Nilsson Album-by-Album Thread*

What a fantastic thread about a fantastic artist who is up there with McCartney and Brian Wilson for me. A couple of points. Thanks to this thread I was alerted to the existence of the Popeye demos which I thoroughly enjoyed and which, I think, could/should have been worked up in to a solo album, perhaps with Van Dyke Parks' heavy involvement. Also, I seem to remember a different version of the catchy Moonshine Bandit coming out as a B-side, but it which doesn't appear on the otherwise exhaustive RCA box set. Does anyone else remember this one?

 

Not an easy listen, but I dig it. To me it sounds like Bryan Ferry's These Foolish Things filtered through Neil Young's Tonight's the Night, because it sounds like a cathartic, dark night of the soul album leaning heavily on left-field covers. Tracks 1-6 is physical and spiritual disintegration mapped out in song and performance, and by the end Nilsson is hanging by a thread.

 

This one?

Artist: Nilsson
Label: RCA Victor
Country: USA
Catalogue: PB-10634
Date: Apr 1976
Format: 7"

A Nilsson Sail Away Newman Trevor Lawrence Trevor Lawrence
B Nilsson Moonshine Bandit Nilsson, Kortchmar Trevor Lawrence Trevor Lawrence

 

Yeah, after having a friend die like that what a terrible thing to say “Hey, maybe we need to do something about how ridiculously easy it is for people to get their hands on these things that only exist to destroy lives.”

Seems Harry was ahead of the curve (Wasn’t he often?) on that, given the (daily) state of things today.

And — GASP — Nilsson did drugs and drank a lot! No other musicians ever did that!

Clearly, all off these things made him an “awful human being” who was “wrongheaded and offensive.” As opposed to, say, sanctimonoius arbiters of what makes one a good person.

I’m sure there’s a Ted Nugent thread here somewhere?

Gorts, feel free to delete if you must.

 

Only exist to destroy lives? Not to protect lives? Not for self defense? Not to hunt? Not for sport? You start a debate with such a profoundly ridiculous statement, I really have no interest in what you have to say. Enjoy your bubble.

 

The latter doesn’t make him an awful human being just someone who doesn’t believe in the same political values as you. I don’t find them offensive even if I disagree with him on some of his positions. That was just his opinion based on his experience with losing a friend to violence. We all personalize our experiences in different ways.

For example, I don’t agree with some of the beliefs of Moët Tucker but I wouldn’t trade her music for the world. We all grow up in different environments each one as legit to us as someone else’s. It doesn’t make one any more profound or “right” than the other.

 

They're not my favorite Nilsson albums (even though there's a lot of stuff I like on them), but the reputation of those first three albums have probably grown the most of any Nilsson music over the past two decades, mainly because their influence has become much more apparent in offbeat and ornate indie acts like Sufjan Stevens and the Elephant 6 bands. They may have sounded dated to Nilsson in 1971 (hence the polarizing remix album), and they certainly would've sounded that way in the following decade, but by 2006, they would've sit easily among the latest indie releases of the time and even now.

There are moments on those first three albums where things do get a bit twee or a little too precious, but most of it's excellent stuff.

 

The "original" version that was an outtake from ***** Cats (and later included as a bonus track) is excellent and much better than the one they ultimately put on an album.

 

This one's another favorite, but it manages to stick out even in a wildly eclectic body of work like Nilsson's because it's the work of two strong and distinctive artists. It's especially appealing because it captures both artists at an early peak, well before their work took different and unfortunate turns that would often plague their music going forward.

The RCA box set version is the "best" mastering with one big flaw - the left channel is indeed too soft. Load them up on your computer, you'll notice that the levels on that channel are remarkably and consistently low. Comparing it to other discs confirms the problem.

My suggestion: increase the left channel by 160% on every track except the bonus tracks. (For some reason the bonus tracks do not have any channel imbalance, so they're totally fine.) This won't be enough to clip anything either, though please note Anesini's mastering on a few tracks seems to hit the limit on the right channel.

