Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman (born November 28, 1943) is a singer/songwrit… Read Full Bio ↴Randall Stuart "Randy" Newman (born November 28, 1943) is a 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 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. His film scores include Ragtime, Awakenings, The Natural, Leatherheads, James and the Giant Peach, Meet the Parents, Seabiscuit and The Princess and the Frog. He has scored many Disney-Pixar films: Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Cars, Toy Story 3, Monsters University, Cars 3 and most recently Toy Story 4.

He has been awarded an Academy Award, three Emmys, 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.

Newman grew up in a musical family with Hollywood connections; his uncles Alfred and Lionel both scored numerous films. By age 17, Randy was staff writer for a California music publisher. One semester short of a B.A. in music from UCLA, he dropped out of school. Lenny Waronker, son of Liberty Records’ president, was a close friend and, later, as a staff producer for Warner Bros., helped get Newman signed to the label.

Newman’s early songs were recorded by a number of performers. His friend Harry Nilsson recorded an entire album with Newman on piano, Nilsson Sings Newman, in 1970. Judy Collins (“I Think It’s Going to Rain Today”), Peggy Lee (“Love Story”), and Three Dog Night - for whom “Mama Told Me (Not to Come)” hit #1 - all enjoyed success with Newman’s music.

Newman became a popular campus attraction when touring with Nilsson. His status as a cult star was affirmed by his critically praised debut, Randy Newman, in 1968, which featured his own complex arrangements for full orchestra, and later by 1970’s 12 Songs. He also sang “Gone Dead Train” on the soundtrack of Performance (1970). Live and Sail Away were Newman’s first commercial successes, but his audience has been limited to some degree because his songs are often colored by his ironic, pointed sense of humor, which is rarely simple and frequently misunderstood.

Good Old Boys, for example, was a concept album about the South, with the lyrics expressing the viewpoint of white Southerners. Lyrics such as “We’re rednecks, and we don’t know our ass from a hole in the ground” made people wonder whether Newman was being satirical or sympathetic. He toured (to Atlanta and elsewhere) behind the album with a full orchestra that played his arrangements and was conducted by his uncle Emil Newman.

Little Criminals, in 1977, contained Newman’s first hit single, “Short People,” which mocked bigotry and was taken seriously by a vocal offended minority. “Baltimore” from that album was covered by Nina Simone. Following that album’s release, Newman toured for the first time since 1974. He claimed that in the interim he’d done nothing but watch television and play with his three sons. In 1979 his Born Again featured guest vocals by members of the Eagles. In 1981 Newman composed the soundtrack for the film Ragtime (the first of many soundtrack assignments) and was nominated for two Oscars (Best Song, Best Score). His 1983 album, Trouble in Paradise, included guest appearances by Linda Ronstadt, members of Fleetwood Mac, and Paul Simon, who sang a verse of “The Blues.” That album’s “I Love L.A.” became something of an anthem, thanks in part to a flashy music video directed by Newman’s cousin, Tim Newman (who went on to shoot popular videos for ZZ Top, among others). Land of Dreams (#80, 1988) spawned a minor hit in “It’s Money That Matters” (#60, 1988). It would take Newman 10 more years to make another studio album, 1999’s critically acclaimed Bad Love. With that record peaking at #194, he continues to meet his biggest success in Hollywood, where he spent most of the ’90s becoming one of the town’s most sought-after film composers. Although the material on his own records is literate and biting, the songs he writes for movies are decidedly simpler and with a sunnier outlook - and they usually meet with more success. Both “I Love to See You Smile” from Parenthood and “When She Loved Me” from Toy Story 2, for instance, were nominated for Oscars; in 1998 alone, Newman garnered three Oscar nominations for three different movies.

In 1995 Newman wrote a musical adaptation of Goethe’s Faust. Both the play and the accompanying CD (which featured guests such as Bonnie Raitt, Linda Ronstadt, Elton John, Don Henley, and James Taylor in the role of God) were commercially unsuccessful. In 2000 he received the Billboard Century Award.

The Time Of Your Life
Randy Newman Lyrics

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Was a bug, little bug, hardly there
How he felt, what he dreamed, who could care?
Without any evidence
(His flaws were many)
He was full of confidence
(Some people haven't any)
Didn't have much common sense
(It's highly over-rated)

He just knew that he'd come through
It's the time of your life so live it well
It's the time of your life so live it well

We may only go 'round one time
As far as I can tell
It's the time of your life so live it well
We may only go 'round one time
As far as I can tell
(He could be wrong about that)
It's the time of your life
It's the time of your life
It's the time of your life so live it well
It's the time of your life so live it well
It's the time of your life so live it well

We may only go 'round this one time
As far as I can tell
It's the time of your life so live it well
Like us all, he started small
Then he grew
When the time came he knew what to do
He knew in order to succeed
(They'd have to work together)
He turned a rock into a seed
(And they were changed forever)
Then they had the strength they'd need
(To get through stormy weather)
Do or die, you gotta try

Isn't it a bit surprising
How one's fortunes ebb and flow
And only to the enterprising
Does the magic fortune cookie go

Believe me
It's the time of your life so live it well

Overall Meaning

Randy Newman's "The Time of Your Life" is a song that serves as a reminder to seize the day, overcome obstacles, and make the most of our time on this earth. The lyrics describe the life of a small bug that had a great sense of self-assurance, despite its flaws and lack of common sense. The bug's story progresses, and it is revealed that he grows and eventually learns that success is often reliant on teamwork and hard work. Through his story Newman communicates the message that we only have one life, and it's essential that we make the most of it while we can.

The song presents a message that's easy to relate to for listeners who are looking for inspiration to make the most of their time on this planet. The bug's character arc shows how quickly things can change- he goes from being "hardly there" to "full of confidence." Newman's lyrics also point out that one's fortunes are unpredictable and tend to "ebb and flow," making it all the more critical for us to take advantage of every opportunity that comes our way.

Adding to the song's theme, Newman notes that the only way to succeed is by working together, a fact that becomes evident of larger organisms like humans but can be lost on smaller insects. The song as a whole provides a very uplifting and inspiring message to its listeners to appreciate the time that they've got and make the most out of what they have.

The Time Of Your LifeRandy Newman Lyrics

The Time Of Your Life
Randy Newman Lyrics