A Musical Influence: Randy Newman and Bob Dylan
During the summer of 1966, a haunting melody wafted through the airwaves, performed by the Italian American pop crooner Julius La Rosa. The song, titled “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today,” was the brainchild of a then 22-year-old staff writer from Los Angeles named Randy Newman. This impressionistic ballad captured the attention of none other than Bob Dylan.
Dylan recalled, “Randy’s song was so mysterious. I had never heard anything like it before; it was so cynical.” The emotional weight of Newman’s own rendition resonated deeply with Dylan, particularly due to “the sadness in Randy’s voice.” He remarked on the unique blend of sadness and cynicism, stating, “It’s a strange combination, but Randy always manages to pull it off.”
This heartfelt testimonial is one of many featured in “A Few Words in Defense of Our Country: The Biography of Randy Newman,” authored by former Los Angeles Times pop critic Robert Hilburn, set to be released on October 22. In a recent phone interview, Newman expressed his appreciation: “It’s an honor to have Dylan say something nice about me.”
Throughout his illustrious career, Newman has earned numerous accolades, including six Grammy Awards, three Emmys, and two Academy Awards, as well as induction into both the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. However, at the age of 80, he admitted, “What I really wanted was to have the respect from fellow workers in the field. It mattered to me, maybe in an inordinate amount, that Bob or Paul Simon, Jackson Browne, Don Henley, Linda Ronstadt — that those people liked what I did.”
While Newman may not have enjoyed the same level of commercial success as some of his contemporaries, his work has occasionally struck a chord with the cultural zeitgeist. His somewhat controversial 1977 satire “Short People” became a bona fide hit, earning him his only gold album, “Little Criminals.” Additionally, the wry celebration of his hometown, “I Love L.A.” from 1983, emerged as an unexpected anthem for the city’s sports teams. Perhaps most notably, his earnest composition “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” featured in Pixar’s beloved 1995 film “Toy Story,” has soundtracked countless childhoods.
In reality, more individuals have experienced the 20-plus film scores Newman has crafted since the early 1980s than have heard any of his singer-songwriter albums. Reflecting on this unique trajectory, he remarked, “It’s sort of a funny hand to be dealt.”