Started listening to the album A Little Drop of Poison by Rebekka Bakken (possibly because of the scribes of this here”shakes fist a clouds” parish)
it occurred to me that there are MANY examples of the fairer sex/shes’s that have covered Tom Waits.
Your examples please!
Scarlett Johansson is welcome.
Neko Case does an excellent Xmas card.
Oddly enough Mrs Jaygee was playing a rather lovely version of Nora Jones doing Long Way Home from Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards just yesterday
I didn’t think many female singers would attempt Tom Traubert’s Blues. A quick look at Spotify proved me wrong.
Most of them try to sound as “wasted and wounded! as they can.
By way of contrast, here’s Daisy Chapman’s version which takes a rather different approach: melodic and contemplative.
On one listen I like it. But perhaps she’s throwing out the baby with the bathwater and the bourbon?
This is one that I like a lot. There are some others I can’t think of, right now.
Norma Waterson with Eliza Carthy & The Gift Band
Camille O’Sullivan
Completely by chance, I just stumbled across this : a Waits tribute album by women singers. And very good ones too! Aimee Mann, Iris Dement, Courtney Marie Andrews etc
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Come_On_Up_to_the_House:_Women_Sing_Waits
Here’s Iris.
I have that album, @Kaisfatdad and I like it. Been a while since I played it though – I must dig it out…
I remember that one, too.
https://www.covermesongs.com/2019/11/review-come-on-up-to-the-house-women-sing-tom-waits.html
I’m pretty sure I own it too, but I find that I tend to forget to listen to these kinds of compilations and they sort of gets lost among all of the other albums.
I’m unsure if I’ve even listened once to this one!
Heidi Talbot sings Time
Sean Calvin’s Cover Girl album has this
A number of women have done all Waits albums. Notably, Holly Coke and Scarlett Johannson(!)
Cole, FFS, a typo and not a comment…
For the purposes of the tape, Holly’s sultry jazz voice and sensitive piano playing make for the better album
I can’t believe we’ve come so far without mentioning …. Rickie Lee Jones.
This thread is crying out for a playlist..
Here’s Crystal Gayle.
It’s from the OST of Francis Ford Coppola’s 1982 quirky musical One from the heart
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084445/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0
Interesting trivia from IMDB.
“Originally intended as a small film after the enormous cost, pressures, and production problems of Apocalypse Now (1979), this film’s budget ballooned from $2 million to over $25 million. The extraordinary costs led to director Francis Ford Coppola declaring bankruptcy. Coppola has stated that the films he made were done to pay off the debts incurred producing this film.”
For nostalgia’s sake, here is Crystal duetting with Tom. An unlikely combination but it works very well.
I don’t think I’ve ever posted a Bette Midler video here on the Afterword, but hey! there’s a first time for everything.
So here’s Bette, doing Tom’s “Shiver Me Timbers”
Unexpected indeed. I can’t remember Bette making too many appearances on your end of the year round-up, Duke. But she does the song proud.
Italian jazz singer Laura Fedele has also done a whole album of Waits: Pornoshow. The songs work rather well in Italian.
I was expecting a thread on the merits of Unskinny Bop and Every Rose has its Thorn.. 90’s hair metal revival
Sorry!
A little drop of poison is quite a record. I’d never heard of it until this thread, so thankyou @Foxnose!
Songs by Mr Waits. The hr-Bigband from Frankfurt giving it their all. And Ms Bakken herself, a Norwegian femme fatale who puts Jessica Rabbit to shame.
I’ve only heard a couple of tracks so far but intend to Tigger-Test it vigorously.
Thank you all for your contributions!
I spent a very enjoyable Sunday dipping into all these wonderful covers.
This morning’s discovery is jazzy chanteuse Marissa Mulder. She has recorded a live show of Tom’s songs interspersed with some entertaining anecdotes: Tom …. in his own words. A pleasant surprise.
Alice
I’m going to take it with me
Here’s that DuCool fave, Bette Midler, again, in fine voice on SNL.
And in a duet with Tom from Foreign Affairs
Martha Wainwright sang a Tom Waits song on the current Transatlantic Sessions tour when it rocked up in Brum last week. Unfortunately it was a song I didn’t recognise but it was very good.
There y’ go.
Off at a tangent @hubert rawlinson, but I suspect you will find this interview quite interesting.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/12/style/martha-wainwright-memoir.html
Alas it says I have reached the limit of my free amount of articles despite not reading that one.
I must get the book though.
My Spotify playlist now contains a ridiculous 76 songs. I know that not all of you use Spotify, so for your interest here is a list some of the artists and the songs they perform. The letters in brackets indicate which Waits album the song appeared on.
Sacrilege I know, but I think that some of these lasses here, deliver the songs better than Tom does. Certainly in a more accessible style!
