Thomas Montgomery Newman (born October 20, 1955) is an American composer be… Read Full Bio ↴Thomas Montgomery Newman (born October 20, 1955) is an American composer best known for his many film scores.

Newman has been nominated for 15 Academy Awards and 4 Golden Globes, and has won 2 BAFTAs, 6 Grammys and an Emmy Award. Newman was honored with the Richard Kirk award at the 2000 BMI Film and TV Awards. The award is given annually to a composer who has made significant contributions to film and television music.

Born in Los Angeles, California, he is the youngest son of Martha Louis Montgomery (1920–2005) and composer Alfred Newman (1900–1970), who won the Academy Award for Best Original Score nine times. He is a member of a film-scoring dynasty in Hollywood that includes his father Alfred, brother David Newman, sister Maria Newman, uncles Lionel Newman and Emil Newman, cousin Randy Newman (also known as a singer and songwriter), and his first cousin, once removed, Joey Newman. His paternal grandparents were Russian immigrants, and his mother was from Mississippi.

During their upbringing, Martha herded her sons into violin lessons in the San Fernando Valley every weekend. Newman later studied composition and orchestration for two years at the University of Southern California, before transferring to Yale University, where he graduated as a Bachelor of Arts in 1977 and a Master of Music in 1978. While at Yale, he met composer Stephen Sondheim, who became an early mentor.

Newman and his wife, Ann Marie, have three children. They reside in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles.

At first, Newman was more interested in musical theater than in film composition, working with Sondheim in Broadway plays. Lionel, who succeeded Alfred as music director for 20th Century Fox, gave Thomas his first scoring assignment on a 1979 episode of the series The Paper Chase. In 1983, John Williams, who was a friend of both Alfred and Lionel, invited Newman to work on Return of the Jedi, orchestrating the scene where Darth Vader dies. Afterwards Newman met in New York producer Scott Rudin, who invited him to compose the score for Reckless (1984). Newman said that he thought "it was a tough job, at first" for requiring him to "develop vocabularies and a sense of procedure", only getting comfortable with writing scores "and not fraudulent in my efforts" after 8 years.

In 1992, Newman composed the score to Martin Brest's film Scent of a Woman.

In 1994, he got his first Academy Award nominations with the scores to The Shawshank Redemption and Little Women. He also scored the film The War. In 1996, he scored Diane Keaton's Unstrung Heroes, receiving yet another Oscar nomination. In 1998, he scored Robert Redford's The Horse Whisperer as well as Meet Joe Black. In 1999, Newman composed the score to Sam Mendes' first feature film American Beauty, created using mainly percussion instruments. Newman believed the score helped move the film along without disturbing the "moral ambiguity" of the script, saying "It was a real delicate balancing act in terms of what music worked to preserve that." This was his first collaboration with Mendes, and he would go on to score all of the director's subsequent films except for the comedy-drama Away We Go, which featured songs instead of a score. He received a fourth Oscar nomination for this score, and although he lost again (to John Corigliano for The Red Violin), he did receive a Grammy and a BAFTA.

His critical and commercial success has continued in the following years with his scores for films such as Meet Joe Black, The Green Mile, Erin Brockovich, In the Bedroom and The Salton Sea. He was nominated consecutively for a further three Academy Awards, for Road to Perdition (2002), Finding Nemo (2003), and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (2004). However, he lost on each occasion to Elliot Goldenthal (for Frida), Howard Shore (for The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King), and Jan A. P. Kaczmarek (for Finding Neverland) respectively.

He was again nominated for an Oscar for scoring Steven Soderbergh's The Good German (2006). At the Oscar ceremony, he appeared in the opening segment by Errol Morris, who jokingly stated that Newman had been nominated for and failed to win an Oscar eight times. Newman replied: "No, I've failed seven but this will be my eighth", and indeed, he again lost, this time to Gustavo Santaolalla for Babel.

His first score since The Good German was for the 2008 animated film WALL-E, collaborating for the second time with director Andrew Stanton (with the first collaboration being Finding Nemo). The film won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature (as had Nemo). Newman received two Oscar nominations: one for Best Original Score, and another for Best Original Song for "Down to Earth", which he co-wrote with Peter Gabriel. He was nominated in the Original Score category with two other veteran composers, James Newton-Howard and Danny Elfman, both of whom have also been nominated for several Oscars but each time unsuccessfully. Newman lost both the score and song nominations to A R Rahman for his work on Slumdog Millionaire. He and Peter Gabriel did however win a Grammy for "Down to Earth".

In 2008, Newman scored Towelhead and Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road and in 2009 he scored Brothers. In 2011 he scored The Help, The Debt, The Iron Lady, and The Adjustment Bureau.

In 2012, Newman scored The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. He also scored the 23rd James Bond movie Skyfall, directed by his longtime collaborator Sam Mendes, which celebrates the film franchise's 50th anniversary. His work on this film earned him his eleventh Oscar nomination and a second BAFTA win. During 2013, he scored Steven Soderbergh's Side Effects and Saving Mr. Banks. The latter score was very well received by film music critics, earning Newman BAFTA and Oscar nominations for the second consecutive year, both of which he lost to Steven Price for Gravity.

Newman's 2014 projects included The Judge and Get on Up. He scored 2015's The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, marking the first time Newman has scored a sequel to a film he also wrote the score for.

