My Discover Spotify playlist threw this one up this week. Its rather lovely. Generally though I prefer Randy Newman’s great, great songs sung by the master himself, because only he can fully bring out the pathos, the wierdness, the irony or the satire in his lyrics.
I reckon he’s done alright from the royalties from covers of his songs though. Which are the best of them? Post away….
A little-known gem – Duffy Power’s 1967 Parlophone single version of ‘Davy O’Brien’. (This isn’t quite the original 45 take – RPM got it wrong on this one when compiling their otherwise fabulous ‘Leapers & Sleepers’ 2CD comp of Power single: this is an alt vocal, with a slurred ‘Leave that baby alone, Dave…’ section instead of the more straight sung part on the 45.)
(Etta James – God’s Song)
And then there’s a whole album by Nilsson…
The most moving performance I’ve heard by Peter Gabriel was just him at the keyboard singing Before The Flood. Years later, with that in mind, I found his version of Think It’s Going To Rain Today even more tender.
Nina Simone has a well known version of this song .Normally she owns a song when she covers it ,but I’ve just re-listened to it and I’m not going to post it. Too fast, too confident, too assured.
Randy’s version is best and Gabriel retains the essential qualities- slow, plaintive, sparse, somewhat vulnerable.
This was probably where a sizeable chunk of the AW demographic first encountered a Randy Newman song.
https://youtu.be/N8zI5xjwKYw
I suspect that what this thread will show is that Newman sings Newman best…
And this was probably the second Randy Newman song most of us heard. Written for Eric Burdon in 1966, but a hit for Three Dog Night in 1970
Being a bit younger, the version I first heard was On The Muppet Show, Fozzie being the bear.
Yup Fozzie and Scooter for me too.
Same with ‘Lydia The Tattooed Lady’
I sang our little Lydia to sleep with the Muppet Show version this evening. The Groucho Marx version is a bit racy for a toddler.
Nilsson Sings Newman is a quiet little masterpiece of an album. Most of the songs were actually their first versions, for which Newman was eternally grateful. On the whole, it is basically Harry’s sweet, innocent voice backed by Randy himself on piano.
Over the years So Long Dad has grown to mean more to me.
Normally, I loathe Country but, contrarily, I love the Bluegrass of The Del McCoury Band. They are perfect for Birmingham.
http://youtu.be/Q3vp8ecaOao
I couldn’t find Steve Earle’s version of Rednecks on the youtube. It strips the irony in order to lay it on thick.
What Tom Jones’s You Can Leave Your Hat On lacks in subtlety, it makes up with badass sass.
Apart from It’s Not Unusual and a few of his other early Decca singles, I wouldn’t give you tuppence for Tom Jones’ entire recorded output, certainly not his “comeback” years when he finally got too old for Vegas and was mysteriously embraced by sections of the UK pop world.
No, the definitive cover of You Can Leave Your Hat On is by Joe Cocker. This is what Randy says about the song:
“I did it in E. Joe Cocker did it in C, a sixth higher. I could have done it in C. You could’ve heard what I was saying and the band could’ve played twice as loud. I might have had a hit. Kids, there’s a lesson here”
I’ve gone for a 1992 live version here, simply because the original studio version comes with some terrible movie footage. And Joe is in fine voice here. That wasn’t always the case in later years.
Not even The Young Mexican Puppeteer?
I like John Martyn’s bluesy God’s Song.
Levon owns this one now…..
New Orleans native and resident John Boutte does the best post-Katrina take on Louisiana 1927. The video is heartbreaking.
Great, thanks for that
This was one of the first Randy Newman songs I heard, without knowing its composer at the time
Manfred had a knack for picking great songs, either by production line English songwriters or more famous American ones eg Newman and Dylan
This song appeared on the 1972 LP “Sail Away” and in the 1972 film “Cold Turkey” – a cover version by local lad Ross D Wyllie was an hit in the antipodes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PiJqmeUxFHk
From Ry Cooder’s 1970 debut album, this is My Old Kentucky Home. Randy’s original appeared in the same year on his 12 Songs album which featured Ry as a session player.
Yo motherfuckers
Time you were down with the sista
Nina Simone – Baltimore with footage from the Wire.
Ah yes, Nina (kill whitey) Simone. Crazy Nigress.
Had forgotten about this, though I’ve seen the movie Midnight in Paris
Chris Botti- Losing You
The last half of it is instrumental and very nice it is too.
I love this, by my favourite white male vocalist ever (though it’s from a Walker Brothers, not solo, album):
“I Don’t Want To Hear It Anymore”
Twang mentioned Nic Jones recently, so let’s have a bit more of Nic.
Jones does a nice version of Randy’s “Texas Girl at the Funeral of Her Father”
Not the most inspiring video, admittedly, but the song is fine.
Some great versions here, many of which I hadn’t heard. Nilsson’s So Long Dad is beautiful.
I heard this version of Sail Away long before I heard Newman’s own. Really liked it but Linda Ronstadt’s smooth delivery somewhat airbrushes the intent of the lyrics. I swear I never heard the killer line ‘Climb aboard little wog’ until I heard Newman’s version, though it is there present and correct in Ronstadt’s.
Ace Records naturally have an, err, ace compilation or two or Randy covers (second one is a bit meh )
http://acerecords.co.uk/on-vine-street-the-early-songs-of-randy-newman
The Bluetones recorded a version of Blue Shadows on the Trail from the Three Amigos as a b-side. There was a tiny chance that I might have contributed backing vocals, as provided by the horses in the film, but it never happened.
I’m another who prefers the man singing himself, but I think the first Randy Newman song I heard was Aaron Neville doing Louisiana 1927.
The original isn’t on YouTube, hence no clip, but it is on Spotify for anyone interested. I consider it a bit too polished, now, but the opening is great and there’s some nice vocal moments.
Not quite a cover as such, but I was surprised to discover Mr Newman shared a credit with Jerry Goldsmith on a track from the 1966 “Our Man Flint” soundtrack…quite a loungetastic little piece of work too.
Dunno, but that Dusty track is splendid. So thanks Blue Boy.