from Letterman, 1986. I remember it well. He also likened New York City to a big ship... and the water's on fire, and claimed his son was older than he was. Love it..
“I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged needing a shave and shouted ‘Time Square, and step on it!’”
I was lucky enough to see him live in 2006, in back row seats and he blew me away. Was actually surprised at how much he could still sing. Truly a master of his unique instrument and one of my all time favorite singers. Thanks for the reaction, Beth!
@@BethRoars it was for me...it was his first appearance in Britain for 17yrs exactly (minus 1 day) and was in same place, Hammersmith Apollo...an experience I'll never forget. Different eras offer a different Tom and that's one of his great qualities...just shy of 50 yrs. The man is a legend
I saw him on his Glitter and Doom tour in Atlanta.... hands down my favorite concert experience. Such an amazing moment when the crowd did a sing along for Innocent When You Dream....
Best train ride I've ever taken. Look up Tom Waits on Letterman... it has all the interviews and performances... and you can watch him grow as a person, a writer, a storyteller, and of course that voice of his....
Someone once said to me Tom Waits' voice sounds like steel wool soaked in bourbon then hit by a truck and I don't think I've heard anything so accurate.
My ex husband was getting annoyed when I was raving about Tom Waits one time, and he snapped at me, “ What is it about his voice that makes it sound good to you?” I thought for a minute and said,” Passion.” And thus we jointly identified what was missing in our marriage.
I think i remember reading somewhere, that he would scream into his pillow when he was younger. Scarred his vocals up. You can really hear it in his "Rain Dogs" song .
flavoredwallpaper thats awesome! I’m surprised Tom has never been on Sesame Street. He & cookie can do a bit together PBS needs to get on that. I saw one of Prince on Sesame Street and it is fantastic
It took me about a year to really get into tom waits, but during that time there was something that just drew me back to him, and now I love his music so much. He is a legend
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His interviews are notoriously unreliable, but he says he used to spend about as much time with his friends' dads as his actual friends when he was little. He also walked with a cane for a while as a kid, purely as an affectation. He's wanted to be old since he was a child.
I've been a huge fan of Tom since I was a teenager and seeing him on the David Letterman show singing either "9th and Hennepin" or "Clap Hands" , I'm 51 now, so that should tell you how much I enjoy him. My other eclectic musicians were Dr. John and Leon Redbone, may they both Rest In Peace. Thanks for reacting to a wonderful storyteller.
Love Tom Waits, my dad got me into listening to him. Great storytelling, wonderful visualization, awesome wordplay. “I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things”. Many of his songs have been covered by other musicians from all over the genres.
When talking about Tom Waits' voice it should be noted that whilst his grovely voice that would make a Death Metal vocalist jealous is his main voice... ...he also made songs like Had Me a Girl, Blue Valentines, Take Care Of All My Children, Chocolate Jesus, and Temptation. Each of those songs is sung differently. The man doesn't just have stylistic range, but also vocal range. He's incredible, to say the least.
I've always admired him as a singer in the way I admire film's greatest character-actors. Inhabiting the soul of uniquely separate individuals & giving Academy Award-level performances every single time. His lyrics are as well written as any songwriter who ever lived, but more than that his genius is how well he sells the emotional feelings the 'character' in the song is about. He's before admitted a certain cinematic sensibility with his music so I've always figured that's how he approaches it from a creative, internal standpoint. Which is why he goes with such uniquely different singing styles for so many songs. In a song like Going Out West he's 100% giving a fully committed dramatically acted performance just as much as he's simply singing. I think to an alternative extent Bob Dylan is doing something kind of similar. It's more about the sincerity of the emotion than it is generic "proper" singing. There are millions of "technically" adept singers who put out nothing but one dimensional, 'harmonically pleasing' forgettable garbage all the time. I'd much rather hear Joe Strummer, Janis Joplin, Leonard Cohen, Son House, Karen Dalton, Joanna Newsom, Bob Dylan or Tom Waits belting out a tune instead.
