All of the clips I’ve featured so far this week have been sung by somebody other than Randy Newman. And each of them should have been, in order to work best in the context of those films.
I can’t imagine ‘When She Loved Me’ working better in the Jesse montage than it does with Sarah McLachlan’s haunting soprano. ‘Our Town’ is perfect in the honey tones of James Taylor. ‘Almost There’ obviously had to be sung by the lead actress of The Princess and the Frog, and the Monsters Inc. duet was written expressly for Billy Crystal and John Goodman.
But when Newman takes the mic, his songs go to a whole other level. He’s one of the most expressive and emotional singers I know, despite (or maybe because of) his limited range.
When you think of song sequences from Pixar films, the Toy Story 2 and Cars examples probably come to mind first. But I find this song from the original Toy Story just as powerful.
Buzz Lightyear has just discovered that he is, in fact, a toy. And to add insult to injury, “not a flying toy.” He is despondent, but not unwilling to give it one more try. Newman’s performance frames this poignant moment perfectly.
Way beyond the moon
In my silver ship I sail
A dream that ended too soon
Now I know exactly who I am
And what I’m here for
And I will go sailing no more
All the things I thought I’d be
All the brave things I’d done
Vanished like a snowflake
With the rising of the sun
Never more to sail my ship
Where no man has gone before
And I will go sailing no more
But no, it can’t be true
I could fly if I wanted to
Like a bird in the sky
If I believe I can fly
Why I’d fly
Clearly I will go sailing no more
Meet Me In Montauk 
Once again I will have to insist that you provide the clip from the Pixar film to see and hear today’s SOTD as it is meant to be experienced:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iy-1xI1nbao&feature=related
What camera work!!! You’re not supposed to think that in an animated film, but Pixar is no ordinary animated film company!
As I expressed earlier this week, I’m in full agreement that Randy Newman, despite/because of his limited range, brings something to his songs that matters more than the ability to belt them out with gusto. This song certainly illustrates that concept beautifully, but so, too, does a live performance of “When She Loves Me” (though it certainly wouldn’t have worked well in the context of the film to have a male rather than a female voice sing the song).
While I am not complaining about any of your song choices this week (I love them all!), I do wonder why you didn’t include the most known and loved of them all, one that has Randy Newman singing and singing with Lyle Lovett, for crying out loud. Since Daniel, our road trip DJ, has already played it twice in the past couple of days, I feel that it must be mentioned – “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” my friend! Give the song some love!
Here’s a live performance of it. Makes me smile from start to finish š
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_284Y8Wu7c
I certainly love ‘You’ve Got a Friend’ in me, but I didn’t want to go with three songs from the Toy Story films, and I definitely wanted to include today’s.
I’d say this is one of the most emotional songs to hear in any Pixar film for me. That may sound strange, but I tear up at random stuff. This is so wonderfully done, and I’m very happy it was featured!
I’m not sure how well this song holds up independently from the film, but, within the context of the film, it works beautifully.