 

it was great to read upthread of 'mike's" remembrances of his sessions at rca. that classic set of rooms. i wonder if hassinger was still around by then? or if he'd bought his own place down the street at ivar by then, the sound factory.

in any event, to add my personal perspective, sadly. harry didnt just "drink or take drugs a lot". he did them with a vengeance. he was around a lot when i was a "kid" and i've told the story of how he copped/"borrowed"? the vocal stylings of a guy my pop managed that was signed to columbia ( i was drumming with them for a bit as a kid ) that harry heard countless times at the troubadour. whether on "hoot night" where anyone could "sign up", or whatever gigs. was always the same folks monday after monday and everyone "heard" everyone. - it was all the vamps on fred neil's classic "everybody's talkin" - to remind of the VOX i'm referring to - the cut that "broke" harry.

later in the years, and well on a "decline", he came over to my place and nearly caught the entire house on fire freebasing and had what were virtually propane tanks and a portable lab set up in the kitchen with a friggin toolbox ( really ) of drugs and accompanying paraphernalia. was tragic, and yet. i'm sure i partook.

he was a ******' genius. tragically, so.

 

You can hear Nilsson destroying his voice through the sessions.

 

This has got to be it. Well done on finding it. From memory this was a different and to my mind superior version to the album track. I wonder if anyone out there has a copy and can report if it is indeed different.

 

Huh. I love the Dylan cover. The only Nilsson I own (so far) is Schmilsson, but after hearing this song on Breakfast With The Beatles a few times (Chris Carter’s a Nilsson fan too).

I am wanting to check the whole ***** Cats album out, problems aside. Same with Pandemonium (Love that clever “You Can’t Do That” cover, which I also heard on BWTB)! Looking forward to picking these up soon. I have no doubt other albums will follow. If the documentary is still on Netflix, I’ll need to watch that too.

I’ve also never seen The Point. I was barely out of the womb when it premiered. Still seems odd I never saw it? Yet another oversight I need to fix.

Really enjoying this thread, trolls attacking Harry on politics or lifestyle choices aside, and I am learning a lot about this gifted, albeit troubled, artist who left us too soon. Thank you Nilsson experts for sharing your thoughts!

 

When my kids were little I played them The Point on an vhs tape. They loved it. Me too! Good thing because they played it over and over again.

 

What happened to this thread??

 

The Point gets the thumbs-up from British folk royalty, Marry Waterson, in the latest issue of Songlines magazine. Marry names it her all-time favourite album, adding: "The Point is a masterpiece of words, images and music. Nilsson wrote the fable, providing all the characters' voices as well as the narration. This album has the love of three generations, from mum (Lal Waterson) to me and on to my children. The LP came with a surreal comic book which was adapted into a stunning animation." How great is that?

 

Judging by your taste in other music, I would really recommend just starting at the beginning with Pandemonium Shadow Show. Those first five albums before Schmillson are all amazing. Schmillson is kind of a turning point. I'm okay with them but I find Richard Perry's production too slick. I think we all have that handful of artists that completely change our inner musical soul. Nilsson is one of mine. I'd love to hear all that stuff for the first time again.

 

I knew "Without You" and "Everybody's Talking" but never noticed Nilsson until I watched the first ever British tv broadcast of Altman's "Popeye" in about 1992. I was intrigued that such a big star as Robin Williams' big budget movie had never been shown on TV and was never mentioned by anyone - a sign it was either a fascinating disaster or a forgotten gem. From "Sweethaven" the song, I was hooked by the melody of music and the arrangements and rushed to town next day to buy everything I could by Harry Nilsson, which was a solitary cassette compilation:

Harry Nilsson - Without Her - Without You - The Very Best Of Nilsson Vol. 1 .

Yet I discovered my all-time favourite male singer and one of my handful of favourite songwriters.

 

I have since picked Pandemonium up. Love it. Need to fill in some other gaps eventually. Thanks!

 

Love this lp..Beautiful Harrison cover.. The irony is his voice was decent but sounded too loaded to use it properly..

 

The animated special has made it out on Blu-ray since this thread was first started. So-so A/V quality but does contain the Ringo Starr narration.

The Point! Blu-ray Review with HD Screenshots

 

Nilsson sings Newman is becoming my favorite HN album , lately

Yes, it needs you to be in a specific frame of mind , so that you can enjoy and drift away with its floating melancholy - but once you are into that zone , that album is a soul caress.

Brilliant, just brilliant stuff.

 

Starting to pick up and listen to some of Harry’s albums, I had always known some of his work but not everything. “A touch of Schmilsson in the night“ is awesome, I love that combination of those schmaltzy but intense Gordon Jenkins arrangements and Harry’s voice.

 

His catalog is so rich and varied, a joy to explore.

 

Keep on picking them up, even the "lesser" Nilsson albums are well worth having. He's got a pretty singular discography, imo.