Tom Waits question[s]
 

I've been getting into Tom Waits more and more lately, and my interest is growing with each song I hear by him.

I downloaded a couple mp3s of his, one of which is called "Waltzing Matilda." I'm interested in buying one of his albums, but I can't find that song on any of them (I only looked at the discography listings on Amazon). I also looked on "Tom Waits lyrics" pages, but once again, can't find this song anywhere. Because of this, I think that I the mp3 title I have is incorrect.

Here are some of the lyrics, if anyone recognizes it could you please tell me the correct name of the song or the album this is from?

"Wasted and wounded
????? the moon did
God what I've paid for now
See you tommorrow
Hey Frank can I borrow
A couple of bucks from you
To go
Waltzing Matilda
Waltzing Matilda
You go
Waltzing Matilda with me

I'm an innocent victim
of a blinded alley
and I'm tired of all these soldiers here
No one speaks English
and everything's broken
...."

I hope that's enough, and I'm pretty sure that is how the lyrics go. Just to give you a little more description, the song is piano simply playing chords, a rather dramatic string arrangement in the background, and, of course, Tom Waits glass-throated vocals.

Secondly, what are some Tom Waits album suggestions? I'm leaning towards Rain Dogs and Blood Money to start off my collection. Any albums that you feel are better than these two (don't worry about "accessibility")?

The song is called "Tom Traubert's Blues."

It's on his album called Small Change.

Small Change is the album I started with many years ago. I played it over & over & would easily recommend it as a good starting point. It's jazzy & beatnik & funny & sad & beautiful & a perfect late night listen.

Eventually I heard a song called Gun Street Girl on the radio & was totally blown away. 80's Tom is different from 70's Tom. It sounds like a junkyard carnival. I found the song on the album Big Time & bought it without realizing it was a live album. It sounded very different to the version on the radio (which was from Rain Dogs) & I was disappointed by it, but I loved everything else on the album. I quickly bought the studio albums that the bulk of the live songs came from & loved them too (Swordfishtrombones, Rain Dogs, & Franks Wild Years). I've often wondered if I would've liked Big Time as much as I do if I'd heard everything in the right order.

I'd probably start with Small Change (possibly the best of the 70s) & Rain Dogs (the best of the 80s). If you love those, Swordfishtrombones, Franks Wild Years, & Blue Valentine shouldn't be far behind. I've heard all but Closing Time (his 1st), Foreign Affairs, & Blood Money (his latest). Mule Variations is the only one that disappointed me, but it's still pretty great.

There are two basic eras of style in Waits' work, which I think changed around <B>Swordfishtrombones</B>. His early work, like <B>Closing Time</B>, <B>Small Change</B>, <B>Heartattack and Vine</B> and <B>Nighthawks at the Diner</B> were very much influenced by Beat poetry and jazz, relying heavily on small combos of piano, bass and drums with some occasional orchestration beyond that. I think many of his best lyrics were written during this period, cementing him as one of the balladeers of the lounge.

With <B>Swordfishtrombones</B>, he moved toward a more experimental, almost industrial, sound. He kept the same dark humor and moved it into a little more sinister place at times. He used more electric instruments, as well as other unorthodox instruments, like musical saws and improvised percussion. Equally amazing material, just very, very different. He also moved into staged works: <B>Frank's Wild Years</B>, <B>The Black Rider</B>, <B>Alice</B> and <B>Woyzeck</B> (recorded as <B>Blood Money</B>). These pieces were heavily influenced by Weill and German Expressionistic movements. They aren't as immediately approachable for the general listener, I think, but are worth the investment of time to get into them and the stories they tell.

If I had to pick the ones I'd start with, I'd go with (in no particular order) <B>Frank's Wild Years, Closing Time, Nighthawks at the Diner, Mule Variations, The Black Rider, Small Change, The Heart of Saturday Night, Foreign Affairs</B> and <B>Blood Money</B>. After you get through them all, pick up Holly Cole's <B>Temptation</B>. I don't normally like covers at all, but her interpretations of his songs are fantastic, the only person to ever really get his style in a cover.

It's hard, though, because I think every album is sheer brilliance. Just listen to them all and you won't be disappointed. :)

Tom has been through as many changes as Bowie almost. :) But he's good at any stage--I even love his earliest stuff, although I will always have a tough time choosing Bone Machine or Rain Dogs as my all-time favorite of his.