Pussy Cats
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums:
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Pussy Cats
- Artist: Nilsson
- Rating:
- Release Date: August 19, 1974
- Total Time: 36:55
- Type: Lyrics are included with the album
- Genre: Rock
Review
The relationship between Harry Nilsson and John Lennon is legendary. They were notorious booze hounds and carousers, getting kicked out of clubs for misbehavior and generally terrorizing L.A. during Lennon's "lost weekend" of 1974. They wanted to make an album together -- hell, anyone working at such a peak would -- and the result was Pussy Cats, a Nilsson album produced by Lennon. Almost immediately, Nilsson got sick, resulting in a ruptured vocal cord. Not wanting Lennon to stop the sessions, Nilsson never told his friend, stubbornly working his way through the sessions until he lost his voice entirely. These are the sessions that make up Pussy Cats, an utterly bewildering record that's more baffling than entertaining. Like many superstar projects of its time, this is studded with contributions from friends and studio musicians, all intent on having a good time in the studio -- which usually means hammering out rock & roll oldies. In this case, it meant both Dylan's "Subterranean Homesick Blues" and the children's song "Loop de Loop," which gives a good idea where Nilsson was at. Through its messiness, Pussy Cats winds up showing how he and Lennon violently careened between hedonism and self-loathing. Of the new songs, the inadvertently revealing "All My Life" is the strongest, followed by the sweet "Don't Forget Me," yet this is more about tone than substance. It's about hearing Nilsson's voice getting progressively harsher, as the backing remains appealingly professional and slick. It doesn't quite jibe, and it's certainly incoherent, but that's its charm. It may not be as wild as the lost weekend itself, but it couldn't have been recorded at any other time and remains a fascinating aural snapshot of the early days of 1974. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi| Pussy Cat Party (2004 Album by Alston Becket Cyrus) | |
| Pussy Cats (2006 Album by The Walkmen) |
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Pussy Cats
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Pussy Cats
This article is about the Harry Nilsson album. For the album by The Walkmen, see "Pussy Cats" Starring the Walkmen. For other uses, see Pussycat (disambiguation).
| Pussy Cats | ||||
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| Studio album by Harry Nilsson | ||||
| Released | August 19, 1974 (US) August 30, 1974 (UK) |
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| Recorded | March–May 1974 Burbank Studios, Los Angeles; Record Plant, New York |
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| Genre | Pop, rock | |||
| Length | 56:08 | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Producer | John Lennon | |||
| Harry Nilsson chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Pussy Cats | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    link |
| Robert Christgau | A−[1] |
 This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information. |
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Pussy Cats is the tenth album by Harry Nilsson, released in 1974. It was produced by John Lennon during his "Lost Weekend" period. The album title was inspired by the bad press Nilsson and Lennon were getting at the time for being drunk and rowdy in Los Angeles. They also included an inside joke on the cover -- children's letter blocks "D" and "S" on either side of a rug − to spell out "drugs" in code.
The album was started in Los Angeles, but Lennon ultimately finished producing it in New York, where he could better control the sessions. During the recording sessions, Nilsson ruptured one of his vocal cords but chose to keep this from Lennon. He forced himself to push through the sessions, causing even more damage.
Among the many musicians on Pussy Cats are drummers Ringo Starr, Keith Moon and Jim Keltner, who actually all play together (on three drumkits) on the closing track, "Rock Around the Clock". Other contributors include Jesse Ed Davis, Klaus Voormann and Bobby Keys.
On the first night of recording, March 28, Paul McCartney popped into the studio unexpectedly.[2]
In June 1999, a commemorative 25th Anniversary edition of the album was released.
In October 2006, a track-by-track cover of the album was released by indie rock band The Walkmen. In March 2009, alt-country artist, Neko Case, covered the song "Don't Forget Me" on her ANTI- label release, "Middle Cyclone" .
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Contents
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Track listing
All tracks composed by Harry Nilsson; except where indicated.
- "Many Rivers to Cross" (Jimmy Cliff) – 4:56
- "Subterranean Homesick Blues" (Bob Dylan) – 3:17
- "Don't Forget Me" – 3:37
- "All My Life" – 3:11
- "Old Forgotten Soldier" – 4:14
- "Save the Last Dance for Me" (Doc Pomus, Mort Shuman) – 4:25
- "Mucho Mungo/Mt. Elga" (John Lennon, Harry Nilsson) – 3:43
- "Loop De Loop" (Ted Vann) (featuring the Masked Alberts Kids Chorale) – 2:40
- "Black Sails" – 3:15
- "Rock Around the Clock" (Jimmy DeKnight, Max C. Freedman) – 3:12
- Bonus Tracks (CD Reissue)
- "Down by the Sea" - 5:37
- "The Flying Saucer Song" - 6:30
- "Turn Out the Light" - 2:32
- "Save the Last Dance for Me" (Doc Pomus, Mort Shuman) - 4:26
Personnel
- Nathalie Altman - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Curtis Armstrong - Liner Notes
- Kenny Ascher - Piano, Conductor, Orchestration
- Susie Bell - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Greg Calbi - Mastering
- Cally - Artwork, Design, Photography
- Roy Cicala - Engineer, Assistant Producer
- Gene Cipriano - Saxophone
- Jesse Ed Davis - Guitar
- Eddie Eddings - Research
- Dennis Ferrante - Mixing
- Chuck Findley - Trombone
- Troy Germano - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Jane Getz - Piano
- Mike Hartry - Digital Transfers
- Jim Horn - Saxophone
- Jimmy Iovine - Assistant Engineer
- Jim Keltner - Drums
- Bobby Keys - Saxophone
- Sneaky Pete Kleinow - Pedal Steel
- Danny Kortchmar - Guitar
- Bill Lacey - Audio Restoration
- Trevor Lawrence - Saxophone
- Acy Lehman - Art Direction
- John Lennon - Producer
- Keith Moon - Conga, Drums, Wood Block
- Erik Mueller - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Rachel Mueller - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Keith Munro - Producer, Coordination
- Harry Nilsson - Piano, Piano (Electric), Vocals, Performer, Author, Adaptation
- May Pang - Production Assistant
- Phylida Paterson - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Peri Prestopino - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Andrea T. Sheridan - Liner Notes
- Willie "The Lion" Smith - Organ
- Ringo Starr - Drums, Maracas
- David Steinberg - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Derek Taylor - Liner Notes
- Cantey Turner - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Kristin Turner - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Damon Vigiano - Choir, Chorus, Children's Chorus
- Klaus Voormann - Bass
- Cynthia Webb - Marimba
- Paul Williams - Tape Research, Reissue Supervisor
References
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Harry Nilsson". Robert Christgau. http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?id=3420.
- ^ Keith Badham, The Beatles Diary Volume 2: After the Break-Up 1970−2001, Omnibus Press (London, 2002), pp 121−22.
External links
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