Harry Nilsson is one of those names that, chances are, you might not know. Chances are, then again, that you know his music...
The brilliant "Everybody's Talkin" (used in Midnight Cowboy, of course)
The surreal "Coconut"
The heartbreaking "Without You" (never play this when suffering from romantic heartbreak)
These are merely his most famous songs. Beyond that, he did songs that were used on movie soundtracks, such as the bombastic "Jump into the Fire", which can be found in Goodfellas. The Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan movie You've Got Mail features four songs performed by Nilsson: "I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City", "The Puppy Song", "Over the Rainbow", and "Remember." Three Dog Nights' famous "One" was written by Harry.
He was friendly was all four Beatles, having Ringo Starr as his best man for his second wedding, and sharing John Lennon's famous "Lost Weekend" with him.
He was also terribly destructive, living a high partying life that ultimately killed him in 1994, at the age of 52.
In short, he had a profound impact on music.
A documentary was recently done on Nilsson's life, called Who is Harry Nilsson (and Why is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? I read this piece by Michael Verity at the WNEW Blog and have watched the film. It's a must-see, if you have any interest in music, rock and roll, history, The Beatles or any of the above.
Dedicate two hours and go here to see it(and quickly, because it's only free for a limited time). They allow you to stop it, and remember where you left off (that's how I watched it).
Let me know if you watched it and if you liked it.
PS, I laughed out loud towards the end, when it was revealed that George Harrison convinced people surrounding Nilsson's grave on the day of his funeral to sing this in tribute.
No comments:
Post a Comment