“Harry Nilsson’s done a ‘rock’ album!” exclaims the radio spot tacked on to the end of the CD reissue of Nilsson Schmilsson, the 1971 best-seller by the songwriter and singer who died of a heart attack in 1994. It is an assertion that will perplex anyone born after the year Nilsson Schmilsson was recorded, and just goes to show you how much the definition of “rock” has evolved over the years.
Consider that the #1 single from this career-peak album is the torchy and tragic “Without You”, the ballad written by Pete Ham and Tom Evans of Badfinger. Perhaps this love song is so affecting and enduring because it feels like a curse: Both the composers committed suicide (in 1975 and 1983, respectively).
Like Badfinger, Nilsson was a bit of a Beatles doppleganger and later, a notorious John Lennon drinking buddy. Yet uptempo tunes such as the cheery “Gotta Get Up”, once thought of as Beatlesque, now seem more like a template for the more rocking moments heard recently on the Elton John/Billy Joel tour.
Before this record, Nilsson had been best-known for his jaunty version of Fred Neil’s “Everybody’s Talkin'”, the theme from Midnight Cowboy. Produced by Richard Perry, a pop prince of the time, Schmilsson derives some of its luster from the tension between Perry’s technique and control and Nilsson’s uninhibited spontaneity.
So you get an obvious Perry touch, such as the sound of an automobile ignition kicking off “Driving Along”, followed by Nilsson’s spare solo vocal and organ on “Early In The Morning”; childlike, multi-tracked angel choirs on “Moonbeam Song”; and the sharp, kooky, pseudo-Caribbean drinking tune “Coconut”.
What pushes Schmilsson into the plus column is the seven-minute mullet-rock classic “Jump Into The Fire”, complete with drum solo and guitar raves that stand with the best of Joe Walsh. The six bonus tracks are forgettable except for the brief, hilarious “Lamaze Song”, which proves that Nilsson could be a real mother when he wanted to be.