Randy Newman, a New Orleans, La., transplant, has been thought of as a national treasure by many, and for good reason. From “My Old Kentucky Home” to “I Love L.A.,” Newman’s deft mixture of Broadway show-tunes and modern pop makes him the closest thing to a modern-day Cole Porter of the late twentieth century. The carefully constructed melodies and the lush arrangements that sometimes accompany sometimes belie some mordant lyrics that don’t sugar coat at all when Randy is feeling, well, randy.
Followers of Top 40 back the late ’70s remember how stinging Newman’s lyrics can be when his fluke hit “Short People” caused such an uproar as people missed the point of the song being a sarcastic denunciation of bigotry. About three years earlier, Randy Newman was at perhaps his most savage best with the Southern-themed Good Old Boys. In the middle of that classic collection is a song about the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, which devastated much of the middle-to-lower Mississippi River region, with levee breaks overwhelming towns and destroying crops.
Newman’s account of that event and how it affected the Bayou State sounds straightforward, but given his penchant for aiming at contemporary targets, you have to wonder if he was really just sharing a history lesson or was there a larger message contained. The refrain provides a hint of the latter, whereby the state was and will always be treated as a stepchild of the federal government:
Louisiana, Louisiana
They’re tryin’ to wash us away
They’re tryin’ to wash us away
Regardless, it’s a beautiful tune, even if it’s a rewrite of “Sail Away,” and the lyrics pair with a downcast, rich melody make this a great tune that provides ample demonstration to most of Randy Newman’s strengths. Imagine how much better this song is then someone who can really sing is covering it.
Enter Aaron Neville.
In 1991, bolstered by the strength of the Neville Brothers’ Yellow Moon and also the success of his duets with Linda Ronstadt, Neville put out a solo record Warm Your Heart. It’s a good but not great album; however it kicks off marvelously with “Louisiana, 1927.” Being from New Orleans himself and having some savvy in picking tunes to cover, this choice makes a lot of sense.
The string-heavy arrangements of the original are here, and a swelling chorus is added for further weight. As for Aaron Neville’s lead vocal, it needs no comment except to state that it’s his usual outstanding fare: They don’t call him “The Voice” for nothing.
I listened to this and all the other songs from Warm Your Heart back when it was new, then put it away for about 15 years until Hurricane Katrina struck the middle Gulf Coast. The tragedy called to mind this song about levees breaking and how it seemed like someone or something was trying again to wash away Louisiana. The relevant poignancy of this tragic event turned the song into something even more for me and couldn’t get it out of my mind for many days after.
Eventually, I did move on to other songs and other worries. But every August 29, thoughts turn again to this song. And Aaron Neville’s golden throat delivering the goods.
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