Nilsson - C or D?

Sounds like 118 nilssons tho

I'm with you on hating Queen despite their craftsmanship.

Yeah, there are def. some similarities on this record with Smile (which, mind, was mostly unreleased in 1969). Nilsson def. also had an obsessive quality to getting vocal takes right (which apparently annoyed Newman -- he prob. meant "118 takes"). And there is a Glenn Gould-ish aspect to how tracks on both records are spliced together to create the feeling of a perfect, seamless performance (and of course, Smile/VDP-->Song Cycle/"Vine Street"-->Nilsson Sings Newman/"Vine Street").

But there are some pretty big differences, as well, not least of which is that Smile is a big, maximalist record performed by a studio orchestra and sung by an ensemble and Nilsson Sings Newman is a record where the dude himself is an orchestra. While there are vocal overdubs on Smile, most of the "wow" factor on that album is the arrangements. Also, Nilsson Sings Newman is in stereo, which Nilsson's vocal arrangements use to great effect.

Beyond that tho, is Nilsson's voice, which was more far more versatile than anyone's in the Beach Boys. Don't get me wrong, I love the purity of Brian's voice and Carl's vocals on Wild Honey but no one in the Beach Boys was ever going to pull off something like "Without You" or "Spaceman" (or even "Sail Away" from years later). Even by 1969, the strength of Nilsson's voice lets him explore some pretty sophisticated, witty arrangements, and create different shades to the music (i.e., "I'll Be Home"'s gospel choir -- or "Vine Street," which feels Beach Boys-esque in places but without any trace of the Four Freshman) In general, there is a more seamless feel to his arrangements.

All that said, I don't hear Nilsson Sings Newman as some masterpiece in the way Smile is -- it's a great record but a small one. And what I find most fascinating about it is how he's using someone else's songs as a springboard for his own vocal experiments. And I think a lot of that experimentation is still unique.

yeah that all makes sense. Nilsson def had a better, more versatile voice than any of the Boys

One of my best recent vinyl scores was a nice copy of Son of... w/the poster for only $3.

love that record so much.

Nilsson as a vocal genuis is pretty evident right from the start of his career (see his version of "You Can't Do That"). also good to note there is a difference between singing in a group (a la Beach Boys) vs singing alone. for one rehearsal is a lot more difficult to do!

his cover of many rivers to cross gets a lot of play around here

for one rehearsal is a lot more difficult to do!

I dunno, is it? Maybe this is a funny question that only musicians care about but in some ways one person with a recording device is actually easier - you only have to get it right once, then every time you hear it back it's always the same and you build the next part on top of that, then overdub another one, etc. It's sequential and iterative. Whereas with a group everyone has to learn/write/know their individual parts (have them written out in advance, or have someone like Brian Wilson sing them to you etc.) and each person has to hit it right every time or it sounds bad. So there you have to get everyone in their assigned spot and then just practice it and refine it til it's as good as it can get. They're different approaches, but I'm not sure one is inherently easier (or better) than the other.

and obviously the latter approach is tailored to performing live, the former isn't and is strictly a studio creation

NTI expressed what i was trying to say about Smile, but with much more detail and clarity. They are recordings built around elaborate orchestrations and edits rather than obsessive overdubs.

there are a ton of vocal overdubs!
but sure whatever

when rehearsing in a group you can sit around with 3-4 other guys who all know their parts and rehearse that stuff simultaneously, continuously, tape rolling or not. you can rehearse in the back of the car on the way to the studio.

as a solo performer, i guess you can rehearse with a tape of yourself and build it track by track. you don't see how this is more painstaking than working out harmonies all-at-once with a bunch of singers who have been singing together since they were teenagers? no room for on the spot adjustments of "oh, how about you go low here and i'll go high".

