Randy Newman proved last night that he's still a force to be reckoned with. Playing to a packed auditorium at the Heymann Center in Lafayette, Newman kicked off his solo performance with "Last Night I Had a Dream," "Mama Told Me Not To Come," and a new song titled "Losing You."
Before his fourth number, Newman said, "This will be a medley of all my hits. It will be the first and last song." In the middle of his 1977 hit, "Short People," Newman forgot the lyrics and stopped the song. "I forgot the lyrics to the one goddamn hit I had!" The audience laughed, and Newman picked the song back up where he left off, finishing it out.
During the second set, after performing "Baltimore," a woman in the crowd yelled "Louisiana!" in request for "Louisiana 1927." Newman declined to play the song at the time, and he choked up when he told the crowd, "I want to apologize for the country, that they've allowed for a colossal thing like that to happen. The federal government, I'm ashamed for it. Kind of a laugh killer, isn't it?" Newman was referring to the new significance the song has taken in the wake of the 2005 hurricanes. After making those comments, he played "Rollin'."
Newman wrapped up the second set with "Louisiana 1927." Watch him perform the song in the clip below from a 2006 show in Stuttgart, Germany. Below that, see the set lists of the evening's music here in Lafayette.
first set Last Night I Had a Dream Mama Told Me Not to Come Losing You Short People Birmingham Marie The Girls In My Life (Pt. 1) The World Isn't Fair I Miss You Red Bandana Wedding in Cherokee County You Can Leave Your Hat On I'm Dead (But I Don't Know It) Guilty Political Science
second set Laugh and Be Happy It's Money That I Love In Germany Before The War The Great Nations of Europe Baltimore Rollin' Just A Few Words (In Defense of Our Country) Living Without You You've Got A Friend I Love L.A. Kingfish Dixie Flyer Potholes on Memory Lane Rednecks Sail Away I Think It's Going to Rain Louisiana 1927
encore Lonely at the Top Feels Like Home