Born in Brooklyn, Nilsson moved to Los Angeles as a teenager to escape his family's poor financial situation. While working as a computer programmer at a bank, he grew interested in musical composition and close-harmony singing and was successful in having some of his songs recorded by various artists, such as the Monkees. In 1967, he debuted on RCA Victor with the LP Pandemonium Shadow Show, followed by a variety of releases that included a collaboration with Randy Newman (Nilsson Sings Newman, 1970) and the original children's story The Point! (1971).
He created the first remix album, Aerial Pandemonium Ballet, in 1971, and recorded the first mashup song ("You Can't Do That") in 1967. His most commercially successful album, Nilsson Schmilsson (1971), produced the international top 10 singles "Without You" and "Coconut". His other top 10 hit, "Everybody's Talkin'" (1968), was featured prominently in the 1969 film Midnight Cowboy. A version of Nilsson's "One," released by Three Dog Night in 1969, also reached the U.S. top 10.
During a 1968 press conference, The Beatles were asked what their favorite American group was and answered "Nilsson." Sometimes called "the American Beatle," he soon formed close friendships with John Lennon and Ringo Starr, joining them in the Hollywood Vampires drinking club. He and Lennon produced one collaborative album, Pussy Cats (1974). After 1977, Nilsson left RCA, and his record output diminished. In response to Lennon's 1980 murder, he took a hiatus from the music industry to campaign for gun control. For the rest of his life, he recorded only sporadically. In 1994, Nilsson died of a heart attack while in the midst of recording what became his last album, Losst and Founnd (2019).
The craft of Nilsson's songs and the defiant attitude he projected remain touchstones for later generations of indie rock musicians. Nilsson 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" and "a crucial bridge" between 1960s psychedelia and the 1970s singer-songwriter era. The RIAA certified Nilsson Schmilsson and Son of Schmilsson (1972) as gold records, indicating over 500,000 units sold each. He earned two Grammy Awards (for "Everybody's Talkin'" and "Without You").
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Nilsson
Discography
Spotlight on Nilsson (1966)
Pandemonium Shadow Show (1967)
Aerial Ballet (1968)
Skidoo (1968) (soundtrack)
Harry (1969)
Nilsson Sings Newman (1970)
The Point! (1970) (studio album and soundtrack)
Nilsson Schmilsson (1971)
Son of Schmilsson (1972)
A Little Touch of Schmilsson in the Night (1973)
Son of Dracula (1974) (soundtrack)
Pussy Cats (1974)
Duit on Mon Dei (1975)
Sandman (1976)
...That's the Way It Is (1976)
Knnillssonn (1977)
Flash Harry (1980)
Popeye (1980) (soundtrack)
Losst and Founnd (2019)
Old Dirt Road
Harry Nilsson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ain't no people on the old dirt road
No more weather on the old dirt road
But it's better than a mudslide momma when the dry spell comes
Oh oh oh old dirt road
Aint no difference on the old dirt road
Tarred and feathered on the old dirt road
Breezin through the dead wood on a hot summer day
I saw a human being lazybonin' out in the hay
I said uh, hey Mister Human can ya rainmaker too?
He said I guess it's OK, Ya know the only thing we need is water
Cool clear water!
Ain't no people on the old dirt road
No more weather on the old dirt road
But it's better than a mudslide momma when the morning comes
Oh oh oh old dirt road
Aint no difference on the old dirt road
Tarred and feathered on the old dirt road
Sail away
The song Old Dirt Road by Harry Nilsson and John Lennon seems to be a commentary on life, and the struggles that are encountered along the way. The opening lines, "Ain't no people on the old dirt road, no more weather on the old dirt road", suggest a journey that may have been long and arduous, with few people to interact with, and little change in the landscape. However, the song suggests that this old dirt road is still preferable to a mudslide, that even in the face of adversity there is something valuable about the journey taken.
The line "tarred and feathered on the old dirt road" suggests that the singer has been through some difficult times on this journey. The phrase "shoveling smoke with a pitchfork in the wind" seems to be a metaphor for the futility of trying to control life's unpredictable nature. Perhaps the singer has encountered others along the way who have lost their purpose, "lazybonin' out in the hay", but still demand the essentials of life. The phrase "cool clear water" is repeated several times, underscoring how basic and vital it is.
The song concludes with the phrase "sail away", which suggests that this journey has come to an end. However, there's a sense that the singer has had a transformative experience, that they have come out the other end of a difficult time and emerged stronger for it. The old dirt road may have been long and often difficult, but there was still something valuable about the journey.
Line by Line Meaning
Ain't no people on the old dirt road
There are no human beings around in the surrounding of the old, dusty route
No more weather on the old dirt road
The route is now without any regard for climate changes
But it's better than a mudslide momma when the dry spell comes
The old route is preferred over a different route when there's less moist and more dust
Oh oh oh old dirt road
The old, dusty route has become the focal point of this song
Aint no difference on the old dirt road
The pathway appears monotonous
Tarred and feathered on the old dirt road
The road looks intimidating, as if the route is dangerous
It's like trying to shovel smoke with a pitchfork in the wind
Trying to accomplish something futile, which is essentially undoable
Breezin through the dead wood on a hot summer day
Walking through the empty woods on a scorching afternoon
I saw a human being lazybonin' out in the hay
Someone was relaxing comfortably in the haystacks
I said uh, hey Mister Human can ya rainmaker too?
Asking the person if they can perform the act of making rain
He said I guess it's OK, Ya know the only thing we need is water
Agreeing in a relaxed tone about the simplicity of what is needed to make rain (water)
Cool clear water!
Expressing a fond approval for the water that's mentioned
But it's better than a mudslide momma when the morning comes
The rise of the sun makes the old, dusty route better than another road that may lead to mudslides
Oh oh oh old dirt road
The old, dusty route is still the forefront focus by the end of the song
Sail away
A final command to the listener to journey away from the old path
Contributed by Daniel Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.