Mr. Siegel - Heartattack And Vine [075]

Sam and Martin welcome back Vera for another track from Heartattack & Vine, this week with 200% more jangly piano. We also welcome the contribution of listener Mike Smith, chipping in not only thoughts about Mr. Siegal but also the anthemic "so long luv" stylings of the east-end's finest. We get to compare some of the orchestral choices of both performers, as well as the brutality of Waits's lyrics and point of view.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Mr. Siegal, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Ain't No Pleasing You, Mustn't Grumble, Chas & Dave (1982)

Yes, The Sound Of McAlmont And Butler, McAlmont & Butler (1995)

Clip from Abandon Ship, dir./wr. Richard Sale (1957)

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On The Nickel - Heartattack And Vine [074]

With a warm welcome to this week's guest host Vera Chok, we immediately dive into UNNECESSARY KEY CHANGES, totally unnecessary (albeit pretty amazing) key changes. And Christmas time feels. We also look back at some of the themes that we've discussed throughout the life of this podcast, as well as the freeform improvisation of Canned Heat, and a brief examination of early solo albums of Sting.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
On The Nickel, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Fried Hockey Boogie, Boogie With Canned Heat, Canned Heat (1968)

On The Road Again, Boogie with Canned Heat, Canned Heat (1968)

Epic Key Changes, YouTube, Collective Cadenza (2013)

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'Til The Money Runs Out - Heartattack And Vine [073]

Is Waits telling a story of newspaper distribution this week? Perhaps the grim reaper's journeying through LA's suburbs? Is a spoon-player trying to blag a bit more sound-check time? All we can say with certainty is… we don't know. We just don't know. (Thanks for tuning in…) Explicit warning for Ronnie Barron's disco odyssey, as well as Martin's dance moves. Thanks for sticking with us this long Sarah.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
'Til The Money Runs Out, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

I Can Give It To You, 12" Single, Ronnie Barron (1980)

My Key Don't Fit, Gumbo Stew, Dr. John & Ronnie Barron (1993/2012)

Talk That Talk, More Gumbo Stew, Dr. John & Ronnie Barron (1993/2012)

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Jersey Girl - Heartattack And Vine [072]

More music discussion (that's what we're all here for, right, no surprises there?) with Sarah, Sam and Martin as we look at some of the… lighter lyrical writing of Tom Waits in this track from Heartattack and Vine. With various discussions about the impact of originals vs. covers, as well as the 20-year-leap time-travelling abilities of Sarah, we follow this album on yet another stylistic twist as we work through the album Song by Song.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Jersey Girl, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Tears On My Pillow, Enjoy Yourself, Kylie Minogue (1989)

Tears On My Pillow, We Are The Imperials, Little Anthony & The Imperials (1958/1998)

Jersey Girl, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Live 1975-1985, Bruce Springsteen (1986)

History Of Lyrics That Aren't Lyrics, YouTube, Collective Cadenza (2011)

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Downtown - Heartattack And Vine [071]

We're back amongst the nightlife of the city with Tom Waits in this fourth track from Heartattack And Vine, with Sarah Cook as our latest guest-host-tour-guide. We discuss some of the issues tying danger and identity to this location, as well as society's perception of those issues, in another episode of Song by Song.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Downtown, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Downtown, Petula Clark, The Best of Petula Clark (1996/1964)

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Saving All My Love For You - Heartattack And Vine [070]

Sam and Martin are back for one more debate with Andy and Miranda over the musical stylings of Tom Waits, this time with 100% more lyrics. With some strong analysis of Whitney Huston's musical (and cricketing) pedigree, as well as a lot of description of the home life of the Zaltzmans, Song by Song grabs the reins of this particular hoss and holds on for dear life.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Saving All My Love For You, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Saving All My Love For You, Whitney Huston, Whitney Huston (1985)

Postman Pat Theme Tune, BBC, Bryan Daly (1981)

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In Shades (Instrumental) - Heartattack And Vine [069]

Song by Song re-tasks itself as Bid by Bid, as we start our in-depth examination of the auction history of Andy Zaltzman, keyboard by keyboard. With discussion of why on earth Waits includes this track on the album in the first place, we retain our laser-like focus on our project by discussing brand names of electric pianos, slooping to alleviated Ds and who knows what else.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
In Shades (Instrumental), Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Organ Donor, Endtroducing…, DJ Shadow (1996)

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Heartattack And Vine - Heartattack And Vine [068]

So here we are in season seven. Thanks for coming back, pull up a chair why dontcha and take a load off, we're just going to talk about Tom Waits for a bit. This week on Song by Song, Martin and Sam are joined by professional podcaster and Martin's landlord Andy Zaltzman, as well as first-time podcaster and landlord's wife Miranda Zaltzman, for some discussion of the birth names of blues artists, portfolio careers available in Hollywood circa 1980 and, of course, Benny Hill. 