In 2016, Newman scored the motion picture Passengers starring Andy Garcia, Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt.

Newman likes to vary the instrumentation in his scores, ranging from full orchestra to percussion-only music. He is also fond of incorporating unusual instruments such as the zither, hurdy-gurdy, psaltery and hammered dulcimer, or unexpected sounds, like Aboriginal chants and the chirping of cicadas. The composer declared that he has "an interest in mundane experimentation."

Fever
Thomas Newman Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Never know how much I love you
Never know how much I care
When you put your arms around me
I get a fever that's so hard to bear

You give me fever when you kiss me
Fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning

Fever all through the night

Everybody's got the fever
that is something you all know
Fever isn't such a new thing
Fever started long ago

Sun lights up the daytime
Moon lights up the night
I light up when you call my name
And you know I'm gonna treat you right

You give me fever when you kiss me
Fever when you hold me tight
Fever in the morning
Fever all through the night

Romeo loved Juliet
Juliet she felt the same
When he put his arms around her
He said, Julie baby, you're my flame

Thou givest fever when we kisseth
Fever with thy flaming youth
Fever, I'm afire
Fever, yea I burn forsooth

Captain Smith and Pocahontas
Had a very mad affair
When her daddy tried to kill him
She said Daddy-o don't you dare

He gives me fever with his kisses
Fever when he holds me tight
Fever, I'm his Missus,
Oh daddy, won't you treat him right

Now you've listened to my story
Here's the point that I have made
Cats were born to give chicks fever
Be it Fahrenheit or centigrade

They give you fever when you kiss them
Fever if you live and learn
Fever till you sizzle
What a lovely way to burn

What a lovely way to burn
What a lovely way to burn

Overall Meaning

Thomas Newman's song "Fever" is a romantic song that expresses the intense feelings that come with being in love. The song suggests that this emotion is so strong that it can be likened to a fever, an intense feeling that is hard to bear, but one that must be experienced nonetheless. The lyrics of the song are structured in a poetic and rhythmic way that creates an atmosphere of passion and romance. The songwriter initiates the song by expressing how much he loves his partner, he emphasizes that despite the fact that he is unsure the extent of such love, he knows it is true. When his partner embraces him, he feels an overwhelming sensation of intensity and warmth, which he describes as a fever that is hard to bear.

The songwriter expands on the idea of the fever by stating that 'everybody's got the fever,' indicating that love is a universal feeling that everyone is susceptible to. The song alludes to famous love stories that have withstood the test of time; this includes the story of Romeo and Juliet, where the passion they shared was so intense that it sparked a feverish feeling in the two lovers. The songwriter suggests that love can overcome all odds and obstacles, illustrating this with the story of Captain Smith and Pocahontas. Through their trials and tribulations, Captain Smith and Pocahontas were able to withstand all societal odds, and their love continues to live on as a legend.

In conclusion, Thomas Newman's song "Fever" is a soulful and passionate recount of what it means to be in love. The songwriter illustrates the depth of love and the passion that it ignites within two people. The song uses historical romantic stories to enforce the fact that love has always been this intense and overwhelming feeling. Ultimately, the song shows that love can withstand anything, be it time or external factors.

Line by Line Meaning

Never know how much I love you
I never realized how deeply I felt for you

Never know how much I care
I never knew how much I valued you

When you put your arms around me I get a fever that's so hard to bear
When you embrace me, my emotions become intense and it's almost overwhelming

You give me fever when you kiss me Fever when you hold me tight Fever in the morning Fever all through the night
Your touch ignites passion in me, it wakes me every morning and lulls me to sleep at night

Everybody's got the fever that is something you all know Fever isn't such a new thing Fever started long ago
Everyone understands the concept of heightened emotions, it's been around for ages

Sun lights up the daytime Moon lights up the night I light up when you call my name And you know I'm gonna treat you right
Just as the sun and moon are predictable occurrences, you elicit joy in me and I promise to take care of you

Romeo loved Juliet Juliet she felt the same When he put his arms around her He said, Julie baby, you're my flame
The passionate love story of Romeo and Juliet, where they equally shared a fiery love for each other

Thou givest fever when we kisseth Fever with thy flaming youth Fever, I'm afire Fever, yea I burn forsooth
A more erratic and unpredictable awakening of emotions, the young lover brings excitement that sets fire to the attraction

Captain Smith and Pocahontas Had a very mad affair When her daddy tried to kill him She said Daddy-o don't you dare
An illicit affair that was immediately opposed by family, but love triumphed over hostility

He gives me fever with his kisses Fever when he holds me tight Fever, I'm his Missus, Oh daddy, won't you treat him right
Despite her family’s initial violence towards her paramour, they eventually got married, and the heat between the two never died

Now you've listened to my story Here's the point that I have made Cats were born to give chicks fever Be it Fahrenheit or centigrade
After listening to the various stories of passion, one realization is that everyone, even animals, possess overwhelming emotions

They give you fever when you kiss them Fever if you live and learn Fever till you sizzle What a lovely way to burn What a lovely way to burn What a lovely way to burn
A reflection that heightened passion will always leave it's mark, but it's a beautiful way to live and feel alive

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, CARLIN AMERICA INC, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Eddie Cooley, Otis Blackwell

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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