Randy Newman to perform at Tilles Center

Randy Newman, the award-winning singer-songwriter, makes his Tilles Center debut, Friday, March 25, at 8 p.m.

Newman, who recently won his second Academy Award (along with a Grammy) for “We Belong Together,” the spunky piano-rock number from Pixar’s “Toy Story 3,” has long been one of the most musically and lyrically ambitious performers around the music scene. The nephew of three successful Hollywood composers and conductors, he began studying the piano at age seven and was writing songs professionally when he was 17.

After letting others – such as Judy Collins, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, and Joni Mitchell sing his songs – Newman started performing at colleges and nightclubs in the late 1960s. He earned a reputation for both his inimitable piano and vocal style, which combined the casual with highly mannered effects, and for his lyrics, which sardonically dissected politics and society. His prolific career shows no signs of letting up.

Tickets are $65, $45, $30; available at (800) 745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com or www.tillescenter.org.

Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, C.W. Post Campus, Rte. 25A, Brookville.