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)
Yellow Man
Harry Nilsson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Live the yellow woman and the yellow man
He's been around for many-a-year
They say they were there before we were here
Eatin' rice all day
While the children play
You see he believes
Just like you and me
Oh, yellow man, oh, yellow man
We understand, you know we understand
He keeps his money tight in his hand
With his yellow woman he's a yellow man
Got to have a yellow woman
When you're a yellow man
Harry Nilsson's Yellow Man is a song that explores the concept of cultural identity and how different races are viewed in society. The lyrics describe a yellow man living far away in a foreign land with his yellow woman. Despite living far away, Nilsson believes that the yellow man and woman have been there long before any other races arrived. The yellow man is described as someone who eats rice all day while the children play. He believes strongly in family values and keeping his money close.
The song reflects on how people of different cultures are often stereotyped and marginalized in society. The yellow man represents the struggles faced by minority groups, discrimination and social exclusion. The lyrics suggest that we need to understand and respect different cultures, just as we do with our own. It is a message of tolerance and acceptance of cultural differences.
Line by Line Meaning
Very far away in a foreign land
There exists a distant, foreign land
Live the yellow woman and the yellow man
Residing in that land, there are individuals with yellow skin tone, both male and female
He's been around for many-a-year
The male has lived for a substantial amount of time
They say they were there before we were here
There are claims that they have inhabited the land before other people
Eatin' rice all day
Their staple food consists of rice that they consume throughout the day
While the children play
Children engage in play during this time
You see he believes
It is evident that he has confidence in the concept of
In the family
The structure of family
Just like you and me
The way we perceive family in our society
Oh, yellow man, oh, yellow man
Addressing the particular male with yellow skin
We understand, you know we understand
We comprehend their way of life
He keeps his money tight in his hand
He is financially cautious and does not spend frivolously
With his yellow woman he's a yellow man
He identifies closely with his female partner and their racial identity
Got to have a yellow woman
It is integral to have a female partner with the same skin tone
When you're a yellow man
When one identifies as a male with yellow skin tone
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RANDY NEWMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind