This is a very fine Randy Newman record, perhaps not among his all-time greatest (that’s a tall order) yet teeming with cleverly caustic commentaries that rank among his best.
My mom got the cassette soon after it arrived in January ‘83 and it remained a constant for months, until I had every line of it memorized by the time she took me to see Newman live for the first time that April at Universal, when I was 14.
I still vividly recall that show, particularly those moments (like ‘Rednecks’ or, from this LP, ‘Christmas in Capetown’) when the master’s calculated deployment of cruder/crueler language in his storytelling stunned my idealistic demeanor. It’s one thing to hear those deliberately provocative lyrics slightly sanitized in crisp recordings; it’s quite another to witness them fiercely spat at a captivated crowd by a man alone at his Steinway.
I’ve also never forgotten the heartbreaking power of two of his sparsest pieces, both from Trouble in Paradise and performed that night: ‘Same Girl’ (about a heroin addict) and, even more devastatingly, ‘Real Emotional Girl.’ Two decades later I met such a woman — and she eventually gave birth to my son. That song will forever remind me of her.
There are plenty other reasons to recommend this collection, not least its snarky humor, whether slyly embedded in bits like ‘The Blues’ (leadoff single, featuring Paul Simon) or presented more front-and-center (‘My Life Is Good’ still slays me). I also think there’s a stylistic thread woven from ‘I’m Different’ here to the playfulness of his Toy Story material to come.
But the purpose of posting Newman’s seventh studio set today has strictly to do with its enduring anthem ‘I Love L.A.’ Those choral voices and layered Beach Boys harmonies and cries of ‘WE LOVE IT!’? All were provided by Lindsey Buckingham and, who else, Christine McVie, my ongoing deep dive subject.
Another notable cameo en route to the next Mac attack.