Speaking of “lost” classics. This album was recorded during John Lennon’s “Lost Weekend”.

The thing really should have been a mess. Lennon and Nilsson were heavy into drink and drugs around the time of the recording of this album and were constantly getting thrown out of bars. (Easter Egg: look  at Nilsson’s & Lennon’s feet on the album cover. D – rug – S under the table)

Nilsson, who previously had a nearly angelic singing voice (see his cover of “Everybody’s Talkin'” from Midnight Cowboy or his cover of Badfinger’s “Without You”) sounded rough and ragged on this album. At one point, he had screwed up his voice so badly during the recording session that blood appeared on his microphone after singing. He refused to tell producer John Lennon, because he didn’t want Lennon to shut down the recording sessions and scrap the album.

It is a great album nonetheless, with a fantastic cover of Jimmy Cliff’s “Many Rivers to Cross” kicking off the album (sounds like it belongs on Lennon’s Walls and Bridges, which was recorded 2 months after these sessions ended), a messy but charming cover of Bob Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues”, the sublime original “Don’t Forget Me”, and a heartbreaking cover of “Save the Last Dance For Me”.

The album includes appearances from Bobby Keys, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, and Klaus Voorman.

Give it a listen. What do you think? It’s definitely worth checking out. Even if not every song is GREAT, there are great moments, and as a whole, it is a lost classic.