Nighthawks At The Diner

Waits always has an interesting vibe with him.

Tom and Jerry jazz with Spike the dog singing. Absolutely dreadful.

Not my cup of tea

This is actually atrocious

Too long

It’s been a minute since I’ve had a Tom Waits album, and here is my fourth album of his to review (also, this is my third album from 1975 this week). My most recent Tom Waits album was Heartattack and Vine, which I reviewed over 500 albums ago. I thought Heartattack and Vine was fine, I thought Bone Machine was really good, but I absolutely loved Rain Dogs. Reading the description and reviews of this album does give me some pause though. I enjoy hearing Tom Waits sing, and it doesn’t sound like he does much of that on this album, instead opting to deliver spoken words over jazz music. Hmm. Well, I guess it’s time to go to Tom’s Diner… er… Nighthawks at the Diner/Studio. I have a lot of feelings about this album. I really thought I was going to hate listening to this, and is it got started, I could feel the bitter hater inside me start to come out. But as I got settled in, I kinda enjoyed Nighthawks at the Diner. The live audience was a mixed bag for me. There were times that they laughed at things that weren’t really that funny, and it felt really awkward. But the presence of the audience really gave this album an excellent atmosphere. Before listening to this, I read that it was recorded in a studio, but part of the way through this album, I thought to myself “man, it’s really cool that he recorded this in a diner.” I don’t know how this album managed to gaslight me so heavily, but it did. As for the spoken word element of this album, that was a mixed bag as well. I think Tom Waits is a great storyteller, so even though I was bummed that he only sang once on this album, I didn’t wind up minding the fact that most of this album was spoken. However, some of the longer songs just went on too long for my taste, and I felt kind of bored listening to them. However, I did really love “Big Joe and Phantom 309.” The only song that Tom Waits sang on, “Better Off Without A Wife” was easily my favorite song on the album. One of the things that drove me nuts on this album was when Tom would throw in phrases like “with my disconcerting, precarious emotional situation” or “used car salesmen dressed up in Purina Checkerboard slacks and Foster Grant wrap-around.” Seriously Tom, shut up. You sound like an asshole sometimes on this album. Musically, I thought this album sounded good. I thought the bass playing was the best part of the music, and it seems like the guy who played bass has quite an impressive list of career credits to his name. The piano playing was really good too, and I tended to really enjoy the songs the featured the piano more prominently. Nighthawks at the diner was a bit of mixed bag, but I could see myself firing this album up again on a cold night with a nice beer in my hand.

Sounds like a Simpson’s episode where they never leave Moe’s. The music is fantastic, the speak singing gets old fast.

A really interesting and entertaining album. I won’t likely listen again, but glad to have had the experience.

A pseudo live album that's a real blast, you can tell Tom is feeling the crowd assembled in his fake smoky jazz club as he tells his stories preambling into the actual song.

Good

I generally enjoy Tom Waits' music. From listening to this album, I've learned I'm not a fan of his spoken word. The re-creation of a jazz club in the studio was a novel approach, and he pulls it off well in terms of mimicking the vibe and feel of the setting. I just thought the banter before the songs was overlong and frankly boring; maybe if I had lived in 1970s Los Angeles I would have enjoyed/appreciated the banter and references more, but by and large it felt like cosplaying rather than any authentic connection with the audience and environment. The more they were playing music, the more I enjoyed the album. And the bass player deserves massive credit - the playing is great, and anchors the music which was otherwise all too fleeting. I admire the concept of the album, the mood and vibe, and a good bit of the music. But overall I don't see myself being drawn back to listen to this.

First draft Bukowski in front of a really good jazz ensemble

I mean come on.... really? Best Song: Sausage and Eggs Rating: 3/10 Stars: 2

The quintessential early Tom Waits experience. It was a stroke of genius to put out a manufactured live recording so early into his career. The life and energy wheezing through this album, you can almost smell the cheap cigarette smoke. Wait’s drunk poet character is at its best here. I prefer his later more experimental records, but this album nails the tortured lounge jazz artist thing so perfectly, it’s always a joy to listen to this through in full.

Not as bad as I thought it would be after reading reviews.

Am I supposed to know who this guy is? I feel like the enjoyment of this album solely depends on if you know this guy's character or not. Is he a comedian? I don't really get it. It sounded like everyone in the crowd had fun so good for them.

i'll give it points for being an interesting concept on paper, but if i wanted to listen to a gravelly man talk-sing and aimlessly vamp, i could just go to a dive bar. i'm sorry, tom waits. i couldn't tom wait for this to be over.

this whole thing is weird. and not just in a wow, tom waits is such a strange guy kinda way. this is basically a standup comedy album with mediocre, haphazard jokes, performed in front of a studio audience that's trying its best to sound like a live audience, covering nothing in particular in the most roundabout way possible. that said, the bassist absolutely makes this worth hearing once. favorites: eggs and sausage (in a cadillac with susan michelson), better off without a wife

Highlights: Putnam County Eggs & Sausage Nobody Jazzy spoken word. Humorous poetry.

Tom Waits makes music for cool and hip people, like me.

Tom here is trying to sing the blues. I can't say whether he's doing great at it or not. The background jazz is good. I had to stop listening when he got to the bit about cranking it and the audience was cheering. I couldn't handle it.

idgi

I never understood the hype for Tom Waits. Ok man, we get it, you smoke and you drink and you're some sort of professional bum. I wanted to give this an extra star for the instrumentalists, especially the upright bass player who keeps this from being a complete mess, but this whole genre of "mumbling fucked up guy" is ridiculous.

There are a couple of standout tracks, but this is one of those cases where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. I love this album. I love how it was recorded (in front of a small audience like it was a jazz club). I love that Waits's voice isn't quite as gravelly as it is when I started to listen to him (late 90s). Just great. Love this as a genre-bending gem.

kinda music to drink whiskey, smoke cigs, and cheat on your wife to

(not sure what it says about me but) feels like Christmas

an album and a comedy set all in one neat package

About 1 Hour too long, not a fan of the vocals.

The jazz music in the background was quite good but the spoken word mumbling and some of the lyrics make this album an unlistenable one thus it deserves one star.

I could see how this jazzy stand up album wouldn’t be for everyone. However, I enjoyed it.

Terrible

"Oh nice a jazz album" I thought, closely followed by "oh no" as soon as he began singing. It's beat poetry in the style of stand up comedy with an annoying audience cheer, but it's not funny. He sounds terrible, like a drunk rambling over the music. Hate his laugh. Awful. Why are the bad ones always so long too?