“I worry about a lot of things but I don’t worry about achievements. Primarily I worry wether there are nightclubs in heaven” Ladies and gentlemen, Tom Waits. The only singer who’s voice can be describe as a roadkill, marinated in whiskey and hung in a smokehouse for a week. He’s the best🥰
I've listened to this version of this song innumerable times. I love everything about it. I love Tom Waits. And this was a very engaging presentation. Thanks!
I love Tom Waits, every thing I’ve ever heard from him. Franks Wild Years , Bone Machine, and Closing Time are 3 of my favorites. His music is pure art and full of integrity without being righteous or elitist. If I was stranded on a desert Island and could only have one source of music. It would be Tom Waits. He could make a thousand songs with a seashell and a coconut. Best voice nah, best songwriter maybe but definitely the best Tom.
Love love love Tom Waits. And that was one of his performances on The David Letterman Show (which is where I first saw him why back in the 80's). That little 'whoop' sound he does that you like, I called it the Bebop Whoop, because that is quite common in rockabilly singers.
I love Tom Waits. Been a fan since I don't know when, since I think my mum was playing his albums in the house at least in the 80s. He's just always sounded so interesting to me, and that's one of the things that attracts me to an artist a lot of the time, just doing something interesting and a little unexpected. Waits voice always has that sort of character to it for me.
I count Tom Waits as my favorite artist of all time. He has written so many great songs, I do have a weird relationship to "Hoist that rag" though, because I can't figure out WHY I like it so much. Tom Waits not so much sing the lyrics as he cry them out with this deep sense of despair and the drums and guitar almost drown out his voice. I know that by conventional standards it's not a great song, but that doesn't matter because it's like it's something more than that, it has this quality to it where it almost transcends what constitutes a song and is just something else. It's not so much a song as it is an experience, a piece of art.
it was so strange for me to listen to his first album where he actually sings, like "i hope i don't fall in love with you". if i didn't know that it's him, i wouldn't have guessed it.
Guess what? Tom "actually sings" on all of his albums. Just because he sings *differently* now doesn't mean it doesn't take a lot of talent and practice to do it.
What always gets me about Waits’ voice is that when he sings more gently, it is so beautiful, like in ‘Hold On.’ Or a song like ‘Talking at the Same Time’ where he’s singing in what I think is his version of a falsetto, and it sounds great!
I honestly feel like that acoustic guitar version is the single greatest bar song ever written while simultaneously being the single greatest love song ever written.
Tom Waits is an interesting case in finding your "voice". His first album was much more conventional, but obviously using his voice. it seems like it was produced to take the imperfections out... as much as possible. Then he went through his jazz phase and he found his voice and embraced the imperfections. Then he met his wife/collaborator Kathleen Brennan and he started to explore his voice as a tool box rather than a tool -- the imperfections were just things to be used, evocatively, to serve the songs. There's a big difference between Grapefruit Moon from his first album (th-cam.com/video/7bpZjkjo3Tw/w-d-xo.html) to Anywhere I Lay My Head (th-cam.com/video/kuUp_nWcPHM/w-d-xo.html) from Rain Dogs.
Basically, yeah. He was always into weird stuff, as evidenced by the fact that he hung around with Captain Beefheart and opened for Zappa back in the 70s. Kathleen convinced him to go all in on the weirdness, leading to 'Swordfishtrombones'.
In the late 70s I was tending bar in a little dive that wasn't on the wrong side of the tracks but it was close enough throw a beer bottle across the tracks. It was the kind of place that Waits would be right at home in. What an education. It was also when I discovered Tom Waits through a friend.
Let us not forget that technique is a means to an end. You're supposed to learn the technique of a craft and then toss it and do your own thing with it. Find your own voice, so to speak. Tom not only did this to the ultimate degree, he absolutely mastered the art of expression with his style. He is a master. A literal Grand Wizard. The amount of heart and soul is immeasurable.
I saw Tom in concert back in the small change days, in Cambridge, MA. He puts on a whole stage show with street lamps, ash registers, etc. He also arrive like an hour and 1/2 late and we had to listen to Bad Company for that whole time. It was definitely worth waiting for.
