Tom Waits is God

[Quint]

Yeah, that pretty much sums it up. Bone Machine is one of the best albums ever.

[BSMo]

You've only just discovered this? Now check out The Black Rider.

[Batchainpuller78]

Well there ain't no Devil it just God when He's drunk.

[princeplanet]

Tony Franciosa used to date my mom too, prolly at the same time....

[lord_bunny]

Bone Machine has to be one of my favourites. Everytime I hear the percussion fade in on Earth Died Screaming I smile. I'm almost always having a very good time if Tom's on the hi-fi.

Anything anybody could say on the subject of microphone selection for his myriad of vocal sounds would be appreciated.

[mstrom]

Don't forget Mule Variations...

[Batchainpuller78]

I like Bone Machine a lot but prolly my favourite is Franks Wild Years
totally beautiful from beginning to end.

what did happen to his voice? because if you listen to the early years it's a clean singing Tom
so I type in Tom Waits & Captain Beefheart on google and I get this piece of writing :

If you want to hear where Tom Waits derived his vocal style from, you should listen to the wonderful records of Captain Beefheart. There is nothing in Waits you can’t hear first in Beefheart.
In fact, Waits was first signed by HERB COHEN, who at the time was also Beefheart’s manager. But at that stage of his career, Waits had not yet developed the stye he would derive from Beefheart (who had derived it from HOWLIN’ WOLF). That wouldn’t happen until the early ‘80s.

[swafford]

Helplessly nostalgic, but the Bones Howe recordings are my faves, especially The Heart of Saturday Night.

And Tom Waits is not God, God is Tom Waits, and we can all breathe a little easier with that knowledge.

[roadsweeper]

Originally Posted by Batchainpuller78

I like Bone Machine a lot but prolly my favourite is Franks Wild Years
totally beautiful from beginning to end.

what did happen to his voice? because if you listen to the early years it's a clean singing Tom

I did a project on Tome Waits' vocal style about a year ago. I could probably post it up here if anyone is interested but in short response to this question:

Waits had always had a fascination with pre-60's music and this shows through a lot of his work. The comment that everything you can hear in Waits you can hear in Beefheart is unfair on Waits in my opinion. Waits experimented a whole lot more with his voice and once described his style as 'Louis Armstrong meets Ethel Merman in hell'. It's true that he did get some inspiration from Beefheart but he also drew inspiration from a lot of other places.

From a very early age he always wanted to be an old man and used to wander around with a walking stick trying to speak in a low gruff voice. His first few albums (Closing Time, Heart of Saturday Night etc.) his voice certainly is a lot more clear and crisp. The first real change came on the album 'Small Change' where his voice becomes a lot more gravelly and gruff. He had been touring almost consistently, drinking cheap spirits and smoking cigarettes constantly. This album was kind of a look back on his heavy drinking days and I believe that this is when he stopped drinking for good. However, the biggest change came when he met his wife Kathleen Brennan and his music instantly changed and became more percussive and experimental. His album 'Swordfish Trombones' was the changing point in his discography, moving from simple jazz to very experimental music. Some people believe that Brennan is just as important as Waits in regards to his songwriting and performance. It is definite to say that she has a large influence on his music and still co-writes most of his songs with him to this day.

Anyway, sorry it's a bit of a scatty post, have only just woken up from a very long recording session. If anyone is interested in that essay I will try and post it up. It's entitled, 'How does the vocal style of Tom Waits affect the potry of his lyrics.'

[Batchainpuller78]

Cool, for me you can post the essay, i'd like to read it.
'Louis Armstrong meets Ethel Merman in hell' I love it :p
but still Don sure is in there.

[mikecorwin]

Ha! I'm listening to Singapore right now as I came across this post. Tom Waits + Marc Ribot = awesome.

[chrisj]

Tom Waits. Marc Ribot. "Clap Hands".

...

[Quint]

Originally Posted by BSMo

You've only just discovered this? Now check out The Black Rider.

No, I've known it for some time now. I was just drunk last night and listening to Bone Machine and decided to proclaim my man love for Tom Waits out loud.

[days]

How many recording artists are truly original? How many have forged a sound that is unmistakeably their own? Not many, that's for sure. Maybe a handful.

Since Swordfish Trombones, Waits has plowed some pretty strange and beautiful soil, and I 'm not sure anyone had really ever been to that place before. Cranky, oblivious to fashion, and ready to do whatever it takes (like recording albums using guitars with five year-old strings) to get his singular vision across, there's really no one else like him.

[Mark Kaufman]

Yes, I was always a fan and always will be. I love an artist who keeps moving on, and he always does. The more you look at his work, the more you see. Those early albums have nothing to regret--the songwriting is airtight and original, and continues to be today. One of the coolest things about him--things that will become more apparent as time passes--is that underneath all the thick, thick layers of his personal style and ersatz recording techniques, there is a body of work that can be interpreted in completely different ways by other less stylized performers...and they have the legs to hold up just as well.

