Best Known As: Oscar-winning composer for the Toy Story movies
Randy Newman's pop songs of the 1970s earned him a reputation as a songwriter's songwriter, but he's famous to most audiences for his songs and scores for popular movies such as Toy Story (1995), Bug's Life (1998) and Monsters, Inc. (2001). Randy Newman began writing songs at an early age, and in 1968 released his first album, Randy Newman Creates Something New Under the Sun. During the 1970s he released several albums that received critical praise and won over loyal fans, even if they didn't make Newman into rock star celebrity. He had a top 40 hit with "Sail Away" (1972), but it was his 1977 song "Short People," a controversial parody about bigotry, that became his biggest hit. Since the 1980s he has concentrated on writing film scores, including Ragtime (1981), The Natural (1984, starring Robert Redford), James and the Giant Peach (1996) and the sequels Toy Story 2 (1999) and Toy Story 3 (2010).
Randy Newman has been Oscar-nominated as a composer 20 times, beginning with the 1981 movie Ragtime; his first Oscar win was for 2001's Monsters, Inc. and his second win was for 2010's Toy Story 3 (best song, "We Belong Together")... Randy Newman's uncles -- Alfred, Lionel and Emil Newman -- were also film composers and conductors; Alfred Newman was the musical director for 20th Century Fox studios for many years... In 1970 singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson released an entire album of Newman songs, Nilsson Sings Newman... Three Dog Night's cover of Newman's "Mama Told Me (Not to Come)" was a number one hit for the group in 1970.
Though he perhaps was most famous during the 1960s and 1970s for writing quirky, darkly funny, or sharply satirical songs that often painted vivid portraits detailing the foibles and lives of lifelike characters, there is much more to Randy Newman's music than humor or novelty. Stylistically, his music runs the gamut from classically influenced film scores to R&B-type pop to haunting ballads and, most of all, to his upbeat, subtly orchestrated shuffling amalgam of New Orleans jazz and ragtime. Though his output of recorded music is somewhat sporadic, owing largely to his innate perfectionism, Newman has had a great effect on pop music and those influenced by him include Lyle Lovett, Paul Simon, and Mark Knopfler. Newman's contributions to film scoring have also been large and, in 1995, he received Oscar nominations for Best Song and Best Original Musical or Comedy Score for his work in Toy Story (1995).
Newman was born in Los Angeles, during WWII. At the time, his father was overseas serving as an army captain in Italy and Newman's childhood was punctuated by numerous moves throughout the South, where his mother's family and closest friends lived. He was most influenced by the time he spent with his mother's family in New Orleans. Musically, one of his greatest influences was the compositions of his uncle Alfred Newman, one of cinema's finest and most highly regarded film scorists. His two other uncles, Lionel and Emil, were also noted composers. As a boy, Newman frequently visited the soundstages where his uncle worked.
Newman began writing songs for Metric, the publishing house for Liberty Records, at age 16, thanks to the influence of his close friend Lenny Waronker, son of company founder Simon Waronker. Songwriting has never been easy for Newman and it took him a long time to find his unique voice. In 1962, he wrote his first music for television, for the episode "Northern Comfort" on the sitcom Dobie Gillis. At the time, he was moonlighting part time at 20th Century Fox, working on an old copy machine, and fetching music for composers. He also found time to compose additional music for such shows as Lost in Space and, most notably, for Peyton Place. He composed his first film score for Cold Turkey (1971), the funny story of an entire town that tries to quit smoking. He did not score another film until Ragtime (1981). The lovely waltzes he composed for this film earned Newman his first Oscar nomination. Over the next few years, he would receive numerous other Academy Award nominations, including one for the song "Make Up Your Mind" that was heard in Ron Howard's The Paper. Finally, after years of writing memorable songs for some of Hollywood's best-loved films, Newman took home a Best Song Oscar for "If I Didn't Have You" from the computer animated film Monsters, Inc. Newman also tried his hand at screenwriting when he collaborated on the script for John Landis' Western spoof The Three Amigos (1986). ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
Born November 28, 1943, in New Orleans, LA; son of Irving Newman (a physician) and Adele Newman (a homemaker); younger brother, Alan, a physician; married first wife, Roswitha, 1966; (divorced 1989); married second wife, Gretchen, c. 1992; children (from first marriage): Amos, born 1968; Eric, born 1971; John, born 1978. Education: Studied music composition at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA).
