Entertainment For Lively Minds
Maximum Marmite
Posted by Sid Williams on 24 February 2010 - 4:21pm.
is anyone in music more marmite than Tom Waits?
Have you ever heard anyone say, "ah, he's allright I suppose"? .....didn't think so.
I think this is wonderful but I know many will disagree (violently in the case of GLW).
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Love the 70s balladeer stuff...
Hate the arts-lab noisenik stuff.
Me
too
I would generally have agreed, until
I saw him live on the last tour when the "arts-lab noisenik stuff" made perfect sense. And there are some fantastic melodies hidden away on those albums.
I still regard 'Black Rider' as unlistenable of course; that goes without saying.
'Hate' is a strong word...
I 'get' it, I respect it.
I just don't want it.
I don't get it
never have, but it's good to see an artist stick to their guns and keep ploughing their own lonely furrow. The GLW loves him.
Big fan here
I was given tickets for his last London show, about four years ago at Hammermsmith, by late, great PR Rob Partridge. These were the hottest in town and as Rob handed them to me, he said 'These aren't going on fucking eBay, are they?'
I took my wife to the gig. She'd never heard a note of Tom Waits. 'Who's this we're going to see? Can I be bothered? It'd better be good...' etc.
We sat in superb seats in the stalls. Around us were some faces - Yorke, Albarn, James, Gray, Ross and a few others. The section of the row we were sat in remained empty. 'Fucking hacks', I thought.
Moments before the lights went down, the door in front of stage right opened and out trotted a raggle-taggle bunch: Burton, Carter, Depp, Paradis and (weirdly) J Hall plus others unknown. My wife excitedly pointed out Carter and Depp in the near-distance. One by one, they made their way to our row and shuffled in. Depp sat next to my wife. 'Hello, ma'am'. My wife simply mouthed 'Fuck... That's Johnny Depp'.
The gig was one of the best I've ever seen.
Few years later, Rob Partridge's funeral - Tom Waits attended with Kathleen, which was a sterling effort. He drinks tea with his pinky extended, you know.
good story
-well told.
Great story man, thanks .....
.... and wasn't that the gig where the first thing he said on entering stage left was "yeah, yeah its been 18 years!"
I'm the oppo of the first posting - dislike the pre-SwordfishTrombones stuff, love everything afterwards. 'Shore Leave' will always remind me of my previous job that involved a fair bit of travel ('cept that I live in Newbury, not Illinois!). In fact, I wish he'd do more of the soliloquy stuff a la this and 'Frank's Wild Years', love that kinda material he does, lights me up all halloween orange and chim-er-ney red!
BR
FT
Tom Waits?
Ah, he's alright. I suppose...
there's always one!
but this wasn't supposed to be a discussion solely about Tom Waits, I was wondering who else polarises opinion so strongly. Who are the enemies of indifference?
Let me throw another one out - Bjork.
Bjork...
...one of the most remarkable artists of the last 25 years. As innovative as Bowie was in the 70s.
Sisters
Goth in general, nuff said
Yes.
Love the Sisters Of Mercy... but hard pressed to find many who concur.
Is 'Prog' a Marmite thing too? I think King Crimson and Yes might be contenders. (I would be in the 'strong aversion' camp.)
I know a lot of 'trad' Goths
who are well into VdGG and Gabriel Genesis, some Yes (The Yes Album is a fave)
Hmmm...
Wasn't making a conscious link between Prog & Goth (only a Marmite link)... but perhaps there is one... hadn't occurred to me before.
Perhaps I need to listen with fresh ears.
*Wanders off to Spotify*
Bjork?
No I'd have to say I "quite like" Bjork, but not so much I'd spend money on her records or get particularly excited about the prospect of her latest waxing but I wouldn't switch her off if she came on the radio (unless it was the god awful "Its all so quiet..." thing)
I'd bracket her with Scott Walker. Both have done some stuff that can clear a room in seconds, both have voices that not everyone can rub along with, but you could put a 'best of' CD by either artist on and not give anyone nightmares.
Tom Waits?, won't have him in the house. Horrible phlegm gurgling racket!
But then again
It's the later Tom Waits stuff where his voice is like that. There seems to be a copyright problem with a lot of TW songs on youtube, so I can't find the album version of Ol' 55, but I've found a rather rudimentary earlier version of this lovely song. Say what you will, I think you'd concede that his voice didn't (yet) sound like a "horrible phlegm gurgling racket!"
Sadly I couldn't find San Diego Serenade, which is one of the most beautiful love songs ever written, and which he also sang before his voice, erm, shall we say broke again.
i'm not mad about
a lot of what I've heard from The Gurgling Years (now there's a title for a compilation); on the other hand, despite only picking up Closing Time in December, this song has made it's way into my top 25 played songs on iTunes already...it is quite quite quite beautiful.
And obviously this post is another example of Waits not being musical marmite.
I like the odd song
Christmas Card From A Hooker and Jersey Girl, but that's about it. I'm no fan.
Tom Waits is a genius
There's no such thing as disliking the later stuff. This track "Hold On" was from 1999's "Mule Variations", and to my ears is in a very similar style to his early work. Little change with his voice as well.
On the other hand, yes he has produced some of the craziest music ever. And that is why he is a genius. Because he thinks outside of the singer-songwriter cube.
Here is my example of his superb mind at work. Bar-room ballad. Pained vocal. Just like the early stuff. And then it goes into a random New Orleans style funeral march. For no apparent reason.
Beautiful.
(Anywhere I Lay My Head)
I'm with badger king on this one
in fact I'd go so far as to say this is astounding:
I put this on a compliation...
...for a recently-dumped mate in the 80s (I thought I was helping, alright?!)
He told me later that he loved 'that Peter Skellern track'.
Another thumbs-up for early Tom Waits here
I have to confess that I, too, find his more recent material a little challenging. Then again, I'm a bit of a lightweight, and am perfectly happy to accept it's all splendid if that's what people say; please just don't make me have to listen to it.
I know this may be regarded sacrilege in these parts, but my favourite Tom Waits album is that One From The Heart soundtrack he did with Crystal Gayle.
well I guess
the answer to my original question is no. Glad we sorted that out.
Seems like there's nothing that you can't like some of, no true love / hate thing.
OK, I'll play my ace, Weather Report!
Surely....SURELY!
Weather Report?
I've instructed my wife to have Black Market played at ear-splitting volume as I'm shuffled off. One of the most joyous pieces of music EVER.
hang on a sec
that's really good! My impression of Weather report has always been really annoying, chin-stroking free form while that track has a looping bassline on which everything else seems to hang, at least for the first 4 minutes or so. Ah well, another prejudice holed below the water line.
I give up.
Ha!
What a lovely turn of events. That tune seldom fails to lift spirits. I've lost count of the number of times I've played it and someone's said 'What is this?!
Have an 'up'. On me.
Strangely
my favourite TW albums are Rain Dogs (OK, that's not strange - anyone with ears has surely GOT to love that record) and Mule Variations. I really, really like Mule Variations.
All together now, "CAWSAHMBIGNJAPAAAAAAYN".