ECM is under Universal, so that's not happening... yet. Also, it doesn't appear that Warner brought the Alternative Distribution Yada Yada with them, which means no Sub Pop.
Hey Craig, I know you mentioned you wanted some Tom Waits - this one, that showed up yesterday, is one of my absolute favorites. At the very least check out "The Piano has Been Drinking (Not Me)."
(This is assuming you don't already have it; in which case I still recommend it to anyone who doesn't...)
Oh and Daniel - twice yesterday you rec'd favorite albums of mine - Tusk, and On the Beach. Great stuff.
Power-pop/singer-songwriter fans shouldn't miss Chris Bell's I Am The Cosmos. Bell was the McCartney to Alex Chilton's Lennon in the group Big Star. He died shortly after leaving Big Star, and his scattered solo recordings were collected to print I Am The Cosmos. The whole disc is good, but two songs -- the title track and You And Your Sister -- are heartbreaking and brilliant. Fan-made YouTube clips linked below. Truly, not to be missed.
@Craig--Waits has changed a lot over the last 35 years, so it's difficult to make a suggestion. His noisy, Brechtian era from the early 90's onward is kinda my favorite, and I would suggest "Bone Machine". His earlier more jazzy/acoustic stuff in the 70's also makes quite an impression, and "Nighthawks at the Diner" is a must-have there.
For his stuff from the more cabaret-oriented 80's, I'd go with either "Swordfish Trombones" or "Frank's Wild Years".
I agree with Am Clark. Small Change is awesome. I can remember first hearing it on the way to Detroit on a friend's tape deck and being blown away by just about every song.
"I Am the Cosmos" is one of the saddest and most beautiful songs I know. That whole album is great. There is a Rhino re-release, not sure what's on it.
On the Tom Waits, if you want something more along the lines of acoustic, you can't do any better than "Heart of Saturday Night", which, for some reason, emu has listed under Live albums. It's not; it's a studio effort, and if I had to rank his albums, it would tie for first with "Rain Dogs", which I now see that emu doesn't offer. No problem, you can probably get it for eight bucks on Amazon (cheaper if you wait for a sale; I notice it gets the sale price from time to time). Rain Dogs was a landmark album for his strange and beautiful music phase. "Bone Machine" is another good rec from the strange music phase, and it's often available as an Amazon $5 mp3 deal.
As far as what emu is also offering, "Heartattack & Vine" has one of the prettiest ballads Waits has ever made ("On the Nickel"), and it's a solid album overall, mostly in the cabaret sound as someone described it earlier. I like "Closing Time", but after the hugely strong effort of the first two songs, I feel like it begins to dwindle. "Small Change" is a very good album; try not getting hooked on "Step Right Up". If you go on a Tom Waits binge, after you've picked up most of the rest of his discography, those Early Years 1 and 2 are pretty good. They look like best-of albums, but they're actually old songs that he's re-recorded in a pared-down acoustic setting. On vol. 2, the song "Mockingbird" is perfect for sitting at the bar at the end of the night when you've got a crush on the waitress; happy and sad at the same time.
Not on emu, "Frank's Wild Years" and "Big Time" are two must-haves. Franks is a recording of a soundtrack he did for a Steppenwolf play of the same name (it's not called a soundtrack is it? What's the word I'm looking for?). Big Time is a live album/performance art; all covers of his old songs but sounding like new versions.
Most of his later stuff like Blood Money, Alice, and Mule Variations should only be picked up after you've exhausted the rest of his discography. I haven't heard all of his Bastards Brawlers and Orphans (or whatever it's called), but what I have heard, it sounds great, but since it costs about thirty bucks, I haven't sprung for it yet.
He just released a new album, "Glitter and Doom Live"; I listened to some tracks on his site, but didn't feel inclined to rush out and buy it right away. Probably require a second listen. I've been burned by his later releases enough to not pounce the second its on the shelf.
Tom Waits is arguably one of the most important artists of the last century.
But I've had trouble getting into his studio albums. Sometimes the voice is off-putting. Sometimes . . . I dunno.
Easy enough to understand. Between his voice and (in his later albums) his compositions, it can be a tough listen if it's the kind of thing your ears just aren't into. I think Waits is brilliant, but his sound is such that when I hear an opinion like yours, I don't jump out of my seat and shout What the hell is wrong with you? His music didn't connect with me right away either. I probably heard Rain Dogs (and a couple others) a bunch of times at this coffee shop in Denver (St. Marks) before one day it connected with me and, well, I began buying up everything he had. But there will be some people, lots probably, who just won't be hitting the download button on his music.
A good musician to revisit from time to time just to see if things have changed between you and him, y'know?