I am not very familiar with Tom Waits, wasn’t too impressed. I would like to listen to one of his newer albums to compare, as this was not what I was expecting

It's funny, I got a whole series of studio albums from Tom Waits in the last couple of weeks -- at least two of them, maybe three -- and just didn't get much out of those. Conversely, I really liked this live record. It had a lot of soul and swing to it, where I felt the studio records just didn't have that much emotion, or at least, it felt more monotone. I love live music, and there are quite a few bands out there where the recorded output is fine, nothing special, but the live recordings are fantastic. Tom Waits might just fit into that category for me. We will see. I had never listened to Tom Waits before doing the 1001.

Conceptually a fun album. Jazz club vibes - music itself is excellent. Lyrically: abysmal.

Neat concept but cannot stand his voice

me gustó y me atrajo, aunque es un disco que se disfruta más si hablás inglés nativo. SIendo hispanohablante me cuesta más que me lleguen las historias que cuenta, o prestarles atención

Not for me. 1/5

I really don't know how you can't love Tom Waits. He's so infectiously authentic and his stuff is so off the cuff and earnestly goofy it's great

Interesting. Not what I expected. Probably would have enjoyed it a bit more if I listened to lyrics. I thought the background music was the best part as I like lounge jazz. But it also sounded a little like a “joke” or novelty album - maybe the voice but sounded a bit like Dave Chapelle, or the Fraser theme song

More a spoken word album than a traditional album, but I really enjoyed it! Much better than the previous Tom Waits albums I’ve listened to and quite funny too.

Bro sounds wasted

Band is great but Waits’ slurred, grumbled, phlegmy mess of a vocal style is not appealing to me in any form.

ESCUCHANDO....viejo borracho en un bar. habba habba ding ding dong. Suena romanticón.

I like Tom Waits, this one could be shorter tho Will I listen to again: 22%

Funny jazz!

The weird and wild world of Waits. Listening to this is likely staring at a car wreck.. you can’t look away. Do I really like it? I don’t know. Definitely original. And he sure is a poet. But as far as the music goes?

Just pure shit. The band sounds good behind this cartoon character.

There’s a time and a place for albums that create a time and place. In this case, my time was the bus stop skirting the three-lane overpass on Canning Bridge. The 8am gunmetal skies pound the life out of any colour that dare be anything less vibrant than bright yellow; a world as flat and affectless as a banking app. It’s possible to find things to love here – something about the cold air enriches the diesel fumes, creating a deep, peaty perfume; small moments of camaraderie on the throttled concourse as commuters and students dance into and out of each others’ way – but only if you’re trying. Nighthawks produces a warm, intimate atmosphere that’s the result of a fiction even before its songs tell their stories. It’s quite something to feel centred in my own diesel-perfumed moment while also in the crowd of a jazz club, and sitting alongside Big Joe all at once. Talk about peripatetic… Metafictions aside, this album is full to the brim with brilliant writing, compelling stories and moments of outrageous fun. The richness of detail is alone something to behold … all in all, it’s the work of a bona fide down and out Dickens. Musically, the record suffers. Nahhh I’m joking, it’s outstanding. The piano on “Eggs and Sausage…”, stood up by a bass that’s interpolating Nina Simone while the sax ducks and weaves through the melodic hyperactivity is an especially affecting melange. Waits presides over the whole thing splendidly, employing the persona of the most interesting person in the worst room you’ve ever been in and never breaking character. If I was anywhere less anonymous than the moment I was in, standing by a highway waiting for a bus to work, I don’t think I’d have managed to catch the magic of this record. But as it was, my moment’s distinct lack of intrigue was the perfect vantage for surveying Waits’ wholly charming empire of largely charmless detail. And, I suppose, by extension, mine too.

Este jazz sí me gusta. Tom Waits es increíble.

The painting, the title of this album is based on is immeasurably better than the music

3- Stars (7/15)

Baby Tom Waits holding court as a lounge lizard. It’s vibe. Not necessarily my favorite of his Asylum records - but lays the groundwork for Small Change.

It certainly inspires the feel of a small club. Feels a bit forced sometimes though

This guy is so crazy I respect it! But I will never listen again

I think in the omnipresent lexicon of music as an art form no other artist creates more poetic tension that never resolves quite like Tom. Part of what I find so unique about his writing is in parts and times of my life he describes a charcter with the exact motivations and thoughts I do, all whilst never quite saying something cathartic enough to make me see where I've gone wrong in my ways. Nighthawks at the diner is a fine example of this where every song starts off with an intro telling you the motivation behind the piece, followed by the poem which falls into that thematic limbo I described. For example, Putnam County - my home county. I was eager to reach this point in the song to see if Tom had cracked a nut on my fellow townsfolk and had something to say that would help a young man understand his home. All but to be left with a generic description of small town America and themes of the usual NYC barlife. I was hurt, shocked, ashamed and allbeit befuddled. But I guess in the sense thats a stylistic choice and not something to really take offense to. But what I'm really trying to say is a lot of songs felt unfinished or unending. Hard to determine when the last ends and next begins. Which is unusal for some of the other Tom albums we have on this list. I wish I had kinder words. I like Tom's attitude, the story, the music and the overall vibe. But music is art and this felt like a play more than an album.

in a nutshell: jazzy slam poetry Overall: 3/10

That was......interesting. I'm not sure if that's what Tom Waits sounds like all the time, but it wasn't what I was expecting. However, his word play and storytelling is quite impressive. As a listener, you feel like you've been dropped into a sleezy, smoky, after-dark piano/jazz bar taking in the live entertainment that evening. Albums that make you feel like you're in their environment and a part of its unfolding are always some of my favorites to listen to, but parts of this one felt like they dragged on a little too long for me. With all that said, the "Intro to" and "Better Off Without a Wife" had me locked into its melody and lyrics. I thoroughly enjoyed that one. That track alone moves this from a 2 to a 3 for me.

Actually, *this" is the album that makes me want to throw on a pair of shades and chain smoke cigarettes in a dimly lit subterranean bar. Tom Waits does what he does best on this album. Genuinely funny at times and surprisingly tender in other spots. The atmosphere created throughout the album is really cool, too. Still can't believe this was recorded in a studio and not live in some tiny, hole-in-the-wall jazz club. I'm not the biggest Tom Waits fan but I won't hesitate to back to this album.

All Tom Waits stuff is pretty knee deep in cariacature. I like Nighthawks At the Diner, especially Better Off Without A Wife and Big Joe & Phantom 309, but the general take on Waits is that his best stuff is yet to come. This early jazz stuff is fun but kitsch even for him. I prefer his stumbling drunk evil clown stuff from the 80s. The actual jazz band here rocks and the appearance of a live set is well tweaked here. It's a great concept and Waits executes it really well but it's sleepy by design. By the end, you're drifting off which makes sense - you're supposed to be eight beers deep. Favorite Tracks: Better Off Without A Wife, Big Joe & Phantom 309, Nighthawk Postcards

Waits is quite an acquired taste. I like his experimental approach but over a full album it tends to be a bit much. This definitely falls into that camp at over 70 minutes and the fake jazz club conceit. Some of the one-liners and surreal storytelling was entertaining at first but about halfway through the whole thing started wafting over me and I just wasn't paying any attention. I want to check out more of his later Asylum output but I don't think this was a particularly good place to start.

