Kitchen Listening - Tom Waits

Morning kitchen listening... there's something to be said about starting off your day with this guy.

Kitchen listening... another Tom Waits compilation for dinner too.

And a reflection... The first time I saw Tom Waits was in a small Philly club in 1973. I had never heard of him before that day. He was touring on his first album and my friend John was excited to see him and since I was in town on a weekend leave after a long overseas deployment I was game. I first heard his album on cassette as we drove downtown to the club. It was a great show and we had a table directly in front of the stage. We loved his songs and hipster banter with the crowd and he took his vagabond persona so seriously we could smell his BO from our seats. Just added to the ambience of the show.

That all being said... I've always loved the music of Tom Waits and have many of his albums.

Tom Waits in my collection:

Closing Time, 1973
The Heart of Saturday Night, 1974
Nighthawks at the Diner, 1975
Small Change, 1976
Foreign Afffairs, 1977
Blue Valentine, 1978
Heartattack and Vine, 1980
One from the Heart, 1982
Swordfishtrombones, 1983
Rain Dogs, 1985
Franks Wild Years, 1987
The Early Years Volume One, 1991
Bone Machine, 1992
The Early Years Volume Two, 1993
Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years, 1998
Mule Variations, 1999
Used Songs (1973-1980), 2001
Real Gone, 2004
Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards, 2004
Glitter and Doom Live, 2009
Bad as Me, 2011