Some of the more modern Tom Waits stuff gets overlooked lyrically, because the earlier ballads were a little clearer but this song is a great example of how genius his writing can be... "The seeds are planted here, but they won't grow. We won't have to say goodbye, if we all go. Maybe things will be better in Chicago" "Well It's brave for us to stay, even braver to go. Wherever she goes I go. Maybe things will be better in Chicago." There's so much story and sentiment in simple lines here.
The most poetic way of putting Tom Waits' voice, that I've read, is “sounding 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." 100% a compliment, because it's so unique. Also, if you want to sound like him I recommend a regimen of bourbon and cigarettes. 😉
I seem to remember Waits saying one of his kids describing his voice is a "cross between a circus clown and a cherry bomb". If so being a wordsmith runs in the family. Beth you and your channel are awesome. So positive and appreciative which is so refreshing.
you finally got my sub, which i will admit i should have done even before this video, But doing tom when your a vocal reaction says a lot about you. :)
@@BethRoars the reason i personally even watch you, is not so much you or the bands themselves. It's all about that look on your face when your blown away and you can see it in your eyes. I can plainly see your love for music and sound, and that is what makes me smile.
Great analysis, Beth. Tom Waits sings about the disenfranchised, the derailed, the discarded and the defeated. His is the perfect voice for those songs.
I was 100% prepared to be upset when I saw the title of this video. I'm a long time Waits fan and few people seem to understand why I think he's a brilliant singer. Above his lyrical genius and musical gifts, his delivery is wrought with soul that few can come close to tapping into. Anyone else with a voice like that wouldn't bother singing - they'd sell their songs or hire a singer. Much like Dylan, Waits needs to do his own songs because no one else is capable of making them what they really are. His gravel doesn't stop him from giving you chills. His bark doesn't make a song any less romantic or heartbreaking. No, he doesn't have a 4 octave range - but it goes to show that anyone can find that place inside where soul lives and just "sang." There's singing and then there's "sanging" - not a cultural term, I mean just singing with your heart more than your chords. Thank you for this review. As a musician, I respect how you approached this. I'm gonna subscribe even though this isn't my area of interest - you get my support :)
My first introduction to Tom’s music was the album Alice. I found out later that this was one of his stranger albums of music. No regrets. His skill as a songwriter is deeper than most.
Beth, I'm impressed, most vocal coaches would never attempt to analyze Tom, dismissing him as an example of what NOT to do with your voice. But you have done your work and give a legitimate thoughtful analysis of his distinct style. Truthfully, I actually prefer his earlier stuff to his later work. Its more melodic, his voice isn't as torn up, and sounds less like a muppet but at his core, Tom is a storyteller. He crafts songs about the down and out, addicts, hobos, drifters, and broken toys. The over looked human flotsam that are in every city and every town across the world. He focuses his attention on the characters and situations most people refuse to look at. His voice is KEY in crafting that mood weaving the spell of desolation and hardship.
Yeah much more a conscious stylistic choice than lifestyle - sometimes in movie roles you'll hear him sing in this quite sweet voice, and of course his earlier stuff is far from 'pure' but wayyyyy smoother than his barks ha ha
Well I think it’s more like 92ish. He claimed 14 years in a 06 interview. This date makes more sense as “That Feel” with Kieth Richards is at the very least a great impression of drunken bellowing. Great song. It would also make him about 43? That seems about right.
Back in the dark ages I saw him on Letterman. Dave asked him "What are you doing in town?" "Here to see Sinatra's voice doctor." "What did he say?" "Gotta stop singing like this." This was around '87 and it was five years before he released another album.
Yay! Tom! I would LOVE to see you react to one of his more melodic tunes, like "come on up to the house" or "flowers grave". As crazy and fun as he can be he can also be so incredibly tender and moving.
A reviewer once described Tom's voice as the Cookie Monster singing with a mouthful of peanut butter, it's like a 20 year single malt, an acquired taste.
I've been a Tom waits fan for about 12 years now and my favorite album is the " Heart of Saturday Night " he doesn't bark like he does in later albums but sings beautifully also " Nighthawks at the Diner" listen and let me know your opinion.
Great singer, even better writer and composer. Tom is just my favorite.
