During the 1970s, McKuen began composing larger-scale orchestral compositions, writing a series of concertos, suites, symphonies, and chamber pieces for orchestra. His piece "The City: A Suite for Narrator & Orchestra" was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in Music. He continued publishing a steady stream of poetry books throughout the decade. In 1977, he published "Finding My Father", a chronicle of his search for information on his biological father. The book and its publicity helped make such information more readily available to adopted children. He also continued to record, releasing albums such as "New Ballads" (1970), "Pastorale" (1971), and the country-rock outing "McKuen Country" (1976).