Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), sometimes cred… Read Full Bio ↴Harry Edward Nilsson III (June 15, 1941 – January 15, 1994), sometimes credited as Nilsson, was an American singer-songwriter who reached the peak of his success in the early 1970s. His work is characterized by pioneering vocal overdub experiments, a return to the Great American Songbook, and fusions of Caribbean sounds. Nilsson was one of the few major pop-rock recording artists to achieve significant commercial success without performing major public concerts or touring regularly.

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)

The Flying Saucer Song
Harry Nilsson Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Nilsson

No I can't forget this evening

Or your face as you were leaving,
But I guess that's just the way the story goes
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows
Yes it shows

No I can't forget tomorrorow
When I think of all my sorrows,
When I had you there but then I let you go
And now it's only fair that I should let you know
What you should know

I can't live
If living is without you
I can't live
I can't give any more
Can't live
If living is without you
I can't give
I can't give any more

No I can't forget this evening
Or your face as you were leaving,
But I guess that's just the way the story goes
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows
Yes it shows

Can't live
If living is without you
I can't live
I can't give anymore
I can't live
If living is without you
Can't live

I can't give anymore
(Living is without you)

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Harry Nilsson's song "The Flying Saucer Song" express deep sadness and regret over the loss of a loved one. The singer cannot forget the night when their loved one left, and they are haunted by the image of their face as they departed. Though the loved one always appeared happy on the surface, the singer can see the sorrow in their eyes. The second verse expresses the singer's regret for letting their loved one go, and now they feel it is only fair to let them know how much they are missed. The chorus repeats the sentiment that the singer cannot live without their loved one and cannot give anymore.

Overall, the song is a lament about a lost love and the regrets that come with it. The singer is fully aware of the mistakes they made and longs for the chance to make things right. However, it seems that their loved one has already moved on, leaving them alone and unable to continue living without them.

Line by Line Meaning

No I can't forget this evening
I can't stop thinking about this moment and everything that happened.

Or your face as you were leaving,
Your image is forever etched in my mind, leaving me with sadness.

But I guess that's just the way the story goes
It seems this is the typical outcome of relationships like ours, with one person always left heartbroken.

The Flying Saucer SongHarry Nilsson Lyrics

The Flying Saucer Song
Harry Nilsson Lyrics