Randy Newman

BiographyRandall Stuart Newman

Born: November 28th, 1943

•Composer and Singer/Song Writer•Academy, Grammy and Emmy Award Winner•California native, father, husband, democrat

At age 17, Randy Newman was already a paid, professional singer/songwriter for a California music publishing company.

Born in Los Angeles, at one point in his life he moved to Louisiana and then back to Los Angeles where he resides today. Based on one of his more popular songs, it’s safe to say that he, “Love’s L.A.”!

“There’s no business, like Strabismus!”

Despite have been diagnosed with Strabismus, (or Abnormal alignment of the eyes.) as a child, Randy Newman has managed to do things that most people can only dream of.

For instance….

-Releasing 12 albums…

-Having a name attached to many Pixar/Disney films…

-Being responsible for writing the number one strip tease song of the twentieth century…

-Being inducted into the Song Writer’s Hall of Fame…

-And winning many renowned awards for musical composition.

Hard Times.During the late 1980’s, Newman:

•Divorced his wife of 20 years

•Contracted EBV

•Lost both of his parents within a span of two years

“Isn't it a bit surprisingHow one's fortunes ebb and flowAnd only to the enterprisingDoes the magic fortune cookie go…”

Musical Genius

•Recognizes he is different from typical artists

•Writes most songs in third person and tends to deviate away from what people expect or are “used to.”

•Relates to his audience in specific ways

•Experiments with irony

Composition History

You Can Leave Your Hat On (1972):Album: Sail Away, Written and originally sang by Randy Newman

Short People (1977):Album: Little Criminals, Written and sang by Randy Newman

Political Science (1972):Album: Sail Away, Written and sang by Randy Newman

The Time of Your Life (1998): Disney/Pixar: A Bug’s Life: Written and sang by Randy Newman

I Love L.A. (1983):Album: Trouble in Paradise: Written and sang by Randy Newman

Family of Composers

Lionel Newman

Alfred Newman

Thomas Newman

Joey Newman

“I like the idea of taking a true classic written by a true genius and destroying it essentially! I like the idea of bringing it down to earth a bit - and even a bit lower than that.”

Works Cited

Collins, David. Contemporary Musicians. 1991 <http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Randy_Newman.aspx>.

Encyclopedia. Contemporary Musicians. 1991. <http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Randy_Newman.aspx>.

NNDB. NNDB-Randy Newman. 2010 <http://www.nndb.com/people/367/000024295/>.

Randy Newman. March 2010. <http://randynewman.com/category/biography/>.

Simon&Schuster. Rolling Stone. 2001 <http://www.rollingstone.com/music/artists/randy-newman/news/artists/8865/62589/62609>.