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Tom Waits - Real Gone Audio CD

A fair review of the Tom Waits "Real Gone" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Tom Waits reviews here, or go back to the Tom Waits tabs.

Tom Waits Band: Tom Waits
Title: Real Gone
Rating:
Release Date: 2004-10-05
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Top Of The Hill 2: Hoist That Rag 3: Sins Of My Father 4: Shake It 5: Don't Go Into That Barn 6: How's It Gonna End 7: Metropolitan Glide 8: Dead And Lovely 9: Circus 10: Trampled Rose 11: Green Grass 12: Baby Gonna Leave Me 13: Clang Boom Steam 14: Make It Rain 15: Day After Tomorrow

Another fork in his long and winding road
Blue Valentine into Swordfishtrombones marked his Captain Beefheart inspired deviation from the old school charm and swagger of his jazzy troubador days. Tom Waits has genuinely reinvented himself several times in his career. The Black Rider and Bone Machine represented his dive into the borderline psychotic end of the experimentation pool, while Alice and Blood Money gave us a regression to his early styles . . .

Bone Machine is yet another reinvention. Embracing beatboxes and Southern Spirtuals in equal measure, mixing them up with his unique blend of avant garde and American gothic lyrics Tom Waits gives us a new and strange face. His voice, always a make or break feature as to whether you like him, has managed to add more of his original crooner melodiousness to the bourbon soaked gravel for which he has come to be known.

If you were turned off by Alice and Blood Money, rest assured that this is not the same Tom Waits that recorded those albums any more than the guy who recorded Bone Machine recorded Closing Time. This is the next evolutionary step.


Conjuring up spirits?

In many songs Tom's voice was mixed a little too low for my tastes. Real Gone is definitely a layered, challenging listen.
Tom is all about the songwriting. . . so not hearing the words defeats the purpose!
My favorite tune is "Make it Rain" - a straight ahead blues, with vocals clear and strong. "Don't Go into that Barn" sounds like Tom is taken over by the spirit of Howling Wolf. Another strong cut is the Latin tinged "Hoist That Rag. "
The North Mississippi hypnotic style grooves ( R. L. Burnside) seem to be a strong influence (or maybe coincidence) in my opinion.
If you're a Tom fan, this is a "must own. " .


Blues From An Alternate Universe
If you want to check out Tom Waits, and you're looking for a representative first album to listen to. . . . look elsewhere, unless you have a taste for the edgy and offbeat. In that case, look here.

I've often heard Tom Waits music before, and it sounded OK, but I never felt inspired to check out his music much. Then I heard this album in a coffee shop, and it blew me away.

What is it with Tom Waits? Instead of mellowing, he seems to get weirder as he gets older. This album has clear echoes of experimental music. There is very little drumming per se, or at least use of drums. Mostly the credits list "percussion," which often consists of unidentified objects being struck rhythmically. In that sense it's reminiscent at times of early Sonic Youth, with the percussion instruments sounding like sheet metal or wood cabinets--the difference is that here they are played with an excellent sense of rhythm. Other squawky moments remind me of Sun Ra. The production is sometimes blurry, clearly by design.

All this is done within a pretty normal song structure, so while it's experimental, it's also familiar. The combination works beautifully, with Waits growling along, nearly incomprehensible throughout (don't worry, the liner notes include lyrics).

Lots of people have tried to make records like this in the last 20 years or so, and most of them are awful. This one is brilliant, and that's down to the quality of the musician.
.


One of his weakest efforts
The songs sound rehashed or overdone or pushed too far into obscurity. I love most of what Tom Waits puts out but this one I wasn't impressed by. I do love some songs on this but overall I would choose to listen to most of his other albums over this one.


NOISE! ...WONDERFUL NOISE!!!
Directed primarily towards the loud and frenzic style of Tom Waits, with maybe one or two tender moments for good measure. This is a real treat among Tom Waits albums. This is the one to crank up insanely loud to get the demons out of your brain. . . and the one that I jumped out of my seat for upon it's release a few years back.
I saw then a lot of pan for this album amongst Waits fans, but I think the album is as good as any other classic Waits. The songs no doubtedly get a lot more coarse and raw as the years go by. This may not be 100% intentional. But TW always finds away to make 'em work, and I feel some of the most gravelly sounding tunes are some of the best. . . and what time was better to make the one that us kids were waiting for. Bang your head music, up and down a wall, with a sh*@ eating grin on your face from ear to ear. TOP OF THE HILL or HOIST THAT RAG make good examples just because they come first, but every song works toward it's goal. Delivering what is sometimes just insanity, but always coupled with a good hook and catchy melodies. A few in the mix help the style vary, with some common Tom Waits imagery, in songs such as the darkly beautiful DEAD AND LOVELY. And there are plenty of good old fashioned rhythym section shake downs and such to go around too. This stuff just sparks some excitement into the duller darker days of life. A must have. . . Tom Waits is the shizzzzzit!.


You can see a complete list of all Tom Waits discography, or go back to the Tom Waits tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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