He started his career in the early 1970s as a singer in spit 'n' sawdust bars. Initially, he was deeply influenced by the beat generation, novelists like Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs, and poets like Allen Ginsberg and Charles Bukowski. Waits is often compared to Charles Bukowski, being similar both in content and lifestyle
Waits was unable to make a living from his music in the 70s because his classical bar music, based in pre-rock, and Americana, blues, and Vaudeville styles were not popular. Waits's voice back then was soft, warm and clear.
Waits subsequently developed a devoted cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters, despite having little radio or music video support. In fact, his songs are perhaps best known to the general public in the form of cover versions of more visible artists, such as the Eagles, Bruce Springsteen and Rod Stewart.
Although Waits’s albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries.
Lyrically, Waits's songs are known for atmospheric portrayals of seedy characters and places; he sings about the losers on the streets: alcoholics, junkies, prostitutes and social outcasts, although he also includes more conventional and touching ballads in his repertoire.
While opening for Frank Zappa, the audience catcalled and refused to listen to him; he was an unsuitable match with Zappa's avantgarde style.
Countless cigarettes, gallons of alcohol and many all night parties eventually left their trace in his face and voice.
His more recent gravelly voice can be first heard on Small Change. This distinctive voice turned out to be his trademark. It is described by the Music Hound Rock Album Guide as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months and then taken outside and run over with a car". Small Change with its sentimental ballads, its bar-jazz attitude and Film Noir-oriented stories turned out to be his biggest commercial success in the 1970s.
Waits subsequently developed a more unique style. His songs have grown more abrasive since then, and the arrangements have turned more surreal and experimental with every new record. His life brings him to new visions, as indicated by the direction taken in his "Alice" release.
While composing the soundtrack for Francis Ford Coppola's One From The Heart Waits met Kathleen Brennan, his bride-to-be. They married in 1980 and she helped him quit drinking and smoking. Since their marriage they have been working together on his albums as co-producers and co-writers. It is hard to say which part belongs to her and which to him, but it's easy to see that they make a perfect team. Additionally, his eldest son Casey can be heard on turntables and percussion on Waits's album "Real Gone".
One of Waits's greatest successes was the album "Swordfishtrombones", released in 1983. It struck with his critics and fans alike. He achieved a new level of song writing and left former conventions (and his earlier career) behind. All songs, whether ballads, jive or jazz are played in a completely different way. It seems that Waits had taken the musical archetypes of these styles and made them his own. All tracks are in the quintessential Waits style. They have a striking rawness and listenability and they set the stage for his success and his future career.
The Bad As Me Songfacts reports that 36 years after the release of Waits' first album, Closing Time in 1973, Bad As Me became Waits's first ever top 10 album in the US when it debuted at #6 with 63,000 sales.
In the late 1980s Waits discovered an outlet for his creativity in composing musicals. His first Musical was named "The Black Rider", and is based on "Der Freischütz" by Carl Maria von Weber. It was co-produced by Robert Wilson and the lyrics come from William S. Burroughs. The story is slightly reminiscent of Kurt Weil's and Berthold Brecht's "Three Penny Opera" and the 1930s. The debut performance of the play was in 1990 at the Thalia Theater, Hamburg and has been played by various theatre groups since then.
Waits was also responsible for two other musicals, which later became albums released simultaneously in 2002. One was the musical "Blood Money," which covers the "Woyczek" theme of Georg Büchner. This one is one of the darkest works from Waits. The other musical is based on Lewis Carroll's classic children's novel, "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". "Alice" is very romantic, dreamy and soft, and contains one of Waits most romantic songs. Even though they were released at the same time, the bootlegs of the "Alice" musical were long before traded between fans and were just rearranged and re-mastered for the official release.
Besides many film contributions as composer – the Internet Movie Database imdb.com lists 47 appearances of Waits as composer and 38 soundtracks containing songs by Waits - he also is an actor with a total of 25 appearances, ranging from some mini-roles as a trumpeter in "Heart of Saturday Night" and the R. M. Renfield in "Bram Stoker's Dracula" to the major role of Zack in Jim Jarmusch's "Down by Law". He recently appeared in Roberto Benigni's "The Tiger and the Snow", playing You Can Never Hold Back Spring at Benigni's wedding dream. Even more recently, Waits played Mr.Nick (the Devil) in Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus".
