback album. RCA seemed to agree, and promised Nilsson a substantial marketing campaign for the album. However, the death of Elvis Presley
caused RCA to ignore everything except meeting demand for Presley's back catalog, and the promised marketing push never happened. This, combined with RCA releasing a Nilsson Greatest Hits collection without consulting him, prompted Nilsson to leave the label.
, was a two-bedroom apartment decorated by the design company that ex-Beatle Ringo Starr
and Robin Cruikshank owned at that time. Nilsson cumulatively spent several years at the flat, which was located near Apple Records, the Playboy Club, Tramps disco and the homes of friends and business associates. Nilsson's work and interests took him to the US for extended periods, and while he was away he lent his place to numerous musician friends. During one of his absences, ex-Mamas and Papas singer Cass Elliot
and a few members of her tour group stayed at the flat while she performed solo at the London Palladium, headlining with her Torch Songs and "Don't Call Me Mama Anymore." Following a strenuous performance with encores, Elliot returned to the flat to relax and sleep and was discovered in one of the bedrooms, dead of heart failure at 32, on July 29, 1974.
On September 7, 1978, The Who
's drummer Keith Moon
returned to the same room in the flat after a night out, and died from an overdose of Clomethiazole
, a prescribed anti-alcohol drug. Nilsson, distraught over another friend's death in his flat, and having little need for the property, sold it to Moon's bandmate Pete Townshend
and consolidated his life in Los Angeles.
, which was produced and directed by longtime friend Bert Convy
. The show was mounted at the Goodspeed Opera House
in East Haddam, Connecticut
, but never had another production. He wrote all the songs for Robert Altman
's movie-musical Popeye
(1980), the score of which met with unfavorable reviews. Nilsson's Popeye compositions included several songs that were representative of Nilsson's acclaimed "Point" era, such as "Everything is Food" and "Sweethaven". The song "He Needs Me" featured years later in the film Punch-Drunk Love
. Nilsson recorded one more album, Flash Harry
, co-produced by Bruce Robb
and Steve Cropper
, which was released in the UK but not in the US. From this point onward, Nilsson increasingly began referring to himself as a "retired musician".
Nilsson was profoundly affected by the death of John Lennon on December 8, 1980. He joined the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
and overcame his preference for privacy to make appearances for gun control fundraising. He began to appear at Beatlefest conventions and he would get on stage with the Beatlefest house band "Liverpool" to either sing some of his own songs or "Give Peace a Chance."
After a long hiatus from the studio, Nilsson started recording sporadically once again in the mid to late 1980s. Most of these recordings were commissioned songs for movies or television shows. One notable exception was his work on a Yoko Ono Lennon tribute album, Every Man Has A Woman (1984) (Polydor); another was a cover of "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
" recorded for Hal Willner
's 1988 tribute album
Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films
. Nilsson donated his performance royalties from the song to the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.
In 1985 Nilsson set up a production company, Hawkeye, to oversee various film, TV and multimedia projects he was involved in. He appointed his friend, satirist and screenwriter Terry Southern
, as one of the principals. They collaborated on a number of screenplays including Obits (a Citizen Kane
-style story about a journalist investigating an obituary notice) and The Telephone
, a comedy about an unhinged unemployed actor.
The Telephone was virtually the only Hawkeye project that made it to the screen. It had been written with Robin Williams
in mind but he turned it down; comedian-actress Whoopi Goldberg
then signed on, with Southern's friend Rip Torn
directing, but the project was troubled. Torn battled with Goldberg, who interfered in the production and constantly digressed from the script during shooting, and Torn was forced to plead with her to perform takes that stuck to the screenplay. Torn, Southern and Nilsson put together their own version of the film, which screened at the Sundance Film Festival
in early 1988, but it was overtaken by the "official" version from the studio, and this version premiered to poor reviews in late January 1988. The project reportedly had some later success when adapted as a theatre piece in Germany.
In 1990, Hawkeye foundered and Nilsson found himself in a dire financial situation after it was discovered that his financial adviser Cindy Sims had embezzled all the funds he had earned as a recording artist. The Nilssons were left with $300 in the bank and a mountain of debt, while Sims served less than two years and was released from prison in 1994 without making restitution.
In 1991, the Disney
CD For Our Children, a compilation of children's music performed by celebrities to benefit the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
, included Nilsson's original composition "Blanket for a Sail," recorded at the Shandaliza Recording Studio in Los Angeles.
Nilsson made his last concert appearance September 1, 1992, when he joined Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band on stage at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada to sing "Without You" with Todd Rundgren
handling the high notes. Afterwards, an emotional Ringo Starr embraced Nilsson on stage.
in 1993. After surviving that, he began pressing his old label, RCA, to release a boxed-set retrospective of his career, and resumed recording, attempting to complete one final album. He finished the vocal tracks for the album with producer Mark Hudson, who still retains the tapes of that session.
Nilsson died of heart failure on January 15, 1994 in his Agoura Hills, California
, home.
In 1995, the 2-CD anthology he worked on with RCA, Personal Best, was released.
produced by David Leaf
and John Schienfeld. The film was screened in 2006 at the Seattle International Film Festival and the Santa Barbara Film Festival. In August 2006, the film received its Los Angeles premiere when it was screened at the 7th Annual Mods & Rockers Film Festival
followed by a panel discussion about Nilsson featuring the filmmakers and two friends of Nilsson, producer Richard Perry
and attorney/executive producer Lee Blackman.
The filmmakers re-edited the film with found rare footage of Nilsson, further interviews, and family photographs, and finally released it on September 17, 2010 at selected theaters in the United States. A DVD, including additional footage not in the theatrical release, was released on October 26, 2010.
, Nilsson's final album, tentatively titled Papa's Got a Brown New Robe (produced by Mark Hudson) has not been released, though several demos from the album are available on promotional CDs and online.
The musical Everyday Rapture
features three songs by Nilsson.
Nilsson was survived by his third wife, Una (née O'Keeffe), and their six children (Annie, Beau, Ben, Kief, Olivia, Oscar), his son Zachary Nine Nilsson from his marriage to Diane Clatworthy, and one grandson (Caleb). He was married to Sandy Maganiello (1964 to 1966), Diane Clatworthy (1969 to 1974) and Una O'Keeffe (1976 to his passing in 1994).
s. He received several more Grammy nominations for the album Nilsson Schmilsson
.
The New York Post
rated Nilsson's cover of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talking" #51 on their list of the 100 Best Cover Songs of All Time.
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. On all but his earliest recordings he is credited as Nilsson. He is known for the hit singles "Without You", "Everybody's Talkin'
Everybody's Talkin'
"Everybody's Talkin" is a folk rock song released by Fred Neil in 1966 that became a global success for Harry Nilsson in 1969, reaching #2 and #6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and Pop Singles chart respectively and winning a Grammy after it was featured on the soundtrack for the film...
" and "Coconut
Coconut (song)
"Coconut" is a song written and first recorded by Harry Nilsson.-Original version:The third single from his 1971 album, Nilsson Schmilsson, it reached #8 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and it features three distinct characters , all sung in different voices by Nilsson...
".
He was awarded Grammys
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
for two of his recordings; best male contemporary vocal in 1969 for "Everybody's Talkin'", the theme song to the Academy Award-winning movie Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. It was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role. Notable smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John...
, and best male pop vocal in 1972 for "Without You".
Early years
Nilsson was born in the BushwickBushwick, Brooklyn
Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood, formerly Brooklyn's 18th Ward, is now part of Brooklyn Community Board 4...
section of Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York, in 1941. His paternal grandparents were Swedish circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
performers and dancers, especially known for their "aerial ballet" (which is the title of one of Nilsson's albums). His father, Harry Edward Nilsson, Jr., abandoned the family when he was three. An autobiographical reference to this is found in the opening to Nilsson's song "1941":
- Well, in 1941, the happy father had a son
- And in 1944, the father walked right out the door
Nilsson's "Daddy's Song" also refers to this period in Nilsson's childhood.
Nilsson grew up with his mother Bette and his younger half-sister. His younger half-brother Drake was left with family or friends during their moves between California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and New York, sometimes living with a succession of relatives and stepfathers. His Uncle John, a mechanic in San Bernardino
San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area , and serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, helped Nilsson improve his vocal and musical abilities.
He had a half-brother and a half-sister through their mother. He also had three half-sisters and one half-brother through his father.
Due to the poor financial situation of his family, Nilsson worked from an early age, including a job at the Paramount Theatre
Paramount Theatre (Los Angeles)
The Paramount Theatre in Los Angeles was a movie palace opened in January 1923 as Grauman's Metropolitan Theatre. It was built by impresario Sid Grauman, who had already built the Million Dollar Theatre a few blocks away, but who is best remembered today for his two Hollywood movie palaces,...
in Los Angeles. When the Paramount closed, Nilsson applied for a job at a bank, falsely stating he was a high school graduate on his application (he only completed ninth grade). He had an aptitude for computers, which were beginning to be employed by banks at the time. He performed so well that the bank retained him after discovering the lie about his education. He worked on bank computers at night, and in the daytime pursued his songwriting and singing career.