Worked in music publishing and wrote own music; released debut album Randy Newman, 1968; continued to release solo recordings throughout the 1970s, including Sail Away, 1972; Good Old Boys, 1974; Little Criminals, 1977; and Born Again, 1979; focused on movie soundtracks for much of the 1980s with scores such as The Natural, 1984, and Parenthood, 1989; released acclaimed solo album Land of Dreams, 1988; nominated for three Academy Awards at the same time for film scores for Babe: Pig in the City, A Bug’s Life, and Pleasantville, 1998; released first solo project since Land of Dreams entitled Bad Love, 1999.
Addresses:Home—Pacific Palisades, CA. Record company—DreamWorks, 9268 W. Third St., Beverly Hills, CA 90210.
Singer, songwriter, piano
Grammy award-winning musician Randy Newman attained prominence by using humor, irony, and cynicism to draw attention to society’s ills, such as prejudice, materialism, and racism, in addition to the absurdities and ironies of life. For example, he took on the personae of apartheid-supporting South Africans with "Christmas in Capetown," insecure homophobics in "Half a Man," and Southern bigots in "Rednecks." Newman, who thrives on misinterpretation, set his sometimes misunderstood lyrics to music ranging from rock and roll, folk, pop, ragtime, blues, and soul to lounge piano, orchestra, and big band. Most people remember him for his sole top 40 hit in 1977, "Short People," a song which also angered many small listeners who did not realize his aim was to attack prejudice in general. As he stated in an interview with Scott Benarde in the Baltimore Jewish Times, "If I died tomorrow, my tombstone would say, ‘Composer of" Short People "and others.’ That’s the way it is…. ‘Short People’ was the worst hit I could have. I had the worst tour when it was out. No one came—and I got death threats." Other recognized songs brought to life by Newman include "I Love L.A.," "I Love to See You Smile," "You Can Leave Your Hat On" (a song that angered many women’s groups), and Three Dog Night’s hit single "Mama Told Me Not to Come." And recording artists like Barbra Streisand, Peggy Lee, Dusty Springfield, Manfred Mann, Eric Burden, and Ringo Starr all called upon Newman for material.
However, Newman’s accomplishments extend beyond his own recordings of sarcastic, witty songs and his compositions for legendary musicians. He also composed numerous songs for movie soundtracks, including Awakenings, Forrest Gump, and the animated film Toy Story, and wrote a musical called Faust in 1995. In all, Newman has earned 12 Academy Award nominations, but he has never taken home the prize. Although he focused much of his energy on composing music for Hollywood films during the 1980s until the mid-1990s, Newman returned to his solo work in 1999, releasing his first album of new songs since 1988’s Land of Dreams. In addition to the release of his most recent record, Bad Love in 1999, Newman also received an astonishing three nominations for composing film scores for Babe: Pig in the City, A Bug’s Life, and Pleasantville (all released in 1998), but again went home empty handed.
Newman was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on November, 1943. His father, Irving, was a physician who practiced internal medicine and a veteran of World War II, while his mother, Adele, stayed at home to care for Newman and his younger brother Alan, who also pursued a career in medicine. Newman’s interest in music formed at an early age, and several members of his family were already respected professionals within the recording
business and Hollywood film industry. Alfred Newman, one of his uncles, received 45 Academy Award nominations and won nine during his career, scoring such films as How Green Was My Valley, The Robe, and The Grapes of Wrath, in addition to heading the music department at 20th Century Fox. When Alfred retired from his post at the film studio, Newman’s other uncle (Alfred’s brother), Lionel, succeeded him. Another uncle and brother to Alfred and Lionel, Emil, penned music for dozens of films during his lifetime as well. Later, two of Newman’s cousins found success writing in Hollywood; David scored The War of the Rosesand I Love Trouble, while Thomas worked onthe films Desperately Seeking Susan and The Shawshank Redemption. "I was about four or five when I had my first memories of my uncles. Uncle Alfred did All About Eve in 1951, and I remember that. I remember The Gunfighter, Yellow Sky and I was on stage for The Robe when I was a little boy," Newman recalled to Brett Anwar in the Sunday Telegraph. "I can remember having to be very quiet while he conducted the big orchestra on the soundstage. I realized it was something to do with what I wanted to do, and I was lucky because it was such a great orchestra, and I had the sound in my ear very early. Live, it’s a very impressive thing to hear."
