Without Harry
Thursday, 10. August 2006, 18:08:57
I am about to get off to a bad start. One should always share his or her most loathsome trait first. Keep expectations very, very low. I am a sucker for some 70s soft rock. While much of it falls somewhere between boring and godawful, there are also some really shiny gems. Popular ones even…I’m not talking about obscure, private-press record collector shit. I am talking about, say, Air Supply, Boz Scaggs, Fleetwood Mac. Records you should be able to find for less than a dollar at Goodwill (after sorting through many weird but typically uninteresting Christian records). With the exception of Scaggs’ stirring Lido Shuffle, it is typically the more melancholy numbers that are most magical. Without You is certainly one of my favorites. Harry Nilsson did not write it, although his version is perhaps most highly regarded. Badfinger are the geniuses behind this scorching motherfucker. I would love to post Nilsson’s impassioned version of Without You from Nilsson Schmilsson, but have not yet made the effort to transfer vinyl to mp3. This is the same reason that you will not find any highlights from Scaggs’ Silk Degrees here. Maybe someday.
So, that leaves us with a more modern performance. Bobby Conn: a man within whom greatness resides, but who sometimes likes to mix things up with some less gratifying offerings. I assure you, though, that Without You is a success. Fuck yeah it’s great. If you like it, please seek out Llovessongs on Thrill Jockey (including an additional cover of the wonderful Caetano Veloso’s Maria B). I also recommend 1998’s Rise Up, on Thrill Jockey, but again, my copy is on vinyl, so I’m not posting a sample.
Finally, I have included the first Conn song I heard, many years ago: Never Get Ahead. If you haven’t heard it before, please listen. Brilliant. This song reminds me of seeing Conn at Detroit’s Gold Dollar, now sadly closed, but one of the best venues I’ve had the pleasure of visiting.
As a bonus, here is a link to Nilsson performing Without You:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cad1z67082E
Seriously, Harry Nilsson was a great performer.
So, that leaves us with a more modern performance. Bobby Conn: a man within whom greatness resides, but who sometimes likes to mix things up with some less gratifying offerings. I assure you, though, that Without You is a success. Fuck yeah it’s great. If you like it, please seek out Llovessongs on Thrill Jockey (including an additional cover of the wonderful Caetano Veloso’s Maria B). I also recommend 1998’s Rise Up, on Thrill Jockey, but again, my copy is on vinyl, so I’m not posting a sample.
Finally, I have included the first Conn song I heard, many years ago: Never Get Ahead. If you haven’t heard it before, please listen. Brilliant. This song reminds me of seeing Conn at Detroit’s Gold Dollar, now sadly closed, but one of the best venues I’ve had the pleasure of visiting.
As a bonus, here is a link to Nilsson performing Without You:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cad1z67082E
Seriously, Harry Nilsson was a great performer.
