During a 1968 press conference , the Beatles were asked what their favorite American group was and answered " Nilsson " . He soon formed close friendships with John Lennon and Ringo Starr . In the 1970s , Nilsson and Lennon were members of the Hollywood Vampires drinking club , embroiling themselves in a number of widely publicized , alcohol-fueled incidents . At the same time , they produced one collaborative album , '' Pussy Cats '' ( 1974 ) . After 1977 , Nilsson left RCA , and his record output diminished . In response to Lennon 's 1980 murder , he took a hiatus from the music industry to campaign for gun control . For the rest of his life , he recorded only sporadically
Lennon 's 1980 murder
Murder of John Lennon
Harry Nilsson