I actually just qued a bunch of Waits' discs in my saved-for-later list. I like Waits' regular voice. I hedge when I hear him distorting his voice (but not when he's growling, which he often does and which I like about his voice). Sometimes it works for me, though, e.g., Lie To Me, from the Orpahs disc.
Other Waits songs from that triple-disc that I love: Road To Peace; Tell It To Me; World Keeps Turning; Long Way Home; Bend Down The Branches; You Can Never Hold Back Spring; First Kiss; and the closing skit, Missing My Son. It's a really diverse, impressive set of songs.
I had debated about picking up Big Time during the 7digital $2 sale. Ended up getting Bone Machine, which was definitely a wise purchase (I already have the Swordfish, Rain Dogs, Franks "trilogy" on CD).
Comments
Craig
John Coltrane - Heavyweight Champion, 86 tracks
Ornette Coleman - Beauty is a Rare Thing, 57 Tracks
Charles Mingues - Passions of a Man, 41 Tracks
Allen Toussaint - Complete Warner, 43 Tracks
John Coltrane - A Giant Step in Jazz, 60 Tracks
Ray Charles - Pure Genuis, 155 Tracks
Stax-Volt Complete Sessions, 244 Tracks
Monkees Box Set, 99 Tracks
Philip Glass, La Belle Et Lat Bete, 20 Tracks
That's 1005 tracks for 108 credits, so so 9.3 cents per track. Why yes, I am a pig, thanks.
Craig
Craig
Craig
freebie track here
by the way, that page is delivered in HD, if i'm not mistaken.
(This is assuming you don't already have it; in which case I still recommend it to anyone who doesn't...)
Oh and Daniel - twice yesterday you rec'd favorite albums of mine - Tusk, and On the Beach. Great stuff.
Craig
You And Your Sister
I Am The Cosmos
One that I did get from Ryko back then that I absolutely love is James Booker's Junco Partner.
For his stuff from the more cabaret-oriented 80's, I'd go with either "Swordfish Trombones" or "Frank's Wild Years".
Have to save most of nps this month, though, for Spoon...and Yeasayer...and Eels....and........
Craig
As far as what emu is also offering, "Heartattack & Vine" has one of the prettiest ballads Waits has ever made ("On the Nickel"), and it's a solid album overall, mostly in the cabaret sound as someone described it earlier. I like "Closing Time", but after the hugely strong effort of the first two songs, I feel like it begins to dwindle. "Small Change" is a very good album; try not getting hooked on "Step Right Up". If you go on a Tom Waits binge, after you've picked up most of the rest of his discography, those Early Years 1 and 2 are pretty good. They look like best-of albums, but they're actually old songs that he's re-recorded in a pared-down acoustic setting. On vol. 2, the song "Mockingbird" is perfect for sitting at the bar at the end of the night when you've got a crush on the waitress; happy and sad at the same time.
Not on emu, "Frank's Wild Years" and "Big Time" are two must-haves. Franks is a recording of a soundtrack he did for a Steppenwolf play of the same name (it's not called a soundtrack is it? What's the word I'm looking for?). Big Time is a live album/performance art; all covers of his old songs but sounding like new versions.
Most of his later stuff like Blood Money, Alice, and Mule Variations should only be picked up after you've exhausted the rest of his discography. I haven't heard all of his Bastards Brawlers and Orphans (or whatever it's called), but what I have heard, it sounds great, but since it costs about thirty bucks, I haven't sprung for it yet.
He just released a new album, "Glitter and Doom Live"; I listened to some tracks on his site, but didn't feel inclined to rush out and buy it right away. Probably require a second listen. I've been burned by his later releases enough to not pounce the second its on the shelf.
Tom Waits is arguably one of the most important artists of the last century.
I can see this. And I loved his odds-and-ends collection from a few years ago (one of my favorite discs of that year).
But I've had trouble getting into his studio albums. Sometimes the voice is off-putting. Sometimes . . . I dunno.
Easy enough to understand. Between his voice and (in his later albums) his compositions, it can be a tough listen if it's the kind of thing your ears just aren't into. I think Waits is brilliant, but his sound is such that when I hear an opinion like yours, I don't jump out of my seat and shout What the hell is wrong with you? His music didn't connect with me right away either. I probably heard Rain Dogs (and a couple others) a bunch of times at this coffee shop in Denver (St. Marks) before one day it connected with me and, well, I began buying up everything he had. But there will be some people, lots probably, who just won't be hitting the download button on his music.
A good musician to revisit from time to time just to see if things have changed between you and him, y'know?
Other Waits songs from that triple-disc that I love: Road To Peace; Tell It To Me; World Keeps Turning; Long Way Home; Bend Down The Branches; You Can Never Hold Back Spring; First Kiss; and the closing skit, Missing My Son. It's a really diverse, impressive set of songs.
One of the most haunting songs ever. I listened to it last summer when i was in Jerusalem. Just a bit scarier then.