Although Newman considered himself fortunate to have been exposed to such experiences as a child, his early life included it’s share of difficulties as well. During the time his family lived in Louisiana, he often felt isolated by his Jewish heritage, although his parents never actively practiced the spiritual aspect of the religion (his father, as well as Newman himself, defined themselves as atheists). Moreover, Newman suffered problems with his eyes and vision from the time of his birth. "It was tough for him having the problem with bad eyes," longtime friend and frequent producer Lenny Waronker told Susan Toepfer in People. "It wasn’t just that he had to wear glasses, he also had to have surgery." Beginning at age five, Newman underwent four operations to correct his severely crossed eyes. Newman, who felt shunned by other children and frequently endured teasing by peers, recalled to Toepfer, "School was painful. It was not the best time of my life, like they said it was going to be…. I’ve had a low opinion of myself since childhood. I’m hard on myself." Later, Newman, ordinarily contemptuous of personal revelation in music, would document these emotional hardships on his 1988 release Land of Dreams in songs like "Dixie Flyer," "New Orleans Wins the War," and "Four Eyes."
Around 1948, when Newman was about five years old, his father returned to New Orleans after serving in World War II and moved the family to Los Angeles, California, where Newman spent the remainder of his childhood. After studying music composition at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), he worked in music publishing for awhile before turning to writing his own lyrics and composing at the piano. In 1968, he released his self-titled debut album. Though critics in general complained about Newman’s overworked orchestrations, the record contained the notable songs "Davy the Fat Boy"and "I Think It’s Going to Rain Today."
Throughout the 1970s, Newman enjoyed a prolific and critically successful solo career, releasing acclaimed records such as the sardonic Sail Away, where Newman plays a huckster enticing slaves to America in the album’s title track and advocates dropping the atomic bomb in "Political Science;" as well as Good Old Boys, a concept album about the South that celebrates redneck ignorance. During the 1980s, at the same time he started focusing more on film scores, Newman managed to record two more noteworthy albums.
In 1995, Newman took another direction in his career by writing his first musical called Faust, a twisted adaptation of Wolfgang von Goethe’s classic epic drama set in South Bend, Indiana. In Newman’s adaptation, God, a corporate CEO who carries a PowerBook, and Lucifer, a cynic, battle for the soul of Henry Faust, a college student in his third year as a freshman at Notre Dame. "I wanted to try one [a musical], just to see if I could do it," he told Michelle Green and Lorenzo Benet in an interview with People magazine. "I did a couple of songs and an embryonic version of the book and put it aside until 1993 to earn a living." Audiences and critics alike agreed that Newman could indeed write a musical. The companion album to the work featured a cast of well-known musicians, including James Taylor and Elton John.
After this, Newman went back to scoring for Hollywood and also wrote material for a new album. In the meantime, the songwriter released Guilty: 30 Years of Randy Newman, an album which spans his entire career and includes hits he wrote for other musicians, such as "Mama Told Me Not to Come" and "You Can Leave Your Hat On," as well as music he previously recorded himself, such as "Short People" and "I Love L.A." With his next solo release, 1999’s Bad Love, Newman explored the peculiarities of living in the 1990s with his trademark New Orleans piano sound and included both love tunes and biting commentaries. "On the magnificently dispiriting Bad Love," wrote Rob Tannenbaum in Rolling Stone, "the fifty-five-year-old pianist reprises his blend of rock bluster, blues shuffles and classic dissonance, and introduces a vivid new batch of fools: rich older men who beg for younger girls’ notice or nap blankly in the shade of a big-screen TV; chronic liars; hurtful exes; uncomprehending couples; and, in ‘I’m Dead (But I Don’t Know It),’ rock stars who tour long past their expiration date." The record, concluded critics, was sure to become another Newman classic.