Complete albums of Waits songs
Holly Cole – Temptation
Rebekka Bakken – Little drop of poison
Scarlett Johansson – Anywhere I lay my head
Laura Fedele – Pornoshow (Laura Fedele interpreta Tom Waits)
Serene Spedicato – My Waits. Tom Waits Songbook
Marissa Muldur – Tom….In his words ( live with anecdotes)
Fluct – All the world is green
Various Artists – Tributes
Come up to the house – Women sing Waits
Step right up
Songs on my playlist
Solveig Slettahjell – Take It With Me (MV)
Sarah Jarosz- Come on Up to the House (MV)
Rickie Lee Jones – Rainbow Sleeves (written for RLJ by TW. Never recorded by him)
Eleni Mandell – Muriel (FA)
Jennifer Warnes – Invitation to the blues (SC)
Cibelle – Green Grass (RG)
Diana Krall – Temptation (FWY)
10,000 Maniacs – I hope I don’t fall in love with you (CT)
Heidi Talbot – Time (RD)
Tori Amos – Time (RD)
Shawn Colvin- (Looking for the) Heart of Saturday Night (HOSN)
Crystal Gale – Old Boyfriends (OFTH)
Bette Midler – Shiver me timbers (HOSN)
Madeleine Peyroux – Heart of Saturday Night (HOSN)
Kat Edmonson – You can never hold back spring (Orphans: BBB)
Astrid Seriese – Blow wind blow (FWY)
Holly Cole – Falling down (BT)
Mathilde Santing -Broken bicycles (OFTH)
Maria Joao & Mario Langinha – Tom Traubert’s Blues (SC)
Norma Waterson & the Gift Band – Strange Weather (BT)
Camille O’ Sullivan – All the world is green (B.M.)
Norah Jones – The long way home (Orphans: BBB)
Neko Case – Xmas card from a hooker in Minneapolis (BV)
Sea of Love – Cat Power (old song also covered by TW on Brawlers)
Lisa Moscatiello – Innocent when you dream (FWY)
Alison Kraus & Robert Plant – Trampled Rose (RG)
Lisa Bassenge Trio – Ol’ 55 (CT)
Serena Spedicato – Blue Valentines (BV)
Kathryn Williams – Innocent when you dream (FWY)
Patty Griffin – Ruby’s Arms (H & V)
Beth Hart – Chocolate Jesus (MV)
Angie McMahon – Take it with me (MV)
Anna Ternheim – Anywhere I lay my head is home (RD)
Madeleine Peyroux Tango till they’re sore (RD), Heart of Saturday night (HOSN)
Emiliana Torrini .- I hope that I don’t call in love with you (CT)
Cida Moreira .¨- Tango til they’re sore (RD)
Cat Power& Steve Shelley – Yesterday is here (FWY)
Frente – Ruby’s Arms (H & V)
Marianne Faithful – Strange Weather (written for her)
Sarah McLachan – Ol’ 55 (CT)
Blackberry Winter – House where nobody lives (MV)
Corinne Bailey Rae – Jersey Girl (H & V)
Youn Sun Nah – Jockey full of Bourbon (RD)
Angela McCluskey & Triptych – Soldier’s Things (ST)
Courtney Marie Andrews – Downtown Train (RD)
Aimee Mann – Hold on (MV)
Phoebe Bridgers – Georgia Lee (MV)
Marissa Mulder – Alice (Alice)
Christine Collier – Dirt in the ground (BM)
G.T. Nash – Blue Valentines (BV)
Cida Moreira – Tango till they’re sore. (RD)
What conclusions can we draw? Italians, Canadians and Norwegians seem to be particularly keen about Mr Waits. He’s the darling of jazz singers too.
More importantly: what a very fine songwriter he is!
A very readable article about Tom on the occasion of hs 70th birthday.
https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/tom-waits-turns-70-the-man-behind-the-myth/
I like this quote.
“When asked by NPR’s Scott Simon what it is about Waits’s music that invites women in particular to sing, Alison Moorer simply responded, “Heart”.
Here’s an excellent Variety review of Come on up to the house, as mentioned by @retropath2 above.
https://variety.com/2019/music/album-reviews/come-on-up-to-the-house-women-sing-tom-waits-tribute-album-review-1203413149/
This quote hits the nail on the head.
“Freed from Waits’ gravelly, way-down-in-the-hole brogue, his female interpreters discover dramatic new shapes and colors within” his songs.”
Here’s Aussie newcomer Angie McMahon from the album.
Secondhandsongs.com is a wonderful resource.
To my delight, I just discovered that one of Sweden’s finest interpreters of modern song, Ebba Forsberg, has recorded a Waits tribute album in Swedish. I bet @Locust and @DuCo01 knew that already.
She sings darned well in English too!
You lose that bet, @Kaisfatdad – in fact, she has one of those names that I get confused with other similar names and I couldn’t tell you if I’ve even heard her sing before…
In many ways I’m often torn about this kind of tastefully grown-up music! It can often get very dull, yes; even when it’s Waits. Ms Forsberg was a bit on the dull side for my taste, I’m afraid.
What is this @Locust? Tasteful? Grown-up? Moi??
I do see what you are getting at with Ebba. The Duke and I certainly enjoyed her album of Leonard Cohen covers in Swedish
But from being the advocate of the likes of rowdy, chaotic, unlistenable Albanian jazz-reggae fusions have I now become the advocate of elegant, refined, sophisticated, exquisite adult sounds that can be played when the vicar comes over for tea?
It looks that way!
Secondhand songs is a great launchpad, but has become desperately out of date. When I go looking for specific songs or artists and their cover versions, it is where I start. Then it is YouTube and Soundcloud searches. Then Bandcamp. Finally the databases of Spotify, Amazon Music, Tidal, Apple Music etc etc. And still no bugger has done a version of RTs Back Street Slide…….
What I enjoyed about secondhandsongs this time round was that I found things I didn’t even know existed.
It’s an enormous job to keep a site like this up to date. Spotify and Yer Tube are very useful complements to it. Find a song and then listen to it. You are a King of Kovers, Retro. I am a meandering idler.