Musical beginnings
As early as 1958, Nilsson was intrigued by emerging forms of popular music, especially rhythm and blues artists like Ray CharlesRay Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
. He had made early attempts at performing while he was working at the Paramount, forming a vocal duo with his friend Jerry Smith and singing close harmonies in the style of the Everly Brothers. The manager at a favorite hangout gave Nilsson a plastic ukulele, which he learned to play, and he later learned to play the guitar and piano. In the 2010 documentary Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)
Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)
Who is Harry Nilsson... is a documentary about the musician Harry Nilsson that premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in 2006...
, Nilsson recalled that when he could not remember lyrics or parts of the melodies to popular songs, he created his own, which led to writing original songs.
Uncle John's singing lessons, along with Nilsson's natural talent, helped when he got a job singing demos for songwriter Scott Turner in 1960. Turner paid Nilsson five dollars for each track they recorded. (When Nilsson became famous, Turner decided to release these early recordings, and contacted Nilsson to work out a fair payment. Nilsson replied that he had already been paid — five dollars a track.).
In 1963, Nilsson began to have some early success as a songwriter, working with John Marascalco
John Marascalco
John Marascalco is an American songwriter, who is most noted for his collaborations with Robert Blackwell...
on a song for Little Richard
Little Richard
Richard Wayne Penniman , known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist, and actor, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. He was also the first artist to put the funk in the rock and roll beat and...
. Upon hearing Nilsson sing, Little Richard reportedly remarked: "My! You sing good for a white boy!" Marascalco also financed some independent singles by Nilsson. One, "Baa Baa Blacksheep", was released under the pseudonym "Bo Pete" to some small local airplay. Another recording, "Donna, I Understand", convinced Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
to offer Nilsson a contract, and release recordings by him under the name "Johnny Niles."
In 1964, Nilsson worked with Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
, writing three songs with him. He also established a relationship with songwriter and publisher Perry Botkin, Jr.
Perry Botkin, Jr.
Perry Botkin, Jr. is an American composer, producer, arranger, and musician. He had a successful career in music for over forty years. As an arranger, he worked with Bobby Darin, Harry Nilsson, The Lettermen, Ed Ames, and Harpers Bizarre, among others...
, who began to find a market for Nilsson's songs. Botkin also gave Nilsson a key to his office, providing another place to write after hours.
Nilsson's recording contract was picked up by Tower Records, which in 1966 released the first singles actually credited to him by name, as well as the debut album Spotlight on Nilsson
Spotlight on Nilsson
Spotlight on Nilsson is the debut album by Harry Nilsson. It is essentially a compilation of all four of the singles that were released during his tenure on the Tower label , plus two previously unreleased tracks...
. None of Nilsson's Tower releases charted or gained much critical attention, although his songs were being recorded by Glen Campbell
Glen Campbell
Glen Travis Campbell is an American country music singer, guitarist, television host and occasional actor. He is best known for a series of hits in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as for hosting a variety show called The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour on CBS television.During his 50 years in show...
, Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
, The Shangri-Las
The Shangri-Las
The Shangri-Las were an American pop girl group of the 1960s. Between 1964 and 1966 they charted with often heartbreaking teen melodramas, and remain best known for "Leader of the Pack" and "Remember ".- Early career :...
, The Yardbirds
The Yardbirds
- Current :* Chris Dreja - rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Jim McCarty - drums, backing vocals * Ben King - lead guitar * David Smale - bass, backing vocals...
, and others. Despite his growing success, Nilsson remained on the night shift at the bank.
Signing with RCA Victor
Nilsson signed with RCA Victor in 1966 and released an album the following year, Pandemonium Shadow ShowPandemonium Shadow Show
Pandemonium Shadow Show is the second album by Harry Nilsson. It was the first product of his three-year, $50,000 recording contract with RCA Records, and was recorded in their Hollywood studio...
, which was a critical (if not commercial) success. Music industry insiders were impressed both with the songwriting and with Nilsson's pure-toned, multi-octave vocals. One such insider was Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
press officer Derek Taylor
Derek Taylor
Derek Taylor was an English journalist, writer and publicist, best known for his work as press officer for The Beatles...
, who bought an entire box of copies of the album to share this new sound with others. With a major-label release, and continued songwriting success (most notably with The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
, who had a hit with Nilsson's "Cuddly Toy" after meeting him through their producer Chip Douglas
Chip Douglas
Douglas Farthing Walter Hatlelid, better known as Chip Douglas, is a songwriter, musician , and record producer, whose most famous work was during the 1960s...
), Nilsson finally felt secure enough in the music business to quit his job with the bank. Monkees member Micky Dolenz
Micky Dolenz
George Michael "Micky" Dolenz, Jr. is an American actor, musician, television director, radio personality and theater director, best known as a member of the 1960s made-for-television band The Monkees.-Biography:...
maintained a close friendship until Nilsson's death in 1994.
Some of the albums from Derek Taylor's box eventually ended up with the Beatles themselves, who quickly became Nilsson fans. This may have been helped by the track "You Can't Do That", in which Nilsson covered one Beatles song but added 22 others in the multi-tracked background vocals. When John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
held a press conference in 1968 to announce the formation of Apple Corps
Apple Corps
Apple Corps Ltd. is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in January 1968 by the members of The Beatles to replace their earlier company and to form a conglomerate. Its name is a pun. Its chief division is Apple Records, which was launched in the same year...
, John was asked to name his favorite American artist. He replied, "Nilsson". Paul was then asked to name his favorite American group. He replied, "Nilsson".
Aided by the Beatles' praise, "You Can't Do That
You Can't Do That
"You Can't Do That" is a song written by John Lennon and released by The Beatles as the B-side of their sixth British single "Can't Buy Me Love".-Composition:...
" became a minor hit in the US, and a top 10 hit in Canada.
When RCA had asked if there was anything special he wanted as a signing premium, Nilsson asked for his own office at RCA, being used to working out of one. In the weeks after the Apple press conference, Nilsson's office phone began ringing constantly, with offers and requests for interviews and inquiries about his performing schedule. Nilsson usually answered the calls himself, surprising the callers, and answered questions candidly. (He recalled years later the flow of a typical conversation: "When did you play last?" "I didn't." "Where have you played before?" "I haven't." "When will you be playing next?" "I don't.") Nilsson acquired a manager, who steered him into a handful of TV guest appearances, and a brief run of stage performances in Europe set up by RCA. He disliked the experiences he had, though, and decided to stick to the recording studio. He later admitted this was a huge mistake on his part.
Once John Lennon called and praised Pandemonium Shadow Show, which he had listened to in a 36-hour marathon. Paul McCartney called the following day, also expressing his admiration. Eventually a message came, inviting him to London to meet the Beatles, watch them at work, and possibly sign with Apple Corps.
Pandemonium Shadow Show was followed in 1968 by Aerial Ballet
Aerial Ballet
Aerial Ballet is the third album by Harry Nilsson released in 1968.Aerial Ballet was Nilsson's second album for RCA Victor, and was titled after the highwire circus act of his grandparents. It consists almost entirely of songs written by him, including "One", which later became a Number Five hit...
, an album that included Nilsson's rendition of Fred Neil
Fred Neil
Fred Neil was an American folk singer-songwriter in the 1960s and early 1970s. He did not achieve commercial success as a performer, and is mainly known through other people's recordings of his material – particularly "Everybody's Talkin'", which became a hit for Harry Nilsson after being...
's song "Everybody's Talkin'
Everybody's Talkin'
"Everybody's Talkin" is a folk rock song released by Fred Neil in 1966 that became a global success for Harry Nilsson in 1969, reaching #2 and #6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and Pop Singles chart respectively and winning a Grammy after it was featured on the soundtrack for the film...
". A minor US hit at the time of release (and a top 40 hit in Canada), the song would become extremely popular a year later when it was featured in the film Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. It was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role. Notable smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John...
, and it would earn Nilsson his first Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
. The song would also become Nilsson's first US top 10 hit, reaching #6, and his first Canadian #1.
Aerial Ballet also contained Nilsson's version of his own composition, "One"
One (Harry Nilsson song)
"One" is a song written by Harry Nilsson and made famous by Three Dog Night whose cover in 1969 reached number 5 on the Billboard chart. The song is known for its opening line "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do." It appeared initially on Aerial Ballet, Nilsson's third album.Nilsson...