Newman lived with his parents until he married at age 23, to a German-born woman, Roswitha. They had three sons together: Amos, born in 1968, Eric, born in 1971, and John, born in 1978. The couple separated in 1985 and divorced in 1989. The news that the marriage ended surprised many, because Newman always credited his first wife with keeping him on the right creative path throughout his productive career. Nevertheless, Newman and Roswitha remained close friends. Roswitha remarried in 1992, and Newman later married a second time to Gretchen.
Newman’s father died of cancer in 1990, just 18 months after his mother passed away. Throughout his life, Newman always struggled for his father’s approval. "We were close, but there was a contentiousness in our relationship," he confided to Green and Benet. Sometime in 1985, doctors diagnosed Newman with an illness known as Epstein-Barr, a virus that leaves victims depressed and fatigued. But with changes in his diet and rest, the musician gradually gained control of his condition. Following the release of Bad Love and a 14-date tour in the fall of 1999, Newman planned to work on the soundtrack for the sequel to Toy Story. "I love an orchestra," Newman explained to Marc Shulgood of the Denver Rocky Mountain News. "That’s the reason I got into film scores. Plus, I respond well to specific assignments, to solving technical problems that come up all the time." Nonetheless, Newman regards himself as a songwriter first and foremost and intended not to let so much time pass before producing another solo record. "I hope never to go very long again [between albums]," Newman said to Jane Stevenson of the Toronto Sun. "Unless I think I’m really not as good and then I’ll quit, which is possible."
Selected discography
Albums Randy Newman, Reprise, 1968. 12 Songs, Reprise, 1970. Randy Newman Live, Reprise, 1971. Sail Away, Reprise, 1972. Good Old Boys, Reprise, 1974. Little Criminals, Warner Brothers, 1977. Born Again, Warner Brothers, 1979. Trouble in Paradise, Warner Brothers, 1983. Lonely at the Top, WEA International, 1987. Land of Dreams, Reprise, 1988. Faust, Reprise, 1995. Guilty: 30 Years of Randy Newman, Warner Brothers, 1998. Bad Love, DreamWorks, 1999.
Soundtracks The Natural, Warner Brothers, 1984. Down and Out in Beverly Hills, MCA, 1986. Major League, Curb, 1989. Parenthood, Reprise, 1989. Avalon, Reprise, 1990. Awakenings, Reprise, 1990. Blaze, A&M, 1990. Forrest Gump, Epic, 1994. Maverick, Atlantic, 1994. Walt Disney’s Toy Story, Disney, 1995. Walt Disney Pictures Presents James and the Giant Peach, Disney, 1996. Babe: Pig in the City, 1998. A Bug’s Life, Disney, 1998. Pleasantville, 1998.
Sources Books musicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide, Visible Ink Press, 1999.
Periodicals Atlanta Constitution, May 5, 1999, p. F9. Baltimore Jewish Times, November 13, 1998, p. 51. Denver Rocky Mountain News, September 12, 1997, p. 20D. People, December 5, 1988, p. 71; October 30, 1995, p.79. Rolling Stone, July 8-22, 1999; August 19, 1999. Sunday Telegraph, February 7, 1999, p. 10. Time, October 2, 1995, p. 81. Toronto Sun, June 4, 1999, p. 71.
Randy Newman was an anomaly among early-'70s singer/songwriters. Though he was slightly influenced by Bob Dylan, his music owed more to New Orleans R&B and traditional pop than folk. Newman developed an idiosyncratic style that alternated between sweeping, cinematic pop and rolling R&B, which were tied together by his nasty sense of humor. Where his peers concentrated on confessional songwriting, Newman drew characters, creating a world filled with misfits, outcasts, charlatans, and con men. Though he occasionally showed sympathy for his characters, he became well known for his biting sense of satire, highlighted by his fluke 1978 hit "Short People" and his parody of '80s yuppies, "I Love L.A." While Newman's records consistently received strongly positive reviews, he made his money through composing film scores for films like Ragtime and The Natural. His albums may never have sold in large amounts, but his work influenced several generations of songwriters, including Lyle Lovett and Mark Knopfler.
