I Love L.A.

Don Henley, on a plane, suggested Newman write a song about Los Angeles, since he was a native. Newman recalls Henley telling him that everybody was writing L.A. songs and that the people writing them were not from there. The song was recorded for Trouble in Paradise at Warner Bros. Recording Studios in Hollywood, produced by Russ Titelman and Lenny Waronker. Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham sing the answer We love it each time the title is repeated. Members of Toto played on it, including Steve Lukather on guitar and Jeff Porcaro on drums, with Waddy Wachtel on rhythm guitar. The opening verse borrows its melody from Rodgers and Hart's The Lady Is a Tramp.

Newman has said there is an aggressive ignorance in the song, and that he is proud of some kind of ignorance Los Angeles has. His cousin Tim Newman made the video, starring Newman and the model Laura Howard in a red 1955 Buick Super convertible. Released in 1983, the single missed the Hot 100 and reached 110 on Billboard's Bubbling Under chart in April. It was not distributed outside the West Coast. During the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Nike ran excerpts of the video in a commercial, which gave the song worldwide exposure. It is played after home wins by the Dodgers, Lakers, Rams and Kings. The Guardian ranked it ninth among his greatest songs.

Live and covers

Newman performed it when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2013, with Tom Petty, John Fogerty and Jackson Browne. In 2025 Dawes, John Legend, Sheryl Crow, Brad Paisley, Brittany Howard and St. Vincent covered it to open the 67th Grammy Awards.