Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83 SMI; site husky.uucp Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!whuxlm!harpo!decvax!ucbvax!ucdavis!lll-crg!seismo!rochester!ritcv!husky!mls From: mls@husky.uucp (Mark Stevans) Newsgroups: net.music Subject: Tom Waits Message-ID: <244@husky.uucp> Date: Wed, 23-Oct-85 11:53:38 EDT Article-I.D.: husky.244 Posted: Wed Oct 23 11:53:38 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 26-Oct-85 04:34:10 EDT Organization: Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, NY Lines: 29 Oleg Kiselev wished to know more about Tom Waits. For his benefit, and any other possibly interested third parties, herehenceforthwith: Tom Waits is from Los Angeles, California, and he has been recording since about 1969. He plays piano, organ, and guitar, sings, and writes almost everything he performs. His image is that of a down-on-his-luck hobo minstrel, lonely, downtrodden, but good-natured, humorous, and optimistic. He is reputed to have arisen from the coffehouses of early 1960's California, where bongo players wearing dark sunglasses, goatees, and black French artists berets would exclaim "Like wow, man.... Cool, daddy-o!" at irregular intervals. Waits is widely acclaimed for his transcendentally beautiful melodies. He does not fall into any single musical category, encompassing as he does elements of jazz, rock, classical, and popular music of the 1940's. In terms of instrumentation, no two Waits songs ever sound the same: he has used African drums, carillons, full orchestras, marching bands, synthesizers, and everything else imaginable. On the other hand, some songs consist of almost nothing but Tom's voice. There is only one consistency: all vocals are supplied by a single track of Waits (except for one duet). "Closing Time" is Tom's first and best album; in my opinion, a masterpiece. He is known for his deliberately rough vocals, where he tries to sound like a chronic alcoholic. This album is a definite exception to that, but I guess Tom felt that his voice sounded too ordinary or something. Recommended other albums are "Heartattack and Vine", "Small Change", and "Swordfishtrombones". Mark Stevans ritcv!husky!mls