This is one of my favorite Waits albums and I'm thrilled to see it on the list. Great feel to the album with its live presentation. Outstanding stories and music that grooves. Bravo.

Caralho que foda!!!!!! Conta uma história q eu n entendi, mas o instrumental eh mto foda KKKKKKKKKM SLK 10/10

The storytelling is incredible, took me to a dingy bar where I was drinking whiskey on the rocks. Sadly I listened while on a drizzly morning dog walk. Very good album.

Enjoyed listening to the story told, always loved Tom's voice. So dark and unique. Not something I casually listen to all the time though.

Thoroughly enjoyed the storytelling through the album

Respect, but I will not seek this out. Probably would have kept my interest longer live, but it got old. I did like Big John and the Phantom 309.

Surprisingly deep. Starts off a bit rough, but Waits is just accelerating from a cold stop.

A great one from a great one !

"All i know is... if i said half the stuff ol' Tom says on this one, i'd be arrested... but... what a cool album... like a night out at a jazz club from another world... a world where you happened to be there the night a guy like Tom Waits was doin' it... it mystifies me how a middle class, California white cat could be so LA/NYC, seedy side type "singer"... in the vein of a Scatman Crouthers, let's say... or Cab Calloway... if you were in that otherworldly club... that night... you'd be witnessing a genius artist at work... i'm sure New Orleans at night is like this... i can't really recall... i was a bit inebriated at the time... and Tom "acts" like he is a bit tipsy... which allows the "wise fool" to spew whatever he likes.... and you are entertained by the audacity... and the musicality... to be in this guy's band would be a challenge to say the least... most of all, Tom Waits is a master story teller... FIVE STARS"

I cannot get behind the pseudo stand-up routine in between every song on the album, it really drags it down. Tom Wait's voice is very unique but the songs themselves are so damn boring.

“Live” album of Tom Waits doing his thing. Weird lyrics. Jokes. Sparse instrumentation beyond the piano. Definitely not up to the standards that he will hit later in his career but a lot of fun here. Wish it was tighter as a single album though.

I love Tom Waits. That gravelling voice.

What quite sure what to expect from Tom waits album. I think I recognize him more from from appearances and a few random songs. Entertaining story teller. Could easily picture being in crowded room listening to him, much like the cover of the album.

Good Jazz album

love the piano, need to read the lyrics

painful but had some chuckles

A very interesting album that I'm having a hard time rating. I thought the performance was fun and engaging especially once the album gets going towards the end of side 1, but a lot of the meandering felt out of place for a music record. This feels like an album that would have been best to experience in person. Lot to love here, but suffers from inconsistency and parts that don't translate well without a visual component. Top tracks: Eggs And Sausage, Better Off Without A Wife, Nobody

4.3 - Just great vibes and so disntinctive

This is the first Tom Waits album (out of 5 so far) that I'm giving over a 3. And just barely. I thought it was conceptually quite interesting, but I still don't find his songwriting musically compelling or his voice tolerable. 3.1/5

Long. Quite like the concept, probably a bit too much of the same thing. A lot of 'talking in a gravely voice'. Some nice jazzy music

The drunk smoker in the corner of the bar rambling on about whatever strikes his fancy. Though in real life there's no laughing audience.

Hilarious entertaining and peculiar

Would not buy

Three more Tom Waits albums to go which means three more worst days of my life

Spoken word accompanied by a jazz quartet. I enjoyed the story telling, but probably won’t listen again in a long time. 3/5

Music for people who think alcoholism and lung cancer are cool. How TF is this on a list of albums you need to listen to before you die?

It was recorded over four sessions in July in the Los Angeles Record Plant studio in front of a small invited audience set up to recreate the atmosphere of a jazz club. reviewers thought at the time that its cool but to me that just sounds like a fragile ego and thats how the music sounds too ??? inviting a bunch of yesmen to record an album to make it sound like you're rocking a club

Conversazioni cantate con piano e basso di sottofondo, stile barettino con fumo di sigaretta e bourbon. Carino ma lunghissimo, perso motlo entusiamo

Spoken word over jazz. I dig it.

3.4/5 feels like i’m there at his show the banter and transitions make it come to life

3.5

They had to close that diner after the nighthawk infestation. There were eggs in the microwave and large, ominous nests on every table. Ol’ Tommy is back with an old album and I’m pretty excited. He seems to be a weirdo with a sense of irony. That’s a good start, but to make light of the nighthawk diner incident where we lost two fry cooks to talon related maulings, that may be a bridge too far. Win me over pal. Opening Intro - See, the bass is great. The weird, ironic club singer with his bow tie all loosened is funny. The word choice is fascinating and I’m hooked. Emotional Weather Report - We’re continuing in this vein? Hell yeah. He’s crooning a little bit but the poetry remains gripping and I’m all here for it. Intro to On a Foggy Night - is this really live? Is this really love? Monkey shit brown Buicks is crushing with that one guy. On a Foggy Night - All upon a fucky night. I’m pretty sure that’s what he says. This the cutting edge analysis you can expect if you subscribe to my reviews. I will no longer allow you to read them Eggs and Sausage (In a Cadillac With Susan Michelson) - I can’t keep doubling up the reviews. This isn’t shaping up to be a banner review anyway. My brain is truly failing. If it wasn’t, I would give everything to write like this guy. It’s hilarious and still somehow evocative of a deeply rich atmosphere. I’ve had some pretty dangerous veal cutlets myself. Better Off Without a Wife - uh oh. The old ball and chain anthem. Being married so many times that you’re covered in rice marks is fantastic. Listen, this is probably the worst song so far with the dumbest concept, but it fits the overall aesthetic of this whole thing. Keep it rolling. Nighthawk Postcards (From Easy Street) - Ah man, you’ve been to easy street?? Oh no, wait he’s across town from easy street drinking cleaning products. I have to admit. That’s a downgrade. Hope it has gotten better for Tom since then. Warm Beer and Cold Women - I think we’ve all reached the end of an emotional cul-de-sac at one point or another. How often is that emotional end at a convenience store/bar. This one is like a Randy Newman song for drunk adults. I don’t hate it. Putnam County - The poetry continues in a pleasing vein, but the piano is a little grating here. If this is a real live audience, he seems to have completely enraptured them. I count myself amongst the awestruck throng. Spare Parts I (A Nocturnal Emission) - YEAH! Fuck up that night before, Dawn. YEAH GET HIM. Or Them. FUCK. The car noises into the admission that he doesn’t own any Stan Getz records? Gold. We’re through the looking glass here folks. Nobody - We have a left field love ballad with what feels like an earnest attempt at singing from an inebriated performer who periodically remembers that he’s supposed to be doing Kermit the frog. I kid the man. Nothing is going to change the feeling I have about this album, and this song is actually pretty decent. Big Joe and Phantom 309 - Oh no. Are we going to get a TRUCKING SONG?? This is the ultimate muse for a true artiste. That bass is just RUMBLING. I love it. I love this. I am the Tom Waits kind of white guy, I’ve decided. Spare Parts II And Closing - Preausre and Plivelege to listen as well, gang. If this is a real concert and audience, this may have to go in the hypothetical Time Machine tour that we all inevitably imagine for ourselves. I have waxed non-poetically over this poetic piece of wax for its full duration, so I assume if you’ve made it here, you’ve either skipped my yapping or know that I loved this record. I’ve run into this a few times, where I’m struck with the possibility of a glimmering five stars upon the first time hearing an album. It seems disingenuous in a way, because albums need time, but I can’t fully describe to you the itch that this scratched. The self-aware goofiness, the brilliant, yet down to earth poetry, the virtuosic bass playing. I loved this and I’ll be damned if the fry cooks who were disembowelled by those nighthawks suffer any tribute beneath the rank of perfection. I’ll begin work on my Time Machine while you chew on this celestial display. 5 HIGHLIGHTS: On a Foggy Night, Eggs and Sausage (In a Cadillac With Susan Michelson), Spare Parts I (A Nocturnal Emission)