Born into a musical family -- his uncles Alfred and Lionel were both noted film composers -- Randy Newman had become a professional songwriter by the time he was 17, working for a Californian publishing house. Newman pursued a B.A. in music from UCLA, but he dropped out of college when his friend Lenny Waronker landed him a record contract with Reprise Records. His eponymous debut album received little attention upon its 1968 release, but over the next few years, his reputation as a songwriter grew as Judy Collins, Dusty Springfield and Peggy Lee recorded his songs. Three Dog Night took his "Mama Told Me Not to Come" to number one in 1970, the same year Harry Nilsson recorded an entire album of Randy's songs, Nilsson Sings Newman.
Newman's second album, 1970's 12 Songs, was widely praised upon its release, but the record failed to sell. Live repeated the same pattern in 1971, but 1972's Sail Away became a moderate hit, due to positive reviews and Newman's constant touring. He followed the record album in 1974 with Good Old Boys, an ambitious concept album about the South that received considerable controversy over its song "Rednecks," whose ironic sense of humor was misunderstood by many. The song set the stage for 1977's "Short People," a simple satire of bigotry and prejudice taken from Little Criminals. While the irony in "Short People" was barely hidden, the song offended many listeners, and the ensuing furor helped the single reach number two on the charts. Newman supported the album with his first tour since 1974.
In 1979, he returned with Born Again, which received mixed reviews, and Newman began a career as a film composer two years after its release. His first score was for Milos Forman's Ragtime, and his work was nominated for two Academy Awards. Newman released Trouble in Paradise to strong reviews in 1983, and the album spawned "I Love L.A.," a parody of shallow yuppie culture that was misinterpreted and became an anthem for '80s greed. Newman didn't release another album until 1988's Land of Dreams, which contained his first attempts at personal songwriting. Like most of his records, the album was greeted warmly by the critics, yet it failed to sell; "It's Money That Matters," a rewrite of "I Love LA," did become a minor hit.
Newman spent most of the '90s composing film scores and working on a musical adaptation of Dr. Faust. The resulting musical, Faust, was initially released as a concept album in the fall of 1995 to mixed reviews. A stage version of Faust opened the same month as the album's release, and it received better reviews. Newman garnered another Oscar nomination in 1996 for "You've Got a Friend," which was featured in the Disney computer-animated film, Toy Story. His career was celebrated in 1998 with the release of the four-disc box set Guilty: 30 Years of Randy Newman.
Newman split with his longtime record company Reprise in early 1999. He signed with DreamWorks and released Bad Love, his first proper album since 1988's Land of Dreams, in the summer of 1999. A number of film projects followed, and Newman once again put his solo career on hiatus while composing music for several movies. He returned in 2008 with Harps and Angels, an album that revisited the biographical approach first attempted with Land of Dreams. In 2009 and 2010, Newman focused his creative energies on film music, scoring The Princess and the Frog and Toy Story 3; both earned Oscar and Grammy nods, and in the case of Toy Story 3, wins. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi
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Newman was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Adele (née Fox), a secretary, and Irving George Newman, an internist. He lived in New Orleans as a small child and spent summers there until he was 11 years old, his family having by then returned to Los Angeles. The paternal side of his family includes three uncles who were noted Hollywood film-score composers: Alfred Newman, Lionel Newman and Emil Newman. Newman's cousins Thomas and David, and nephew Joey are also composers for motion pictures. He graduated from University High School in Los Angeles. Newman attended the University of California, Los Angeles.
Songwriter
Newman has been a professional songwriter since he was 17. He cites Ray Charles as his greatest influence growing up, stating, "I loved Charles' music to excess."[6] His first single as a performer was 1962's "Golden Gridiron Boy", released when he was eighteen.[7] However, the single flopped and Newman chose to concentrate on songwriting and arranging for the next several years.
In various interviews, National Academy of Songwriters to PBS telecasts, Newman has credited The Fleetwoods with giving him his first national break: The trio recorded his song, "They Tell Me It's Summer", as the B side of one of their 11 hit singles, giving Newman great exposure and royalties (piggy-backed on the sale of the Fleetwoods' 1962 hit A side, "Lovers By Night, Strangers By Day"). Two decades later, The Fleetwoods' founder and manager, female lead Vocalist/Songwriter/Arranger Gretchen Christopher selected, from their recordings, two more of Newman's songs to be included among 10 previously unreleased masters, for their 13th album. The Fleetwoods - Buried Treasure LP and cassette, released in 1982, included Newman's "Who's Gonna Teach You About Love" and "Ask Him If He's Got A Friend For Me".
