Randy Newman is, by almost any account, one of the finest American songwriters of his generation, and his place on this list says everything about the limits of a streaming-only measure. Across half a century he has made acclaimed, sharply satirical albums and won a wall of awards for his film scores, from Toy Story to Monsters, Inc.
It is one of those film songs that defines him here. "You've Got a Friend in Me", written for Pixar's Toy Story in 1995, is a gentle, perfect piece of songcraft that has become a modern standard for children and adults alike.
On streaming, it sits near 398 million plays, while his next most-streamed track, the Monsters, Inc. theme, trails at around 57 million. That puts the ratio near 7, past our 5.0 line.
So by our strict, numbers-only measure, Randy Newman registers as a certified one-hit wonder, and we could not flag the caveat more firmly. This is a songwriter with a deep, brilliant, fiercely intelligent catalogue. It is only that the streaming era has gathered around his most universally beloved film song, leaving decades of remarkable work sitting quietly behind it.