Recently, KPCC, a public radio station in Southern California, asked the songwriting legend Randy Newman to say a few words about social distancing — “because of my scientific background,” says Newman. So Randy Newman just went ahead and wrote a whole song on the subject. Newman sent in a video of himself sitting at his piano, with his dog asleep next to him, singing a brand-new song called “Stay Away.” It is absolutely delightful.
“Stay Away” is a song of love and advice. Sample lyrics: “Be kind to one another/ Tell her you love her every day/ If you’re angry about something, let it go/ If the kids are frightened, tell them not to be afraid/ But don’t let them touch your face.”
Randy Newman has been a busy man lately. Just in the past year, he’s been nominated for a couple of Oscars, and he’s shown up on records from Chance The Rapper and Brandy Clark. But Newman is 76 years old, which means he’s at risk if he gets sick in the current pandemic. Coronavirus has already taken the lives of John Prine and Adam Schlesinger; it has no mercy for endlessly clever songwriting legends. Stay away from him. Watch the video below.
We asked @RandyNewman for a social distance message. He instead wrote a song. While you "Stay Away", KPCC is here for you. Be here for us by supporting our coronavirus coverage: https://t.co/uUytwERC1Chttps://t.co/izj7TmgmLe
— 89.3 KPCC (@KPCC) April 8, 2020
Imagine just being able to do something like that on the spur of the moment.
