Try free for 30 days

  • Nilsson

  • The Life of a Singer-Songwriter
  • By: Alyn Shipton
  • Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
  • Length: 16 hrs and 18 mins
  • 5.0 out of 5 stars (2 ratings)

1 credit a month to use on any title, yours to keep (you’ll use your first credit on this title).
Stream or download thousands of included titles.
Access to exclusive deals and discounts.
$16.45 a month after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
Nilsson cover art

Nilsson

By: Alyn Shipton
Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
Try for $0.00

$16.45 per month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $33.99

Buy Now for $33.99

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

Paul McCartney and John Lennon described him as the Beatles' "favorite group", he won Grammy awards, wrote and recorded hit songs, and yet no figure in popular music is as much of a paradox, or as underrated, as Harry Nilsson. In this first ever full-length biography, Alyn Shipton traces Nilsson's life from his Brooklyn childhood to his Los Angeles adolescence and his gradual emergence as a uniquely talented singer-songwriter. With interviews from friends, family, and associates, and material drawn from an unfinished autobiography, Shipton probes beneath the enigma to discover the real Harry Nilsson. A major celebrity at a time when huge concerts and festivals were becoming the norm, Nilsson shunned live performance. His venue was the studio, his stage the dubbing booth, his greatest triumphs masterful examples of studio craft.

He was a gifted composer of songs for a wide variety of performers, including the Ronettes, the Yardbirds, and the Monkees, yet Nilsson's own biggest hits were almost all written by other songwriters. He won two Grammy awards, in 1969 for "Everybody's Talkin'" (the theme song for Midnight Cowboy), and in 1972 for "Without You", had two top-10 singles, numerous album successes, and wrote a number of songs -"Coconut" and "Jump into the Fire", to name just two - that still sound remarkably fresh and original today. He was once described by his producer Richard Perry as "the finest white male singer on the planet", but near the end of his life, Nilsson's career was marked by voice-damaging substance abuse and the infamous deaths of both Keith Moon and Mama Cass in his London flat. Drawing on exclusive access to Nilsson's papers, Alyn Shipton's biography offers listeners an intimate portrait of a man who has seemed both famous and unknowable - until now.

©2013 Alyn Shipton (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Nilsson

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    2
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Love it so far. Very in-depth, great narration

I just recently discovered Nilsson, and was happy to find this book on Audible. So far it may be one of the best (top 3 for sure) Audible books I have listened to. It's so well written, very in depth, and the narrator is EXCELLENT. It's very long at 30+ hours, but for me that's a good thing. The narration is well paced and well expressed, with a pleasant tone of voice too. Somebody left a nasty comment about how "annoying" the "multiple mispronunciations" are, referring to the mispronunciation of the name Voorman. So far, I have not heart a single mispronunciation, and I'm several hours into the story, As to the correct way to say "Voorman" - who gives a s***! Why make a big deal out of that in order to sabotage such a well-researched and well-written, well-narrated book?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.