Harry Nilsson Songs Ranked
Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), known professionally as Nilsson, was an American singer-songwriter who achieved the peak of his commercial success in the early 1970s. His work is characterized by pioneering vocal overdub experiments, returns to the Great American Songbook, and fusions of Caribbean sounds. A tenor with a 3½ octave range, Nilsson was one of the few major pop-rock recording artists of his era and others to achieve significant commercial success without ever performing major public concerts or undertaking regular tours. The craft of his songs and the defiant attitude he projected remains a touchstone for later generations of indie rock musicians. Nilsson created the first remix album (Aerial Pandemonium Ballet, 1971) and recorded the first mashup song (“You Can’t Do That”, 1967). He was voted No. 62 in Rolling Stone’s 2015 list of the “100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time”, where he was described as “a pioneer of the Los Angeles studio sound, a crucial bridge between the baroque psychedelic pop of the late Sixties and the more personal singer-songwriter era of the Seventies”. The RIAA certified Nilsson Schmilsson and Son of Schmilsson (1972) as gold records, indicating over 500,000 units sold each. He earned Grammy Awards for two of his recordings; Best Contemporary Vocal Performance, Male in 1970 for “Everybody’s Talkin’” and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male in 1973 for “Without You”. Here are all of Harry Nilsson’s songs ranked.
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20. The Puppy Song (Harry, 1969)
“This is one of the greatest songwriters of the 60s finally finding his own unique voice, and he knows it. With all due respect to Mary Hopkins, no one else could pull off a song like “The Puppy Song”.
19. Bright Side of Life (Flash Harry, 1980)
“Harry professes his approval for Reggae and his distaste for disco while using instrumental hints of both musical styles to express it. In short, it is a rollercoaster of an album with some great high points and some gentle low points too.”
18. Good Old Desk (Aerial Ballet, 1968)
“I’ve always had a soft spot for songs addressed to inanimate objects, like, for example “My Old Piano” and…err…there must be others, but anyway this delightful Nilsson song starts with an outrageous rhyme of “desk” and “arabesque”, the latter not a word you hear often in a pop song and continues merrily on from there.”
17. Something True (Sandman, 1976)
“Something True”, a very pretty piano ballad, good enough to have been written by him five years before. As for “Sandman”, the highlight is the first track “something true” whose strings and understated guitars make it a song suited for the excellent LP “Knilsson” (1977).”
See more: Harry Nilsson Albums Ranked
16. Daddy’s Song (Aerial Ballet, 1968)
“What I particularly admire is that it is not just a bunch of songs but there is a story told. You can feel it is a very personal and intimate statement by Nilsson. From track no. 1 “Daddy’s Song” which is another attempt, after “1941” from his debut album, to address the trauma of his father abandoning him and his mother years back.”
15. As I Wander Lonely (Pandemonium Shadow Show, 1967)
“Very charming slice of baroque/psych pop. Nilsson is very talented as a songwriter and singer even though he would go on to make better albums.”
14. Garbage Can Ballet (The Point, 1968)
“When this was recorded, Nilsson’s career was picking up steam, and he was at his finest as a songwriter and as a singer. And the message of the tale is simple but absolutely (sorry, pun ahead) ON POINT.”
13. Mournin’ Glory Story (Harry, 1969)
“There was a time when ‘pop’ wasn’t a dirty word, when performers and musicians would gladly hack off a limb to enjoy a ‘pop’ hit. Arguably the golden age of the pop-single was the 60s, when they had offices crammed full of writers whose job it was to write pop music.”
12. The Moonbeam Song (Nilsson Schmilsson, 1971)
“a comedic record no doubt. with the exception The Moonbeam Song, the single instance of sincere Nilsson, each song comes off as a respectful parody of whatever is picking at his brain. is this a man of substance or a diluted formula of the rock n roll phenomenon?”
11. Without You (Nilsson Schmilsson, 1971)
“A great performance of a great song that was actually written by 2 members of BadFinger, Pete Ham and Tom Evans. Nilsson’s fantastic and popular version was released in 1971. He died in 1994, cause of death is usually stated as heart failure.”
10. Remember (Christmas) (Son of Schmilsson, 1972)
“A near masterpiece. The songwriting though is all there. Remember (Christmas) is another nifty Nilsson vocal on a great tune. Perry has said in interviews it’s a shame they added the Christmas part to the end of this tune because it’s not a Christmas song….and it probably stalled the chart progression of the tune.”
9. Girlfriend (Nilsson Sessions, 1968)
“His voice lends itself to the song so well and he’s able to put so much emotion into it you would think it was his song to begin with.”
8. Spaceman (Songwriter, 1972)
“While it’s catchy and I enjoy it, “Spaceman” also might be the most “Widney High” moment from a well-known rock musician in the hairy 70s. The flip is an endearing and drumless li’l ditty about death. Both songs are on the Son of Schmilsson LP.”
7. Me and My Arrow (The Point, 1970)
“Short, sweet, and almost absurdly simple. And just to continue with the alliteration, it’s also quite soothing – try listening to it when you have a headache! Harry Nilsson’s music is always comforting, and there are probably a few of his other songs which also have healing powers, but “Me and My Arrow” is exceptional.”
See more: Dokken Albums Ranked
6. Daybreak (Son of Dracula, 1974)
“Taken from the soundtrack to the film “Son Of Dracula” starring Harry and Ringo (the mind boggles!), I really like this typically quirky Nilsson single built around a playful little popping keyboard motif that goes around and around…in fact it sounds about halfway between Ringo’s two songs from about the same time “Back Off Boogaloo” and the Lennon-written “Goodnight Vienna”.
5. You’re Breakin’ My Heart (Son of Schmilsson, 1972)
“Slick pop song with great vocal performance. My advice: ditch the F-word-laden one and get the censored version at fortheloveofharry.blogspot.com”
4. Coconut (Nilsson Schmilsson, 1971)
“Listen to that build! Not only does the song get louder and groovier as it goes, but the melody lines take all those awesome twists and turns around the repeated phrases. So cool. Perfect pop.”
3. Jump Into the Fire (Son of Dracula, 1971)
“One of the best Classic/ Blue Rock’s track. Harry Nilsson became a genius thanks to this song. The song was even include on the movie Goodfellas from 1990. Cheers to this song.”
2. I Guess the Lord Must Be in New York City (Harry, 1969)
“I Guess The Lord Must Be In New York City” is a great song and probably the most famous. Nilsson always adds something special to covers and the selection here is no exception.”
1. Everybody’s Talkin’ (Aerial Ballet, 1968)
“Baroque pop of the highest order no doubt , but i tend to agree with the review below in that as a whole its just not that enjoyable an experience even though you cant help but respect the offbeat voice of the writing,the arrangements and Harry’s vocals.”