He ain't all style and no substance--he delivers the goods, all the way up and down the line.

[Teddy Ray]

Tom is amazing...

Favorite ever is Closing time, followed by Nighthawks at the Diner, and Rain Dogs.

Originally Posted by Batchainpuller78

I like Bone Machine a lot but prolly my favourite is Franks Wild Years
totally beautiful from beginning to end.

what did happen to his voice? because if you listen to the early years it's a clean singing Tom
so I type in Tom Waits & Captain Beefheart on google and I get this piece of writing :

If you want to hear where Tom Waits derived his vocal style from, you should listen to the wonderful records of Captain Beefheart. There is nothing in Waits you can’t hear first in Beefheart.
In fact, Waits was first signed by HERB COHEN, who at the time was also Beefheart’s manager. But at that stage of his career, Waits had not yet developed the stye he would derive from Beefheart (who had derived it from HOWLIN’ WOLF). That wouldn’t happen until the early ‘80s.

[Teddy Ray]

Great NPR Concert here

Glitter And Doom: Tom Waits In Concert : NPR Music

[RCM - Ronan]

I am inclined to agree with you (even sober), but its because of Rain Dogs.

[rkopald]

His liner notes for "gravichords, Whirlies, and Pyrophones" are pretty damn funny. The guy's a National treasure, that's what he is. If you want to see something hi-larious, look up his appearance on the old Martin Mull show from 1979 where he's singing "The Piano Has Been Drinking". I remembered that from when I was a kid, and I still think it's pure genius. Even his song in "Shrek" is good.

[andychamp]

I only have "Swordfishtrombones", but whenever I need some fresh musical/audio perspective, that's what I listen to.

[ryst]

Originally Posted by Teddy Ray

Great NPR Concert here

Glitter And Doom: Tom Waits In Concert : NPR Music

I was at that show (Fox Theatre, Atlanta). Maybe 15 rows back right in the center. The best show I have ever seen in my life. Absolutely incredible. And I had some extremely high expectations since Tom Waits is like my musical grandfather and my favorite artist EVER. But he still completely blew me away. Hung out with most of his band after the show at a local bar. Perfect night.

[Silver Sonya]

I love all of the records, but my favorite is "Frank's Wild Years," the third of the Swordfish trilogy.

Bone Machine's amazing. Mule Variations is amazing. The most recent tour was amazing. Thank God for this man.

- c

[Makinithappen]

Originally Posted by rcm

I am inclined to agree with you (even sober), but its because of Rain Dogs.

thumbsup Raindogs is my favorite.

No love for Real Gone?!

And I hate to admit it but I don't think I have ever heard anything from Bone Machine... is that an older one?

[redrue]

National Treasure - absolutely.

A gift of a poet...

Why not Poet Laureate?

Every Track is a work of ART.

Beyond inspiring...

[macr0w]

I'm cooking up a Philippino boxspring hog.

[CoteRotie]

Originally Posted by Makinithappen

thumbsup Raindogs is my favorite.

No love for Real Gone?!

And I hate to admit it but I don't think I have ever heard anything from Bone Machine... is that an older one?

I am a rain dog too

John

[Teddy Ray]

onne of my favorite clips
YouTube - Tom Waits on Fernwood Tonight

and my favorite lyrics ever

We sail tonight for singapore,
Were all as mad as hatters here
Ive fallen for a tawny moor,
Took off to the land of nod
Drank with all the chinamen,
Walked the sewers of paris
I danced along a colored wind,
Dangled from a rope of sand
You must say goodbye to me

We sail tonight for singapore,
Dont fall asleep while youre ashore
Cross your heart and hope to die
When you hear the children cry
Let marrow bone and cleaver choose
While making feet for children shoes
Through the alley, back from hell,
When you hear that steeple bell
You must say goodbye to me

Wipe him down with gasoline
til his arms are hard and mean
From now on boys this iron boats your home
So heave away, boys

We sail tonight for singapore,
Take your [COLOR=blue ! important][COLOR=blue ! important]blankets[/COLOR][/COLOR] from the floor
Wash your mouth out by the door,
The whole towns made of iron ore
Every witness turns to steam,
They all become italian dreams
Fill your pockets up with earth,
Get yourself a dollars worth
Away boys, away boys, heave away

The captain is a one-armed dwarf,
Hes throwing dice along the wharf
In the land of the blind
The one-eyed man is king, so take this ring

We sail tonight for singapore,
Were all as mad as hatters here
Ive fallen for a tawny moor,
Took off to the land of nod
Drank with all the chinamen,
Walked the sewers of paris
I drank along a colored wind,
I dangled from a rope of sand
You must say goodbye to me

[judah]

I know I repeat myself very often, but Mule Variation is one of the most incredible experience sonically. To my ears is perfection. The drums, the piano, the voice. You're sitting right there with'em, on the floor. Absolutely mindblowing.

