Some of my latest musical moods have brought me into the music of one Mr. Harry Nilsson. An under-rated, sometimes over-looked performer, he released some of the biggest hits of the late 60's and early 70's with "Everybody's Talkin'," "Without You," and "Coconut." With some of his earlier Beatles covers, he managed to curry favour with the Fab Four and forge lasting friendships with John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr.
Purchased a couple of albums of his recently--"A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night" and "Nilsson Schmilsson." The former is one of the first ever albums of pop standards to come out of a rock musician, setting the template for future releases by the likes of Ringo and our own Glenn Frey, among others. The latter is widely regarded as one of the best albums of the classic era of rock/pop music. Few singular talents could meld together dissonant sounds and styles to form an appealing musical palette the way he did.
Linked are some of Nilsson's better, somewhat more obscured moments, with admittedly a good bit of partiality to material from the "Nilsson Schmilsson" album.
"Gotta Get Up," which sounds like a cross between a Beatles out-take and a Billy Joel song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wgrzp1DCs4
"Driving Along," social commentary written through the prism of a taxi driver: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBmYU8oh77w
"The Moonbeam Song," a dark, surrealistic journey in song-form: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btyelrNYCtU
"Down," a funny take on the blues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Beibmc1fpSw
"Space Man," something most of us would aspire to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5P-fDTXu_io
"Makin' Whoopee," the most prominent cut from the "Touch of Schmilsson" album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVkWf8QDCq0
