#357 Tom Waits, 'Rain Dogs' (1985)

Previously #399

With the utmost respect to Mr. Waits, this album is demented. In a good way, of course. On this record he chose to use an unusual motley of instruments, giving the album its unique sound; marimba, accordion, double bass, trombone and banjo. The result is an album that sounds like a 1930s New Orleans Jazz record, crossed with a Kurt Weill opera made in the basement of a gritty 1970s rock club while a samba party is happening upstairs. One thing that occurred to me while listening to it is that it kinda sounds like the music Bob Dylan was making in the late ‘90s/early-to-mid 2000s, music and vocal-wise. Could it be that Tom Waits influenced the great Dylan himself?

After the rollercoaster journey that this album takes you on, 3 tracks before the end of the 19-track album, you’re hit out of nowhere with ‘Downtown Train,’ arguably the most mainstream Tom Waits will ever get. A song that was later turned into a major hit by Rod Stewart. On tracks such as ‘Black Mariah,’ ‘Union Square’ and ‘Blind Love,’ you have the unmistakable guitar playing (and vocals in the case of the last track) of Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards. The two are actually a match made in heaven. 

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