"If I Didn't Have You" is a song written by singer-songwriter

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer, conductor and orchestrator. He is known for his non-rhotic Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early America ...

, that appears during the end credits of the 2001

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Pixar Pixar (), doing business as Pixar Animation Studios, is an American animation studio based in Emeryville, California, known for its critically and commercially successful computer-animated feature films. Pixar is a subsidiary of Walt Disney ...

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

, ''

Monsters, Inc. ''Monsters, Inc.'' (also known as ''Monsters, Incorporated'') is a 2001 American animated comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Featuring the voices of John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, James Cobu ...

'' Sung by

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He rose to prominence in television before becoming an acclaimed and popular film actor. Goodman has received List of awards and nominations received by John Goodman, various acc ...

and

Billy Crystal William Edward Crystal (born March 14, 1948)On page 17 of his book ''700 Sundays'', Crystal displays his birth announcement, which gives his first two names as "William Edward", not "William Jacob" is an American comedian, actor, and filmmaker. ...

(voices of James P. Sullivan and

Mike Wazowski Michael "Mike" Wazowski is a fictional character who appears in Disney/Pixar's '' Monsters Inc.'' franchise. He is a green one-eyed round monster with two arms, legs, and small horns. In the films, Mike is one of the two protagonists, alongside ...

, respectively), the song won the 2001

Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the Film industry, motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who h ...

. This was Newman's first Oscar. Previously, Newman had been nominated fifteen times in the Best Score and Best Song categories, but had never won. Arguably "the film's lone song", the tune serves as the major motif for the film.

Critical reception

AllMusic said, "For all its charm, it can't help but sound a bit like a second-rate version of ''Toy Story''s '

You've Got a Friend in Me "You've Got a Friend in Me" is a song by Randy Newman. Used as the main theme music, theme song for the 1995 Pixar, Disney/Pixar animated film ''Toy Story'', it has since become a major musical component for its sequels, ''Toy Story 2'' (1999), ...

', but it's still a winning song." JazzHistoryOnline deemed it a "heartfelt love song". The ''New York Times'' described it as "one of his lesser efforts". Sydney Morning Herald deemed it "his input in the film's feel-good soundtrack", adding, "Newman's astute musical nuances are crucial in cementing the film's broad appeal". JazzTimes called it "charming". DVDDizzy called it "a pleasant number that captures the protagonists' friendship". Newman received a standing ovation when collecting his Best Original Song trophy for the song. He said: "I want to thank, first of all, the music branch f the Motion Picture Academyfor giving me so many chances to be humiliated over the years...I am absolutely astounded that I won for this." During the ceremony he performed "If I Didn't Have You" with help from actor John Goodman. Later, he said "I'd rather have had it for a score, but I was much more moved by the event than I ever thought I would be. You know it's not a measure of anything real, but I was up there and so was Jennifer Lopez and the orchestra stood up and it kind of got to me. I was almost embarrassed – but not quite."

Versions

Film versions

Two versions of "If I Didn't Have You" appear on the film's soundtrack: one sung by Billy Crystal and John Goodman, who voice the film's main characters, Mike and Sulley and one sung by Newman. The tune also serves as the film's theme, which plays during the opening credits.

Riders in the Sky version

The song was covered by Riders in the Sky on the 2002 album '' Monsters, Inc. Scream Factory Favorites''. The album won the 2003 Grammy Award for Best Musical Album for Children.

Mitchel Musso and Emily Osment version

Hannah Montana ''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll, and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart (played by Miley Cy ...

'' co-stars

Mitchel Musso Mitchel Tate Musso (born July 9, 1991) is an American actor and singer. He is best known for his three Disney Channel roles as Oliver Oken in ''Hannah Montana''; Jeremy Johnson in the animated series ''Phineas and Ferb''; and his Disney XD r ...

and

Emily Osment Emily Jordan Osment (born March 10, 1992) is an American actress, singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Los Angeles, Osment began her career as a child actress, appearing in numerous television shows and films, before co-starring as Gerti Gi ...

recorded a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of the song for the '' Disneymania 6'' album. The song was produced by Bryan Todd. The two also filmed a music video for their remake.Amazon.com: Disneymania, Vol. 6: Various Artists: Music
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Charts

References

{{authority control 2001 songs 2001 singles 2000s ballads Randy Newman songs Best Original Song Academy Award–winning songs Mitchel Musso songs Emily Osment songs 2007 singles Pixar songs Songs about friendship Songs written by Randy Newman Male vocal duets Monsters, Inc. Song recordings produced by Toby Gad Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media Walt Disney Records singles