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)
One
Harry Nilsson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Two can be as bad as one
It's the loneliest number since the number one
"No" is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
Because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
It's just no good anymore since you went away
Now I spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday
Because one is the loneliest number
That you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number
That you'll ever know
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number
Much, much worse than two
One is the number divided by two
One
One is the loneliest number
Harry Nilsson's 1968 hit song One is a melancholic ode to loneliness and heartbreak. The opening lines of the song, "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do, two can be as bad as one," set the tone for the rest of the lyrics. The song tells the story of a person who has been left alone after a relationship ends, and they find it difficult to make sense of their life without their partner.
The repeated lines "one is the loneliest number" emphasize the point that being alone can be worse than being in an unhappy relationship. The lyrics "now I spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday" suggests that the person is stuck in the past, unable to move on from their heartbreak.
The line "One is the number divided by two, One" is mathematically incorrect, but it adds to the overall theme of the song. It suggests that the person's life has been divided in half, and they are left with only one part of themselves. The song ends with the repeated line "one is the loneliest number," driving home the feeling of isolation and loneliness.
Line by Line Meaning
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Being alone by yourself is the most despairing thing one can ever experience
Two can be as bad as one
Having someone around may not make things better, as they too can bring just as much negativity to the situation
It's the loneliest number since the number one
After being alone, the only alternative is to find someone else, which can lead to equally lonely and disheartening experiences
"No" is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Getting rejected or denied is the most painfully upsetting experience one can go through
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
Being told "no" can be an extremely crushing and excruciating moment
It's just no good anymore since you went away
Without that special person around, everything feels empty and uninspiring
Now I spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday
In the absence of anything worthwhile, resorting to reminiscing over past memories and moments
One is the loneliest number
Nothing is as bleak and discouraging as being all by oneself
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
Being all alone is undoubtedly the most desolate and difficult thing to endure
One is the loneliest number
Once again emphasizing the fact that being alone is the most miserable and cheerless experience
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Reiterating that the isolation one feels when by themselves is truly unbearable
One is the loneliest number
Emphasizing for the third and final time how being alone is the most hopeless and discouraged state one can be in
Much, much worse than two
Being alone is not just worse than having someone around, it is significantly and exponentially worse
One is the number divided by two
A mathematical way of breaking down what the number one really means and how it represents being alone
One
The ultimate symbol of being by oneself
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid, Songtrust Ave, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Harry Edward Nilsson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Flirson
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one
It's the loneliest number since the number one
"No" is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
Because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
It's just no good anymore since you went away
Now I spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday
Because one is the loneliest number
That you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number
That you'll ever know
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number
Much, much worse than two
One is the number divided by two
One
One is the loneliest number
Your welcome <3
red lightning
Lyrics:
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one
It's the loneliest number since the number one
No is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
Because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
It's just no good anymore since you went away
Now I spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday
Because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
One is the loneliest number, much, much worse than two
One is the number divided by two
One
One is the loneliest number
idk y i did this
PancakeBatter
ONE
by Harry Nilsson
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do.
Two can be as bad one;
It's the loneliest number since the number one.
"No" is the saddest experience you'll ever know.
Yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know,
Because one is the loneliest number you'll ever do.
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know.
It's just no good anymore since you went away.
Now I spend my time
Just making rhymes, yesterday.
Because one is the loneliest number you'll ever do.
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever know.
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number
One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do.
One is the loneliest number much, much worse than two.
One is a number divided by two.
O-o-o-o-o-one...
One is the loneliest number.
daniel holbrook
Not a Venom fan but it's always cool to see Nilsson get some more recognition
Aerial Ballet is a masterpiece of an album, btw. Give the whole thing a listen
Unfunny Jokester
First Venom, then Better Call Saul! Truly awesome
merilyn newman
@Unfunny JokesterLego Batman in 2017
Roy Buckner
Popeye 1980
Leonardo Ledesma
Great, great song. Many people just know it because of "Lego Batman" and "Venom 2". Others knew the Aimee Mann version in the Oscar-winner film "Magnolia". But most of people, like me, knew the Three Dog Night version that became a rock classic. But this original recording by his creator, Harry Nilsson, is the best of them all. The telephone busy signal inspired Harry to compose the song, and the monotone keyboard part that opens the theme evocates it.
liandren
I knew it from the John Farnham version.
Joel Kalil
Magnólia isn't a Oscar-winner film
Leonardo Ledesma
@Joel Kalil You're right! Forgive my lapsus. The Oscar-winner was Tom Cruise for his role in that movie.
Joel Kalil
@Leonardo Ledesma no, actually this movie didn't win any Oscars unfortunately
Aidan Boring
Sad lego batman noises