"like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months and then taken outside and run over with a car." - 'MusicHound Rock Album Guide' about Tom Waits' voice

Any fans of him here? Both an innovative solo artist and a pretty good actor in movies like Down By Law and Short Cuts. He also made a cameo as a preacher in one of the more ridiculous scenes in the horrible Domino..

His music is pretty diverse, making it hard to get into him by looking at one or two songs. His raspy voice is also very appealing, especially in some of his more depressing songs. I love how he used instruments he couldn't play or were invented, mainly in the 80's with albums like Swordfishtrombones or Rain Dogs.

Many may have heard his music without knowing it in movies like Fight Club, Jarhead, or especially Jim Jarmusch movies.

"Soldier's Things" brought the wonderful ending to Jarhead while "Goin' Out West" gave that powerful atmosphere to the first meeting in the bar of Fight Club.

I also love "Town With No Cheer, Jockey Full of Bourban, Tango Till They're Sore, Sea of Love, Gin Soaked Boy, Downtown Train, or Gun Street Girl.

Very underrated and innovative solo artist.

Well it's hotter 'n blazes and all the long faces
there'll be no oasis for a dry local grazier
there'll be no refreshment for a thirsty jackaroo
from Melbourne to Adelaide on the overlander
with newfangled buffet cars and faster locomotives
the train stopped in Serviceton less and less often
There's nothing sadder than a town with no cheer
Voc Rail decided the canteen was no longer necessary there
no spirits, no bilgewater and 80 dry locals
and the high noon sun beats a hundred and four
there's a hummingbird trapped in a closed down shoe store

This tiny Victorian rhubarb
kept the watering hole open for sixty five years
now it's boilin' in a miserable March 21 st
wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
the train smokes down the xylophone
there'll be no stopping here
all ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
no Bourbon, no Branchwater
though the townspeople here
fought her Vic Rail decree tooth and nail
now it's boilin' in a miserable March 21 st
wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
the train smokes down the xylophone
there'll be no stopping here
all ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer --Town With No Cheer

Waits with Jim Jarmusch

He's quickly becoming my favorite solo artist. Some of my favorite songs of his are Jockey Full of Bourbon, Sea of Love, Big in Japan, Town with no Cheer, and I hope that I don't Fall in Love With You.

Not my favorite solo, but among them. "Goin' Out West" is an excellent song to play pool to.

Big in Japan is an excellent song to get a lap dance to.

Jockey Full of Bourbon is an excellent song to ride a horse to.

"Jockey Full of Bourban" is actually one I'd like to drive to, especially with the opening of Down By Law burned in my mind.

"Tom Traubert's Blues" is another great song.

Fantastic musician, Closing Time is probably my favourite album of his, Swordfishtrombones is another great one of his, very bizarre but i love it.

"i'd rather have a beer than a frontal Lobotomy"

I've been a Tom Waits fan since I first heard his songs on the radio on WXRT in Chicago and saw him perform on TV on Soundstage in the mid-1970's. His earliest albums are my personal favorites.

Closing Time is brilliant. You'll like his (original) version of Ol' 55 later covered by the Eagles. The best songs are clearly the ones he does with sincerity and not the campy off-key piano playing and growling that's become his trademark. I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You and Martha are outstanding.

But you have to hear his live version of Big Joe and Phantom 309 from the Nighthawks at the Diner album. Haunting. I think it was written (not by Waits) as a country song but to hear it performed by Waits is to hear it done by the ultimate "city slicker" and done better than any country artist could do.

On the other hand, Better Off Without A Wife and The Piano Has Been Drinking are also well written and a full step removed from being novelty songs, but still very funny and very entertaining.

He's an acquired taste but his best songs deserve greater recongnition and I'd love to hear any of a number of artists in varied musical styles cover some of his songs. And that's the mark of a good songwriter...

...although it occurs to me that Rod Stewart recorded one of Waits' songs. Downtown Train maybe? Gotta check bmi.com

"I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy."

For a nice list of quotes, check out this site which I believe is actually a fan site.

tony b.

...who thinks Tom Waits for no man...

Wasn't Tom one of the prisoners in Shawshank?

No. He played Renfield in Coppola's Dracula and Earl Piggot in Short Cuts, as well as several other roles.

FFC and Tom Waits fans,

I recommend you watch, "One From the Heart" (Coppola directed and Waits scored).

My review is in the "Movies you just watched discussion" thread.

Don Vercetti, the 2-disc DVD of the film includes extras including some short studio sessions of some songs from Waits' score (many songs are duets with Crystal Gayle). Not sure if the soundtrack can be easily found at stores.

tom waits is a brilliant artist, & that's really what you'd have to refer to him as: an artist. he's probably the greatest songwriter of the past half century, lyric-wise, behind only dylan. rain dogs is an undisputed masterwork, & swordfishtrombones isn't too far behind. small change is an often slighted album -- very under-rated -- as it contains three waits classics ("tom traubert's blues," "bad liver & a broken heart," & "the piano has been drinking"), though it lacks the focus & variety of his later records. his earlier albums were enjoyable, but the novelty of the songs factored in quickly & he soon verged on self-parody. he needed the reinvention he gave himself in the 80's, & it birthed one of the most high-quality & productive solo artists we've seen in pop music. "i hope that i don't fall in love with you" will always hold a special place in my heart though, for personal reasons.