Tom Waits for No Man

For the last year I have been working on an absolutely enormous project at work. At long last that project is coming to an end. However, like the end of all projects it becomes a frantic fight to stay ahead of the little fires that crop up. With that said, I hope you will forgive my occasional bouts of silence through the end of the year. I will be doing my best to keep up but I may miss a few things. That said, I hope you will stick around because I have a lot of plans for the site after the New Year. That said, be prepared for a few catch up posts this evening.

It’s true that you find Tom Waits fans everywhere you look. Case in point, I just found this quote from an interview with Rob Zombie:

The Dude: Are there any artists out there who you can’t wait to hear their album or read their book, something along those lines?

Rob Zombie: I really don’t have too much time to read, so I hardly ever read anything. As far as music goes, the only person who makes a record that I have to run out and get instantly is Tom Waits. But that’s it. It’s not that I don’t buy other records, it’s just that’s the only one I’ll pick up immediately.

[Via: Interview: Rob Zombie - Movies Online]

Mr. Waits seems to be extremely popular among the dance set. The Southeast Missouri State University Fall Dance Concert will feature an unspecified Tom Waits tune in their series of performances this weekend:

“The Wink of an Eye” uses the talents of the Southeast Sundancers set against the dark wails and back-alley howls of the great Tom Waits. Waits’ style in contrasted by Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” placed at the beginning and the end. With dress and stage accented in black, the Sundancers do a sinister slink across the mirage of a dark urban landscape.

[Via: semissourian.com: Story: Collage of styles packed into hour of dance]

The DVD follow up to this year’s Blood and Feathers: Live from the Café Carlyle disk by German cabaret diva Ute Lemper also features her cover of Grapefruit Moon. In the past Lemper has also covered “The Part You Throw Away” on her fantastic disc Punishing Kiss. Both covers are well worth checking out.

Thanks to Mitch on the Raindogs mailing list.

Update (17:49): Duh, and of course she also covered “Purple Avenue” on Punishing Kiss as well. Thanks Sarah.

Billboard.com is reporting that an expanded edition of the Dead Man Walking Soundtrack will be released on February 7th. The new album will feature an unreleased studio recording of “Dead Man” recorded last year by Eddie Vedder along with Tom Waits’ haunting “The Fall of Troy” which appeared on the original soundtrack.

Combined with the new soundtrack will be a DVD of the related “Not in Our Name: Dead Man Walking — The Concert” which was held March, 29 1998 at the Los Angeles Shrine Auditorium. The DVD will contain the following performances:

1. “Ellis Unit One,” Steve Earle
2. “Promises,” Lyle Lovett
3. “L.A. County,” Lyle Lovett
4. “Lungs,” Lyle Lovett with Steve Earle
5. “Crime for Crime,” Ani DiFranco
6. “Up up up up up up,” Ani DiFranco
7. “Fuel,” Ani DiFranco
8. “Walk Away,” Tom Waits
9. “Gun Street,” Tom Waits
10. “The Fall of Troy,” Tom Waits
11. “Goin’ Out West,” Tom Waits
12. “Yesterday Is Here,” Tom Waits
13. “Trouble,” Eddie Vedder
14. “Dead Man Walking,” Eddie Vedder with Jeff Ament
15. “The Long Road,” Vedder, Ament, Rahat Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Dilder Hussein, John Densmore, David Robbins
16. “The Face of Love,” Vedder, Ament, Rahat Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Dilder Hussein, John Densmore, David Robbins
17. “The Ballad of Billy Austin,” Steve Earle

I had previously reported that Tom Waits had donated a recording of “A Little Drop of Poison” performed with the Kronos Quartet to an upcoming Katrina benefit CD being produced by Filter Magazine and Urban Outfitters. Turns out, according to the track listing at the Filter Magazine website, that the actual track is a live recording of “What’s He Building?” still with Kronos Quartet. The CD is now available online at both Filter Magazine and Urban Outfitters.

The every vigilant Jarlath has confirmed that the classic Waits track “Soldier’s Things” will appear both in the film Jarhead and on it’s soundtrack.

Jarlath wrote about this awhile back and I’m just now getting a chance to post it. In any case, there is a treasure trove of Tom Waits videos available at YouTube. There are some great classic clips as well as music videos and concert performances. If you are a fan, I suggest you check it out. Two posters on the sight worth checking out are GhostMoth and the frequently mentioned SarahV. It’s a great site, and worth checking out. Thanks again to Jarlath.

Update (11/08/2005): Oh, check out Jim (Pod) as well, he’s got some great rare stuff.

Well, not really. However, according to the excellent research of Dorene, Mr. Waits will be designing the Winter issue of Zoetrope: All Story which is a quarterly literary magazine started by Francis Ford Coppolla. According to the brief mention, the design has already gone through the early design passes and will hit the stands in mid-December.

Sorry folks, got a bit busy again . . .

The Center Theater Group at the Ahmanson Theater in downtown LA is staging a production of The Black Rider from April 22nd through June 11th. Tickets are available now and run from between $40 and $95. You can find complete details at the show’s website.

Thanks to Dorene on the Raindogs mailing list.