Favourite version of "Without You" - Badfinger or Nilsson?

Nilsson all day, every day!

 

I listened to Tom's demo... it pointed out how different the two original songs were.

Tom wrote a great chorus. As someone else mentioned, he sang it in a "yelpy" fashion. It was a first person narrative, the whole song should have been sung by the same singer. I understand why that did not happen because of band politics. In Badfinger's version, the seams just stand out too much.

Nilsson smoothed out the transition between verse and chorus. Once you do that, the song really does demand going for it on the second chorus. That's the song, the living, breathing song. He nailed it. Going for the same effect as the first chorus would be too flat.

 

Nilsson captured in the studio recording "Without You".

 

Rof!

 

Pete's demo If It's Love was available on the Limited Edition CD in "Without You" book [Hardcover] and two other versions
on demo collection "Golders Green" CD.​

 

This is the gravy.

 

Mariah Carey's version is better then Harry Nilsson's.

 

Harry.

 

You took the words right out of my mouth (to quote the big fella) ... My thoughts exactly. Heard the Nilsson version first, it went to No.1. Great arrangement.
I heard the Badfinger original version years later but much preferred Nilsson's.
I'm NOT a fan of Mariah Carey as a singer (or a person) so I won't comment further.

 

Nilsson

 

Nilsson Schmilsson is a really good LP by the way

 

I tend to favor what I’m most familiar with. The Nilsson rendition was hammered on AM pop radio and reached the #1 position on the Billboard pop chart remaining there for four straight weeks. I prefer that rendition, but both are good. I didn’t hear the Badfinger version until I bought my first compact disc player in the ‘80s.

 

Nilsson by a mile. I always thought it seemed like a lesser Badfinger track. It could have used a little more love.

 

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet:

Saw a documentary about Pete Ham in which a story is told of the first time he heard the Nilsson version. When Harry hit the "can't live" part, Ham started crying, because he had never heard anything he'd written sound so beautiful.

 

Harry Nilsson

 

Thanks for sharing this picture of the band Heart.

 

Harry

 

I am a Harry fan, but I am a bigger Badfinger fan.

I am glad Harry recorded the song as it became popular, but I bought "No Dice" the week it came out, and that's the version I heard first, and that's the version I like best. Harry's version is a bit much, although I respect it and admire it for what it is. Borderline over production.

One of the most annoying things I saw in the Harry Nilsson documentary is when Richard Perry talks about the song and looks down at Badfinger, calling them a "nice little band", but nothing worthy of merit. Then he goes on and proclaims that Harry rescued this song from oblivion.

Fine. Probably made some bucks for Stan Polley.

 

Willie Nilsson.

 

I watched the "Who's Harry Nilsson" documentary and "Without You" is basically dismissed by Richard Perry in the Bonus features of outtake footage. Certainly odd it being the biggest hit for Harry and the song identified with him even today!

Harry definitely had a unique gift, and voice.

 

It occurs to me that even if Badfinger had faded over time that Ham & Evans could have had a lucrative career as songwriters. Yet another tragic aspect to the whole story.

 

Not to put down Badfinger at all for great songwriting and honest playing but Nilsson's cover is just a case of superior interpretation. He found the hook of the song and orients his version around it. It's not to every taste but having come to pop radio awareness during that time the song in Nilsson's hands made an impression... and I remember that same winter or spring Rundgren's Hello It's Me and Bad finger's Day After Day being standout songs in the hit parade!

 

1971 US sheet music​

 

Badfinger version is so much better.