, which was later taken to the top 5 of the US charts by Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night
Three Dog Night is an American rock band best known for their music from 1968 to 1975. During that time the band charted 21 Billboard top 40 hits in America, three of which reached Number One...
. Nilsson was also commissioned at this time to write and perform the theme song for the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television series The Courtship of Eddie's Father
The Courtship of Eddie's Father
The Courtship of Eddie's Father is an American television sitcom based on the 1963 movie of the same name, which was based on the book written by Mark Toby...
. The result, "Best Friend", was very popular, but Nilsson never released the song on record; an alternative version, "Girlfriend", did appear on the 1995 Personal Best anthology. Late in 1968, The Monkees
The Monkees
The Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
' notorious experimental film Head
Head (film)
Head is a 1968 psychedelic comedy-adventure major motion picture, starring TV group The Monkees , and distributed by Columbia Pictures...
premiered, featuring a memorable song-and-dance sequence with Davy Jones
Davy Jones (actor)
David Thomas "Davy" Jones is an English rock singer-songwriter and actor best known as a member of the Monkees.-Early life:...
and Toni Basil
Toni Basil
Antonia Christina Basilotta , better known by her stage name Toni Basil, is an American singer-songwriter, actress, filmmaker, film director, choreographer, and dancer, best known for her multi-million-selling worldwide #1 hit "Mickey" from 1982.-Early life:Basil was born Antonia Christina...
performing Nilsson's composition "Daddy's Song." (This is followed by Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
's cameo as "The Critic," who dismisses the 1920s-style tune as "pretty white.")
With the success of Nilsson's RCA recordings, Tower re-issued or re-packaged many of their early Nilsson recordings in various formats. All of these re-issues failed to chart, including a 1969 single "Good Times".
Chart success
Nilsson's next album, HarryHarry (album)
Harry Nilsson's third album for RCA was Harry, released in August 1969. It was his first album to get onto Billboard Magazine's Billboard 200 chart, reaching #120 and remaining there for 15 weeks....
(1969), was his first to hit the charts, and also provided a Top 40 single with "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City" (written as a contender for the theme to Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy
Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. It was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role. Notable smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John...
), used in the Sophia Loren movie La Mortadella
Lady Liberty (film)
Lady Liberty is a 1972 French-Italian comedy film directed by Mario Monicelli and starring Sophia Loren, William Devane, Gigi Proietti, Susan Sarandon and Danny DeVito.-Plot summary:...
(1971) (US title: Lady Liberty). While the album still presented Nilsson as primarily a songwriter, his astute choice of cover material included, this time, a song by a then-little-known composer named Randy Newman
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his mordant pop songs and for film scores....
, "Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear." Nilsson was so impressed with Newman's talent that he devoted his entire next album to Newman compositions, with Newman himself playing piano behind Nilsson's multi-tracked vocals. The result, Nilsson Sings Newman
Nilsson Sings Newman
Nilsson Sings Newman is an album of Randy Newman compositions sung by Harry Nilsson, with Newman on piano. The record was not a great commercial success, but it was critically praised, and helped Newman gain notice...
(1970), was commercially disappointing but was named Record of the Year by Stereo Review magazine and provided momentum to Newman's career.
Nilsson's next project was an animated film, The Point!
The Point!
- Musical play :In 1975, Esquire Jauchem, Artistic Director of the Boston Repertory Theater, approached Harry Nilsson about creating a stage musical of "The Point!" Although Nilsson said he had been asked many times and had always turned down the request, this time he granted his permission...
, created with animation director Fred Wolf
Fred Wolf
Fred Wolf is an American animator. His works include the 1967 short subject The Box, for which he won an Academy Award; television specials such as The Point! and Free to Be... You and Me, and television series such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, James Bond Jr., and Sarah Ferguson's Budgie the...
, and broadcast on ABC television on February 2, 1971, as an "ABC Movie of the Week
ABC Movie of the Week
The ABC Movie of the Week is a weekly television anthology series, featuring made-for-TV movies, that aired on the ABC network in various permutations from 1969 to 1975.-History:...
". Nilsson's album of songs from The Point! was well received, and it spawned a hit single, "Me and My Arrow".
Later that year, Nilsson went to England with producer Richard Perry
Richard Perry
Richard Perry is an American music producer. Perry began as a performer in his adolescence, but shifted gears after graduating college and rose through the late 1960s and early 1970s to become a highly successful and popular record producer with over a dozen gold records to his credit by 1982...
to record what became the most successful album of his career. Nilsson Schmilsson
Nilsson Schmilsson
-Personnel:* Harry Nilsson – piano on 1 5 8 10, vocals, Mellotrons on 2 4, organ on 3, harmonica on 8, electric piano on 9* Jim Gordon – drums on 1 2 5 8 9, percussion on 7 9* Klaus Voormann – bass on 1 5 6 8, rhythm guitar on 2 9, acoustic guitar on 4...
yielded three very stylistically different hit singles. The first was a cover of Badfinger
Badfinger
Badfinger were a British rock band consisting originally of Pete Ham, Ron Griffiths, Mike Gibbins and Tom Evans, active from 1968 to 1983, and evolving from The Iveys, formed by Ham, Griffiths and David "Dai" Jenkins in Swansea, Wales, in the early 1960s. Joey Molland joined the group in 1969,...
's song "Without You" (by Pete Ham and Tom Evans
Tom Evans (musician)
Thomas Evans Jr was a musician who was most notable for his work with the band Badfinger.- Badfinger :In 1969, The Iveys changed their name to Badfinger and Paul McCartney of The Beatles gave the group a boost by offering them his song "Come and Get It" which he produced for the band...
), featuring a highly emotional arrangement and soaring vocals to match, a performance that was rewarded with Nilsson's second Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
.
The second single was "Coconut
Coconut (song)
"Coconut" is a song written and first recorded by Harry Nilsson.-Original version:The third single from his 1971 album, Nilsson Schmilsson, it reached #8 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, and it features three distinct characters , all sung in different voices by Nilsson...
", a novelty calypso
Calypso music
Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago from African and European roots. The roots of the genre lay in the arrival of enslaved Africans, who, not being allowed to speak with each other, communicated through song...
number featuring three characters (the narrator, the sister, and the doctor) all sung in different voices by Nilsson. The song is best remembered for its chorus lyric, "Put de lime in de coconut, and drink 'em both up." Also notable is that the entire song is played using one chord, C 7th. "Coconut" was featured in Episode 81 (October 25, 1973) of The Flip Wilson Show
The Flip Wilson Show
The Flip Wilson Show is a variety show that aired in the U.S. on NBC from September 17, 1970 to June 27, 1974. The show starred American comedian Flip Wilson; the program was one of the first American television programs starring a black person in the title role to become highly successful with a...
. The song has since been featured in many other films and commercials. It was also used in a comedy skit on The Muppet Show
The Muppet Show
The Muppet Show is a British television programme produced by American puppeteer Jim Henson and featuring Muppets. After two pilot episodes were produced in 1974 and 1975, the show premiered on 5 September 1976 and five series were produced until 15 March 1981, lasting 120 episodes...
, which featured Kermit the Frog
Kermit the Frog
Kermit the Frog is puppeteer Jim Henson's most famous Muppet creation, first introduced in 1955. He is the protagonist of many Muppet projects, most notably as the host of The Muppet Show, and has appeared in various sketches on Sesame Street, in commercials and in public service announcements over...
in a hospital bed. The song was also used during the end credits of Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer and actor. In the early 1990s, he began his career as an independent filmmaker with films employing nonlinear storylines and the aestheticization of violence...
's Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs is an American crime film marking debut of director and writer Quentin Tarantino. It depicts the events before and after a botched diamond heist, but not the heist itself. Reservoir Dogs stars an ensemble cast: Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, and...
. George Carlin also made reference to "Coconut" in the live recording of "Occupation: Foole" dated 1973, singing "Put de lime in de coconut, de lemon in de Tidy Bowl." It also featured in the FOX television series Bones
Bones (TV series)
Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...
, episode "The Hole in The Heart"; is said to be the favorite song of a character killed in the episode and is sung by the remaining characters as they load his coffin into a hearse for transport home to England.
The third single, "Jump into the Fire", was raucous, screaming rock and roll, including a drum solo by Derek and the Dominos
Derek and the Dominos
Derek and the Dominos were a blues rock band formed in the spring of 1970 by guitarist and singer Eric Clapton with keyboardist Bobby Whitlock, bassist Carl Radle and drummer Jim Gordon, who had all played with Clapton in Delaney, Bonnie & Friends...
' Jim Gordon
Jim Gordon (musician)
James Beck "Jim" Gordon is an American recording artist, musician and songwriter. The Grammy Award winner was one of the most requested session drummers in the late 1960s and 1970s, recording albums with many well-known musicians of the time, and was the drummer in the blues-rock supergroup Derek...
and a bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
detuning by Herbie Flowers
Herbie Flowers
Herbie Flowers is an English musician specialising in bass guitar, double-bass and tuba. He is noted as a member of Blue Mink, T...