I've done both and they're both a pain in the ass (ok granted I don't have the blood harmony thing at my disposal, that's a pretty big differentiator)

but like I said, the solo recording only has to get each part right once. The group has to rehearse for hundreds of hours.

the solo performer has to rehearse and arrange for hundreds of hours as well. think about how much time Brian Wilson spent arranging that material. we are talking a lot of long days with no breaks. it's not like the singer 1 can go take a break and drink some honey tea while singer 2 does some overdubs. if you are a solo performer you kind of have to be on all the time. this is hard on your throat (keep in mind Nilsson did blow out his voice pushing it too hard).

imo Harry was exceptional because doing this was (seemingly) easy for him. part long hours of hard work part the natural talents of having an incredible singing voice. he can be very smooth, controlled, and on-key, but also really rock n roll, really drunk, loose, silly. his range is vast yet in a real pleasing, pop way. he has powerful command of his own voice. he's a great songwriter as well which always helps.

fwiw he doesn't have to be the sole pioneer of a style or anything, he is just fantastic, his music speaks for itself. it takes a big talent to be able to do this with your voice. i see him as in line with people like Buddy Holly or Brian Eno, the avant pop studio experimenalist. he excels at using overdubs to create a layered voice-as-instrument effect. in the spirit of something like this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcuojSU_hOY

I've been non stop listening to Knillssonn for the last week. Arguably one of his best albums.

yeah that all makes sense. Nilsson def had a better, more versatile voice than any of the Boys

Well, I don't know, Brian and Carl are pretty good singers! I get a strong Bobby Darin vibe off (in particular, but not exclusively) Nilsson's first album.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/pop-genius-harry-nilsson-left-an-unreleased-record-behind-now-you-can-finally-hear-the-completed-version/2019/09/24/0ae20126-dec7-11e9-b199-f638bf2c340f_story.html

wow, almost didnt recognize his voice on that sample track

UCLA sounds completely in keeping with latter day Nilsson. Title track, agree, sounds like nothing else he did. I would love to hear the demos as well.

https://i.imgur.com/Boy1C5O.png

dude was ahead of his time...

https://open.spotify.com/track/6fvIzrJ6boUDFF19fH4S2s?si=a48JN0ddSVeLd89E0LCCDQ

There are some days where I think that Pussy Cats may be his best album.

It's been reported that Zak Nilsson (Harry's son) has passed away after a long struggle with colon cancer.

I didn't know this, but when Paul McCartney heard he was starting chemo, he sent him this letter.

Confirmed on the Nilsson FB page.e

He appears w/Mom & Dad in the upper corner of the Son of... gatefold.

https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2176/9085/products/R-682504-1350386714-1971_jpeg_1024x1024.jpg?v=1598380339

Just saw this. RIP.

Recently picked up ... That's the Way it Is as I continue very slowly filling in his post-Pussy Cats records. It's good! STE at Allmusic always gave me the sense this was the nadir of his recorded output, but it's feeling very consistent with Knnillssonn and Sandman, just wayyy more reliant on covers and therefore less compositionally or melodically surprising. If you like 50% or more of those records, you'd probably like 50% or more of this one.

That run of three albums: "Duit on Mon Dei", "Sandman" and "...That's the Way It Is", is pretty dire compared to the rest of his discography, although there's definitely good (even great) stuff on all those albums. "Knnillsson" is different beast entirely.

i hardly ever put them on individually, but there are enough good tracks across all of them to put together a pretty good album-length playlist imo

Yes, you could get one very good album out of the three, shorn of dross like "How to Write a Song" et al.

https://i.imgur.com/utaGNbW.jpg

This came on and I was like “how did I not know that Lennon covered this?”

Interesting to compare Nilsson's "Vine Street" to Van Dyke Parks' version starting off "Song Cycle"...

Or Harpers Bizarre's version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEkbPrsoX_c

... and Lulu's version!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epxh3CetPo8

that Harpers Bizarre version is nice

This came on and I was like “how did I not know that Lennon covered this?”

Because he didn't? Lennon used the same string arrangement for "#9 Dream."

Nilsson's version is a cover tho ... of a Jimmy Cliff song.

Lennon freely admitted he copped it too.

Even in the depths of my Nilsson obsession - admittedly a long time ago now - I had no idea he had recorded an entire (unreleased) album of Yoko Ono songs. It was recorded in the mid 80s and there's been talk for a while of releasing it - Sean Lennon is involved in the release somewhere - no sign of it yet.

Anyway Harry's voice is pretty grizzled, though a lot less than Dennis Wilson's on Pacific Ocean Blue for instance, but he can still sell a song. I've not heard all of it but I really like what I've heard and it's fascinating to hear him singing to an all electronic backing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLmWj_SZAm0

something very surreal about that. idk if it's him sounding like Huey Lewis or the massive amounts of reverb on everything, it just sounds wrong for Nilsson. good tune though!