Pandemonium Shadow Show is an album by Harry Nilsson. It was the first product of his three-year, $50,000 recording contract with RCA Records, and was recorded in their Hollywood studio. Unlike virtually all his earlier records, Show employed the full potential of Nilsson's three-octave singing voice in the recording studio, turning him into what was described as a "chorus of ninety-eight voices". Among the songs were originals by Nilsson, and selected covers, two of which were tributes to Phil Spector and The Beatles. The former, "River Deep - Mountain High", employed Wall of Sound techniques developed by Spector, who had earlier co-written a song with Nilsson. The latter included a mellowed-out cover of "You Can't Do That" that cleverly referenced twenty other Beatles tunes in Nilsson's vocal arrangement, and many of the other songs on the album used Beatley tricks, such as pitch shift on the vocals. Nilsson had hoped to use the title Something Wicked This Way Comes, and had asked sci-fiauthorRay Bradbury for permission. But approval hadn't come by the release date, so the lesser-known title was chosen (of a circussideshow appearing in Bradbury's novel) instead. The album debuted to little public attention in the US and England, although it was an immediate hit in Canada, where "You Can't Do That" was a top 10 hit. Outside of Canada the album needed a push, and fortunately for Nilsson the "right" people in show business happened to be listening — including former Beatles publicistDerek Taylor, who heard "1941" on his car radio waiting for his wife at the supermarket. Enjoying the track, he ordered a case of copies of the album, sending them out to various industry people he believed would be interested, including each of the Beatles, who were suitably impressed. The Beatles later invited Nilsson to London, ushering in a whole new, larger phase of his career. Fellow musician and earlier collaborator Chip Douglas also introduced Nilsson to another best-selling band of the era, whom he was producing — the Monkees. When Nilsson gave the band an improptu audition of his latest songs, they were similarly bowled over, becoming both performers of his music ("Cuddly Toy", and later "Daddy's Song") and personal friends. After Nilsson had become better established, through hits like "Without You" and albums like Nilsson Schmilsson, his earlier material finally sold into the black. Nilsson revamped several tracks from his first two albums to produce one of the first remix albums, Aerial Pandemonium Ballet, in the early 1970s.