He's a talented man!
Good actor as well !
Great comment, and agreed. Step Right Up comes to mind, such a clever and unique song.
I adore Tom.
@@BethRoars but how does he get that voice? 40-odd years of whiskey and cigarettes?
"My father was an exhaust manifold and my mother was a tree."
-- Tom Waits
from Letterman, 1986. I remember it well. He also likened New York City to a big ship... and the water's on fire, and claimed his son was older than he was. Love it..
@mickor this made me laugh so hard
“I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged needing a shave and shouted ‘Time Square, and step on it!’”
Tom is a legend. Glad to see him in your channel
True! Glad you enjoyed 😊
YES I need more Tom waits reactions in my life honestly
Glad you like it 😁
It’s making me crazy that there are none of these for any of the tracks from Heart Attack and Vine.
Once in a generation artist.
Never will be another.
Best movie dialogues ever: Tom Waits and Iggy Pop in "Coffee and Cigarettes" by Jim Jarmusch.
Tom Waits and Robin Willians in The Fisher King
"So, ah, I don't see any of your songs on the jukebox."
LOL
@@michaelthibault6106 He's not on here either..,
I'm personal to "I scream, you scream, we all scream, for ice cream!" from Down By Law.
Favorite segment for sure!
"I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy"
It's about the same thing, just the former works more slowly
@@PortCharmers haha
I would like this comment, but as it currently sits at 69 likes I will just say, nice.
Superb line
All if his songs have a “feeling”, he acts out the song. Sometimes sad, crazy, mournful, hopeful
So true!
Beth Roars have you ever listened to Clap Hands? Holy crap what a song
I was so unbelievably happy to see you analyze Tom, he is so unique and my favorite musician ever.
I was lucky enough to see him live in 2006, in back row seats and he blew me away. Was actually surprised at how much he could still sing. Truly a master of his unique instrument and one of my all time favorite singers. Thanks for the reaction, Beth!
I saw him on that tour, too, in Akron. It was one of the best nights of my life.
Saw him on the real gone tour in london, was an amazing night
Wow I bet it was a great experience to see him live!
@@BethRoars it was for me...it was his first appearance in Britain for 17yrs exactly (minus 1 day) and was in same place, Hammersmith Apollo...an experience I'll never forget. Different eras offer a different Tom and that's one of his great qualities...just shy of 50 yrs. The man is a legend
I saw him on his Glitter and Doom tour in Atlanta.... hands down my favorite concert experience. Such an amazing moment when the crowd did a sing along for Innocent When You Dream....
“Reality is for people who can’t face drugs”
-Tom Waits
Great video Beth..Tom Waits is a legends on his own league, amazing songwriter and great singer, love him!!Cheers
Glad you enjoyed 😁
Tom Waits - I Don't Want To Grow Up, loved this song when i was young, and loved the music video for it.
It’s one great video. Him crammed in this tiny house with that tiny instrument
He actually has a very impressive range which most don’t appreciate
But anyone who has given him any time to listen will definitely appreciate
Best train ride I've ever taken. Look up Tom Waits on Letterman... it has all the interviews and performances... and you can watch him grow as a person, a writer, a storyteller, and of course that voice of his....
Tom is amazing and legend!
Thank you Beth. Great video
Love listening to Tom Waits.. uniquely talented.
Someone once said to me Tom Waits' voice sounds like steel wool soaked in bourbon then hit by a truck and I don't think I've heard anything so accurate.
I've heard his music makes you nostalgic for a memory you never had, and I don't think you're wrong, but I don't think they were wrong either
My ex husband was getting annoyed when I was raving about Tom Waits one time, and he snapped at me, “ What is it about his voice that makes it sound good to you?”
I thought for a minute and said,” Passion.”
And thus we jointly identified what was missing in our marriage.
Ha!
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the true power of Tom Waits: insight.
Haha I wasn't expecting that ending! Although, knowing humans I shouldn't have been that surprised lol hope thinks are better for you now! 🙂
Gabriel Harvey-Savard Oh, believe it.😁
I'm still married. Want to run off together.
