After watching the documentary “Who is Harry Nilsson? (And Why is Everyone Talkin’ About Him),” I have a better understanding of the man. I knew of his songs, but never about the person—Harry Nilsson. Not only was he a very, very, amazing writer, his songs have really lasted the test of time. Ironically, his most famous song “Everyone’s Talking,” featured in the movie “Midnight Cowboy,” wasn’t written by him at all—such a talented writer and his most notable song was penned by someone else. Nonetheless, his career has left us with countless hits and some of rock music’s best songs. Today, I would like to share with you my Top 5 Favorite Harry Nilsson Songs.

  • 5

    “Over The Rainbow”

    This is such a classic song and has been covered by countless artists, but I really, really like his version of the song. His voice is amazing.

  • 4

    %22Spaceman”

    From his 1972 album “Son of Schmilsson”—here’s ‘Spaceman.’ According to Wikipedia, “the album reached 12 in the US Hot 100 and the single "Spaceman" was a Top 40 hit.”

  • 3

    “Without Her”

    This song really highlights Nilsson’s voice. The lyrics are great, too. “And I rise to face another day without her.” It’s a sad song, but a great one.

  • 2

    “One”

    This song was made popular by Three Dog Night, but it was written by Harry Nilsson. Interesting fact about this song is that “Nilsson wrote the song after calling someone and getting a busy signal. He stayed on the line listening to the "beep, beep, beep, beep..." tone, writing the song. The busy signal became the opening notes of the song,” according to Wikipedia. Nilsson’s verson of the song appeared on his 1968 album “Aerial Ballet”.

  • 1

    “Everybody’s Talkin’”


    Here it is, one of his most notable songs, at the top spot--Everybody’s Talkin’. “Nilsson's single for the song sold over a million copies and charted on both Billboard's "Adult Contemporary" and "Pop Singles" charts, reaching #2 and #6 respectively in 1969.[2][13] Nilsson's single also won a Grammy that year.[14] The song became a global success and was followed by international appearances by Nilsson to perform it,” according to Wikipedia. “In 2004, the song was listed by the American Film Institute as #20 in its "top 100 movie songs" for the first 100 years of film,” again, according to Wikipedia.

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