Sail Away (Randy Newman album)

Sail Away
Studio album by Randy Newman
Released	May 1972
Recorded	Amigo Studios, Western Studios, Poppi Studios, Los Angeles
Genre	Soft rock
Length	30:07
Label	Reprise
Producer	Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman
Randy Newman chronology
Randy Newman Live (1971) Sail Away (1972) Good Old Boys (1974)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
Robert Christgau	A−
Rolling Stone	(favorable)

Sail Away is a 1972 album by Randy Newman. The album is an example of Newman's musical satire. The title track takes the form of a pitch from a slave trader in Africa. "Political Science" foresees America making the world a better place through the nuclear annihilation of almost everyone else. "He Gives Us All His Love" is a bittersweet and sparsely arranged hymn about religious faith. It had been in fact previously heard in the 1971 film satire Cold Turkey, for which Newman wrote the score.

As with all of Newman's early albums, several of its songs had been previously recorded by other artists. In this case, "Simon Smith And The Amazing Dancing Bear" had been a hit for Alan Price in 1967, and "Dayton, Ohio -1903" had been covered by Harry Nilsson on his 1970 album Nilsson Sings Newman.

Brian Wilson has said that this album profoundly affected him at the time of its release, briefly keeping him from sliding further into depression and mental illness. The album was reissued by Rhino Records in 2002, with several previously unreleased bonus tracks. In 2003, the album was ranked number 321 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

LP track listing

All songs written and composed by Randy Newman. 

Side one
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Sail Away"	2:56
2.	"Lonely at the Top"	2:32
3.	"He Gives Us All His Love"	1:53
4.	"Last Night I Had a Dream"	3:01
5.	"Simon Smith and the Amazing Dancing Bear"	2:00
6.	"Old Man"	2:42

Side two
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Political Science"	2:00
2.	"Burn On"	2:33
3.	"Memo to My Son"	1:56
4.	"Dayton, Ohio - 1903"	1:47
5.	"You Can Leave Your Hat On"	3:18
6.	"God's Song (That's Why I Love Mankind)"	3:36

Bonus tracks
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Let It Shine"
2.	"Maybe I'm Doing It Wrong" (studio version)
3.	"Dayton, Ohio - 1903" (early version)
4.	"You Can Leave Your Hat On" (demo version)
5.	"Sail Away" (early version)

Personnel

• Randy Newman - arranger, composer, piano, vocals
• Ry Cooder - guitars on "Last Night I Had a Dream" & "You Can Leave Your Hat On"
• Russ Titelman - guitars
• Jim Keltner - drums
• Gene Parsons - drums
• Earl Palmer - drums
• Chris Ethridge - bass
• Wilton Felder - bass
• Jimmy Bond - bass
• Milt Holland - percussion
• Abe Most - alto saxophone on "Lonely at the Top"
• String Section - Warner's Burbank recording facility: Amigo Studios.