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Heartattack And Vine, Heartattack And Vine, Tom Waits (1980)

Heartattack And Vine, Best of the Bizarre Sessions (1990-1994), Screamin' Jay Hawkins (2000)

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Listening Party for Heartattack&Vine, 20:30 on Feb 22nd

Hullo folks.

We're gearing up for season seven of Song by Song, so why not join us for a little pre-discussion listen to the album with us over on Mixlr?

Martin and Sam won't interjecting as usual due to scheduling difficulties, but we'll both be in the chatroom, sharing thoughts and opinions, taking suggestions and discussing what excites (or disturbs) us all about this upcoming album.

We'll be there from 8.30pm (that's 12.30pm PST and 3.30pm EST), so come take a listen.

Season's end for Blue Valentine

For those who prefer to binge-listen to their content, a final summing-up of our latest season of Song by Song on Tom Waits. With Caspar Salmon, Elizabeth Sankey, Jen Adamthwaite, Dave Pickering and Kit Lovelace in tow, Sam and Martin have ploughed their way through not just the 10 tracks from Blue Valentine, but also two contemporaneous(ish) Waits songs: Annie's Back In Town & Rainbow Sleeves.

We're at a turning point, arguably the first or second of Waits's career, but over the last couple of albums we've seen the writing on the wall. Waits is beginning to experiment more boldly with style, arrangement and theme, as well as in his own vocal performance. Many fans will anticipate the beginning of the 80s with Heartattack and Vine as being a major shift in his style and outlook, and we're looking forward to considering this in the coming episodes.

So, for those who want to prepare fully, find below a full playlist of all of our season six episodes, as well as Spotify and YouTube links to all the songs we're discussing. And, if you've missed out on any episodes or tracks from previous series, everything is ready and waiting to play at the bottom of the Closing Time, The Heart of Saturday Night, Nighthawks at the Diner, Small Change and Foreign Affairs pages at songbysongpodcast.com

Thanks for listening, we'll see you very soon for season seven.

St. James Hospital, Traditional, Benjamin Luxon (via YouTube)

Annie’s Back In Town, Paradise Alley OST, Tom Waits (1978)

(Meet Me In) Paradise Alley, Paradise Alley OST, Tom Waits (1978)

Paradise Alley, dir. Sylvester Stallone (1978)

Rainbow Sleeves (Rickie Lee Jones Special) - Blue Valentine/Girl At Her Volcano [067]

Once more, with feeling… as a final coda to our sixth season, we switch focus from Waits directly and instead look at his then-partner Rickie Lee Jones. Kit departs from us with some observations of not only the music of Waits and Jones, but also some of the social implications of writing emotional and emotive material about another "public figure", while Sam talks about… minor thirds, or sevenths, or something? And Martin nails down our inaccuracies.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Rainbow Sleeves, Girl At Her Volcano, Rickie Lee Jones [w. Tom Waits] (1978/1983)

A Lucky Guy, Pirates, Rickie Lee Jones (1981)

Rainbow Sleeves, deleted scene from "Divine Madness", Bette Midler (1980)

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Annie’s Back In Town - Blue Valentine/Paradise Alley OST [066]

We're done with Blue Valentine, but season six continues for another couple of weeks as Kit, Martin and Sam take another trip to the movies with this track from the Paradise Alley soundtrack. Comparisons this week between this track and others from Waits's recent history, as well as the reinterpretation of a man singing as a woman vs a woman's own perspective. And one more episode to come before we move on…

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Annie’s Back In Town, Paradise Alley OST, Tom Waits (1978)

Christmas Card From A Hooker In Minneapolis, New Coat Of Paint, Neko Case/Tom Waits (2000)


and for extras: Kentucky Avenue (play this alongside the youtube "Annie's Back In Town" for musical comparison)

(Meet Me In) Paradise Alley, Paradise Alley OST, Tom Waits (1978)

Paradise Alley, dir. Sylvester Stallone (1978)

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Blue Valentines - Blue Valentine [065]

The plural track of the singular album brings our tour through Waits's sixth album to a close, as Martin, Sam and Kit discuss one of their favourite songs from Blue Valentine. With some discussion over traditional images of lovers, the power dynamic between the singer and the object of their song (and affection), and some theories about the album as a whole, we come to the end of… wait a minute, we're doing what next week?!?

