It is an odd pattern that is developing within the chaos. I roll an artist, then I roll something different, and then on the third roll I return to the artist I just reviewed one disc ago. Loreena McKennitt, then Mark Knopfler, now...Tom Waits. At least this time it is one of his better albums.
Disc 149 is...Swordfishtrombones
Artist: Tom Waits
Year of Release: 1983
What’s Up With The Cover?: I have no frickin' idea. There's a tuba, and I think the guy on the right is Tom Waits - that's as far as I'm going to comment.
How I Came To Know It: Just another great Tom Waits album. We came to this one pretty soon after we were introduced to "Frank's Wild Years" by Casey. I think Sheila bought it, so she gets the credit for this one.
How It Stacks Up: In the past two days I haven't found any new Tom Waits albums, so I still have eighteen. Yeah - I like him, and so does Sheila and the combination keeps the house well stocked with his songs. I like this album in particular, I'd say it is top 5, probably 3rd or 4th depending on my mood.
Rating: 4 stars.
"Swordfishtrombones" came out in 1983, making it the beginning of what I would call his "circus" period. Around this time, Waits leaves behind his bluesy lounge singer sound and begins incorporating all manner of bizarre big-top sounds. In particular, very creative percussion, including cow bell and what sounds like a stick hitting a mason jar. He also adds in a lot of organ, played in minor keys.
The whole thing makes one think of Bradbury's "Something Wicked This Way Comes" - it is an eldritch and disconcerting circus.
Even though the sound of "Swordfishtrombones" is so different from Waits' seventies music, it is equally difficult to categorize. Previous reviews I've tried "blues/folk" and "jazz/easy listening" so this time I'll go "folk/jazz". As ever, he defies description.
This album has fifteen tracks which is one past my maximum usually, but since so many of the songs are under 2:30, the album doesn't result in being overlong. If anything, I wanted to hear more.
Waits' talent for storytelling doesn't diminish simply because of the new arrangements, and some of his best lyrics can be found here.
On "Shore Leave" he captures the emotional quality of a sailor on leave in a foreign port:
"In a Hong Kong drizzle on Cuban heels
I rowed down the gutter to the Blood Bank
and I'd left all my papers on the Ticonderoga
And I was in bad need of a shave
And so I slopped at the corner on cold chow mein
And shot billiards with a midget
Until the rain stopped"
If this doesn't capture that strange quality of being far from home (and likely drunk) I don't know what does.
I could quote a half dozen verses just as good, and often Waits evokes more with a single line than many manage in a whole song. From "16 Shells From a 30-06":
"I'm gonna whittle you into kindlin'"
or where he characterizes a dangerous lifestyle by singing:
"I pulled on trouble's braids"
I guess to a lesser degree, we've all pulled on trouble's braids, but Tom Waits' raspy voice makes you really feel something bad (and a little queer) is gonna come of it. Someone's gettin' whittled into kindling.
The instrumentation I noted earlier just sets the tone for each song that much more deeply. These songs would be strong under more traditional circumstances, but with this new approach, Waits has found the perfect musical style to match his weird way of describing the world. If you like Tom Waits, "Swordfishtrombones" is a must-have.
Best tracks: Underground, Shore Leave, 16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought Six, In the Neighbourhood, Frank's Wild Years, Down Down Down, Trouble's Braids.
Disc 149 is...Swordfishtrombones
Artist: Tom WaitsYear of Release: 1983
What’s Up With The Cover?: I have no frickin' idea. There's a tuba, and I think the guy on the right is Tom Waits - that's as far as I'm going to comment.
How I Came To Know It: Just another great Tom Waits album. We came to this one pretty soon after we were introduced to "Frank's Wild Years" by Casey. I think Sheila bought it, so she gets the credit for this one.
How It Stacks Up: In the past two days I haven't found any new Tom Waits albums, so I still have eighteen. Yeah - I like him, and so does Sheila and the combination keeps the house well stocked with his songs. I like this album in particular, I'd say it is top 5, probably 3rd or 4th depending on my mood.
Rating: 4 stars.
"Swordfishtrombones" came out in 1983, making it the beginning of what I would call his "circus" period. Around this time, Waits leaves behind his bluesy lounge singer sound and begins incorporating all manner of bizarre big-top sounds. In particular, very creative percussion, including cow bell and what sounds like a stick hitting a mason jar. He also adds in a lot of organ, played in minor keys.
The whole thing makes one think of Bradbury's "Something Wicked This Way Comes" - it is an eldritch and disconcerting circus.
Even though the sound of "Swordfishtrombones" is so different from Waits' seventies music, it is equally difficult to categorize. Previous reviews I've tried "blues/folk" and "jazz/easy listening" so this time I'll go "folk/jazz". As ever, he defies description.
This album has fifteen tracks which is one past my maximum usually, but since so many of the songs are under 2:30, the album doesn't result in being overlong. If anything, I wanted to hear more.
Waits' talent for storytelling doesn't diminish simply because of the new arrangements, and some of his best lyrics can be found here.
On "Shore Leave" he captures the emotional quality of a sailor on leave in a foreign port:
"In a Hong Kong drizzle on Cuban heels
I rowed down the gutter to the Blood Bank
and I'd left all my papers on the Ticonderoga
And I was in bad need of a shave
And so I slopped at the corner on cold chow mein
And shot billiards with a midget
Until the rain stopped"
If this doesn't capture that strange quality of being far from home (and likely drunk) I don't know what does.
I could quote a half dozen verses just as good, and often Waits evokes more with a single line than many manage in a whole song. From "16 Shells From a 30-06":
"I'm gonna whittle you into kindlin'"
or where he characterizes a dangerous lifestyle by singing:
"I pulled on trouble's braids"
I guess to a lesser degree, we've all pulled on trouble's braids, but Tom Waits' raspy voice makes you really feel something bad (and a little queer) is gonna come of it. Someone's gettin' whittled into kindling.
The instrumentation I noted earlier just sets the tone for each song that much more deeply. These songs would be strong under more traditional circumstances, but with this new approach, Waits has found the perfect musical style to match his weird way of describing the world. If you like Tom Waits, "Swordfishtrombones" is a must-have.
Best tracks: Underground, Shore Leave, 16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought Six, In the Neighbourhood, Frank's Wild Years, Down Down Down, Trouble's Braids.
1 comment:
Awesome album! I love the whole thing.
"An eldritch and disconcerting circus" is a perfect description of Tom Waits.
He is one concert I really want to see.
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