Randy Newman

Randy Newman is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is known for his satirical pop songs and for film scores.

Since the 1980s, Newman has worked mostly as a film composer. His film scores include Ragtime, Awakenings, The Natural, Leatherheads, James and the Giant Peach, Meet the Parents, Cold Turkey, Seabiscuit and The Princess and the Frog. As well, he has scored six Disney-Pixar films. He has been nominated for twenty Academy Awards, winning twice. He has also won three Emmys, six Grammy Awards, and the Governor's Award from the Recording Academy. Newman was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April 2013.

His debut album, Randy Newman, was released in 1968. Many artists have covered his songs and "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" became an early standard. In 1969, he did the orchestral arrangements for Peggy Lee's single "Is That All There Is?", as well as her album.

In 1970, Harry Nilsson recorded an album of Newman compositions, Nilsson Sings Newman and Newman would release, 12 Songs. The next year, Randy Newman Live was released and became his first LP to appear in the Billboard charts1. 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 the 1971 film Cold Turkey.

In 1972, Sail Away was released and included "Sail Away", "You Can Leave Your Hat On" and "Burn On. His 1974 release Good Old Boys was a set of songs about the American South. It was followed by Little Criminals in 1977 which included "Short People". The album is hiss most popular to date, reaching #9 on the US Billboard 200 chart.

Born Again was released in 1979 and featured "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.

After Trouble in Paradise, Newman focused more on film work, but he has released three more albums with Land of Dreams in 1988, Bad Love in 1999, and Harps and Angels in August 2008. Land of Dreams included one of his most well-known songs, "It's Money That Matters". He has also re-recorded a number of songs that span his career, with The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 in 2003 and The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 2 in 2011. He continues to perform his songs before live audiences as a touring concert artist.

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