Sunday, March 31, 2013

Who is Harry Nilsson?

Ah, spring in Tucson...

The days are finally getting longer which means I have more time to get things done- like working through my backlogged Netflix queue! Recently I happened to watch a wonderful documentary about a music industry great you may not have heard of: "Who is Harry Nilsson, (and why is everybody talkin' about him?)"

This documentary explores the roller coaster life and career of Harry Nilsson. Nilsson released eighteen albums of varying popularity, but this isn't the story of an overnight success. In fact he kept a job working nights at a bank for years after working in the industry in order to make sure he could get by

For those who may not be familiar with the name Harry Nilsson or just 'Nilsson,' you have probably at least heard his music. Harry Nilsson was prolific. He wrote many well-known songs for his own albums, and was a lyracist for other bands. One of the most catchy and popular songs would be the earworm "Coconut," but Nilsson also wrote the love ballad "Without You," "One" for the band Three Dog Night, "The Lord Must Be In New York City," and many others. 


"Who is Harry Nilsson" is punctuated by interviews with some amazing musicians and actors like Ringo Starr, John Lennon, Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight, Brian Wilson, Randy Newman, and Robin Williams, all of whom have a personal connection with the late musician. Their observations on Nilsson's state of mind and his stuggles, particuarly with reconciling his troubled childhood, make this film feel personal, nostalgic and a little wistful.

For anyone interested in the life of a music industry treasure (who the Beatles named their favorite American songwriter!), the same documentary I watched is also in our library collection. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get to know more about a wonderful lyricist, the music industry, or just wants to spend a few hours immersed in an interesting story.

To place this DVD on reserve, you can follow this link: "Who is Harry Nilsson, (and why is everybody talkin' about him?)."

And if you want to listen to some of Nilsson’s music, feel free to click on the following link to Freegal, where there are full albums of his music available. You’ll need your card number and PIN, and you can search for "Harry Nilsson" right on the homepage!

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