You’re Breakin’ My Heart

by Harry Nilsson 1972 (An “X” Rated Song.)

Harry Nilsson 1941-1994

FROM the HARRY NILSSON OFFICIAL SITE

“Songs come differently each time, each album is unique. In Africa, the year before last, I wrote the Schmilsson album in a month and a half. I was never that prolific before and probably never will be again. There was no telephone going off. There were elephants outside. I took out a notebook and a pen and wow! all of a sudden I started writing lyrics and melodies without being near a piano or guitar or anything.” — Harry Nilsson

Harry Nilsson was born “Harry Edward Nilsson III” on June 15, 1941, in Brooklyn, New York. After dropping out of high school and moving to California, Nilsson lied about his lack of a high school diploma and was given a job working in a bank’s computer section. While Nilsson worked nights at the bank, his interest in music grew. During the day he began writing songs, visiting music publishers, and singing on demo records.

After having songs recorded by Glen Campbell and the Monkees, Nilsson left the bank to work full-time as a songwriter and singer. Nilsson signed with RCA in 1967 and in October of that year released Pandemonium Shadow Show.

Nilsson’s second RCA album, Aerial Ballet, included his recording of Fred Neil’s song “Everybody’s Talkin’”. Director John Schlesinger used Nilsson’s recording of “Everybody’s Talkin’” in Midnight Cowboy and the song became a hit – reaching number 6 on Billboard’s Hot 100 and earning Nilsson a Grammy. Nilsson’s success continued as Three Dog Night’s recording of his song “One” reached number 5 on the charts and went on to sell more than a million copies.

Nilsson’s 1971 album, Nilsson Schmilsson, became his best-selling album and “Without You”, the album’s first single, became a world-wide hit in 1972.

In 1974, Nilsson and John Lennon generated newspaper headlines by being thrown out of the Troubadour for heckling a Smothers Brothers performance. The same year, Lennon produced Nilsson’s Pussy Cats album.

Nilsson’s last album for RCA, Knnillssonn was released in July of 1977.

In 1980, Nilsson traveled to Malta where Robert Altman was filming Popeye starring Robin Williams. On location, Harry composed and recorded the music and songs for the film. The same year, Nilsson signed with Mercury Records and released his last album, Flash Harry. The album was only released in Europe.

After the murder of John Lennon in December of 1980, Nilsson devoted much of his time to campaigning for better gun laws. He also formed Hawkeye Entertainment which produced the film “The Telephone” starring Whoopi Goldberg and written by Nilsson and Terry Southern.

In early 1993, Nilsson suffered a major heart attack. Almost a year later, on January 15, 1994, Harry Nilsson died.

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The “Son of Schmilsson” album was the first Harry Nilsson album I purchased, when I lived at home in 1972. The album contains the hit song “Remember (Christmas)”. Other albums I and my brother purchased in 1972 included David Bowie and Elton John.  My brother and I loved to put on “You’re Breakin’ My Heart” for friends, just to freak them out. I think I was doing this well into the 70s. Although Nilsson’s previous album, “Nilsson Schmilsson” was a best seller, the followup was not that well known among my peers. Harry always wrote with his tongue planted firmly in his cheek, and his tunes were catchy, and his lyrics sidesplittingly funny most of the time.

Daniel, my brother, and I first noticed the artist’s work in the “Movie of the Week” “The Point” an animated film from 1971 written by Nilsson. That show contained the hit song “Me and My Arrow.” Harry was pretty popular. He hung out with the Beatles. (I almost got to see him perform at Beatlefest in 1978 or 1979 but we missed the start time.) His music was used in the Oscar winning movie “Midnight Cowboy” directed by John Schlesinger. After purchasing “Son of Schmillson” we got “Pandemonium Shadow Show” and “Nilsson Schmilsson.” I later bought almost everything he ever recorded. Sadly, a heart attack claimed the performer over a decade ago. But the music, as always, lives on, and I’m glad to share this personal favorite with my readers.

MFN 7/12/05

Lyrics from LyrixUs
“You’re Breakin’ My Heart”
Words and Music by Harry Nilsson (edited for content)

You’re breakin’ my heart
You’re tearing it apart so fu** you

All I want to do is have a good time now I’m blue
You won’t boogaloo,
Run down to Tramps, have a dance or two, ooohhh
You’re breakin’ my heart,
You’re tearing it apart but fu** you

You’re breakin’ my heart
You’re tearing it apart, boo-hoo

You stepped on my a**
You’re breakin’ my glasses too
You won’t drive my car, might be a star
I’ve had enough of you
I’m goin’ insane
There’s no one to blame so fu** you

Instrumental break #1

You can’t have your way
There’s nothing left to say
There’s nothing left to do, ooooohhh
You’re breakin’ my heart
You’re tearing it apart so fu** you

Instrumental break #2

You gotta have your way
There’s nothing left to say
There’s nothing left to do, ooooowww
You’re breakin’ my heart
You’re tearing it apart but I love you

