Randy Newman's Songbook Vol. 2 is out on Nonesuch next week. The Independent gives the new album four stars. "Newman never sounds more quintessentially Newman than when experienced, as here, alone at the piano," says Independent reviewer Andy Gill, "with the lyrical intricacies and ironies of his songs dependent on just his laconic delivery and trenchant accompaniment for their effect." Read more at independent.co.uk.

Newman appeared on BBC One TV's The One Show this week to talk with hosts Matt Baker and Alex Jones about the new album, his career as a songwriter, and his more recent, award-winning work scoring the Toy Story trilogy. Also on the show is sand artist Jamie Wardley, who joined the show from the beach at Blackpool, England, where he designed the beautiful sand rendering of Newman pictured above. You can learn more about how Wardley created the piece and see more photos in his blog, sandsculptureice.co.uk. And fans in the UK can watch the One Show episode online at bbc.co.uk.

There are just a couple more days to pre-order Songbook Vol. 2 with the limited-edition poster featuring the original cover art from Randy Newman's self-titled debut album, a number of which will be signed by Newman. To reserve your copy, head to the Nonesuch Store, where orders include high-quality, 320 kbps MP3s of the complete album starting release day.