. The song was used during the "Sunday, May 11, 1980", sequence in the 1990 film Goodfellas
Goodfellas
Goodfellas is a 1990 American crime film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is a film adaptation of the 1986 non-fiction book Wiseguy by Nicholas Pileggi, who co-wrote the screenplay with Scorsese...
- and also in the 2006 film A Good Year
A Good Year
A Good Year is a 2006 British romantic comedy film, set in London and Provence. It was directed by Ridley Scott, with an international cast including Russell Crowe, Marion Cotillard, Didier Bourdon, Abbie Cornish and Albert Finney...
.
Nilsson followed quickly with Son of Schmilsson
Son of Schmilsson
Son of Schmilsson is the eighth album by Harry Nilsson. Nilsson was being pressured to produce a follow-up album similar to his 1971 breakthrough, Nilsson Schmilsson, but, instead, he cut a more eccentric album....
(1972), released while its predecessor was still in the charts. Besides the problem of competing with himself, Nilsson's decision to give free rein to his bawdiness and bluntness on this release alienated some of his earlier, more conservative fan base. With lyrics like "I sang my balls off for you, baby", "Roll the world over / And give her a kiss and a feel", and the notorious "You're breaking my heart / You're tearing it apart / So fuck you"- a reference to his ongoing divorce, Nilsson had traveled far afield from his earlier work. Still, the album reached 12 in the US Hot 100 and the single "Spaceman" was a Top 40 hit. However, the follow-up single "Remember (Christmas)" stalled at #53. A third single, the tongue-in-cheek C&W
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
send up "Joy", was issued on RCA's country imprint Green and credited to Buck Earle, but it failed to chart.
Maverick
Nilsson's disregard for commercialism in favor of artistic satisfaction showed itself in his next release, A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the NightA Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night
A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night is an album of classic 20th-century standards sung by Harry Nilsson. The album was arranged by Sinatra arranger Gordon Jenkins, and produced by Derek Taylor....
(1973). Performing a selection of pop standards by the likes of Berlin
Irving Berlin
Irving Berlin was an American composer and lyricist of Jewish heritage, widely considered one of the greatest songwriters in American history.His first hit song, "Alexander's Ragtime Band", became world famous...
, Kalmar
Bert Kalmar
Bert Kalmar was a Jewish American lyricist.He was born in New York, New York. He ran away from home at the age of 10 to become a magician at a tent show, and retained an interest in magic all his life. He never got much of an education, but decided to make a career in show business...
and Ruby
Harry Ruby
Harry Ruby was a Jewish American songwriter and screenwriter.After failing in his early ambition to become a professional baseball player,...
, Nilsson sang in front of an orchestra arranged and conducted by veteran Gordon Jenkins
Gordon Jenkins
Gordon Hill Jenkins was an American arranger, composer and pianist who was an influential figure in popular music in the 1940s and 1950s, renowned for his lush string arrangements...
in sessions produced by Derek Taylor. This musical endeavor did not do well commercially. The session was filmed, and broadcast as a television special by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the UK.
1973 found Nilsson back in California, and when John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
moved there during his separation from Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
, the two musicians rekindled their earlier friendship. Lennon was intent upon producing Nilsson's next album, much to Nilsson's delight. However, their time together in California became known much more for heavy drinking and drug use than it did for musical collaboration. In a widely publicized incident, they were ejected from the Troubadour nightclub in West Hollywood
West Hollywood, California
West Hollywood, a city of Los Angeles County, California, was incorporated on November 29, 1984, with a population of 34,399 at the 2010 census. 41% of the city's population is made up of gay men according to a 2002 demographic analysis by Sara Kocher Consulting for the City of West Hollywood...
for drunken heckling of the Smothers Brothers
Smothers Brothers
The Smothers Brothers are Thomas and Richard , American singers, musicians, comedians and folk heroes. The brothers' trademark act was performing folk songs , which usually led to arguments between the siblings...
. Both men also caused property damage during binges, with Lennon trashing a bedroom in Lou Adler
Lou Adler
Lou Adler is an American record producer, manager, and director.-Life and career:Adler was born in Chicago, Illinois in December 1933, and raised in East Los Angeles. In 1964, Adler founded and co-owned Dunhill Records. He was President of the label as well as the chief record producer from 1964...
's house, and Nilsson throwing a bottle through a thirty-foot-high hotel window.
To make matters worse, Nilsson ruptured a vocal cord during the sessions for this album, but he hid the injury due to fear that Lennon would call a halt to the production. The resulting album was Pussy Cats
Pussy Cats
Pussy Cats is the tenth album by Harry Nilsson, released in 1974. It was produced by John Lennon during his "Lost Weekend" period. The album title was inspired by the bad press Nilsson and Lennon were getting at the time for being drunk and rowdy in Los Angeles...
. In an effort to clean up, Lennon, Nilsson and Ringo Starr first rented a house together, then Lennon and Nilsson left for New York.
After the relative failure of his latest two albums, RCA Records considered dropping Nilsson's contract. In a show of friendship, Lennon accompanied Nilsson to negotiations, and both intimated to RCA that Lennon and Starr might want to sign with them, once their Apple Records
Apple Records
Apple Records is a record label founded by The Beatles in 1968, as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mary Hopkin, James Taylor, Badfinger, and Billy Preston...
contracts with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
expired in 1975, but would not be interested if Nilsson were no longer with the label. RCA took the hint and re-signed Nilsson (adding a bonus clause, to apply to each new album completed), but neither Lennon nor Starr signed with RCA.
Nilsson's voice had mostly recovered by his next release, Duit on Mon Dei
Duit on Mon Dei
Duit On Mon Dei is the eleventh album by Harry Nilsson. The original title for this album was "God's Greatest Hits" but RCA didn't approve. The title is a punning spelling of Do It On Monday, playing on the British Monarchy's motto Dieu et mon droit...
(1975), but neither it nor its follow-ups, Sandman
Sandman (album)
Sandman is the twelfth album by Harry Nilsson.-Track listing:All music and lyrics by Harry Nilsson, except where noted.#"I'll Take a Tango" – 2:58#"Something True" – 2:54...
and ...That's the Way It Is
...That's the Way It Is
...That's the Way It Is is the thirteenth album by Harry Nilsson.The album includes a couple of original songs, but mostly consists of cover tunes...
(both 1976) met with chart success. Finally, Nilsson recorded what he later considered to be his favorite album, 1977's Knnillssonn
Knnillssonn
Knnillssonn is the fourteenth album by Harry Nilsson. This album was Nilsson's personal favorite while recording it, as his voice had recovered from the Pussy Cats sessions, his songs were developed and his singing was in top form. RCA agreed and had prepared to promote the album heavily as a...
. With his voice strong again, and his songs exploring musical territory reminiscent of Harry or The Point!, Nilsson anticipated Knnillssonn to be a comeback album. RCA seemed to agree, and promised Nilsson a substantial marketing campaign for the album. However, the death of Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
caused RCA to ignore everything except meeting demand for Presley's back catalog, and the promised marketing push never happened. This, combined with RCA releasing a Nilsson Greatest Hits collection without consulting him, prompted Nilsson to leave the label.
London flat
Nilsson's 1970s London flat at Flat #12, 9 Curzon Street on the edge of MayfairMayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
, was a two-bedroom apartment decorated by the design company that ex-Beatle Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
and Robin Cruikshank owned at that time. Nilsson cumulatively spent several years at the flat, which was located near Apple Records, the Playboy Club, Tramps disco and the homes of friends and business associates. Nilsson's work and interests took him to the US for extended periods, and while he was away he lent his place to numerous musician friends. During one of his absences, ex-Mamas and Papas singer Cass Elliot
Cass Elliot
Cass Elliot , born Ellen Naomi Cohen and also known as Mama Cass, was an American singer and member of The Mamas & the Papas. After the group broke up, she released five solo albums. Elliot was found dead in her room in London, England, from an apparent heart attack after two weeks of sold-out...
and a few members of her tour group stayed at the flat while she performed solo at the London Palladium, headlining with her Torch Songs and "Don't Call Me Mama Anymore." Following a strenuous performance with encores, Elliot returned to the flat to relax and sleep and was discovered in one of the bedrooms, dead of heart failure at 32, on July 29, 1974.
On September 7, 1978, The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
's drummer Keith Moon
Keith Moon
Keith John Moon was an English musician, best known for being the drummer of the English rock group The Who. He gained acclaim for his exuberant and innovative drumming style, and notoriety for his eccentric and often self-destructive behaviour, earning him the nickname "Moon the Loon". Moon...
returned to the same room in the flat after a night out, and died from an overdose of Clomethiazole
Clomethiazole
Clomethiazole is a sedative and hypnotic originally developed by Hoffmann-Le Roche in the 1930s. The drug is used in treating and preventing symptoms of acute alcohol withdrawal....
