Randy Newman, Short People | 1 Hit WONDERful

In the 23rd edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2025), we highlight “Short People” performed by Randy Newman. 

It only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy 💯! On 1 Hit WONDERful, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.  It is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, that ONE hit earned them recognition. So, in the 23^rd edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2025), we dive into “Short People”, the one-hit wonder by Randy Newman.

If you are a millennial or younger, many folks know Grammy-winning musician Randy Newman (1943 – ) as the voice and songwriter of the Disney multiplatinum classic, “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from the original Toy Story.  If you are a true crime enthusiast and enjoy a dark soundtrack, perhaps your ears perked up with Newman’s creepy “In Germany Before the War”, written about the deplorable, sick Peter Kürten.  Despite these surefire bops from Randy, technically, when it comes to pop hits, he is a one-hit wonder.  With only three charting hits on the pop charts, only “Short People” reached the top 40.  Specifically, the opening track from his 1977 album, Little Criminals, peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Newman wrote the gold-certified song while Lenny Waronker and Russ Titelman produced it.

Randy Newman carved out the biggest hit of his career not associated with Woody and Buzz Lightyear.  But he also courted controversy.  Yes, I considered using “Short People” in my Controversial Tunes column.  Why? Let’s start with the centerpiece, the chorus:

“Well, I don’t want no short people

Don’t want no short people

Don’t want no short people ‘round here.”

Aww, hell, Randy! WTF? How did this fly in 1977? It sure as hell won’t fly in the 2020s! Gen-Z won’t stand for the mistreatment of the small!  In the verses, Mr. Newman adds salt to the wounds. “Short people got no reason to live,” he sings in the first verse, adding, controversially, “They got little hands, little eyes / They walk around tellin’ great big lies.” This peaked at number two on the pop charts? Yikes! In the second verse, the sentiment is similar: “You got to pick ‘em up just to say hello / They got little cars that go beep, beep, beep…” And how about their “grubby little fingers and dirty little minds.” D-d-d-damn! Tina Benitez-Eves of American Songwriter corrects the misinterpretation of the song, describing it as “a more figurative look at individuals who are small-minded.” From that perspective, things are far less, dare I say, small-minded from Newman’s perspective.  The bridge is one of the cleverer, more interesting moments from the song:

“(Short people are just the same as you and I)

A fool such as I

(All men are brothers until the day they die)

It’s a wonderful world.”

Randy Newman is a one-of-a-kind, once-in-a-lifetime musician 💯. The sunny-sounding, anti-small-minded “Short People” is a surefire classic that speaks to his genius.  He sings marvelously, in his distinct voice, and catches the ears with his tuneful melodies and those unforgettable, controversial lyrics.  The musical accompaniment is sensational too, with prominent keys and juicy guitars standing out in particular. This song exemplifies being ONE-HIT WONDERFUL!