Very Tom Waits

After countless number of Tom Waits albums (and I am confident this is the last one I will have) I can categorically say...no

Waits is super funny, he has a ton of personality and carries the record very well. The instrumentation is great too, I particularly liked the piano. I felt the fake jazz club vibe worked really well, it didn't feel forced to me, it's a great vehicle for Waits' spoken word parts. I found the album to be a bit overlong and at some points a bit boring though, around the halfway point (around "Better Off Without A Wife"). The best were "Warm Beer and Cold Women", "Emotional Weather Report" and "On A Foggy Night".

El álbum de Tom Waits que más me gustó. Ya de por sí me parece un artista excelente, pero a veces se vuelve demasiado ronca, como si hiciera gargaras casi, y eso me distrae. En este caso la voz es rasposa, pero con gusto. La narrativa que construye a lo largo del álbum es espectacular. La interación con el público y su enorme carisma te hacen sentir que estás ahí presente entre el público, tomando un trago, sin ninguna preocupación en el mundo. Las transiciones y la dirección de la música son estupendas. Puedo decir que sin duda es hasta ahora mi álbum favorito de Tom Waits.

One part jazz, one part standup, and twelve parts a man just talking at a crowd for the hell of it. And for why was this enjoyable? I’m not sure. I desperately need someone to explain this album to me. It did run on quite long though, but I really enjoyed how he designed this album to sound live. Made it feel like you were really there in that diner on a late night just having a good time listening to this charismatic guy with a gravelly voice croon over a microphone. It really did run on long though.

Haven’t listened to early Tom Waits before and this was an absolute joy of a record. So so good.

Terrible

Loved this. Truly feels like you’re in a tiny jazz club watching watching someone spin tales. Waits has a voice you either fall into or bounce off of. I can’t get enough of his raspy drawl. Album is often more spoken word than song. Rarely listen to albums twice in one day but for this I made an exception. 5/5

Ikke for meg, men kan se appellen.

It’s official, I will never “get” Tom Waits.

I never would have claimed to enjoy jazz. I don’t know if this classifies as jazz, but, if it does, I was right. I don’t enjoy jazz.

Non benissimo, non sono un grande fan del jazz.

Atmospheric and moody, this record is unique and breaks the mold but is difficult to appreciate as a standout album. It is far more impressive as a recording than a collection of music, but still impressive as that

Self-indulgent. I've never understood the appeal of Tom Waits. Mumbley, sounds like a drunk uncle.

I love a well-executed concept album. I thought it was a live album at first so I was surprised to read that it wasn't. The theme of late night living was told in an interesting manner. Great album.

Correcto

Not my fav tom waits

This like you wanted to grab a bite to eat and accidentally stumbled into this dive bar and a crazy guy at the piano won’t stop talking and you wish you’d gone somewhere else.

Really liked this at first. Really really dragged by the end. The comedy was rhe best part.

Acho que preciso parar para sentar e, de fato, acompanhar as letras. O instrumental é bem interessante, embora

Traff godt av en eller annen grunn. Denne skal jeg sette på når jeg en dag har hjemmebibliotek med globusbar og LP spiller

Brun pub her ja. Ikke min greie vil jeg si, men interresant å høre litt av uansett. Kom meg bare igjennom halv platen før det hold da.

Tom Waits er jo bra nok, liker musikken, men ikke det albumet eller de låtene som har truffet meg mest. 2-3

Not for me

This is really not my kinda music.

Stand up Jazz and it works

Brilliant concept and execution. Waits is at his most melodious and entertaining. He hadn’t yet turned to the abrasive and abstract sound characteristic of his later and more well known period.

not bad, love the vibe

not my favorite of his. 3

A bit too long and the live thing might be a bit of a gimmick but personally Tom really makes it work with his personality and humor, just truly a fun record with a noir film type of vibe. Not as weird as his later albums or as sweet as his debut but it works well anyway

Not a bad way to spend an hour.

Nice album for a long drive. Would have been a 4 if we'd been driving at night.

More of a bit, or performance piece, than an actual album. Waits can sing, of course. But there’s a lot of spoken word here. And more acting and comedy . . . than actual songs.

This album really manages to capture the jazz club vibe extraordinarily well. It's certainly one of the more unique and interesting albums on the list, and Tom Waits always delivers good music.

A little too raspy on the vocals for me but I liked it enough to add it to my library.

Why does it feel like I am listening to beat poetry in a dive bar in San Francisco.

3.5

It's a vibe. Tom Waits haters gonna hate. Jazz club haters gonna hate. General feeling of enjoyment haters gonna hate. It's honestly bordering on 5 stars. The jazz musicianship backing is incredible, the live audience adds a whole lot fun, and Waits interludes/comedy bits are awesome. Actually in writing this I have now changed it from 4 to 5 stars. It's not an album you can throw on on a Sunday morning before you go to a family brunch. It's a dark, sarcastic, smoke-filled booze-y album that pairs perfectly with a stormy Saturday night's TV Dinner after a terrible week.

Very unique and I loved his poetry style of singing. A great story teller

I bet this guy smokes. I normally wouldn't go for an album like this, but this wasn't bad. Interesting stories and a bit of comedy. Many of the references I wouldn't get, because I didn't live in NYC in the mid 70's. I did get the Bowery Ballroom reference, because I saw Mineral play there. I'm still not a huge Tom Waits fan, but I give this a 3. It was a fun listen.