[roadsweeper]

Ok, I have included a portion of the paper I mentioned before, mainly the parts about his vocal style with some interesting quotes in there that I came across along the way. I can't seem to find the finalised paper so this is from a later draft, so there may be some grammatical errors in there!

If people are interested in reading the rest I can post it up somewhere but the rest deals mainly with his style of poetry and some brief studioes into particular songs.

How does the vocal style of Tom Waits affect the poetry of his lyrics?

......
This paper will be looking at Waits’ vocal style, his lyrics and how the two intertwine. It is important to note the word ‘poetry’ in the title and to briefly discuss what ‘poetry’ actually is in relation to popular music. It can be argued that any text can be classed as poetry, whether it is Spice Girls lyrics or those of more classical writers such as Leonard Cohen. However, in this paper, I will be referring to poetry in a more classical meaning, as something that can stand alone on paper without the need for vocal accompaniment. Lyrics on the other hand can be described as texts that have to be performed vocally in order to achieve the full meaning. It is also important to consider whether Tom Waits is in fact a poet, Todd Everett states in the New Musical Express (1975), that “Waits is a poet.”[1] However, later in the same article Bob Dylan is quoted as saying, “If I can sing it, it’s a song. If I can’t, it’s a poem,”[2] a much more simple and direct view. However, perhaps we should take Waits’ own view, “an improvisational adventure or an inebriational travelogue[3].”
Tom Waits’ vocal style is an integral part of his music, not just as a vehicle for carrying his poetry but also as an interesting instrument in its own right. His is a “theatrical voice, a cross between mellifluous baritone and heavy-equipment breakdown[4]”, “a voice that would trip the San Andreas Fault”[5] and “shattered glass one minute, silk soprano the next”[6]. Throughout his earlier albums such as Closing Time and The Heart of Saturday Night his voice is much less “deep and phlegmy”[7] than in his later albums, in particular his post Swordfish Trombones era. He himself described his earlier voice as “Louis Armstrong meets Ethel Merman in hell”[8] and “by the time of Swordfish Trombones he’s adding Howlin’ Wolf and Captain Beefheart”[9] as well. Although in his earlier, more jazz influenced albums Waits’ voice embellished his down –and-out ‘bum’ persona, it can be argued that his vocal technique was not a vital part of his musical style. This is due to the instrumentation he adopted, which was largely piano with orchestral or jazz band accompaniment. However, after his critically acclaimed, transitional album Swordfish Trombones, his voice became much more of an experimental instrument. The textures and timbres created by his unique approach to instrumentation built up a sound that some describe as a “junkyard orchestra”[10],a bed of sound created using interesting percussive techniques and dissonant harmonies. Therefore, his vocal style became, not only an integral part of his character but also an integral element of this ‘junkyard orchestra’. This era in Waits’ musical career was also the beginning of his acting career and the theatrics and character representation become apparent in these mid-1980s albums.
However, although his music became more percussive in the mid-1980s, Waits never lost his ability to write beautiful melodies, for example in the song ‘In the Neighbourhood’.[11] He also “gives his darkest lyrics the sweetest melodies”,[12] a technique similar to that of Kurt Weiss, a German composer who was a big influence on Waits’ music. In Weiss’s opera ‘Der Dretgroschenoper’ there is “this beautiful melody, yet it’s telling this terrible story. It’s about this appalling murder”.[13] Similarly, Waits often adopted this technique, for example in ‘No-one Knows I’m Gone’[14] he sings, “the rain makes such a lovely sound, to those that are six feet underground,”[15] in a melodious ballad.

[1] Todd Everett, 1975, New Musical Express,

[2] Todd Everett, New Musical Express, 1975

[3] Todd Everett, New Musical Express, 1975

[4] Innoncent – pg 68

[5] Innocent pg 49

[6] Innocent pg 90

[7] Innocent pg 41

[8] Under Review -

[9] Under Review Nigel Williamson

[10] Under Review – Patrick Humphries

[11] Swordfish Trombones

[12] Under Review – Nigel Williamson

[13] Nigel Williamson

[14] Alice

[15] No one knows I’m gone

[~Zenshin Suru~]

Tom is one of my very faves! I have like fifteen of his records. My friend Joe Marquez recorded Bone Machine at our very own Prairie Sun in the Northbay. I see Tom around town every now and again. Joe said that they recorded Tom smacking 2X4s on the concrete and then pitched shifted to get the bones percussion sounds. Joe even played a little banjo on murder in the red barn. such a cool record. my faves are: raindogs, real gone, bone machine, nighthawks, and the rest. come to think of it, I've got a buddy who just finished up a tour playing keys with Tom, and I know an foh engineer who just mixed his monitors.
well, those are about all my connections to mr. waits. what a guy!