Finally!!! A vocal coach covers the great Tom Waits. You are brave, Beth. Lol
His voice, his style, his movements, his melodies, his lyrics, his instruments, his bands...
Tom Waits is a total work of art - I love him 😍
My favorite of Tom's is Warm Beer and Cold Women (at the Last Ditch Attempt Saloon).
I think i remember reading somewhere, that he would scream into his pillow when he was younger. Scarred his vocals up.
You can really hear it in his "Rain Dogs" song .
Tom Waits is an amazing singer/songwriter.
He's a very talented guy!
Oh and my son has always loved when I play Tom. When he was 4 he thought it was Cookie Monster singing 😍
You might appreciate this: th-cam.com/video/U5X4N2exOsU/w-d-xo.html
flavoredwallpaper thats awesome! I’m surprised Tom has never been on Sesame Street. He & cookie can do a bit together PBS needs to get on that. I saw one of Prince on Sesame Street and it is fantastic
Thats great 😂
One of the best story tellers in the business. Not to mention that voice and his blues/jazz style.
True!
Tom Waits and his music are part of me. Been in my life since I was 17. My favourite.
It took me about a year to really get into tom waits, but during that time there was something that just drew me back to him, and now I love his music so much. He is a legend
Thank you for shining a light on this absolute legend. I could definitely go for more Tom Waits reactions.
He's the best been a fan for over 40 years
Tom Waits is pure magic to listen to!!
I love Tom Waits!!! Have every cd he ever put out!!
It's not a competition - I've only got 28
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Top notch performer and unique singer, I simply adore Tom Waits!
Tom said: At fifty, you have the face and the voice you deserve.
That rings a bell. I either heard him say that or read it in an interview.
His interviews are notoriously unreliable, but he says he used to spend about as much time with his friends' dads as his actual friends when he was little. He also walked with a cane for a while as a kid, purely as an affectation. He's wanted to be old since he was a child.
Thank you for covering Tom, Beth. One of the all-time greats and this performance of Chicago is simply brilliant.
I've been a huge fan of Tom since I was a teenager and seeing him on the David Letterman show singing either "9th and Hennepin" or "Clap Hands" , I'm 51 now, so that should tell you how much I enjoy him. My other eclectic musicians were Dr. John and Leon Redbone, may they both Rest In Peace. Thanks for reacting to a wonderful storyteller.
You should try some Captain Beefheart
Im glad you enjoyed!
I adore this man!
Love that you included Tom Waits! He is one of my all time favorites.
So good!
My own voice: a hippo mating call. But I am the singer in my band and Waits is one of the reasons for that.
Love Tom Waits, my dad got me into listening to him. Great storytelling, wonderful visualization, awesome wordplay. “I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things”. Many of his songs have been covered by other musicians from all over the genres.
When talking about Tom Waits' voice it should be noted that whilst his grovely voice that would make a Death Metal vocalist jealous is his main voice...
...he also made songs like Had Me a Girl, Blue Valentines, Take Care Of All My Children, Chocolate Jesus, and Temptation.
Each of those songs is sung differently. The man doesn't just have stylistic range, but also vocal range. He's incredible, to say the least.
Jesus Gonna Be Here, Shore Leave - especially the ending...
Well said! 😊
Hungry Hungary Hungarian I was thinking of Jesus Gonna Be Here as a counterpoint to the video.
I've always admired him as a singer in the way I admire film's greatest character-actors. Inhabiting the soul of uniquely separate individuals & giving Academy Award-level performances every single time. His lyrics are as well written as any songwriter who ever lived, but more than that his genius is how well he sells the emotional feelings the 'character' in the song is about. He's before admitted a certain cinematic sensibility with his music so I've always figured that's how he approaches it from a creative, internal standpoint. Which is why he goes with such uniquely different singing styles for so many songs. In a song like Going Out West he's 100% giving a fully committed dramatically acted performance just as much as he's simply singing. I think to an alternative extent Bob Dylan is doing something kind of similar. It's more about the sincerity of the emotion than it is generic "proper" singing. There are millions of "technically" adept singers who put out nothing but one dimensional, 'harmonically pleasing' forgettable garbage all the time. I'd much rather hear Joe Strummer, Janis Joplin, Leonard Cohen, Son House, Karen Dalton, Joanna Newsom, Bob Dylan or Tom Waits belting out a tune instead.