It's a no for me dawg.

Wow, I really don't get it. Bass player is the only thing I enjoyed.

It’s like what if Rawlf from the Muppets made an album and all of their jokes weren’t dog related or funny.

Tom Waits is a difficult one for me. More of a spoken word poetry album than a "Music" album but good none the less.

That's a superb album. I shouldn't like the jazziness of it, but Waits's voice and general style carry me through that effortlessly. Five stars. Would listen again - and again.

Good but a bit too long. I'm excited for the more iconic Tom Waits albums on the list

Two questions: 1. Is this Jazz? 2. Is Jazz always this horny?

Almost got 4

2 - liked the intros to the songs more than the actual songs

Tom Waits is a national treasure.

Jeg liker ideen Tom Waits. Raspete whisky-og-sigg-stemme som mumler over halv-kaotisk bakgrunnsjazz. Åpenbart en kul fyr. Men jeg kjenner jeg har ganske lite tålmodighet for dette som musikk. Jeg har det ikke i nærheten av like morsomt som Waits og publikum tydeligvis har det. Egentlig kjeder jeg meg. Også holder det på i godt over en time. Fy faen.

Konseptet er gøy, og jeg får faktisk følelsen av å sitte på en sliten, røykfylt jazzklubb. Men som på en ekte jazzklubb kjeder jeg meg midtveis og lengter etter å gå ut med røykerne for å få et avbrekk og sosialisere. Føler jeg burde like Tom Waits bedre, men det blir liksom aldri meg og han. Særlig på "Nighthawk Postcards" og "Warm Beer and Cold Women" høres han ut som Daffy Duck

Ingen er kulere ass Kul form på albumet og, liker det svært godt men det må være litt mer dristig før det får femmeren av meg

Een soort fake-live album met toch wel een aardig sfeertje. Ome Tom had blijkbaar door dat 'ie eigenlijk geen geweldige zanger is, dus is hij op dit album overgestapt naar vertellen. Een prima keuze wat mij betreft. Het scheelt bij mij toch wat ergernis. Verder heb ik weinig met dit album. Het is enigszins fijne achtergrondjazz, maar de kans dat ik dit nog een keer aan ga zetten lijkt me nihil. Het is vooral geinig vanwege het hoge CKV gehalte. Ik sleep er een 3tje uit, want het is wel weer een aparte ervaring en dat is altijd beter dan een nietszeggende ervaring. Plus het is verre van het vervelendste Tom Waits album op deze lijst.

This is a concept album in essence, and it works. Once you get Tom Waits you understand his schtick. Nighthawks isn't my favorite Tom Waits album but it is my favorite painting. 3.5/5

I can’t wait to add this impression to my repertoire that I pull out after 2 beers at the bar

Strange

I've known about Tom Waits for years but hadn't gotten around to listening to him. I can see why people like him, I just dont love the spoken word set to jazz in a raspy voice thing.

IT might have been better if he was sober and did not try to be a comedian.

More like a story telling session, not to my personal taste

This is an interesting live, jazz album. Not great, but interesting. Pitchfork: n/a Rolling Stone: n/a Best Songs

Waits is 1/1.

Part jazz concert, part stand-up, part performance art, entirely a good time with a an intelligent entertainer.

I really wanted to like this. I feel like I really like Tom Waits as a person and love his acting roles especially in Jarmusch movies and in The Dark Knight. #iykyk I just couldn’t get into this faux jazz lounge album, though.

Fav: Warm Beer And Cold Women Least Fav: On A Foggy Night Tom Waits never fails to surprise me. Three of his albums I’ve heard and none have sounded similar at all. Hoping he’s done more jazz because I’d love to give it a listen

Marca un abans i un després en la discografia de Tom Waits, un directe del tot diferent, íntim i musicalment molt potent. Un bon exercici de jazz de club.

Music is great, I just can't handle his voice. I'd love an album of cover versions of the set.

Zuhause, Heidenheim, Deutschland. Schon arg öde.

It was easy listening

Man, I am torn on this one. On the one hand it's definitely not for me. I really didn't enjoy it. I didn't realize going in that the majority of this was gonna be spoken word stories over a light jazz background. Not my thing. On the other hand, I appreciate that it exists. Unlike some albums on this list, I can understand why some people would like it.

Diner

yeah man I'm not a talking type guy but this is talking the talk and shit, man.

2.6

Listens: 2 Standout Tracks: Eggs and Sausage, Warm Beer And Cold Women I don't know. The first time around it was a novel enough experience to enjoy it. There's crowd work, comedy, improvisational jazz, wildly creative lyrics and vocabulary. But honestly, by the end of the second listen, I was done. 2 hours and 26 minutes of Tom not shutting the fuck up was a bit too much. It was too light on the jazz, improvisational or otherwise. Perhaps that's harsh; No one made me listen to it twice. I liked this, but the novelty wore off quick.

While I didn’t enjoy this quite as much as Rain Dogs Tom Waits really shows off his personality and humor here while creating really great imagery through his lyrics. Music for rainy nights watching movies that don’t exist. I was so ready to compare this to that famous painting of the diner at night until I googled that painting and realized what was going on and how stupid I am. I am art illiterate. Favorite songs were Eggs and Sausage, Better Off Without A Wife, and Putnam County.

"I'm so goddamn horny, the crack of dawn better be careful around me" Tom Waits is an absolute class act and this album is like lightning in a bottle, only quicker. This is an album of monologues with a light jazz accompaniment, i.e. my kinda shi.

Spoken word jazz... The horror! Some terrible albums are terrible in a way that is ultimately forgettable. I will remember the name Tom Waits for the rest of my life, motivated by a desire to avoid more of this kind of "music"

It was a lot of just rambling and sitting at a lounge with one guy singing and talking all night but he wasn't really interesting or funny. I don't think I would stay at this bar all night. Plus why are we at a diner, it should have been Nighthawks at the lounge. I guess he was just overly explaining every tiny detail of a diner (checkered counter, eggs, tips, etc). This just feels like he could have picked any random topic, location, place and explain it with traditional jazz instruments and sounds behind it. Nothing was really all that imaginative or different. This was just a house band with a really random singer.

I like some Tom Waits albums but this isn't one of them. I feel like the whole thing is a joke that I don't really get which makes it a little surreal but the shtick gets old pretty fast. This album is early in his career so I get that he's maybe just trying to get a footing in his poetry but it comes across as kind of cartoonish and phony. Even when I omit all the ridiculous intros and just try to listen to the songs, it doesn't really hold up as good/interesting jazz. Very samesy and way too long. pass.