His early songs were recorded by Gene Pitney, Jerry Butler, Jackie DeShannon, The O'Jays and Irma Thomas, among others. His work as a songwriter met with particular success in the UK: top 40 UK hits written by Newman included Cilla Black's "I've Been Wrong Before" (#17, 1965), Gene Pitney's "Nobody Needs Your Love" (#2, 1966) and "Just One Smile" (#8, 1966); and The Alan Price Set's "Simon Smith and His Amazing Dancing Bear" (#4, 1967). Besides "Simon Smith", Price featured seven Randy Newman songs on his 1967 A Price on His Head album.
In the mid-1960s, Newman was briefly a member of the band The Tikis, who later became Harpers Bizarre, best known for their 1967 hit version of the Paul Simon composition "The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)". Newman kept a close musical relationship with Harpers Bizarre, offering them some of his own compositions, including "Simon Smith" and "Happyland". The band recorded six Newman compositions during their short initial career (1967–1969).
In this period, Newman began a long professional association with childhood friend Lenny Waronker. Waronker had been hired to produce The Tikis, the Beau Brummels, and The Mojo Men, who were all contracted to the Los Angeles independent label Autumn Records, and he in turn brought in Newman, Leon Russell and another friend, pianist/arranger Van Dyke Parks, to play on recording sessions. Later in 1966 Waronker was hired as an A&R manager by Warner Bros. Records and his friendship with Newman, Russell, and Parks began a creative circle around Waronker at Warner Bros that became one of the keys to Warner Bros' subsequent success as a rock music label.[8]
Randy Newman recently endorsed jazz singer Roseanna Vitro's album, The Randy Newman Project (Motéma Music, 2011).[9]
In 1969, he did the orchestral arrangements for Peggy Lee's single "Is That All There Is?", as well as her album with the same title (which also contained her cover versions of two of his songs: "Love Story" and "Linda").[10]
In 1970, Harry Nilsson recorded an entire album of Newman compositions called Nilsson Sings Newman. That album was a success, and it paved the way for Newman's 1970 release, 12 Songs, a more stripped-down sound that showcased Newman's piano. Ry Cooder's slide guitar and contributions from Byrds members Gene Parsons and Clarence White helped to give the album a much rootsier feel. 12 Songs was also critically acclaimed (6th best album of the seventies according to Rolling Stone critic Robert Christgau), but again found little commercial success, though Three Dog Night made a huge hit of his "Mama Told Me Not to Come." The following year, Randy Newman Live cemented his cult following and became his first LP to appear in the Billboard charts, at #191. Newman also made his first foray into music for films at this time, writing and performing the theme song "He Gives Us All His Love" for Norman Lear's 1971 film Cold Turkey.
1972's Sail Away reached #163 on Billboard, with the title track making its way into the repertoire of Ray Charles and Linda Ronstadt. "You Can Leave Your Hat On" enigmatically touches on what it is men find important in relationships, and was covered by Three Dog Night, then Joe Cocker, and later by Keb Mo, Etta James, Tom Jones (whose version was later used for the final striptease to the 1997 film The Full Monty), and the Québécois singer Garou. The album also featured "Burn On," an ode to an infamous incident in which the heavily polluted Cuyahoga River literally caught fire. In 1989, "Burn On" was used as the opening theme to the film Major League, whose focus was the hapless Cleveland Indians.
His 1974 release Good Old Boys was a set of songs about the American South. "Rednecks" began with a description of segregationist Lester Maddox pitted against a "smart-ass New York Jew" on a TV show, in a song that criticizes both southern racism and the complacent bigotry of Americans outside of the south who stereotype all southerners as racist yet ignore racism in northern and midwestern states and large cities. This ambiguity was also apparent on "Kingfish" and "Every Man a King," the former a paean to Huey Long (the assassinated former Governor and United States Senator from Louisiana), the other a campaign song written by Long himself. An album that received lavish critical praise, Good Old Boys also became a commercial breakthrough for Newman, peaking at #36 on Billboard and spending 21 weeks in the Top 200.
