Randy Newman recently gave listeners a sneak peek at his next album with the release of the song “Putin.” Newman, who has always been skilled at finding the humor in the powerful, came up with the idea of the song when he saw a photo of a shirtless Vladimir Putin riding a horse or a tractor.
Newman explained to the Washington Post, “A person with that much extraordinary amount of power, doing things like that is disturbing but also kind of amusing.” Newman also noted that the song has nothing to do with current presidential candidate Donald Trump’s apparent fondness for the Russian leader.
Newman attempts to humanize Putin the song to some extent, revealing that the leader may have some doubt about his abilities. The songwriter realizes that the world is not black and white and that Putin is still a human being. Check it out.
The photo of the shirtless Putin was not the only thing that helped inspire the song. Newman explained to the post how he loves the song “Stalin Wasn’t Stallin’,” which is a 1943 Willie Johnson song recorded by the gospel group The Golden Gate Quartet.
The World War II song praises Joseph Stalin and the Russian people for their stand against Adolf Hitler and his army. Check out “Stalin Wasn’t Stallin'” below.
Randy Newman’s upcoming album is in the mixing stage. Newman explained that some of the songs feature more than one character and that he tries to bring in everything he has learned into the new album. We can’t wait.
What do you think of “Putin”? Leave your two cents in the comments. Photo via www.kremlin.ru
(Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)