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I'm gonna try not to gush here, but Randy Newman is a favorite of mine and this is great news for anyone who loves Randy and wanted an album to go with his great 2007 single, "A Few Words in Defense of Our Country." There's a few other songs on the new album that'll be familiar to Newman fans, including a new version of "Feels Like Home" (from his unbelievable 1995 album Faust, originally with Bonnie Raitt on vocals (can't wait to hear it with Randy's voice)). It's his first album of (mostly) new material since 1999's fantastic and sadly forgotten Bad Love, and I am peeing myself with excitement.

 

Press Release

 

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I saw him on some show the other day and heard about this new one :). He's one of the wittiest songwriters ever so any new work is most welcome with me.

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i've seen near-complete Randy Newman discographies going for $4 a piece in some used cd stores, and i don't know if that makes me sad or happy. probably sad.

 

also, i loved Bad Love. the first track off that is one of my favorite Newman songs ever

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  • 2 years later...

I am with you, Matt (the Z). I think Randy Newman is a genius, and Harps and Angels was a brilliant album. Maybe not quite up there with Bad Love or some of the old classics, but close. His live shows are wonderful--most of the people who go know about his solo work, but you always get a few Toy Story types who are aghast when he breaks into stuff from Rednecks! But he doesn't play down to the audience, and I've never seen him not win the crowd over.

 

And for anyone who wants to get a dose of committed fan appreciation, check out the Little Criminals discussion group. There are some rabid Randy Newman fans out there, many of whom live in California and get to attend recording sessions, etc. Randy is great about meeting fans after shows and he even posts, although very occasionally.

 

I'll try to post some favorite vids later. In the meantime, I'm just happy to see there's some love for Randy on this forum. I guess songwriters of a feather flock together!

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Great news.Unfortunately for me I didn't discover "un-soundtrack" Randy until Bad Love which I thought was phenoeinal. I was 19 when it came out and I remember throwin it on in between my lame ass friends Limp Bizkit and Deftones tracks and them saying "what the fuck are we listening to". There's not a topic or lyric he's afraid of, he just does it in such a beautiful, classic way it appears harmless.

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  • 6 months later...

Just saw Randy Newman in concert (solo--just him and a piano) in Charlottesville on Tuesday night. It was the Paramount, where Jeff played such a memorable solo show on Dec. 8.

 

Honestly, it was just an amazing concert. Great venue, the first show after his Oscar win last Sunday, and a very appreciative audience. He played about an hour, then took an intermission, then came back for another hour, with a couple of encores. The scope and breadth of his work is just amazing, and his delivery was strong and committed. And his between song banter can be hilarious, though he does a much longer and more explanatory intro to Rednecks than he used to!

 

In fact, being a longtime fan from his very earliest work to his latest, I was truly taken aback by how little familiarity the crowd seemed to have with any of his songs other than the Pixar stuff, but having said that, they seemed to listen very intently to all the music and they received all the songs warmly and appreciatively. But it made me wonder--I've seen Randy at least 4 times over the years, although the most recent before this was in 2001. Back then, people seemed much more familiar with his songs and there was some moderate singing along, hand-clapping, etc. Not this show, though. I wondered if it was Charlottesville, Randy's growing status as a songwriter for movies, simply the passage of time, or what.

 

I know there are a few other RN fans on here. Would love to hear your thoughts. And if you get a chance to see him on this tour, DO NOT MISS IT!

 

I can't find an official posted setlist, but here's a pretty complete list just from memory, in no order. I'm sure I'm missing a few. . . .

 

  • It's Money That I Love (opener)
  • Every Time It Rains
  • Great Nations
  • I Miss You
  • Birmingham
  • Marie
  • Guilty
  • Louisiana 1927
  • I Love LA
  • Real Emotional Girl
  • In Germany Before the War
  • Girls in My Life, Pt. 1
  • Rednecks
  • Rollin'
  • Mama Told Me Not to Come
  • The World Isn't Fair
  • Sail Away
  • Political Science
  • Potholes
  • Dixie Flyer
  • Harps and Angels
  • Short People
  • Losing You
  • Plus two or three of the Pixar songs—sorry, they just don’t stick with me
  • Feels Like Home (closer)

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i saw him in Mpls the Monday before the Oscars, and it was just AMAZING. 34 songs over 2 sets. played everything i wanted to hear and then some. my favorite show of the year by far.

 

here's our setlist:

 

First set:

It’s Money That I Love

Birmingham

I Miss You/ Mama Told Me Not to Come

Short People

Marie

The Girls in My Life Part 1

The World Isn’t Fair

Living without You

Great Nations of Europe

Harps and Angels

Real Emotional Girl

I’m Dead (But I Don’t Know It)

God’s Song

Political Science

 

Second set:

 

Last Night I Had a Dream

Burn On

Louisiana 1927

In Germany Before the War

Baltimore

You’ve Got a Friend in Me

You Can Leave Your Hat On

Guilty/ Dixie Flyer

Losing You

A Wedding in Cherokee County

Rollin’

Rednecks

I Love To See You Smile

Sail Away

I Love L.A.

Feels Like Home

 

ENCORE:

 

Lonely at the Top

Shame

I Think It’s Going to Rain Today

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I'm going to see him in a few weeks and am pretty excited, even if it was just from memory that setlist looks great!

 

Yes, and he was just really "on" for this show. He acknowledged some friends in the audience and maybe that had something to do with it, or maybe it was the recent Oscar. In fact, he told a funny little story about how he appreciated everyone in the area giving him his privacy and not coming up to ask for autographs, etc. He said there's a restaurant he goes to in LA where he always sits with his back to the room. His son took him down a notch and said, "Dad, you're not THAT famous." Then he quipped that he thought that winning the Oscar would've sold at least another 250 seats. (The show appeared sold out to me.) Anyway, it was typically self-deprecating Randy banter, but very amusing.

 

Some of the standouts for me were some of his earlier songs: Marie, Real Emotional Girl, In Germany Before the War, Rollin' and then, of course, Feels Like Home. But there wasn't a clinker in the bunch. He is phenomenal and we're lucky to be able to see him perform solo shows like this live.

 

You're going to have a great time at the show!

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