, a prescribed anti-alcohol drug. Nilsson, distraught over another friend's death in his flat, and having little need for the property, sold it to Moon's bandmate Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
and consolidated his life in Los Angeles.
Winding down
Nilsson's musical work after leaving RCA Victor was sporadic. He wrote a musical, Zapata, with Perry Botkin, Jr., libretto by Allan KatzAllan Katz
Allan Katz, born in Chicago, is a writer, producer, actor, and director.He began his writing career as an advertising copywriter. In 1970 he created the original award-winning campaign for the popcorn snack Screaming Yellow Zonkers which was the first major product to be packaged in a predominantly...
, which was produced and directed by longtime friend Bert Convy
Bert Convy
Bernard Whalen "Bert" Convy was an Emmy Award winning American actor, singer, game show host and panelist known for his tenure as the host for Tattletales, Super Password, and Win, Lose or Draw.-Early life:...
. The show was mounted at the Goodspeed Opera House
Goodspeed Musicals
Goodspeed Musicals, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and advancement of musical theater and the creation of new works, was formed in 1959 to restore the Goodspeed Opera House, located in East Haddam, Connecticut, to its original Victorian appearance. Each year, Goodspeed...
in East Haddam, Connecticut
East Haddam, Connecticut
East Haddam is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,333 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water....
, but never had another production. He wrote all the songs for Robert Altman
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
's movie-musical Popeye
Popeye (film)
Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
(1980), the score of which met with unfavorable reviews. Nilsson's Popeye compositions included several songs that were representative of Nilsson's acclaimed "Point" era, such as "Everything is Food" and "Sweethaven". The song "He Needs Me" featured years later in the film Punch-Drunk Love
Punch-Drunk Love
Punch-Drunk Love is a 2002 romantic comedy-drama written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Adam Sandler and Emily Watson. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Luis Guzmán also appear....
. Nilsson recorded one more album, Flash Harry
Flash Harry (album)
Flash Harry is the sixteenth and final album by Harry Nilsson. Originally released only in the UK and Japan, it has never been released in the U.S. . Aside from bootlegs the album has never been released on CD. When the album was originally released it received minimal support from Harry's label...
, co-produced by Bruce Robb
Bruce Robb (producer)
Bruce Robb is an American musician, record producer, engineer, and music supervisor. He is most recognized for his active role in the formative years of the music industry: first as a member of “The Robbs” during the music revolution of the 1960s, then as a founder of Cherokee Studios in the...
and Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper
Steve Cropper , also known as Steve "The Colonel" Cropper, is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist of the Stax Records house band, Booker T...
, which was released in the UK but not in the US. From this point onward, Nilsson increasingly began referring to himself as a "retired musician".
Nilsson was profoundly affected by the death of John Lennon on December 8, 1980. He joined the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence , and the Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence , its sister organization, are two parts of a national, non-profit gun control advocacy organization.-History:...
and overcame his preference for privacy to make appearances for gun control fundraising. He began to appear at Beatlefest conventions and he would get on stage with the Beatlefest house band "Liverpool" to either sing some of his own songs or "Give Peace a Chance."
After a long hiatus from the studio, Nilsson started recording sporadically once again in the mid to late 1980s. Most of these recordings were commissioned songs for movies or television shows. One notable exception was his work on a Yoko Ono Lennon tribute album, Every Man Has A Woman (1984) (Polydor); another was a cover of "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah
Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah
"Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" is a song from the Disney 1946 live action and animated movie Song of the South, sung by James Baskett. With music by Allie Wrubel and lyrics by Ray Gilbert, "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" won the Academy Award for Best Original Song...
" recorded for Hal Willner
Hal Willner
Hal Willner is an American music producer working in recording, films, TV and live events. He is best known for assembling tribute albums and events featuring a wide variety of artists and musical styles...
's 1988 tribute album
Tribute album
A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films
Stay Awake (album)
Stay Awake: Various Interpretations of Music from Vintage Disney Films is a 1988 tribute album recorded by various artists performing songs from Disney films...
. Nilsson donated his performance royalties from the song to the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.
In 1985 Nilsson set up a production company, Hawkeye, to oversee various film, TV and multimedia projects he was involved in. He appointed his friend, satirist and screenwriter Terry Southern
Terry Southern
Terry Southern was an American author, essayist, screenwriter and university lecturer, noted for his distinctive satirical style...
, as one of the principals. They collaborated on a number of screenplays including Obits (a Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane
Citizen Kane is a 1941 American drama film, directed by and starring Orson Welles. Many critics consider it the greatest American film of all time, especially for its innovative cinematography, music and narrative structure. Citizen Kane was Welles' first feature film...
-style story about a journalist investigating an obituary notice) and The Telephone
The Telephone (film)
The Telephone is a 1988 independent film comedy starring Whoopi Goldberg as an out-of-work actress who starts doing some prank phone calls which created a chain of events. Actor Rip Torn makes his directorial debut with this film, with Elliott Gould and John Heard in supporting roles...
, a comedy about an unhinged unemployed actor.
The Telephone was virtually the only Hawkeye project that made it to the screen. It had been written with Robin Williams
Robin Williams
Robin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian. Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand-up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
in mind but he turned it down; comedian-actress Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
then signed on, with Southern's friend Rip Torn
Rip Torn
Elmore Rual "Rip" Torn, Jr. , is an American actor of stage, screen and television.Torn received an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his role in the 1983 film Cross Creek. His work includes the role of Artie, the producer, on The Larry Sanders Show, for which he was nominated...
directing, but the project was troubled. Torn battled with Goldberg, who interfered in the production and constantly digressed from the script during shooting, and Torn was forced to plead with her to perform takes that stuck to the screenplay. Torn, Southern and Nilsson put together their own version of the film, which screened at the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
in early 1988, but it was overtaken by the "official" version from the studio, and this version premiered to poor reviews in late January 1988. The project reportedly had some later success when adapted as a theatre piece in Germany.
In 1990, Hawkeye foundered and Nilsson found himself in a dire financial situation after it was discovered that his financial adviser Cindy Sims had embezzled all the funds he had earned as a recording artist. The Nilssons were left with $300 in the bank and a mountain of debt, while Sims served less than two years and was released from prison in 1994 without making restitution.
In 1991, the Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
CD For Our Children, a compilation of children's music performed by celebrities to benefit the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing pediatric HIV infection and eliminating pediatric AIDS through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs...
, included Nilsson's original composition "Blanket for a Sail," recorded at the Shandaliza Recording Studio in Los Angeles.
Nilsson made his last concert appearance September 1, 1992, when he joined Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band on stage at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada to sing "Without You" with Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
handling the high notes. Afterwards, an emotional Ringo Starr embraced Nilsson on stage.
Death
Nilsson suffered a massive heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in 1993. After surviving that, he began pressing his old label, RCA, to release a boxed-set retrospective of his career, and resumed recording, attempting to complete one final album. He finished the vocal tracks for the album with producer Mark Hudson, who still retains the tapes of that session.
Nilsson died of heart failure on January 15, 1994 in his Agoura Hills, California
Agoura Hills, California
Agoura Hills is a city in Los Angeles County, California, and has the ZIP code 91301. The population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, down from 20,537 at the 2000 census. It is located in the eastern Conejo Valley between the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica Mountains. This city on the Ventura...
, home.
In 1995, the 2-CD anthology he worked on with RCA, Personal Best, was released.
Legacy
Nilsson is the subject of a 2006 documentary, Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)
Who is Harry Nilsson... is a documentary about the musician Harry Nilsson that premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in 2006...
produced by David Leaf
David Leaf
David Leaf is an American writer, producer and director known for documentaries, music programs and pop culture retrospectives. Among his best known documentaries are The Night James Brown Saved Boston , The U.S. vs. John Lennon and Beautiful Dreamer: Brian Wilson and the Story of SMiLE...
and John Schienfeld. The film was screened in 2006 at the Seattle International Film Festival and the Santa Barbara Film Festival. In August 2006, the film received its Los Angeles premiere when it was screened at the 7th Annual Mods & Rockers Film Festival
Mods & Rockers Film Festival
The Mods & Rockers Film Festival is an annual Los Angeles film festival that celebrates rock culture. It is presented by the non-profit cultural organization American Cinematheque....
followed by a panel discussion about Nilsson featuring the filmmakers and two friends of Nilsson, producer Richard Perry
Richard Perry
Richard Perry is an American music producer. Perry began as a performer in his adolescence, but shifted gears after graduating college and rose through the late 1960s and early 1970s to become a highly successful and popular record producer with over a dozen gold records to his credit by 1982...
and attorney/executive producer Lee Blackman.