“I worry about a lot of things but I don’t worry about achievements. Primarily I worry wether there are nightclubs in heaven” Ladies and gentlemen, Tom Waits.
The only singer who’s voice can be describe as a roadkill, marinated in whiskey and hung in a smokehouse for a week. He’s the best🥰
Thank you so much, Beth, I am saving and sharing this. Tommy is my all time favourite! Great channel, too, keep up the good work!!!
I've listened to this version of this song innumerable times. I love everything about it. I love Tom Waits. And this was a very engaging presentation. Thanks!
Thanks for listening
I love Tom Waits, every thing I’ve ever heard from him. Franks Wild Years , Bone Machine, and Closing Time are 3 of my favorites. His music is pure art and full of integrity without being righteous or elitist. If I was stranded on a desert Island and could only have one source of music. It would be Tom Waits. He could make a thousand songs with a seashell and a coconut. Best voice nah, best songwriter maybe but definitely the best Tom.
"He could make a thousand songs with a seashell and a coconut." Haha, I love this.
I started to try to put down my favorites but just can't choose. There's so much to love.
Tom Waits' son on drums, David Hidalgo on the Gibson Les Paul
Tom.Waits is just an awesome giant.
Love love love Tom Waits. And that was one of his performances on The David Letterman Show (which is where I first saw him why back in the 80's).
That little 'whoop' sound he does that you like, I called it the Bebop Whoop, because that is quite common in rockabilly singers.
I love Tom Waits. Been a fan since I don't know when, since I think my mum was playing his albums in the house at least in the 80s. He's just always sounded so interesting to me, and that's one of the things that attracts me to an artist a lot of the time, just doing something interesting and a little unexpected. Waits voice always has that sort of character to it for me.
I count Tom Waits as my favorite artist of all time. He has written so many great songs, I do have a weird relationship to "Hoist that rag" though, because I can't figure out WHY I like it so much. Tom Waits not so much sing the lyrics as he cry them out with this deep sense of despair and the drums and guitar almost drown out his voice.
I know that by conventional standards it's not a great song, but that doesn't matter because it's like it's something more than that, it has this quality to it where it almost transcends what constitutes a song and is just something else. It's not so much a song as it is an experience, a piece of art.
And they ruined it in the remaster!
Agreed, the original is by far the superior version.
it was so strange for me to listen to his first album where he actually sings, like "i hope i don't fall in love with you". if i didn't know that it's him, i wouldn't have guessed it.
Guess what? Tom "actually sings" on all of his albums.
Just because he sings *differently* now doesn't mean it doesn't take a lot of talent and practice to do it.
What always gets me about Waits’ voice is that when he sings more gently, it is so beautiful, like in ‘Hold On.’ Or a song like ‘Talking at the Same Time’ where he’s singing in what I think is his version of a falsetto, and it sounds great!
Tom Waits! You can't describe him and neither can I. He is what he is Tom Waits. Very different, Unique and smart. That is Art.
Great! Thanks for this choice! Such a surprise. "Nighthawks at the Diner" is one of my favorite albums for near 40 years.
Good choice!
Same here!
My favorite Tom Waits song is "I Hope I Don't Fall In Love With You" where his voice actually sounds AMAZING!
“ Martha” makes me weep like a newborn.
Had a girl fall for me with that song, particularly the solo guitar version.
That entire album is magic.
I honestly feel like that acoustic guitar version is the single greatest bar song ever written while simultaneously being the single greatest love song ever written.
Perversely, that was 'our' song in one 'us' of which i was part for several years. :)
I love the line “all we need we carry with us”. Just poetry
"Here's a little something arranged for piano and fire extinguisher..." - Tom Waits, 1977
Tom’ss lyrics are so unique and special. It would be such a treat to hear you, in your voice, cover a Tom Waits song.
Tom waits is everything
Perfect sound of the train pulling into the station at the end.