Little Criminals (1977) contained the surprise hit "Short People," which also became a subject of controversy. In September 1977, the British music magazine, NME reported the following interview with Newman talking about his then-new release. "There's one song about a child murderer," Newman deadpans. "That's fairly optimistic. Maybe. There's one called 'Jolly Coppers on Parade' which isn't an absolutely anti-police song. Maybe it's even a fascist song. I didn't notice at the time. There's also one about me as a cowboy called 'Rider in the Rain.' I think it's ridiculous. The Eagles are on there. That's what's good about it. There's also this song 'Short People.' It's purely a joke. I like other ones on the album better but the audiences go for that one."[11] The album proved Newman's most popular to date, reaching #9 on the US Billboard 200 chart.
1979's Born Again featured a song satirically mythologizing the Electric Light Orchestra (and their arranging style) entitled "The Story of a Rock and Roll Band".
His 1983 album Trouble in Paradise included the hit single "I Love L.A.", a song that has been interpreted as both praising and criticizing the city of Los Angeles. This ambivalence is borne out by Newman's own comments on the song. As he explained in a 2001 interview, "There's some kind of ignorance L.A. has that I'm proud of. The open car and the redhead, the Beach Boys...that sounds 'really' good to me." The ABC network and Frank Gari Productions transformed "I Love L.A." into a popular 1980s TV promotional campaign, retooling the lyrics and title to "You'll Love It! (on ABC)". The song is played at home games for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Lakers, and the Los Angeles Kings use the song along with their Goal Horn.
In the years following Trouble in Paradise, Newman focused more on film work, but his personal life entered a difficult period. He separated from his wife of nearly 20 years, Roswitha, and was diagnosed with Epstein-Barr virus. He has released three albums of new material as a singer-songwriter since that time: Land of Dreams (1988), Bad Love (1999), and Harps and Angels, which was released on August 5, 2008. Land of Dreams included one of his most well-known songs, "It's Money That Matters", and featured Newman's first stab at autobiography with "Dixie Flyer" and "Four Eyes", while Bad Love included "I Miss You", a moving tribute to his ex-wife.[citation needed] (In an interview with Glenn Tilbrook, half of the writing partnership of English pop band Squeeze, to promote the album (probably on BBC radio), Newman acknowledged that ‘I Miss You’ was written for his ex-wife. When asked by Tilbrook how his current wife felt about this, Newman said that though he had always been obedient to his wives in most things there was one area in which he did as he chose; ‘I write what I write’ he said.) He has also re-recorded a number of songs that span his career, accompanying himself on piano, with The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003) and The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 2 (2011). He continues to perform his songs before live audiences as a touring concert artist.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Newman's "Louisiana 1927" became an anthem and was played heavily on a wide range of American radio and television stations, in both Newman's 1974 original and Aaron Neville's cover version of the song. The song addresses the deceitful manner in which New Orleans's municipal government managed a flood in 1927, during which, as Newman asserts, "The guys who ran the Mardi Gras, the bosses in New Orleans decided the course of that flood. You know, they cut a hole in the levee and it flooded the cotton fields."[12] In a related performance, Newman contributed to the 2007 release of Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino (Vanguard), contributing his version of Domino's "Blue Monday". Domino had been rescued from his New Orleans home after Hurricane Katrina, initially having been feared dead.
Film composer
Newman's work as a film composer began in 1971, with his work on the Norman Lear satire Cold Turkey. He returned to film work with 1981's Ragtime, for which he was nominated for two Academy Awards. Newman co-wrote the 1986 film ¡Three Amigos! with Steve Martin and Lorne Michaels, wrote three songs for the film, and provided the voice for the singing bush. His orchestral film scores resemble the work of Elmer Bernstein (with whom he had worked on ¡Three Amigos!) and Maurice Jarre.
One of Newman's most iconic and recognizable works is the central theme to The Natural, a dramatic and Oscar-nominated score, which was described by at least one complimentary critic[who?] as "Coplandesque".
Newman had the dubious distinction of receiving the most Oscarnominations (15) without a single win. His losing streak was broken when he received the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2001, for the Monsters, Inc. song "If I Didn't Have You", beating Sting, Enya and Paul McCartney. After receiving a standing ovation, a bemused but emotional Newman began his acceptance speech with "I don't want your pity!" When the orchestra began playing the underscore signifying that the speaker's time on stage is concluding, Newman ordered them to stop before thanking "all these musicians, many of whom have worked for me a number of times and may not again."
