Randy Newman, a good ol' boy from New Orleans, La., has been thought of as a national treasure by many, and for good reason. From "My Old Kentucky Home," to "I Love L.A.," Newman's deft mixture of Broadway show-tunes and modern pop makes him the closest thing to a modern-day Cole Porter of the late twentieth century. The carefully constructed melodies and the lush arrangements that sometimes accompany Newman's songs, are often contrasted by mordant lyrics that don't sugar coat it at all when Randy is feeling, well, randy.
Followers of Top 40 back in 1977 remember how stinging Newman's lyrics can be when his fluke hit "Short People" caused such an uproar. Back then, people missed the point of the song being a sarcastic denunciation of bigotry.
About three years earlier, Newman was at perhaps his savage best with the Southern-themed Good Old Boys. In the middle of that classic collection is a song about the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, which devastated much of the middle-to-lower Mississippi River region, with levee breaks overwhelming towns and destroying crops. Newman's account of that event and how it affected the Bayou State sounds straightforward, but given his penchant for aiming at contemporary targets, you have to wonder if he was really just giving us a history lesson or was there a larger message contained.
The refrain provides a hint of the latter, whereby the state was and will always be treated as a stepchild of the Federal Government:
Louisiana, Louisiana
They're tryin' to wash us away
They're tryin' to wash us away
Regardless, it's a beautiful tune even if it's a rewrite of "Sail Away." The lyrics paired with a downcast, rich melody make this a great tune that provides ample demonstration of most of Newman's strengths. Imagine how much better this song is when someone who can really sing is covering it.
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
Excellent review Pico. You pretty much nail the essense of Newman as a writer here...caustic, "mordant" (I love it when a writer teaches me a new word, I had to actually look up the meaning of this in a dictionary). You also bring home the new relevance of Neville's cover version in the wake of the Katrina tragedy.
This was an excellent review Pico.
-Glen
2 - Big Geez
Very nice, Pico. Not only the writing but also the subject matter, which evoked many of my own memories of New Orleans.
3 - Pico
Thanks for kind remarks, guys. I don't know why I didn't think of reviewing this song until after the Katrina anniversary had passed, but better late than never.
I tell you what, it was real tough listening to this song two years ago without feeling very sad. Aaron performed it on TV at the time, too, I believe for the big Katrina telethon.