The filmmakers re-edited the film with found rare footage of Nilsson, further interviews, and family photographs, and finally released it on September 17, 2010 at selected theaters in the United States. A DVD, including additional footage not in the theatrical release, was released on October 26, 2010.
, Nilsson's final album, tentatively titled Papa's Got a Brown New Robe (produced by Mark Hudson) has not been released, though several demos from the album are available on promotional CDs and online.
The musical Everyday Rapture
Everyday Rapture
Everyday Rapture is a musical with a book written by Sherie Rene Scott and Dick Scanlan and music by various composers. It ran Off-Broadway in 2009 and opened on Broadway in 2010...
features three songs by Nilsson.
Nilsson was survived by his third wife, Una (née O'Keeffe), and their six children (Annie, Beau, Ben, Kief, Olivia, Oscar), his son Zachary Nine Nilsson from his marriage to Diane Clatworthy, and one grandson (Caleb). He was married to Sandy Maganiello (1964 to 1966), Diane Clatworthy (1969 to 1974) and Una O'Keeffe (1976 to his passing in 1994).
Awards and nominations
Nilsson won two Grammy AwardGrammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
s. He received several more Grammy nominations for the album Nilsson Schmilsson
Nilsson Schmilsson
-Personnel:* Harry Nilsson – piano on 1 5 8 10, vocals, Mellotrons on 2 4, organ on 3, harmonica on 8, electric piano on 9* Jim Gordon – drums on 1 2 5 8 9, percussion on 7 9* Klaus Voormann – bass on 1 5 6 8, rhythm guitar on 2 9, acoustic guitar on 4...
.
The New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
rated Nilsson's cover of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talking" #51 on their list of the 100 Best Cover Songs of All Time.
Tribute albums
- Nilsson by Tipton (1970, Warner Bros. Records), Although it may not be considered a tribute, it featured George Tipton conducting instrumental versions of 11 Nilsson songs.
- For The Love of Harry: Everybody Sings NilssonFor the Love of Harry: Everybody Sings NilssonFor The Love of Harry: Everybody Sings Nilsson, released in 1995, is a tribute album to Harry Nilsson recorded and released after his death. Proceeds went to the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.-Track listing:-External links:*...
(1995, MusicMasters/BMG), featured Nilsson's songs performed by Ringo StarrRingo StarrRichard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
, Stevie NicksStevie NicksStephanie Lynn "Stevie" Nicks is an American singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Fleetwood Mac and an extensive solo career, which collectively have produced over forty Top 50 hits and sold over 140 million albums...
, Richard BaroneRichard BaroneRichard Barone is a rock musician born in Tampa, Florida who gained attention as frontman for The Bongos. He works as a songwriter, arranger, author, director, and producer, releases albums as a solo artist, tours, and has created major concert events at Carnegie Hall, Hollywood Bowl and New York's...
, Brian WilsonBrian WilsonBrian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, Aimee MannAimee MannAimee Mann is an American rock singer-songwriter, guitarist and bassist.-Early life:Aimee Mann grew up in Bon Air, Virginia, graduated from Open High School in 1978 and attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, but dropped out to sing with her first punk rock band, the Young Snakes...
, Fred SchneiderFred SchneiderFrederick William "Fred" Schneider III is an American rock singer, best known as the frontman of the rock band The B-52's, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well-known for his sprechgesang which he developed from reciting poetry over guitars.-Early life:Schneider was born in Newark,...
, and others, with proceeds benefitting the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.
- "Pussy Cats" Starring The Walkmen. The whole of the Pussy CatsPussy CatsPussy Cats is the tenth album by Harry Nilsson, released in 1974. It was produced by John Lennon during his "Lost Weekend" period. The album title was inspired by the bad press Nilsson and Lennon were getting at the time for being drunk and rowdy in Los Angeles...
album covered by The WalkmenThe WalkmenThe Walkmen are an American indie rock band, with members based in New York City and Philadelphia. The band formed in 2000 with three members from Jonathan Fire*Eater—Paul Maroon , Walter Martin , and Matt Barrick —and two from The Recoys, Peter Bauer and Hamilton Leithauser . All but Bauer...
.
- I'll Never Leave You: A Tribute to Harry Nilsson (2005 Wood Records). A percentage of profits from sales of the CD went to benefit Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
.
- Peter DizozzaPeter DizozzaPeter William Dizozza is a music composer who also produces supplemental material as a writer, pianist, performer, photographer, and filmmaker. Since 2000 he has been the director of the WAH Theater at the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center.Peter William Dizozza was born on September 5, 1958 in...
: "Without Her" - Hilary Levitt: "Down"
- Shank: "Jump Into the Fire"
- OrimaR2 featuring NitWiT: "I'd Rather Be Dead"
- The Neshama Alma Band: "Ambush"
- Buzzsaw and the Shavings: "Best Friend"
- Matt Kinnison: "Coconut"
- LAM: "Driving Along"
- Johnny J with Vorgus: "Spaceman"
- Mary Jane: "Me And My Arrow"
- MWF: "I'll Never Leave You"
- Lolwolf: "Black Sails In The Moonlight"
- Charles Fyant: "The Moonbeam Song"
- Pinkie: "One"
- Linda Draper and Brian Wurschum: "The Lottery Song"
- David Spero Peligro: "It's a Jungle Out There"
- an additional track by The Spaceheaters.
- "Doris, Buzz and Friends" by John Krane (2008 Cloverbelly Records). Although no Nilsson tracks were featured, the digital version of this album paid tribute to the famous Nilsson Schmilsson album cover, and the robe worn by Krane in the cover photograph actually belonged to Harry Nilsson.
Filmography
Note: this section is for songs Nilsson recorded specifically for film and television projects, as well as his few acting roles. Later use of Nilsson recordings are listed in the next section.- Skidoo (1968) songs written and performed, soundtrack music composer, actor (bit role)
- The Ghost & Mrs. MuirThe Ghost & Mrs. Muir (TV series)The Ghost & Mrs. Muir is a situation comedy based on the 1947 film The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, which was based on the 1945 novel by R.A. Dick. It starred Hope Lange as Carolyn Muir, a young widow who rents Gull Cottage, near the fictional fishing village of Schooner Bay, Maine along with her two...
(1969 TV Series) acted and sang—He appeared in the episode "The Music Maker", and his character name was Tim Seagirt. He sang "Without Her" and "If Only I Could Touch Your Hand." - The Courtship of Eddie's FatherThe Courtship of Eddie's FatherThe Courtship of Eddie's Father is an American television sitcom based on the 1963 movie of the same name, which was based on the book written by Mark Toby...
(TV series, 1969–1972) theme song written and performed, incidental music - Midnight CowboyMidnight CowboyMidnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. It was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role. Notable smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John...
(1969) new version of "Everybody's Talkin'" performed - Jenny (1970) song "Waiting" written and performed
- The Point!The Point!- Musical play :In 1975, Esquire Jauchem, Artistic Director of the Boston Repertory Theater, approached Harry Nilsson about creating a stage musical of "The Point!" Although Nilsson said he had been asked many times and had always turned down the request, this time he granted his permission...
(1971) story, all songs written and performed - Son of DraculaSon of Dracula (1974 film)Son of Dracula is a British musical comedy film released in 1974 by Apple Films, starring Harry Nilsson and Ringo Starr. It is also the title of a Harry Nilsson album released in conjunction with the film. It includes Nilsson songs that were showcased in the film as well as portions of dialogue,...
(1974) actor (lead role), all songs performed - The World's Greatest LoverThe World's Greatest LoverThe World's Greatest Lover is a 1977 comedy film starring Gene Wilder and Carol Kane.-Plot:Set in the silent film era, Rainbow Studios figure they are losing revenue to a rival studio because they don't have Rudolph Valentino...
(1978) song "Ain't It Kinda Wonderful" performed - In God We Tru$tIn God We Tru$tIn God We Tru$t is a comedy film starring Marty Feldman, Louise Lasser and Peter Boyle. A biting religious satire, it was also produced, directed, and co-written by Marty Feldman.This was Andy Kaufman's first major role in a motion picture...
(1980) new version of "Good For God" performed - PopeyePopeye (film)Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
(1980) all songs written, except "I'm Popeye the Sailor Man" - Handgun (1983) song "Lay Down Your Arms" written and performed
- First ImpressionsFirst Impressions (TV series)First Impressions is a CBS situation comedy that aired from August 27, 1988 until October 1, 1988. The sitcom starred Brad Garrett in one of his first TV shows as Frank Dutton, the owner of an advertising agency in Omaha, Nebraska who does impressions to sell his commercials...