Besides writing songs for films, he also writes songs for television series such as the Emmy-Award winning current theme song of Monk, "It's a Jungle out There". Newman also composed the Emmy-Award winning song "When I'm Gone" for the final episode.
In October 2006, it was revealed that Newman would write the music for the Walt Disney movie The Princess and the Frog, which was released in December 2009. During the Walt Disney Company's annual shareholder meeting in March 2007, Newman performed a new song written for the movie. He was accompanied by the Dirty Dozen Brass Band. The New Orleans setting of the film played to Newman's musical strengths, and his songs contained elements of Cajun music, zydeco, blues and Dixieland jazz.[13] Two of the songs, "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans", were nominated for Oscars.[14]
In total, Newman has received 20 Oscar nominations with two wins, both for Best Original Song. While accepting the award for "We Belong Together" in 2011, he joked "my percentages aren't great".[15]
A revue of Newman's songs, titled Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong, was performed at the Astor Place Theater in New York City in 1982, and later at other theaters around the country. The New York cast featured Mark Linn-Baker and Deborah Rush,[16] and at one point included Treat Williams.[17]
In the 1990s, Newman adapted Goethe's Faust into a concept album and musical, Randy Newman's Faust. After a 1995 staging at the La Jolla Playhouse, he retained David Mamet to help rework the book before its relaunch on the ChicagoGoodman Theatremainstage in 1996. Newman's Faust project had been many years in the making, and it suffered for it; a central joke was Newman's depiction of Faust as a shallow heavy metal music fan in thrall to Satan, and this had to be modified to accommodate the less-than-devil obsessed age of grunge rock that was in fashion by 1995.
In 2000, South Coast Repertory (SCR) produced The Education of Randy Newman, a musical theater piece that recreates the life of a songwriter who bears some resemblance to the actual Newman. Set in New Orleans and Los Angeles, it was modeled on the celebrated American autobiography, The Education of Henry Adams. Newman, together with Jerry Patch and Michael Roth, surveyed Newman's songs to find those that, taken together, depict the life of an American artist in the last half of the 20th century. After its premiere at SCR, it was reworked with additional songs written specifically for the show by Newman and presented in Seattle by ACT.
In 2010, the Center Theatre Group staged Harps and Angels, a musical revue of the Randy Newman songbook, interspersed with narratives reflecting on Newman's inspirations. The revue premiered at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles and included, among other songs "I Think It’s Going to Rain Today," "Sail Away," "Marie," "Louisiana 1927," "Feels Like Home," "You've Got a Friend in Me" and "I Love L.A." The revue was directed by Jerry Zaks and featured Ryder Bach, Storm Large, Adriane Lenox, Michael McKean, Katey Sagal and Matthew Saldivar.[18]
Notable performances and appearances
In 2000, Newman hosted a PBS special on Sunset Blvd, in his native Los Angeles. Driving a convertible, he followed the road from the Amtrak train station downtown, through Silver Lake, on past his alma mater UCLA, and finished in Santa Monica.
Randy Newman appeared on The Colbert Report on October 9, 2006, performing "Political Science" after his interview. At the end of the performance Stephen Colbert said "I hope they're listening in D.C." This appearance came days after North Korea conducted an underground test of a nuclear weapon.
Newman appeared on the season two finale of the sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun, accompanying the character Harry Solomon's performance of "Life Has Been Good To Me" on piano in a dream sequence.
He appeared as a musical guest at the end of the Keynote Address at Macworld's 2008 San Francisco Macworld Expo, performing the songs "A Few Words in Defense of Our Country" and "You've Got a Friend in Me".
Newman appeared as a musical guest on the second episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live in 1975,[19] as well as on the show's Mardi Gras special in 1977.[20]
In the third episode of the second season of Family Guy, titled "Da Boom", Newman's songwriting and singing style is the subject of parody. He is described as "singing about what he sees." In an interview, Newman stated this was probably what he'd be remembered for.
Cats Don't Dance (1997) (songs: "Danny's Arrival Song","Little Boat On The Sea","Animal Jam Session","Big and Loud","Tell Me Lies", and "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now")
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