Written and posted publicly by Frank Beacham. Harry Nilsson was born 73 years ago today. Nilsson was a 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 Everybodys Talkin (1969), Without You (1971) and Coconut (1972). Nilsson also wrote the song “One” made famous by Three Dog Night. His career is notable for the fact that he was one of the few major pop-rock recording artists of his era to achieve significant commercial success without ever performing major public concerts or undertaking regular tours. Nilsson was born in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. His paternal grandparents were Swedish circus performers and dancers, especially known for their aerial ballet (which is the title of one of Nilssons albums). His father, Harry Edward Nilsson, Jr., abandoned the family when young Harry was three. Nilsson grew up with his mother, Bette, and his younger half-sister. His Uncle John, a mechanic in San Bernardino, California, helped Nilsson improve his vocal and musical abilities. Because of 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 in 1960, 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. As early as 1958, Nilsson was intrigued by emerging forms of popular music, especially rhythm and blues artists like Ray Charles. 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 Johns singing lessons, along with Nilssons natural talent, helped when he got a job singing demos for songwriter Scott Turner in 1962. 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! 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 Nilssons songs. Botkin also gave Nilsson a key to his office, providing another place to write after hours. Through his association with Botkin, Nilsson met and became friends with musician, composer and arranger George Tipton, who was at the time working for Botkin as a music copyist. During 1964, Tipton invested his life savings – $2500 – to finance the recording of four Nilsson songs, which he arranged; they were able to sell the completed recordings to the Tower label, a recently-established subsidiary of Capitol Records, and the tracks were subsequently included on Nilssons debut album. The fruitful association between Nilsson and Tipton continued after Nilsson signed with RCA Records – Tipton went on to create the arrangements for nearly all of Nilssons RCA recordings between 1967 and 1971 but their association ended in the 1970s when the two fell out for unknown reasons. Whatever the cause, it was evidently a source of lingering resentment for Tipton, who was one of the few significant collaborators who refused to participate in the 2010 documentary on Nilssons life and career. Nilssons 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 Nilssons 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. Nilsson signed with RCA Victor in 1966 and released an album the following year, Pandemonium Shadow Show, which was a critical (if not commercial) success. Music industry insiders were impressed both with the songwriting and with Nilssons 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 Nilssons 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 Nilssons death in 1994. Some of the albums from Derek Taylors box eventually ended up with the Beatles themselves, who quickly became Nilsson fans. This may have been helped by the track You Cant 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 Cant 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, Nilssons 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 didnt. Where have you played before? I havent. When will you be playing next? I dont.) 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 Nilssons rendition of Fred Neils song Everybodys Talkin. A minor U.S. 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. The song would also become Nilssons first U.S. top 10 hit, reaching #6, and his first Canadian #1. Nilsson suffered a massive heart attack on February 14, 1993 and died of heart failure on January 15, 1994 in his Agoura Hills, California, home. Nilsson is the subject of a 2006 documentary, Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin About Him)? produced by David Leaf and John Schienfeld. Here, Nilsson performs “Everybody’s Talkin’” in 1969.
Posted on: Sun, 15 Jun 2014 16:02:13 +0000
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