To see the interview, click here.

Variety has posted a list of Emmy winners.

For more info, please visit the & Days of Opening Nights site.

WCTV has a story!

For more info, please visit:
http://www.strictlybluegrass.com

The San Francisco Chronicle has a story!

“When I’m Gone” — from the “Mr. Monk And The End Part II” episode of USA’s “Monk” — is competing in the “Outstanding Original Music And Lyrics” category.

In addition to being one of our greatest American singer-songwriters and film composers, Newman long ago established himself among our sharpest and most caustic wits. Some of Newman’s film compositions include: Toy Story, Bugs Life, Overboard, Sea Biscuit, Monsters Inc., Meet the Parents and The Natural.

For more information, visit the Louisville Orchestra’s site.

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We’re on a train going from Glasgow to London.  The shows have gone well I think and I’ve learned an enormous amount about each country we visited.  For instance, Spain, apparently, had a civil war just like our own.  This is not a joke. In their civil war other countries joined in on opposite sides.  The British Poets and Authors, as in World War I, fought on the side of Good.  Funny story: Anton Webern, the composer, was killed on the last day of World War II! (NbC: Huh?)

I hate to say this but the people in Spain, the Spaniards, didn’t seem particularly happy. Or maybe, they just weren’t happy to see me!  People in Finland, Norway and Denmark seemed happy and quite content.  I hope I’m not generalizing too much.  I don’t think so.

Cathy lost her key today and while she was looking for it in her suite (NbC: Hah!), she found a golf club, a golf ball, a putting machine, and a cap.

Last night, after the show in Glasgow, Bo, who up ‘til now has confined his drinking to late morning, decided since he was in Scotland he wanted to taste the best single malt available. So he did and we watched him do it.  It was great.  We talked to the whisky guy about noses, tops, bottoms, hoofs, mouths, and finance.  There really was something special and complicated about the single malt whisky he drank.

The buildings in Barcelona don’t have any conventional corners.  The entrance faces the corner so theoretically you wouldn’t know how to decide what street the building is on.  It could go either way.

(NbC:  zzzzz) …… and we saw some churches too.

The last couple of nights have been different because we were playing to an English speaking audience.  I don’t get any of those courtesy laughs anymore.  They understand for sure what I’m saying.  Can’t fool them, no sir. I’m not happy with the quality of the journal this time.  I don’t know whether it’s me or someone else.  Every time I get what I think might be a good idea, good in the literary sense, Someone pops up with a question about grammar or fashion and sometimes, yes, even about getting paid for participating in this enterprise.  Little does she know.  She’s in for a real surprise because I’m learning to type myself.  I just typed this part. (NbC:  That’s a lie.)  Look for my blog.

Do you remember at the start of the tour when Cathy ate bear?  Well, last night, she drank a blond beer called Bitter and Twisted.

All my love,

Randy

PS: If you don’t hear from Bo or me again, please tell the authorities about a person of interest.

PPS: I don’t think I’ll play Yellow Man any more.

I once had a friend who had leg troubles. One leg, I think, was shorter than the other. I too have that problem but it hasn’t stopped me from making something of myself. Anyway, this friend of mine sent out a Christmas card with a picture of an orthopedic shoe but without his name. Unfortunately, no one knew who the card came from. Cathy, in the previous journal entry, made the same mistake only worse. She thought everyone would know that “NbC” meant “Note by Cathy.”

Just played the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. (NbC: Currently, the Euro is at $1.26.) I played here almost 40 years ago. There, now you can figure out how old I really am. There are about 25 red steps that lead to the stage from the balcony. I went down the steps to the stage and I made it. Does everyone look at their feet when they go down the stairs? I’m not going to joke around any more. For some songs the audience applauded during the intro as if they were hits. Birmingham, for instance, and Lonely at the Top. I think I had two albums that sold inordinately well here. I saw Suzanne and Jeroen back stage after the show. Jeroen is still a basso profundo. Suzanne is not a basso profundo but is nice as ever. (NbC: He said he wasn’t going to be funny anymore.)

I played Eindhoven yesterday. It was once, and still is to some extent, a factory town for Philips Electronics. I think it was the best show so far. When I played here before I found it difficult to make the audience laugh much. Maybe their English wasn’t quite as good as in Gronigen say. (NbC: It’s time for sound check ….)

Speaking of the journal, Cathy just reminded me about the hotel in Brussels. It was odd. We arrived in the afternoon – my wife Gretchen, Cathy, Bo, and I – and a guy checked us in. We went upstairs and the same guy brought the bags up. A few hours later I had to send some laundry out and the same guy came up to get the laundry. Went down to dinner and there he was again as maitre d’ and waiter. After we ordered he said, “I’ll go prepare your meal” – this is in a big hotel you understand – either there was a strike or a major holiday, it’s hard to figure. I went to get a massage the next day and I went to the spa desk and he wasn’t there but he soon arrived and gave me the best and most meaningful massage I’ve ever had. Jack was his name as in jack-of-all-trades perhaps. Gretchen has gone home but I’m glad to say that Jack is still with us. We smuggled him out of Brussels into Holland and dropped him at a hotel here in Turnhout.

Today is a day off. I took a walk up the river. I never noticed how beautiful this city is. The canals, the bridges, the boats. It reminds me of Los Angeles. The other night after the show in the Concertgebouw the guy who manages the theatre was standing with Cathy and Bo watching the people exit. After a while, he said to Cathy, “So many men! Usually it’s closer to 50/50.” I found that a little disheartening. One time, Lenny and Russ, my producers, made a mock promo with Harry Shearer, later with the Simpsons, it opened this way: “Newman! Music men like.” Maybe they were right. I should’ve written more love songs. The love songs I do write, for instance, Emotional Girl, Bad News From Home, Same Girl are as much about the narrator’s character as about the Beloved or the “relationship”. I think I don’t see myself as a Romantic Hero though I am one.

The answer to last week’s question is Leonard Cohen and/or Miss Joni Mitchell. Here’s another: (remember 5 Euros to the Foundation in Tulsa) Should I ever again play Yellow Man in Belgium?

The answer is no. Explain.

More about Gretchen’s European Vacation later.

Love

Randy