I don't even know what to think of this, lol. I guess it's an interesting concept to create a "jazz club" in a studio with a live audience, but there's an authenticity missing for me because of that, which clouds the experience. It has a weird fakeness to it, and the audience laughs at a lot of things that really aren't that funny. Plus I'm not getting a lot of actual "songs" here, which is also an issue. It's too many stories where he's just droning on about some nonsense or another, and not nearly enough singing. At least the backing band was good, but this isn't something I'd listen to again. I can't pick out a single track I'd add to a playlist. I gave Rain Dogs a 5, so this might finally be the first artist on my controversial list!

I think you just had to be there.

Listen, if someone said to me in 1975, "Hey, do you wanna go down to the Record Plant and listen to Tom Waits record an album?" I would've said for sure, even though I'm not a fan. Because as a live experience, this was probably a great time 50 years ago, though probably not something I'd ever revisit in album form. Also: Waits was only 26 when this came out. Dude has sounded like a fiftysomething his whole life. BUT HEY now I know where Large Marge from Pee-wee's Big Adventure originated.

Not my scene

Album gets off to an unpromising start with a string of cuts that all sound the same - monologues over basically the same descending bassline. "Better Off Without A Wife" is the first track that resembles an actual song. Then it's right back to talk-singing over expert-but-nondescript jazz backing for nearly the entire rest of this double album ("Nobody" excepted). Waits has a lot of personality and his backing band is top-drawer but this album is little more than a curiosity compared to his more straightforward, song-oriented albums (such as 'Rain Dogs').

What the absolute fuck is this mess? I am offended this is on the list in light of the albums NOT on it.

Storytelling with music. Very special.

The worst one so far

The talking-in-rhythm-with-a-raspy-voice gimmick is amusing for 45 seconds but I'm not doing a whole album of this

This was the first time I thought “maybe I don’t want to listen to all 1,001 albums”

Tom Waits is ond of my favourite artists. Tom Waits early jazz stuff is my least favourite Tom Waits, well behind ssd folky balladeer Waits and junkyard Waits. Over an hour of him being sort of weird and jazzy is still better than most jazz but beyond Eggs and Sausage only a couple of tracks I could say I really enjoy. Perhaps my least favourite of his first 3 albums. Not sure what the audience is laughing about half the time!

This was good. I wasn't convinced at first but I just had it on the background and I found myself drift in and out and by the end wished I'd drifted in more. It's pretty long, but maybe I needed that much to get into it, although I suspect if I were concentrating more I'd feel the length was annoying We'll have to see when I put it on again.

Not my favorite of his. Maybe if I was there in person and high as a kite

I don’t like this man

It’s a comedy show

**very strange album (to me). Mostly a voice talking through background music. I think it be better album without vocals and just instrumental.

Nighthawks At The Diner is an album i really enjoyed. This is one of the few albums that isn't as good as it is due to the songs alone but rather, due to how well they connect with each other. This album was partially a studio album that was made to simulate a live album where it was recorded over 4 sessions in front of an audience to simulate the feeling of a jazz club. I think it actually captures the feeling of a jazz club very well and the music and Waits' vocals and lyrics/commentary really added to the album. I don't really know if i can single out one song as being the best/worst but i do know that this album comes together very smoothly. Best Song: Spare Parts I (A Nocturnal Emission) Worst Song: Eggs And Sausage (In A Cadillac With Susan Michelson)

My first thought: oh no Tom Waits, we all know what that means, luckily I've heard his music before so I'm pretty good with his voice. This is a brilliant album! It's funny, jazzy, great vibes, great voice. I introduced Tom Waits to Sarah with this on the way to Beetle and Wedge, got her warmed up to it by saying his voice is a cross between Louis Armstrong and the Cookie Monster. Really enjoyed this one!

Listened to this on a long drive. Really fun live album. Might get into more Tom Waits now, he had so much fun doing this.

Worth a listen

This is a good album!!

Someone reviewed this and complained about how this evokes a smoke-filled club atmosphere that doesn't actually exists in the real world. That may be true and Baudrillard probably has something to say regarding this critique. I, on the other hand, am content with the fact that I don’t have to sit in a nicotine-fogged room to enjoy a great voice.

Not really my vibe

Fantastic. It's like I'm at a jazz bar and just letting Waits' gruff charisma wash over me. Proof that you don't need a pop voice to be a compelling singer.

More a drunken comedy act than a piece of music. The instrumentals are servicable but what makes or rather breaks this is Waits' drunken recollections. The laughing track was set way too sensitive, maybe the audience in the studio was seeing something a listener can't. We'll never know. Interesting idea but as a piece of music it scores low.

Jedino zbog čega ovaj album nije nešto najgore što sam ikad čula je ovaj fini jazz iza njegovog prokletog brbljanja i keslanja.

Couldn't finish it, crowd work at the beginnings of each song is too much and boring

Jesus, this goes on and on and on. Not even sure this should be on the list because for me it’s a performance piece. I can imagine it at the Edinburgh Fringe. It’s Waits playing a character. The bits aren’t funny and the audience sounds fake and laughs in weird places. Should’ve been a poet or a writer, and I know he’s done a bit of acting. Anything but a singer. 2 because the musicians are decent and it would probably work as a stage shoe

One of my all time favourite artists. Great live album with a mix of stories and great songs. Brilliant.

Interesting, and growing on me.

I love Tom, this album is nowhere near his best though...

Bon album de jazz chill, un peu répétitif

Blues / jazz. Ambiance de bar, tard le soir !

Les instruments sont sympa mais je n'ai pas trop aimé la voix. Jazz qui s'écoute bien. 3/5

Pretty cool

Don't be fooled by what sounds like the gravelly ramblings of a drunk streetwalker. This is poetry of those streets, backed by amazing blues/jazz players. Waits is a storyteller who paints a beautiful picture of not-so-beautiful scenes from the streets. Liked Songs Added Emotional Weather Report Eggs And Sausage (In A Cadillac With Susan Michelson) Putnam County

I like Tom Waits, but I havent listened to a whole album before, so lets gargle some glass and get to the show! I did not expect spoken word jazz. I really dont know how to react to this album. I like it, but I don't know why. I think I need to listen, really listen to it, because I know there is a lot of wordplay going on, probably nothing but. However I was busy and it was on, so it really did land like I think it should have. Also, they people in the audience seemed to know the music beforehand, so is this a live album of previously recorded stuff? Or is it just a hip spoken word jazz audience? Tom Waits is a condundrum, but he proves any one can be successful in any industry if you give yourself to it.

210/1089 - What a giant waste of time. Generic jazz with some rambling personificafion of an HVAC unit. Some of it is kinda okay I guess and the concept is somewhat interesting but that's about it.

Echoing the sentiments of those pointing out that a gravely voice and endless diatribes and monologues over a decent rhythm section does not a jazz album or facsimile thereof make. This is on the level of Kid Rock which is no level to speak of in decent company.

Day587 - did the people at the club know what they were in for? i don’t know how much of this was improvised but he’s such a great story teller.