Official Harry Nilsson Website

Classic Bands  website entry on Nilsson

Carolyne Mas: Hard Rocking Gal

Carolyne Mas is one of those singers I fell in love with back during the early eighties. I have two of her records, both on vinyl. Her self titled “Carolyne Mas” was released in 1979. It was a pretty hectic time in my personal life. I drove a truck for FedMart Stores, and put in 12-15 hours a day, with only one day off a week. I was partying pretty hardy when time would permit. I thought I had lost the first record, and miraculously, after I hooked the receiver and record player into the computer yesterday, I found the album exactly where it should have been, and it still sounds utterly fantastic. I put two songs from Carolyne’s first album on my server, and they are available either as streaming media by clicking the song titles, or by download by right clicking and ”saving” as an mp3 file on your computer. I lost track of Carolyne’s music after the second album, “Hold On” but she has continued recording, and I have supplied links to her offical site and a couple of fan sites.

Often I would get completely zonkered and pass out with this record playing. It’s a miracle that it isn’t completely destroyed, as I remember the kind of abuse it would take while I was utterly drunk, depressed, and ready to hear Carolyne’s plaintive voice.  

Quote Goodbye Quote  from the 1979 album  ”Carolyne Mas”   

The music on this site will be available for about a week after the entry is featured, and then I will have to take it down so that I don’t fill up my server with large mp3 files. In future entries, I will only feature one song from each artist, but for the inaugural entry, I am showcasing two excellent hard rocking songs from the first album, both recorded from vinyl into the computer.     

StillSane is the first song on Side 2 of the first Carolyne Mas album, “Carolyne Mas” and was her first single.

                                   

Here is a page from Carolyne’s bio on her official site: JULY 1979: Carolyne’s self-titled debut album is released on Mercury Records. The sound is polished and the cover shows her in classy tophat, jacket and scarf–though Carolyne later tells the RALEIGH, NC NEWS AND OBSERVER: “That picture was taken in my bathroom and I was wearing unbelievably ripped-up pants. That all got cropped out.” There are full-page ads in BILLBOARD (“She gives street-smart rock ‘n’ roll and new elegance.”) And ROLLING STONE (“She’s street elegant.”) Much of the album’s press coverage includes other women with new albums, often with terribly sexist headlines like THE VILLAGE VOICE: “They’re Cute, but Can They Sing?” ROLLING STONE, who extends the Springsteen comparison to Ellens Foley and Shipley: “Boss ladies? Three women who don’t Bruce easily.” Even MUSICIAN: “Rockettes,” though Carolyne is singled out with high praise from their Vic Garbarini: “Mas is the most talented and compelling American singer-songwriter to emerge since Bruce Springsteen, and this is her ‘Born To Run.’ She pumps more heart and soul into her superbly crafted three-minute pop anthems than anybody I’ve heard in years.” And though TIME’s headline is: “Chick Singers Need Not Apply,” at least their Jay Cocks makes a refreshing new male comparison: “Mas’ songs vary from reveries to roughhouse declamations without missing a beat, and if she keeps up this pace she may be dogging Randy Newman’s tracks in a few years.” HIGH FIDELITY gives Carolyne’s album a full page to itself, their Steven Rea praising her “Sheer Moxie” and comparing her ballads to Patti Smith, Barbra Streisand, and Carly Simon; then ending with: “The world needs more rock & rollers like her.”

SEPTEMBER 1979: Carolyne’s first single, “STILLSANE,” makes BILLBOARD’s Hot 100. In March 1980 their Ed Harrison praises her live show: “Mas is the rock world’s best kept secret. Onstage, she is as explosive as a 20 megaton bomb, with a voice that can send shivers running through your body.” Carolyne performs all over the U.S., Europe, and Canada (where “STILLSANE” reaches #9 and “QUOTE GOODBYE QUOTE” #16). She opens shows for Springsteen, Southside Johnny, Cheap Trick, Rick Derringer, Nils Lofgren, Robert Palmer, The Boomtown Rats, Sammy Hagar, Steve Forbert, and others. Some of Carolyne’s opening acts include Bon Jovi, Billy Burnette, comedienne Elayne Boosler, and Jerry Seinfeld. Tony Bennett (whose sons opened for Carolyne) and Bruce Springsteen are both in her audience one night at THE FAST LANE in Asbury Park, New Jersey. Mr. Bennett does a caricature drawing of Carolyne. The Pointer Sisters want to record her “QUOTE GOODBYE QUOTE,” but Carolyne’s manager wants it released as a single by Carolyne instead. Carolyne hears through a friend (Robin Zander of Cheap Trick) that Barbra Streisand, collecting songs for her “Wet” album, heard “SNOW” (another single for Carolyne) and called her “a great singer.” Carolyne makes the first-round draft of GRAMMY nominations in several categories

I’ve always had a large “chick singer” section in my record collection. A great rock band with a female singer, a la “Jefferson Airplane”, has always been one of my favorite types of music. And Carolyne could rock like no other. I’m glad I “found” my lost record, and glad I can share this still powerful rock and roll with my readers.

Official Carolyne Mas Website

Unofficial Carolyne Mas Website

Another Carolyne Mas Website

Images obtained from the various Carolyne Mas websites already online and for which links are featured above.