Randy Newman facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Randy Newman
Newman in 2012
Born	Randall Stuart Newman (1943-11-28) November 28, 1943 (age 81) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Singer songwriter arranger pianist composer conductor orchestrator
Years active	1961–present
Spouse(s)	Roswitha Schmale ​ ​ (m. 1967; div. 1985)​ Gretchen Preece ​ (m. 1990)​
Children	5, including Eric Newman
Relatives	David Newman (cousin) Thomas Newman (cousin) Maria Newman (cousin) Joey Newman (cousin) Lionel Newman (uncle) Emil Newman (uncle) Alfred Newman (uncle)
Musical career
Genres	Americana rock pop R&B soul comedy film score
Instruments	Vocals piano
Labels	Warner Bros. Reprise Walt Disney DreamWorks Interscope Nonesuch Elektra Columbia
Associated acts	Lyle Lovett

Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, and composer. He is famous for his unique singing style and clever songs. He has also written many popular film scores. Some of his well-known songs include "Short People" (1977), "I Love L.A." (1983), and "You've Got a Friend in Me" (1995). He also wrote songs like "Mama Told Me Not to Come" (1966) and "You Can Leave Your Hat On" (1972).

Randy Newman was born in Los Angeles, California, into a family of Hollywood film composers. He started writing songs when he was 17. He wrote hits for other artists like Cilla Black and Gene Pitney. In 1968, he released his first album as a solo artist, called Randy Newman.

Since the 1980s, Newman has mostly worked on music for movies. He has composed music for nine Disney-Pixar animated films. These include the first four Toy Story movies (1995–2019), A Bug's Life (1998), both Monsters, Inc. films (2001, 2013), and the first and third Cars movies (2006, 2017). He also scored Disney's James and the Giant Peach (1996) and The Princess and the Frog (2009).

Newman has won many awards for his work. These include two Academy Awards, three Emmys, and seven Grammy Awards. He was also named a Disney Legend in 2017. He joined the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013.

Randy Newman's Early Life and Musical Family

Randy Newman was born on November 28, 1943, in Los Angeles, California. His father was a doctor. As a young child, he lived in New Orleans, Louisiana, and spent summers there. When he was 11, his family moved back to Los Angeles.

Randy comes from a very musical family. His three uncles, Alfred Newman, Lionel Newman, and Emil Newman, were all famous Hollywood film composers. His cousins, Thomas, Maria, David, and Joey, also compose music for movies.

Newman went to University High School in Los Angeles. He later studied music at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He completed his degree at UCLA in June 2021.

Randy Newman's Music Career

Newman playing piano in 1972

Randy Newman started his career as a professional songwriter when he was 17. He said that Ray Charles was his biggest musical influence. His first song as a performer, "Golden Gridiron Boy," was released in 1962 but was not a big hit. After that, Newman focused more on writing songs for other artists.

Writing Songs for Other Artists

Many artists recorded Newman's early songs. These included Gene Pitney, Dusty Springfield, and Irma Thomas. His songs were especially popular in the United Kingdom. For example, Cilla Black's "I've Been Wrong Before" and the Alan Price Set's "Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear" were top hits there.

In the mid-1960s, Newman worked closely with the band Harpers Bizarre. They recorded several of his songs. Newman also began a long working relationship with his childhood friend Lenny Waronker. Waronker later became an important person at Warner Bros. Records. This friendship helped Newman's career grow.

In 2020, Newman wrote a song called “Stay Away.” He wrote it to support people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Money from the song's downloads helps children in New Orleans.

Becoming a Recording Artist

Newman's first album, Randy Newman (1968), was praised by critics. However, it did not become a big commercial success. Still, many famous artists covered his songs, like Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, and Nina Simone. His song "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" became a popular standard.

In 1970, Harry Nilsson released an entire album of Newman's songs called Nilsson Sings Newman. Newman played piano on the album. This helped pave the way for Newman's own album, 12 Songs, released later that year. This album had a simpler sound, focusing on Newman's piano. It was also highly praised by critics. The band Three Dog Night had a huge hit with Newman's song "Mama Told Me Not to Come" from this album.

His 1972 album, Sail Away, included the song "You Can Leave Your Hat On." This song was later covered by many artists, including Joe Cocker and Tom Jones. Tom Jones's version was used in the 1997 movie The Full Monty.

Newman in 1974

In 1974, Newman released Good Old Boys. This album featured songs about the American South. The song "Rednecks" talked about racism in a way that made people think. This album was a big success for Newman, reaching No. 36 on the Billboard 200 chart.