This is after his early jazz period, but just before he became the Devil in later albums. Its pure beat poetry, unfiltered Americanah. He really saw it all happening in front of him

Awesome. Amazing how well the band interplays with Waits’ lyrics. So cohesive. Such a cool environment.

Un álbum de estudio que pretende ser un club de jazz de esos lleno de humo, público medio o del todo ebrio, y mucha clase, en el que Tom Waits a medias canta y a medias narra una serie de historias costumbristas sobre bares por la noche, restaurantes de carretera, personajes urbanos, corazones rotos, conductores fantasma, y otras cosas de la vida. Las protagonistas son las letras, inteligentes y mordaces, aunque no haya comprendido muchas de las referencias, cantadas con esa voz de fumador carretero típica de Waits. A veces parece más un humorista de stand-up con una banda de fondo que un álbum al uso. Pero es que Tom Waits no es un artista al uso, y no se le pueden negar su agudeza y estilo tan únicos a la hora de contar historias. Y, envolviéndolas perfectamente, una banda de jazz muy buena que dota al álbum de una atmósfera íntima y acogedora. La verdad es que comprendo lo polarizante que puede ser Waits. El álbum es muy largo y su voz supongo que es un gusto adquirido. Además, las letras y esa imitación de club de jazz en vivo pueden resultar pretenciosos. Pero con todo, me ha molado y, aunque tampoco sea de mis artistas favoritos, me alegro mucho de que esta lista me lo haya dado a conocer.

Some of it was very charming, but most of it was insufferable. An hour and fifteen minutes of what sounds like your drunk uncle rambling and singing off key.

A bit of the knowingly charming-but-twisted showman starts to creep into Tom's work here, perhaps the most playful of his early work and my favourite from before all the really good stuff.

Relatively uncommon for me to immediately turn an album off, but Tom Waits did it for me here.. this was a struggle all the way through, not for lack of trying. The backing band was solid, but was his vocals a gimmick? It sounded like a big joke, and a load of pretentious crap at that.

Jazz, no thanks

A wild concept album that conveys its concept perfectly, a small show in a night club. Sort of the moment Waits becomes Waits.

Good port, horrible singer.

Cookie Monster sings the blues

I'm slowly starting to realise the appeal of Tom Waits, his gravelly voice is becoming more and more tolerable the more of his stuff I hear. Which is a shame, because his overall style is growing on me, but this album specifically I think has its own flaws outside of that. I just find his way of talking to the audience to be so unoriginal, and the very simple dinner jazz playing in the background is far too repetitive and same-y for an album that's over an hour long.

Some nide jazz but too much talking. Tom waits is just not remotely funny. His nonsense chatter ruins it because when he is singing it is a nice album.

Really good.

An interesting album, very different type of music, a guy singing/talking over a jazz band about who knows what, just a lot of random lines. Hard to follow unless actively listening. Not terrible but I don’t think I would recommend.

05/08/2025 I honestly can't work this guy out. Is he good? Is he naff? It just baffles me.

i was more than prepared to leave this album with a simple "this is my last tom waits album on the list, rest in peace you dumb bitch" but i find i have to give this one its due: this isn't just *any* tom waits album, it's also an excruciating 73 minutes, takes his pretentious shtick to heights i was simply not prepared for, and finally manages to be vaguely racist with Tommy's put-on stereotypical "jazzman" voice. the other musicians are pretty good, especially the bass player who is putting in some serious overtime, so it's a damn shame that it's in service of this pig brained mother fucker rest in peace you dumb bitch

but why does he look like jerma tho

Is this on the list so we know what bad music is?

Didnt enjoy the live audience part much. But the music was solid. Standouts songs: Nighthawk Postcards Spare Parts I

Like a 3 minute 'comedy' sketch. Of a knarled old jazz club compere, at 1am, after a skinful of bourbon, trying to make lame gags and then growling half a tune over the house band. Only he drags the sketch out to over an hour. And if you bought the double album then you'd feel compelled to listen to it over and over again. I'm so glad I didn't buy it. (redeeming quality; the house band.; drags this up to a 2)

2/3

L O V E D this, how has this not been in my regular rotation is a mystery I'm trying to solve.

Great control of the atmosphere but while I normally like Tom Waits I think his vocal performance fell somewhat flat on this album. Ultimately this works best as something to put on in the background and not pay too much attention to.

I did not at all care for the constant yapping that went on and on from start to finish. Shitty jokes and a sleazy personality is all I get from this guy. I get that that's the bit but lord if I wanted to get a good laugh I'd turn on Spongebob and not this. I will say the band was putting in overtime with the splendid production they laid down on here. Unfortunately it doesn't water down all the crappy comedy improv I had to listen to for over an hour. Top: ??? MID 2.00-2.50/5

weird, spoken word. fine ig

Cover 7 Not a fan. Sometimes Tom Waits can seem pretentious. There's some of that here. Not much though. Still, he kinda annoys me.

I bought the record Franks Wild Years when it came out, played it once and put into my record collection where it had stayed for the last 40 odd years! I’ve tried a few times to get into Tom Waits but it’s never really happened for me. However I a loved this album! Don’t know if it’s the conceit of the jazz club, the banter or the Smokey music, probably all three to be honest. Tom I’ll be coming back to your make believe jazz club sometime very soon.

I really enjoyed this, great bassline, Tom Waits's... unique vocal style. Worth my time.

Fun, chill jazz. Like you’re in a jazz club

Vibe

i literally had to endure my first tom waits album two days ago and somehow the list read my 1 as “let’s give this person more tom waits” to suffer through for 70+ minutes. tom waits is absolutely not for me. the spoken word style in general is something i don’t enjoy. i will say “nobody” was quite nice, but i still really don’t fancy his voice style. the band was great tho. i would love the instrumentals. 1.5/2

The king of detail. Imagine this level of musicianship and storytelling at age 26. Genius

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I found something very cringeworthy about this one. The crowd laughing and cheering at lame, unfunny asides and jokes. The stories. Tom Waits' voice generally. Maybe I'll enjoy his other records more when they come up.

Who listens to this??

A bit a weird album to be on this list. Love Tom Waits, but this was too much at times.

Tom Waits: you hate it or you love it. En ik love het. Maar waarom dit er in staat en Closing Time niet? Geen flauw idee. Anyway, blijft een cool album met een coole stem en een coole bassist. Daarom een coole 3.5, naar boven afgerond uiteraard.

Great

Finished about half a day

Love it

Found it quite interesting and entertaining. Lasts a bit long and not sure when I'll put it back on though.

Hotel lobby piano performer

Lounge singer vibe; classic gravelly voice

A good album, I don't listen to a lot of Jazz but I enjoyed this. I liked Eggs and Sausage and Nighthawk Postcards the most.