, (TV series, 1988) theme song co-written, performed - Camp CandyCamp CandyCamp Candy was a 1989-1992 animated television series produced by DiC Entertainment, with comedian John Candy providing the voice for an animated version of himself.-Overview:The show was set in a fictional summer camp run by Candy...
(TV series, animated, 1989–1991) theme song written, and performed with John CandyJohn CandyJohn Franklin Candy was a Canadian actor and comedian. He rose to fame as a member of the Toronto branch of The Second City and its related Second City Television series, and through his appearances in comedy films such as Stripes, Splash, Cool Runnings, The Great Outdoors, Spaceballs, and Uncle... - The Fisher KingThe Fisher King (film)The Fisher King is a 1991 American comedy-drama film written by Richard LaGravenese and directed by Terry Gilliam. It stars Jeff Bridges, Robin Williams, Mercedes Ruehl, Amanda Plummer and Michael Jeter...
(1991) song "How About You" performed - Me, Myself, and IMe, Myself and I (film)Me, Myself & I is a 1992 dark romantic comedy starring JoBeth Williams and George Segal. The movie is the directorial debut of editor and producer Pablo Ferro. Bill Macy, Shelley Hack and Ruth Gilbert also appear in this independent film shot in Ontario, Canada.-Cast:*JoBeth Williams ... Crazy...
(1992) song "Me, Myself and I" written and performed
In film and television
- The MonkeesThe Monkees (TV series)The Monkees is an American situation comedy that aired on NBC from September 1966 to March 1968. The series follows the adventures of four young men trying to make a name for themselves as rock 'n roll singers. The show introduced a number of innovative new-wave film techniques to series...
(1967, 2nd season) - "Cuddly Toy" (cover version by The MonkeesThe MonkeesThe Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
) - HeadHead (film)Head is a 1968 psychedelic comedy-adventure major motion picture, starring TV group The Monkees , and distributed by Columbia Pictures...
(1968) - "Daddy's Song" (cover version by The MonkeesThe MonkeesThe Monkees are an American pop rock group. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1966 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which aired from 1966 to 1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork,...
) - The Ghost & Mrs. Muir (TV series)The Ghost & Mrs. Muir (TV series)The Ghost & Mrs. Muir is a situation comedy based on the 1947 film The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, which was based on the 1945 novel by R.A. Dick. It starred Hope Lange as Carolyn Muir, a young widow who rents Gull Cottage, near the fictional fishing village of Schooner Bay, Maine along with her two...
1969 - "Without Her" and fragments of other songs - Midnight CowboyMidnight CowboyMidnight Cowboy is a 1969 American drama film based on the 1965 novel of the same name by James Leo Herlihy. It was written by Waldo Salt, directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman and newcomer Jon Voight in the title role. Notable smaller roles are filled by Sylvia Miles, John...
(1969) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - Dusty and Sweets McGee (1971) - "Don't Leave Me"
- La MortadellaLady Liberty (film)Lady Liberty is a 1972 French-Italian comedy film directed by Mario Monicelli and starring Sophia Loren, William Devane, Gigi Proietti, Susan Sarandon and Danny DeVito.-Plot summary:...
(1971) - "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City" - The Muppet ShowThe Muppet ShowThe Muppet Show is a British television programme produced by American puppeteer Jim Henson and featuring Muppets. After two pilot episodes were produced in 1974 and 1975, the show premiered on 5 September 1976 and five series were produced until 15 March 1981, lasting 120 episodes...
(1979, episode 410) - "Coconut" - All That JazzAll That JazzAll That Jazz is a 1979 American musical film directed by Bob Fosse. The screenplay by Robert Alan Aurthur and Fosse is a semi-autobiographical fantasy based on aspects of Fosse's life and career as dancer, choreographer and director. The film was inspired by Bob Fosse's manic effort to edit his...
(1979) - "Perfect Day" - Real LifeReal Life (film)Real Life is an American comedy film released in 1979. The first feature directed by Albert Brooks, who also co-authored the screenplay, it is a spoof of the 1973 reality television program An American Family and portrays a documentary filmmaker named Albert Brooks who attempts to live with and...
(1979) - "Jump Into the Fire" - PorridgePorridge (TV series)Porridge is a British situation comedy broadcast on BBC1 from 1974 to 1977, running for three series, two Christmas specials and a feature film. Written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, it stars Ronnie Barker and Richard Beckinsale as two inmates at the fictional HMP Slade in Cumberland...
(film version, 1979) - "Without You" - Zärtliche Chaoten II (1988) - "Without You"
- Only Fools And HorsesOnly Fools and HorsesOnly Fools and Horses is a British sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom between 1981 and 1991, with sporadic Christmas specials until 2003...
The Jolly Boys' OutingThe Jolly Boys' Outing"The Jolly Boys' Outing" is the eighth Christmas special episode of the BBC sit-com Only Fools and Horses, first screened on 25 December, 1989...
(1989) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - Private School for Girls (1983) - "You're Breakin' My Heart"
- GoodfellasGoodfellasGoodfellas is a 1990 American crime film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is a film adaptation of the 1986 non-fiction book Wiseguy by Nicholas Pileggi, who co-wrote the screenplay with Scorsese...
(1990) - "Jump Into the Fire" - Reservoir DogsReservoir DogsReservoir Dogs is an American crime film marking debut of director and writer Quentin Tarantino. It depicts the events before and after a botched diamond heist, but not the heist itself. Reservoir Dogs stars an ensemble cast: Harvey Keitel, Steve Buscemi, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, and...
(1992) - "Coconut" - Caroline (animated short, 1993) - "Caroline"
- Forrest GumpForrest GumpForrest Gump is a 1994 American epic comedy-drama romance film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Gary Sinise...
(1994) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - DuckmanDuckmanDuckman: Private Dick/Family Man is an American animated sitcom that aired from 1994–1997, created by Everett Peck and developed by Peck. The sitcom is based on characters created by Peck in his Dark Horse comic...
(1994 episode) - "Best Friend" - CasinoCasino (film)Casino is a 1995 crime drama film directed by Martin Scorsese. It is based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Nicholas Pileggi, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the film with Scorsese...
(1995) - "Without You" - SeinfeldSeinfeldSeinfeld is an American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, lasting nine seasons, and is now in syndication. It was created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, the latter starring as a fictionalized version of himself...
(1995 episode) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - Beverly Hills, 90210Beverly Hills, 90210Beverly Hills, 90210 is an American drama series that originally aired from October 4, 1990 to May 17, 2000 on Fox and was produced by Spelling Television in the United States, and subsequently on various networks around the world. It is the first series in the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise...
(1995 episode) - "Remember" - The CraftThe Craft (film)The Craft is a 1996 American supernatural teen horror film directed by Andrew Fleming and starring Robin Tunney, Rachel True, Fairuza Balk and Neve Campbell. The film's plot centers on a group of four teenage girls who pursue witchcraft and use it for their own gain...
(1996) - "Jump Into The Fire"(covered by Tripping Daisy) - Angel on My Shoulder (1997)
- ContactContact (film)Contact is a 1997 American science fiction drama film adapted from the Carl Sagan novel of the same name and directed by Robert Zemeckis. Both Sagan and wife Ann Druyan wrote the story outline for the film adaptation of Contact....
(1997) - "Spaceman" - Ellen FosterEllen FosterEllen Foster is a 1987 novel by American novelist Kaye Gibbons. It was a selection of Oprah's Book Club in October 1997.-Plot introduction:The novel follows the story of Ellen, the first person narrator, a young white American girl living under unfavorable conditions somewhere in the rural...
(1997) - "Remember" - The Ice StormThe Ice Storm (film)The Ice Storm is a 1997 drama film directed by Ang Lee, based on the 1994 novel of the same name by Rick Moody.The film features an ensemble cast of Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Tobey Maguire, Christina Ricci, Elijah Wood, and Sigourney Weaver...
(1997) - "Coconut" - Practical MagicPractical MagicPractical Magic is a 1998 American fantasy film directed by Griffin Dunne and starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as witches who carry on a family legacy of witchcraft and tragedy. The film is based on a book of the same name by Alice Hoffman...
(1998) - "Coconut" - You've Got MailYou've Got MailYou've Got Mail is a 1998 American romantic comedy film directed by Nora Ephron, starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. It was written by Nora and Delia Ephron based on the play Parfumerie by Miklós László. The film is about two letter-writing lovers who are completely unaware that their sweetheart is in...
(1998) - "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City", "Remember", "The Puppy Song", "Over The Rainbow" - DickDick (film)Dick is a 1999 American comedy film directed by Andrew Fleming from a script he wrote with Sheryl Longin. It is a parody retelling the events of the Watergate scandal which ended the presidency of Richard Nixon and features several cast members from Saturday Night Live.Kirsten Dunst and Michelle...
