From BBC Sessions...  Randall Stuart “Randy” Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an Academy Award, Emmy Award, and Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist who is notable for his mordant (and often satirical) pop songs and for his many film scores. Newman is noted for his practice of writing lyrics from the perspective of a character far removed from Newman’s More.. own biography. For example, the 1972 song "Sail Away" is written as a slave trader's sales pitch to attract slaves, while the narrator of "Political Science" is a U.S. nationalist who complains of worldwide ingratitude toward America and proposes a brutally ironic final solution. One of his biggest hits, "Short People" was written from the perspective of "a lunatic" who hates short people. Since the 1980s, Newman has worked mostly as a film composer. He has been awarded an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Grammy Awards, and the Governor's Award from the Recording Academy. Newman was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2002. In 2007, Newman was inducted as a Disney Legend. Albums Randy Newman (1968) 12 Songs (1970) Randy Newman Live (1971) (US #191) Sail Away (1972) (US #163) Good Old Boys (1974) (US #36) Little Criminals (1977) (US #9) Born Again (1979) (US #41) Trouble in Paradise (1983) (US #64) Land of Dreams (1988) (US #80) Bad Love (1999) (US #194, UK #178) Harps and Angels (2008) (US #30, UK #46) Internet Single A Few Words in Defense of Our Country (2007) Musical Randy Newman's Faust (1995) [Film Scores Performance (1970) Cold Turkey (1971) Ragtime (1981) The Natural (1984) ¡Three Amigos! (1986) (songs: "The Ballad of the Three Amigos," "My Little Buttercup," and "Blue Shadows") Parenthood (1989) Awakenings (1990) Avalon (1990) The Paper (1994) Maverick (1994) Toy Story (1995) James and the Giant Peach (1996) Michael (1996) Cats Don't Dance (1997) A Bug's Life (1998) Babe: Pig in the City (1998) (song: "That'l...