eMusic Review 0
For an entire generation of movie-going youths, it may be hard to imagine Randy Newman as anything more than the warbling, bolted-to-the-piano singer who mucks up that ineffable feeling at the conclusion of Pixar films with a goop-covered song. But once upon a time Newman was the most cutting, funny, and well, yes, even then a bit sentimental, troubadour around. And political, too! A unique product of both Los Angeles and Louisiana, Newman's roots are on display on his fifth and best full-length, Good Old Boys. Newman creates a deceptively searing portrayal of the Southern point of view, which he depicts as a culture still out of touch with coastal and middle America in ways both damning and honorable. In many of his songs he assumes the voices of real people, like segregationist Lester Maddox on opener "Rednecks," exposing as many misconceptions about Northern elitism as he does about local racism, painting the ghettos of America in places like Philly and Boston's Roxbury neighborhood as equally confining and degrading as any slow-to-adapt Southern burg. As Maddox, Newman sings, "We talk real funny down here / we drink too much and we laugh too loud / we too dumb to make… read more »