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Blue Valentines, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

My Funny Valentine, Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Rodgers and Hart Songbook, Ella Fitzgerald (1956)

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A Sweet Little Bullet from a Pretty Blue Gun - Blue Valentine [064]

As Blue Valentine heads towards its close, Kit Lovelace joins Martin and Sam to discuss some of the violent imagery buried in the dense storytelling of Waits. With the oppositions in the lyrics (as well as the title) and comparison between Waits and They Might Be Giants (anyone want to start a partner podcast? Anyone?!?), Song by Song once again discusses the big issues facing society: this week, ants vs picnics.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
A Sweet Little Bullet from a Pretty Blue Gun, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

Sapphire Bullets Of Pure Love, Flood, They Might Be Giants (1990)

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Kentucky Avenue - Blue Valentine [063]

As Jen and Dave make their final appearance for this season of Song by Song, the album turns to a very different style and tone of writing as Waits looks back on the details and memories from his own life to tell a story of childhood dreams. With comparisons to the work and life of Ian Dury, and the benefits and drawbacks of specific concrete imagery in lyric writing, we continue our journey through Blue Valentine.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Kentucky Avenue, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

Reasons To Be Cheerful (Part 3), Single/Jukebox Dury, Ian Dury & The Blockheads (1979/1981)

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Whistlin’ Past the Graveyard - Blue Valentine [062]

This week on Song by Song we (finally) examine the influence of Tom Waits on the musical writing of Joss Whedon, as well as a perhaps inevitable comparison with The King of Rock and Roll. As Martin, Jen, Dave and Sam discuss more of the density and ambiguity of Waits's lyric writing, the question of how to represent danger and evil in songwriting arises, along with the extent of Elvis's influence on... everything?

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Whistling’ Past the Graveyard, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

Trouble, King Creole, Elvis Presley (1958)

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Wrong Side of the Road - Blue Valentine [061]

With scant regard for conventions of highway safety, Tom Waits insists on heading into oncoming traffic in this sixth track from Blue Valentine. Jen and Dave return to discuss the application of Russian Formalist theories of literature to the songwriting, the singing techniques of Waits as compared with Nancy Sinatra, and the extremity of the character he's able to adopt.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Wrong Side of the Road, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

These Boots Are Made For Walkin’, Boots, Nancy Sinatra (1966)

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$29.00 - Blue Valentine [060]

Sam and Martin are joined by our latest guest hosts Dave Pickering and Jen Adamthwaite for more debates around the authenticity and appropriation of musical styles, as well as the difficulty of speaking for and about people from different backgrounds.

Nb: the Tracy Chapman track we discuss is "Behind The Wall" from the album Tracy Chapman.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
$29.00, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

Shot Gun Blues, Briefcase Full Of Blues, The Blues Brothers/Donnie Walsh (1978)

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Romeo Is Bleeding - Blue Valentine [059]

For the final week of Elizabeth and Caspar's hosting of Song by Song, we hear Tom Waits describe the blood-soaked story of Romeo's death as well as Johnny Cash's  version of a cowboy's funeral march through the Streets of Laredo. As Blue Valentine reaches its mid-point, echoes and resonances start to make themselves known through the album, and the variety of musical styles becomes more and more evident. So... y'know, that's what we talk about.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Romeo Is Bleeding, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

The Streets Of Laredo, American IV: The Man Comes Around, Johnny Cash (2002)

St. James Hospital, Traditional, Benjamin Luxon (via YouTube)

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Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis - Blue Valentine [058]

This week in Song by Song, Martin, Sam, Elizabeth and Caspar take another trip down memory lane, hearing the life and times of a lady from Minneapolis laid out, difficulties and all. While there may be some debate over the efficacy of the twist at the end of the story, the discussion ranges from the elegance of the music, the need for structure in songwriting and the value of language as communication compared to texture.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis, Blue Valentine, Tom Waits (1978)

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