Tag Archives: Tom Waits

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Song of the Day #6,232: ‘Rain Dogs’ – Tom Waits

The final inductee from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2011 is singer-songwriter Tom Waits. Waits was eligible starting in 1999 and made it in the first year he was nominated.

I have very little familiarity with Waits’ discography, and I can’t say I enjoy listening to the songs I have heard, but I have no issue whatsoever with his inclusion in the Rock Hall. He is an iconic figure and a singular talent, an artist who has crossed and blended genres and influenced a generation of musicians.

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Song of the Day #4,301: ‘In the Neighborhood’ – Tom Waits

The charms of Tom Waits have largely eluded me, though I can’t say I’ve spent a lot of time trying to figure them out.

One of Waits’ most celebrated albums, Swordfishtrombones, was released in 1983. It marked a move for Waits from piano and strings toward more obscure and eclectic instrumentation, introducing the old-fashioned circus vibe for which he is now well-known.

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Song of the Day #3,054: ‘Union Square’ – Tom Waits

waitsHere’s my first Tom Waits song since February of 2013, when another track from Rain Dogs popped up as a Random iTunes Weekend selection. As usual, this is the first time I’ve heard a song from that album since that earlier post.

I’ve never paid much attention to Waits, though he’s clearly worthy of it. He’s particularly effective as a poet of the streets, a role Bruce Springsteen rode to much greater heights.

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Song of the Day #2,808: ‘Way Down in the Hole’ – Tom Waits

wire_season_twoOne of the cool things about The Wire is how each season focused in on a particular subset of Baltimore citizens, even as the core cast remained largely the same.

Season One introduced on a special crime task force utilizing the titular wire to build a case against the city’s major drug runners. That group of cops and lawyers form the spine of the whole series. But the smaller universe of characters in that season were a group of “corner boys” caught between their criminal bosses and the police.

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Song of the Day #1,675: ‘Hang Down Your Head’ – Tom Waits

waitsI downloaded Tom Waits classic 1985 album Rain Dogs because it’s one of those records that serious music lovers needs to know. Sort of the way that serious film lovers need to have seen Taxi Driver.

I haven’t actually listened to the whole thing through yet so today’s random selection is new to me. I like it well enough.

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