![]() ![]() He is accompanied on the road by his manager. Locanda Portofino, 1110 Montana Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90403 00 1 3 Photograph: Melissa Lyttle/The Observer They ate: Shared Burrata con prosciutto San Daniele ($22) Randy Bucatini alla carbonara con punte di asparagi ($26) Lawrence Penne alla vodka ($22). “There’s people out there applauding and I like it,’’ he says. We spend some time discussing the impact streaming services such as Spotify have had on musicians’ income, as well as commiserating about the late Leonard Cohen, who went back on tour at the age of 77 after being left virtually penniless by a former manager whom he successfully sued for stealing $5 million. That’s just the way the industry has gone.” “I’ll probably get paid more for Toy Story 4 than Toy Story 1, but maybe a bit less than I did for two and three. He’s been working on the soundtrack for Toy Story 4, so it’s safe to assume he’s doing pretty well? “When I look at the statement it doesn’t seemed to have dropped that much from two or three years ago or even four or five years ago,’’ he says. Might have been someone who wanted to get me into trouble with the taxman.” I’ve no idea where they got that one from. Indeed, one Canadian website estimated his wealth at $100 million. I start with a question about money, prompted by my young son’s suggestion that writing songs for Toy Story must have made Newman “really, really rich”. “I live nearby and it’s a friendly place,’’ he says when I ask him why he picked this particular restaurant. (Since this interview took place, the knee condition has forced Newman to cancel the tour.) Having just finished the US leg of a tour to promote his latest album, Dark Matter, all that travel has taken a toll and he hopes to schedule a knee replacement operation before his forthcoming European tour, which includes shows in Edinburgh, Gateshead, Dublin and London. “Ah, Mr Newman!” Suddenly, the prospect of lunch grows a little less intimidating. ![]() The waiter’s friendliness broadens into a full-blown smile. The surroundings are cosy but hardly grand, the welcome is noticeably warm. This is all very unfair but still, here I am, walking through the door of Locanda Portofino, an Italian restaurant in Santa Monica, far from the tourist hustle of the Californian beach and the Third Street Promenade. ![]()
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