This is one of the '70s Waits albums that I skipped over for some reason. I was missing out, cuz this is a great way to spend an evening. Captures the vibes of hanging in a smokey club perfectly, and Waits personality, lyrics, and voice shines in a grimy type of way as always.

Open mindedly tried to give it a shot in case it was okay and see if I was missing out. I wasn't! Not enjoyable.

Not listened to much of Tom waits before this album project. Really enjoyed this and in particular, 'emotional weather report'. There is a genuine warmth/sadness to this album. Yes, it wasn't recorded in a New York jazz cafe in the 1940s, mainly because it's from 1974 and it's acting.

Car journeys are usually quite boring. This only made it more so.

i didn't finish this. tbh i didn't get very far through it. is it unfair to rate this if i havent heard most of it? idk i don't think tom waits will be affected. i just don't think my ears want to listen to this man and i want to move on. please stop giving me albums by him.

Can I please be done with tom waits now Honestly this is so bad. If you like it, you are just pretending. Its bad and if you like it you might be bad

One of the funniest albums I've listened to for sure. Appreciated the food listing in eggs and sausage.

This was actually quite entertaining. I'm not a Tom Waits fan, but I can listen to a track now and then. This jazz club live recording felt real, even as it was staged in a studio. Jazz isn't my thing, but I can tolerate it if it's well performed, like it's the case here. Tom's skits might have been ok in the '70s, but now they are massively outdated.

The skits before every song were obnoxious. There were moments that were ok but this record just feels like bad stand up comedy and talking over a light jazz beat.

Not really a favourite.

His 3rd record and his final form as a mostly-traditional jazz troubadour. Small Change comes next and the music and the persona begin expanding. If you’re in the mood for this vibe, it will provide. I return more often to either Rain Dogs or Mule Variations, but he had to be this incarnation to become the Wacky Jack of all musical trades he eventually blooms into.

• 2/5 • Sort of an extended performance art project from Waits, but the backing jazz band is legit and he’s entertaining •It might be fun to see the imagined show live but I don’t need to hear the album again

Tom Waits had really grown on me. I need to return to his other albums that I disliked on first hearing

falatório da porra

Absolutely love this. Huge fan of slightly later Tom Waits, but you can hear the brilliance here as well. And the drinks.

I am normally a Tom Waits hater, but this was really cool! The jazz club atmosphere worked so well with Waits' voice and delivery. The live audience really showed off his ability to work the crowd as well as his humor. The supporting jazz group was awesome too. The album cover is really cool and is reminiscent of Hopper's Nighthawks (definitely intentional).

Disgusting

Good artists teach you, through their work, how to experience their work. Tom Waits does exactly that. This was so unique and interesting: cafe society jazz with a layer of grizzled beat poetry on top. It was the wrong decision to listen to this on the airplane, so I paused. Leaving it for this morning’s coffee and stroll through the San Francisco fog? That was the right decision. Tom Waits, you’re a good teacher.

Felt like I was in the jazz club watching it live 🎶

Immersive and good vibes but went on too long. Would definitely hit more in person

This album was like the podcasts I listen to when I fall asleep - I wanted to listen but was lulled to bed. The gravelly voice and the smooth jazz in the background, I was a goner.

666

Too.much impro type jazz

This is different from the Tom Waits I'm familiar with, but it makes sense. He's always been primarily jazz and blues, and secondarily weird, so a jazz/beat poetry album fits. It works, I guess, but there's nothing specifically to recommend musically here. There wasn't a single track that I perked up at.

This was great, I think it's the only album with skits that I've really loved.

Rather than record a live performance at a night club, Waits created his own night club in a studio space and acts as leader of the house lounge band. Waits is a charming and deliciously clever and he weaves tales with beat eccentricity and a devilish grin. There's spoken word, crooning, and a bit of cool jazz, all of which are delightful. The whole album is an experience, and may be among my favorite live albums, whether is strictly adheres to that definition or not. I have never been a big fan of Tom Waits, and I've been very vocal about that fact. Swordfishtrombone opened my eyes (and ears) to Waits' potential as more than just a weirdo with a carnival barker's gravelly howl. Nighthawks At The Diner cemented the idea that Tom Waits could be cool. Here, he's still the tramp, the drifter, and poet with stories and songs aplenty. This is an earned 5

This album is always a trip.

Not my style. Obviously talented and unique, but one listen is enough

I like it

Tom Waits, the guy I’ve always heard of and said “yeah, I’ll have to check him out some day”. So now I have… I chuckled for a bit, but ya know, after a few minutes something else got my attention. It’s hard to focus on a guy getting off on his own word play for over an hour. It wasn’t over my head, just tiresome. The part where he admits to masturbation was highly relevant.

Frequently crude poetry in blues. Must hear.

I did understand. Maybe I’m uncultured.

Tom Waits for no common sense. On this pseudo live album, Tom gives in to soliloquies both endearing and deranged, all the while keeping the audience on their toes and hollering throughout. This is the kind of album that is deserving of the name Nitehawks; the kind of album Edward Hopper himself would have painted scenes of. Favorites: (Opening Intro), Emotional Weather Report, On a Foggy Night, Eggs and Sausage, Nitehawk Postcards, Warm Beer and Cold Women, Spare Parts I, Big Joe and Phantom 309.

Man, this is fun! Just sit back and take the ride of a lifetime.

The Lord is testing me with back-to-back 60+ minute album slogs this weekend, and I do not appreciate it! So many strikes against this one: it's live, has a million unfunny intros/skits, features Waits's hideous voice, hardly a melody to be found, and it's jazz... the stereotypical kind I don't like. I had to start skipping the intros to make it through this. Awful.

Spoken word over jazz.

2 stars, 1 each for the bassist and saxophonist for trying to make this trainwreck less trainwrecky

Pretentious sounding mf. Not too bad, but the in studio, but also live setting is a bit weird. Bass player is insane of course. Loved the bass sounds throughout. Altogether it's not better than a 3 tho

I feel like I just listened to "Alice's Restaurant" six times in a row.

I loathe Tom Waits, but this is seemingly the only setting and gentle in which he feels natural and not like a pox on the entire concept of musical expression. The studio audience really added to the whole conceit. I very nearly liked it.

Meh

This has to be a two part joke right? One, this has to be a parody album. I’m convinced because there is no way something can be this bad on purpose. I’m tempted to listen to other Tom Waits songs to confirm this but I just can’t because if I’m wrong and people actually listen to this unironically I just don’t know how to deal with that. The second part to the joke has to be that this album is on this list. If it’s a parody why have it on, and if it’s not god help us.

A classic!

Albums that make me physically angry get one star. This album gets one star.

i like the concept and could listen to this in a chill morning or evening if his voice wasn’t so annoying and/or the music had any evolution.. the vibe was nice at the beginning but by music 8 i was like ok is that all so why is this so long