'Bad' So Good

Tom Waits has released, I think, 22 albums now. He is without question one of the greatest songwriters who ever lived. My beloved ANTI- record label was basically built on the success of his Mule Variations, released in 1999. He’s a part-time movie actor and always steals the show no matter how big or small the part. He’s pretty much deity who can do no wrong and he released the fourth best album of the year in 2011.

I love how succinct he is on this album, imparting a very specific mood and feel with each track without any filler (no track is over five minutes). I love how diverse he is, ranging from soulful blues on Raised Right Men to rockabilly on Get Lost to the Spanish flavored Back in the Crowd (with help from Los Lobos guitarist David Hidalgo’s guitar work) to 60’s R&B on the title track. I love the fact that he brings all these eclectic sources together, yet all thirteen tracks are 100% original Tom Waits. I love the energy of the first cut, Chicago, and how it immediately draws you in for the rest of the wild ride. I love imagining I’m driving down a deserted street in NYC at 3 am in a black and white movie from the 70’s while listening to the desperately lonely Kiss Me. I love the incredibly fun cover/parody/tribute Satisfaction and the fact that “Mr. Richards” plays guitar on it. I love the perfectly organized chaos of Hell Broke Luce. I love the closing ballad New Year’s Eve and how it sounds like every other Tom Waits song in the catalog – in the best way possible. I love that this is the album he created at age 62 and that he shows no signs of slowing down.

The top three of the year were harder to organize than I expected. Their pedigrees went a long way toward landing them this high on the list. One placed third on my year-end list with his previous release and, much more impressively, made my favorite album of the 2000’s. Another one just barely missed scoring the top spot on last year’s list and came in at number two. The other got a first big break in the touring band of the creator of last year’s number one album. Decisions, decisions. I guess the good part is that I can’t really go wrong.