Hell Broke Luce, God’s Away On Business and Come On Up To The House will forever be in my top ten favorite songs of all time. Tom is a true legend.
Tom Waits is an interesting case in finding your "voice". His first album was much more conventional, but obviously using his voice. it seems like it was produced to take the imperfections out... as much as possible. Then he went through his jazz phase and he found his voice and embraced the imperfections. Then he met his wife/collaborator Kathleen Brennan and he started to explore his voice as a tool box rather than a tool -- the imperfections were just things to be used, evocatively, to serve the songs.
There's a big difference between Grapefruit Moon from his first album (th-cam.com/video/7bpZjkjo3Tw/w-d-xo.html) to Anywhere I Lay My Head (th-cam.com/video/kuUp_nWcPHM/w-d-xo.html) from Rain Dogs.
Basically, yeah. He was always into weird stuff, as evidenced by the fact that he hung around with Captain Beefheart and opened for Zappa back in the 70s. Kathleen convinced him to go all in on the weirdness, leading to 'Swordfishtrombones'.
Saw him live years ago at a new years eve show. I'd never head of him before, but was thoroughly entertained.
In the late 70s I was tending bar in a little dive that wasn't on the wrong side of the tracks but it was close enough throw a beer bottle across the tracks.
It was the kind of place that Waits would be right at home in.
What an education.
It was also when I discovered Tom Waits through a friend.
Toms voice is what eating a carton of smokes sounds like
Let us not forget that technique is a means to an end. You're supposed to learn the technique of a craft and then toss it and do your own thing with it. Find your own voice, so to speak. Tom not only did this to the ultimate degree, he absolutely mastered the art of expression with his style. He is a master. A literal Grand Wizard. The amount of heart and soul is immeasurable.
I saw Tom in concert back in the small change days, in Cambridge, MA. He puts on a whole stage show with street lamps, ash registers, etc. He also arrive like an hour and 1/2 late and we had to listen to Bad Company for that whole time. It was definitely worth waiting for.
Tremendous artist with a close to unparalleled discography.
So true!
Some of the more modern Tom Waits stuff gets overlooked lyrically, because the earlier ballads were a little clearer but this song is a great example of how genius his writing can be...
"The seeds are planted here, but they won't grow. We won't have to say goodbye, if we all go. Maybe things will be better in Chicago"
"Well It's brave for us to stay, even braver to go. Wherever she goes I go. Maybe things will be better in Chicago."
There's so much story and sentiment in simple lines here.
Yay!! TOM WAITS FINALLY! 😍🖤🔥
Excellent observations. Being authentic and true to yourself is only way. Thanks for this.
Thank you for watching :)
The most poetic way of putting Tom Waits' voice, that I've read, is “sounding 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." 100% a compliment, because it's so unique.
Also, if you want to sound like him I recommend a regimen of bourbon and cigarettes. 😉
I seem to remember Waits saying one of his kids describing his voice is a "cross between a circus clown and a cherry bomb". If so being a wordsmith runs in the family.
Beth you and your channel are awesome. So positive and appreciative which is so refreshing.
Thank you! Im glad you enjoyed the reaction! 😊
your awesome for doing Tom Waits, thank you so much.
you finally got my sub, which i will admit i should have done even before this video, But doing tom when your a vocal reaction says a lot about you. :)
Thank you for subscription! Im glad you're enjoying my videos!
@@BethRoars the reason i personally even watch you, is not so much you or the bands themselves. It's all about that look on your face when your blown away and you can see it in your eyes. I can plainly see your love for music and sound, and that is what makes me smile.
Great analysis, Beth. Tom Waits sings about the disenfranchised, the derailed, the discarded and the defeated. His is the perfect voice for those songs.
You get a voice like Tom by living the songs he sings.
Much more Tom Waits, please Beth!