(1999) - "Coconut" - Futurama - Brannigan Begin AgainBrannigan Begin Again"Brannigan, Begin Again" is the second episode in the second production season of Futurama. It was originally aired in North America on November 28, 1999 as the sixth episode in the second broadcast season...
(1999) - "Everybody's Talkin" - MagnoliaMagnolia (film)Magnolia is a 1999 American drama film written, produced, and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, narrated by Ricky Jay, and starring Tom Cruise, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, John C. Reilly, and Jason Robards in his last feature film appearance...
(1999) - "One" (Aimee Mann's cover version opens with a sample from Cuddly Toy) - High FidelityHigh Fidelity (film)High Fidelity is a 2000 American comedy-drama film directed by Stephen Frears and starring John Cusack and the Danish actress Iben Hjejle. The film is based on the 1995 British novel of the same name by Nick Hornby, with the setting moved from London to Chicago and the name of the lead character...
(2000) - "The Moonbeam Song" - Bridget Jones' Diary (2001) - "Without You"
- Riding in Cars with BoysRiding in Cars with BoysRiding in Cars with Boys is a 2001 film based on the autobiography of the same name by Beverly Donofrio, about a woman who overcame difficulties including being a teen mother to earning a master's degree from the span of 1961 to 1986. It stars Drew Barrymore, Steve Zahn, Brittany Murphy, and James...
(2001) - "Everything's Got 'Em", "Me And My Arrow" - Black BooksBlack BooksBlack Books is a British sitcom television series created by Dylan Moran and Graham Linehan and produced by Nira Park, first broadcast on Channel 4 from 2000 to 2004...
- "Everybody's Talkin'" - Punch-Drunk LovePunch-Drunk LovePunch-Drunk Love is a 2002 romantic comedy-drama written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, starring Adam Sandler and Emily Watson. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Luis Guzmán also appear....
(2002) - "He Needs Me" (Shelley DuvallShelley DuvallShelley Alexis Duvall is an American film and television actress best known for her roles in The Shining, Popeye, Thieves Like Us and 3 Women....
's version from PopeyePopeye (film)Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
) - The Rules of AttractionThe Rules of Attraction (film)The Rules of Attraction is a 2002 satirical dark comedy film directed by Roger Avary, based on the novel of the same name by Bret Easton Ellis. It stars James van der Beek, Shannyn Sossamon, Ian Somerhalder, Jessica Biel, and Kip Pardue.-Plot:...
(2002) - "Without You" - Shanghai KnightsShanghai KnightsShanghai Knights is a 2003 action-comedy film. It is the sequel to Shanghai Noon. It was directed by David Dobkin and written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar.-Plot:...
(2003) - "One" - Good Boy!Good Boy!Good Boy! is a 2003 film produced by Jim Henson Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, starring talking alien dogs. The film stars Liam Aiken as Owen Baker, as well as Matthew Broderick, Delta Burke, Donald Faison, Cheech Marin, Brittany Murphy, Vanessa Redgrave, and Carl Reiner were the voice cast for...
(2003) - "The Puppy Song" - Daddy Day CareDaddy Day CareDaddy Day Care is a 2003 American comedy film, starring Eddie Murphy. It was written by Geoff Rodkey and was directed by Steve Carr. It was released in theaters on May 9, 2003. It was produced by Revolution Studios and released by Columbia Pictures...
(2003) - Jeff Garlin entertains the kids with "Coconut" - That '70s ShowThat '70s ShowThat '70s Show is an American television period sitcom that centers on the lives of a group of teenage friends living in the fictional suburban town of Point Place, Wisconsin, from May 17, 1976, to December 31, 1979...
(2004) - "Best Friend" - Around the BendAround the BendAround the Bend is a 2004 road movie written and directed by Jordan Roberts. The film is inspired by the relationship between Roberts and the absentee father he barely knew.-Main cast:*Michael Caine – Henry Lair*Jonah Bobo – Zach Lair...
(2004) - "Daddy's Song" - The Girl Next Door (2004) - "Jump Into the Fire"
- HouseHouse (TV series)House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
(2004) - "One" - Max & Paddy's Road To Nowhere (UK) (2004, Series 1, episode 2) - "Everybody's Talkin'"
- Coke with Lime Ad (2005) - altered version of "Coconut"
- Breakfast on PlutoBreakfast on Pluto (film)Breakfast on Pluto is a 2005 comedy-drama film directed by Neil Jordan and based on the novel of the same name by Patrick McCabe, as adapted by Jordan and McCabe...
(2005) - "Me And My Arrow", "You're Breakin' My Heart", "The Moonbeam Song" - Beyond Our ControlBeyond Our Control (TV series)Beyond Our Control was the title of an American youth-produced television series that aired on local NBC affiliate WNDU-TV in South Bend, Indiana for 20 seasons from 1967 to 1986...
(1967–1986) - "Remember" Closing theme for the series - Little ManLittle Man (film)Little Man is a 2006 American comedy film, directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans. It stars Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Kerry Washington, and Tracy Morgan. Little Man was released on DVD on November 7, 2006.- Plot :...
(2006) - "Best Friend" - CrankCrank (film)Crank is a 2006 American comedy movie, written and directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, and starring Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Efren Ramirez, and Dwight Yoakam...
(2006) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of KazakhstanBorat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of KazakhstanBorat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, often referred to simply as Borat, is a 2006 mockumentary comedy film directed by Larry Charles and distributed by 20th Century Fox...
(2006) - "Everybody's Talkin'" - Rob & BigRob & BigRob & Big is an American reality television series that follows the lives of professional skateboarder/actor/producer Rob Dyrdek and his best friend and bodyguard Christopher "Big Black" Boykin...
(2006) - "Best Friend" - American Dad (2006 episode 2.08) - "Everybody's Talkin'"
- A Good YearA Good YearA Good Year is a 2006 British romantic comedy film, set in London and Provence. It was directed by Ridley Scott, with an international cast including Russell Crowe, Marion Cotillard, Didier Bourdon, Abbie Cornish and Albert Finney...
(2007) - "How Can I Be Sure Of You" "Jump Into The Fire", "Gotta Get Up" - Unison TV Advert (2007) - "One"
- DigitalUK TV Advert (2007) - "Everybody's Talkin'"
- My Name is EarlMy Name Is EarlMy Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States...
(2008 episode) - "Me And My Arrow" - Life on Mars (2008 episode) - "Spaceman"
- Confessions Of A ShopaholicConfessions of a Shopaholic (film)Confessions of a Shopaholic is a 2009 American romantic comedy film based on the Shopaholic series of novels by Sophie Kinsella. Directed by P. J. Hogan, the film stars Isla Fisher as the shopaholic journalist and Hugh Dancy as her boss.-Plot:...
(2009) - "Don't Forget Me" (covered by Macy GrayMacy GrayMacy Gray is a Grammy Award-winning American R&B and soul singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress, famed for her distinctive raspy voice, and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday and Betty Davis.Gray has released five studio albums, with her fifth studio album, The Sellout,...
) - 44 Inch Chest44 Inch Chest44 Inch Chest is a 2009 British film starring Ray Winstone, John Hurt, Tom Wilkinson and Ian McShane. The script was written by Louis Mellis and David Scinto, who wrote another British gangster drama Sexy Beast, and produced by Richard Brown and Steve Golin...
(2009) - "Without You" - You Don't Know Jack (film)You Don't Know Jack (film)You Don't Know Jack is a 2010 television film directed by Barry Levinson and starring Al Pacino as Jack Kevorkian, based in part on the book, "Between the Dying and the Dead: Dr. Jack Kevorkian's Life And The Battle To Legalize Euthanasia"...
(2010) - "Early in the Morning" - Bones (TV series)Bones (TV series)Bones is an American crime drama television series that premiered on the Fox Network on September 13, 2005. The show is based on forensic anthropology and forensic archaeology, with each episode focusing on an FBI case file concerning the mystery behind human remains brought by FBI Special Agent...
, 2011) = "Coconut" - Red Dog (film)Red Dog (film)Red Dog is a 2011 Australian family film directed by Kriv Stenders. The film is based on a true story from the novel Red Dog. At the 2011 Inside Film Awards Red Dog was nominated in nine categories and won seven, including Best Feature Film.-Cast:...
, 2011) = "Jump Into The Fire"
External links
- For The Love Of Harry (rare recordings, articles, videos, photos)
- The Harry Nilsson Web Pages: A Little Touch of Schmilsson on the Net
- RareHarry: Email discussion group covering rare Harry Nilsson audio and video recordings
- Harry Nilsson Discography/Bibliography
- Podcast featuring Harry Nilsson
- "One Last Touch of Nilsson" by Dawn EdenDawn EdenDawn Eden is an American author and journalist who was formerly a rock historian and tabloid-newspaper headline writer...
(Goldmine magazine, April 29, 1994) - Bruce Robb (producer)