Artist:     Harry Nilsson

Album:     Losst and Founnd

Label:     Omnivore

Release Date:     11.22.2019

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From the achingly lonely “Everybody’s Taklin’” to the quirky, one-chord “[Lime in da] Coconut,” Harry Nilsson’s talent knew no bounds. The closest comparisons to his breadth of songwriting might be the contrast of the Beatles’ “Yesterday” and “Yellow Submarine.” In fact, John Lennon and Ringo Starr were both Nilsson’s pals, and in 1968, when the Beatles were asked to name their favorite American group, the answer was “Nilsson.” Not surprisingly, he championed outlier songwriter Randy Newman, who recorded with him. Nilsson wrote many hits for the Monkees, another group that didn’t take seriousness seriously; Monkee Mickey Dolenz was also a lifelong friend. Many geniuses striving to stretch their boundaries seek comedy, and Harry Nilsson, in that, at least, conformed.

The exuberant opener and almost-title song, “Lost and Found,” with lyrics “Lost and found, what a miracle” might be a recap of both this album and the entire saga of Harry Nilsson, whose life seemed to be a series of successes and bad breaks, some self-induced, some random. For example, although an extraordinarily talented performer (two of his biggest hits, “Without You” and “Everybody’s Talkin’” were covers), basically he refused to tour, and his career suffered enormously as a result. He owned a flat in London (strategically close to the Playboy Club, the exclusive nightspot Tramp, and Apple Studios), which he offered to friends when he was away. Not one but two artists, the Mamas & the Papas’ Cass Elliot and the Who’s drummer Keith Moon, both died alone in Nilsson’s flat. In 1990, Nilsson discovered that his financial adviser had embezzled his earnings and the Nilssons were left with $300 in the bank; facing a mountain of debt, he started over while the advisor served less than two years in jail, without making restitution. Admittedly a hard partier, Nilsson’s January, 1994 fatal heart attack took him at 52, meanwhile the Rolling Stones, three of the Beatles, Willie Nelson and Jerry Lee Lewis—among many others—soldier on in their 70s and 80s. Go figure.

Not only was Nilsson taken from us all soon, to add insult to injury, some recordings never saw the light of day…until now. Not every song on Losst and Founnd equals Nielsen’s best work, but some do, and overall it’s still a better record than most writers will produce in their lifetime. From “Animal Farm,” the tongue-in-cheek story of inter-species sex, to the achingly tender “Lullaby,” which expresses the words every parent would like to say to their child at bedtime but can’t because they lack the genius, this release is a welcome reminder of an extraordinary artist.

Lots of variation here. “Try” sounds like it was lifted from the Beatles’ “All You Need is Love,” with a few sly references to other Beatles’ hits, but it’s not the only Beatles reference: “U.C.L.A.” mentions “Penny Lane,” Ringo Starr and “Yesterday,” complete with snippets of melody. I’m sure if I listened to the CD another 100 times (and I may), I’d continue to find sly references to gobs of our popular culture. The raunchy “Animal Farm,” sporting New Orleans’ braggadocio, brings on the fun, while “Love Is the Answer,” with its gentle waltz time, French phrases and a B3 sounding like an accordion evokes arm-in-arm evening walks along the Seine, with the lights of Paris reflected on a rainy sidewalk.

The closer, one of two covers, is Jimmy Webb’s “What Does a Woman See in a Man,” an unvarnished catalog of the differences between men and woman. It’s a very appropriate bookend to a career with such highs and lows, and the paired comedy and tragedy so often found in Harry Nilsson’s own songs. Losst and Founnd is a miracle, indeed.

—Suzanne Cadgène