RANDY-NEWMAN-Little-Criminals-Songbook-.Pdf
tFa-. rË I T RandyNewnrran i I LITTLE GRIMIÍ{AI.S RandyNewman has emergedas one of the most importantcom- RANDYNEWMAN posersand songwriters in popularmusic. His rise Írom "cult idol" slatusto hiscurrent international recognition as a giftedperformer andcomposer has been chÍonicled by all forms oÍ media, as well as byfellow artists. Commercially,Newman is best knownas the writeroÍ hrtsongs suchas "lvlamaTold Me Not To Come,"recorded by ThreeDog "l Night,and Thinklt's GoingTo RainToday," recorded by Judy Collinsand Dave Van Ronk, among others. Over the lasl five years, RandyNewman songs have appeared on albumsby inteÍpretersas diverseas Art Garfunkel,Ringo Starr,Barbra Streisand, Etta James,Joe Cocker, Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and Sonny Terry & BrownieMcGhee. Newman also received a greatdeal o{ attention for his work on the soundtrackof f\,4ickJagger's Pertormance, in whichhe conducted,sang and accompanied himself on pianoon "GoneDead Train." "RandyNewman's music Bornin New Orleans, Newman moved to CaliÍorniawith his family at is deeplyentrenched in anearly age At6 hebegan playing piano. At 12he díove headlong Americana." intomuslc theory, a studywhich he latercontinued at U.C.L.A. Threeof Newman'suncles, AlÍred. Lionel and Emil,are muchre- spectedconductors and film score composers (in 1972, Newman premieredSail Away at New York'sPhilharmonic Hall with Emil conducting,he debutedGood Old Soys at the AtlanticPhil- harmonrc).From his deceptively simple piano accómpanimênts to hismasterÍul use of full orchestra, Randy Newman's music is deeply entrenchedin Americana.Slrains of SteohenFoster. blues and countryriffs, a sophisticateduse of rhythmand rhymethat echoes theshow tunes and classic pop balladry oÍ PoíteÍ and Gershwin and Hart(Newman, inÍact, began his career writing glossy Brill Building typepop tunes)underlie his work.Many oÍ his songsdeal with ordinarypeople in ordinarysituatjons (he once said that what he reallydoes is putshort stories to music),but no writerin contem- porarymusic has managed to carve out a persona!niche in quite the wayRandy Newman has.
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