His 1977 album, Little Criminals, included the hit song "Short People." This song became very popular and also caused some discussion. Newman said it was "purely a joke." The album was his most popular at the time, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard 200 chart.

In 1983, his album Trouble in Paradise featured the song "I Love L.A.." This song is often played at home games for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Lakers.

After the album Trouble in Paradise, Newman focused more on film music. He has released four more albums of new songs since then: Land of Dreams (1988), Bad Love (1999), Harps and Angels (2008), and Dark Matter (2017). He also re-recorded many of his songs, just with his piano, in his Songbook series. He continues to perform his songs live in concerts.

Newman performing at an awards ceremony in 2014

After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Newman's song "Louisiana 1927" became very important. The song talks about how New Orleans leaders handled a flood in 1927.

In October 2016, Newman released the song "Putin." This song was inspired by the Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The song won Newman a Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals. His album Dark Matter was released in August 2017 and received good reviews.

Randy Newman's Film Music

Newman's first work for television was in 1962. He wrote background music for shows like Lost in Space and Peyton Place. His first full film score was for the 1971 movie Cold Turkey. He later wrote music for Ragtime in 1981, which earned him two Academy Awards nominations. He also helped write the 1986 film Three Amigos and wrote three songs for it.

Music for Disney and Pixar

Newman has composed music for nine Disney/Pixar movies. These include:

• Toy Story (1995)
• A Bug's Life (1998)
• Toy Story 2 (1999)
• Monsters, Inc. (2001)
• Cars (2006)
• Toy Story 3 (2010)
• Monsters University (2013)
• Cars 3 (2017)
• Toy Story 4 (2019)

He has been nominated for an Academy Award for seven of these films. He won the award for Best Original Song for "If I Didn't Have You" from Monsters, Inc. and for "We Belong Together" from Toy Story 3.

Other movies he has scored include Parenthood, James and the Giant Peach, Meet the Parents, and Seabiscuit. His music for Pleasantville was also nominated for an Academy Award.

Newman also wrote the Emmy Award-winning theme song for the TV show Monk, called "It's a Jungle Out There." He also wrote the Emmy-winning song "When I'm Gone" for the show's final episode.

In 2009, Newman wrote the music for Walt Disney Animation Studios' The Princess and the Frog. The movie is set in New Orleans, which fit Newman's musical style. His songs included elements of Cajun music, zydeco, and Dixieland jazz. Two songs from the movie, "Almost There" and "Down in New Orleans", were nominated for Oscars.

In total, Randy Newman has received 22 Academy Award nominations and won two.

Randy Newman's Musical Theater Work

A show featuring Newman's songs, called Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong, was performed in New York City in 1982.

In the 1990s, Newman created a musical based on the story of Faust. It was called Randy Newman's Faust. He also worked on a musical theater piece called The Education of Randy Newman in 2000.

In 2010, a musical show called Harps and Angels was staged in Los Angeles. It was a review of Randy Newman's songs, mixed with stories about what inspired him. The show included popular songs like "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" and "You've Got a Friend in Me."

Randy Newman's Personal Life

Randy Newman was married to Roswitha Schmale from 1967 to 1985. They had three sons: Eric, Amos, and John. He has been married to Gretchen Preece since 1990, and they have two children, Patrick and Alice.

Awards and Honors for Randy Newman

Randy Newman has been nominated for 22 Academy Awards and has won two. He won Best Original Song in 2002 for "If I Didn't Have You" from Monsters, Inc.. He won again in 2011 for "We Belong Together" from Toy Story 3. His family holds the record for the most Academy Award nominations for music, with a total of 92 nominations.

He has also won three Emmys and seven Grammy Awards. In 2002, Newman was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was named a Disney Legend in 2007. In 2010, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Randy Newman was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013. In September 2014, he received a Max Steiner Film Music Achievement Award.

Randy Newman's Music Albums

Studio Albums

• Randy Newman (1968)
• 12 Songs (1970)
• Sail Away (1972)
• Good Old Boys (1974)
• Little Criminals (1977)
• Born Again (1979)
• Trouble in Paradise (1983)
• Land of Dreams (1988)
• Randy Newman's Faust (1995)
• Bad Love (1999)
• The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 1 (2003)
• Harps and Angels (2008)
• The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 2 (2011)
• The Randy Newman Songbook Vol. 3 (2016)
• Dark Matter (2017)

Film Scores

See also

In Spanish: Randy Newman para niños