Great review, I always wanted to see one about Waits.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I was 100% prepared to be upset when I saw the title of this video. I'm a long time Waits fan and few people seem to understand why I think he's a brilliant singer. Above his lyrical genius and musical gifts, his delivery is wrought with soul that few can come close to tapping into. Anyone else with a voice like that wouldn't bother singing - they'd sell their songs or hire a singer. Much like Dylan, Waits needs to do his own songs because no one else is capable of making them what they really are. His gravel doesn't stop him from giving you chills. His bark doesn't make a song any less romantic or heartbreaking. No, he doesn't have a 4 octave range - but it goes to show that anyone can find that place inside where soul lives and just "sang." There's singing and then there's "sanging" - not a cultural term, I mean just singing with your heart more than your chords. Thank you for this review. As a musician, I respect how you approached this. I'm gonna subscribe even though this isn't my area of interest - you get my support :)
Screamin' Jay Hawkins did a pretty terrific "Whistling Past The Graveyard":
th-cam.com/video/DRjHAHt6rzs/w-d-xo.html
Awesome! Thanks, Beth!
Tim Waits is amazing singer and songwriter
He is indeed! 😊
Love Tom, and his band is always so lose and tight at the same time. Addictive brilliance
My first introduction to Tom’s music was the album Alice. I found out later that this was one of his stranger albums of music. No regrets. His skill as a songwriter is deeper than most.
Tom is the coolest cat for sure
I just started listening to Tom and gods away is my favorite.
Beth, I'm impressed, most vocal coaches would never attempt to analyze Tom, dismissing him as an example of what NOT to do with your voice. But you have done your work and give a legitimate thoughtful analysis of his distinct style. Truthfully, I actually prefer his earlier stuff to his later work. Its more melodic, his voice isn't as torn up, and sounds less like a muppet but at his core, Tom is a storyteller. He crafts songs about the down and out, addicts, hobos, drifters, and broken toys. The over looked human flotsam that are in every city and every town across the world. He focuses his attention on the characters and situations most people refuse to look at. His voice is KEY in crafting that mood weaving the spell of desolation and hardship.
Man has been sober since 82'. Lifestyle doesn't account for this as much as showmanship from another era.
Yeah much more a conscious stylistic choice than lifestyle - sometimes in movie roles you'll hear him sing in this quite sweet voice, and of course his earlier stuff is far from 'pure' but wayyyyy smoother than his barks ha ha
Bravo for him, I wasn't aware of that, sober since 83 here!
Well I think it’s more like 92ish. He claimed 14 years in a 06 interview. This date makes more sense as “That Feel” with Kieth Richards is at the very least a great impression of drunken bellowing. Great song. It would also make him about 43? That seems about right.
Back in the dark ages I saw him on Letterman. Dave asked him "What are you doing in town?"
"Here to see Sinatra's voice doctor."
"What did he say?"
"Gotta stop singing like this."
This was around '87 and it was five years before he released another album.
Also right at the time he release Frank's Wild Years, which is his homage of sorts to Sinatra.
His voice is perfect his music.
The man who gave Heath Ledger the inspiration for his take on the Joker! 👍
Waits has been my #1 since 1984. His voice evolved into being full-on Howlin' Wolf.
I worship this man. Bear in mind that he was a real crooner in his early days. His voice and his songwriting evolved exactly as they were meant to.
Yay! Tom! I would LOVE to see you react to one of his more melodic tunes, like "come on up to the house" or "flowers grave". As crazy and fun as he can be he can also be so incredibly tender and moving.
Or maybe Hold On....that one gets me everytime
You want to listen to a great Tom Waits song, listen to the live version of Christmas Card from a Hooker In Minneapolis.
Finally!!!! Thanks beth! Great take on this legend
Glad you liked it!
The hiss at the end is the train arriving at the station in Chicago. The rhythm of the song is the train traveling on the tracks.
A reviewer once described Tom's voice as the Cookie Monster singing with a mouthful of peanut butter, it's like a 20 year single malt, an acquired taste.
"Nighthawks at the Diner" late 70's, his best period in my mind. His voice was beautiful. It's flattened out a bit for me since then.
Man's an immense talent,pure talent.
I've been a Tom waits fan for about 12 years now and my favorite album is the " Heart of Saturday Night " he doesn't bark like he does in later albums but sings beautifully also " Nighthawks at the Diner" listen and let me know your opinion.