Harry Nilsson's Sandman is a record that is moderately out of my comfort zone. I have been known to rail against singer-songwriters because of the near-inevitable focus on lyrics over melody. At least this late in his career, that maxim certainly holds true for Nilsson. Although the first few tracks hold melodic interest, the second side deteriorates in this regard, with the lowlight (at least from a musical perspective) being the near seven-minute "The Flying Saucer Song," the premise of which is a spoken-word conversation between two drunks in a bar (both voiced by Nilsson, of course) who narrate the tale of a flying saucer encounter. Although the lyrics are undeniably witty and even poetic in sections, seven minutes of dialogue over static instrumentation is a bit much for me to handle when I am primarily engaging with records for their musical value.
All that said, this album still rates as one to keep for me because of the overall diversity of his approach as well as some standout tracks (the string-led "Something True" makes excellent use of a crack backing band including Jim Keltner of Derek and the Dominoes fame and Klaus Voormann [the bassist on Plastic Ono Band AND the designer of the cover for Revolver]). (This section could really use some footnotes). I wouldn't recommend it highly, but I would recommend it, and if you are a fan of witty, literate singer-songwriting, this album would probably warrant a higher rating from you than it does for me.
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