In addition to a number of concert videos, he also appeared in the critically-acclaimed concert feature film "Big Time" (1990).
Waits has always refused to allow the use of his songs in commercials. He has filed several lawsuits against advertisers for using his material without permission. Waits also successfully sued an advertiser for using a work that was stylistically similar to his work, after he had declined to sell them the rights to his song. He has been quoted as saying, "Apparently the highest compliment our culture grants artists nowadays is to be in an ad — ideally naked and purring on the hood of a new car. I have adamantly and repeatedly refused this dubious honor."
2:19
Tom Waits Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The barn was buried 'neath a mile of mud
Now I've got nothing but the whistle and the steam
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
I said, hey, hey, I don't know what to do
I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Now there's a fellow that's preaching 'bout hell and damnation
Bouncing off the walls of the Grand Central Station
I treated her bad, I treated her mean
Baby's leaving town on the 2:19
I said, hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang
It'll come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
Sturm and Drang, the luster and the sheen
My baby's leaving town on the -
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I will remember you
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
Lost the baby with the water, and the preacher stole the bride
Sent her out for a bottle, but when she came back inside
She didn't have my whiskey, didn't have my gin
With a hat full of feathers and a wicked grin
I said, hey, hey, I will remember you
Yeah baby, I will remember you
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
On the train you get smaller, as you get farther away
The roar covers everything you wanted to say
Was that a raindrop or a tear in your eye?
Were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Oh baby
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
I will remember you
I don't know what to do, baby
The lyrics of Tom Waits' "2:19" tell the story of a man who has lost everything he had in the "29 flood" and is now left with nothing except the "whistle and the steam." His "baby" has decided to leave town on the 2:19 train, and the man is left feeling unsure of what to do. The tone of the song is melancholic and reflective, as the man grapples with the loss of his love and the devastation of his past.
The lyrics also touch on themes of regret and redemption, as the man acknowledges that he "treated her bad" and is now left with the consequences of his actions. The preacher in the Grand Central Station serves as a reminder of the eternal damnation that may await those who have sinned, adding a layer of ominousness to the song.
Overall, "2:19" is a poignant reflection on loss and the fleeting nature of time, delivered through Tom Waits' signature style of storytelling and raw vocals.
Line by Line Meaning
I lost everything I had in the '29 flood
I lost all my possessions in the great flood of 1929
The barn was buried 'neath a mile of mud
My barn was covered by a huge amount of mud
Now I've got nothing but the whistle and the steam
All I own now is the sound of the train whistle and the steam that powers it
My baby's leaving town on the 2:19
My love is departing from town on the train that leaves at 2:19
I said, hey, hey, I don't know what to do
I said, hey, hey, I am lost and unsure of what to do
I will remember you
I will always remember you
Now there's a fellow that's preaching 'bout hell and damnation
Now there's a man proclaiming the concepts of hell and condemnation
Bouncing off the walls of the Grand Central Station
He is shouting his message inside the Grand Central Station
I treated her bad, I treated her mean
I treated my love poorly and cruelly
Now baby's leaving town on the 2:19
As a result, my love is leaving town on the 2:19
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang
I've always been confused by the idea of balance between good and evil
It'll come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
The truth will always come out, but it may cause damage
Sturm and Drang, the luster and the sheen
Conflict and turmoil exist alongside beauty and shine
My baby's leaving town on the -
My love is leaving town on the train
Lost the baby with the water, and the preacher stole the bride
I lost my child in the flood, and the preacher took away my love
Sent her out for a bottle, but when she came back inside
I asked her to go get a drink for me, but when she returned
She didn't have my whiskey, didn't have my gin
She didn't bring back the alcohol I requested
With a hat full of feathers and a wicked grin
She had a hat adorned with feathers and a mischievous smile
On the train you get smaller, as you get farther away
As the train moves away from me, my love appears smaller and smaller
The roar covers everything you wanted to say
The sound of the train's engine is so loud that it drowns out everything else
Was that a raindrop or a tear in your eye?
I'm not sure if the wetness on your face is from rain or tears
Were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?
I wonder if you were simply drying your nails or waving goodbye
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Miss Taylor
I lost everything I had in the '29 flood
The barn was buried 'neath a mile of mud
Now I've got nothing but the whistle and the steam
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Now there's a fellow that's preaching 'bout hell and damnation
Bouncing off the walls in the Grand Central Station
I treated her bad, I treated her mean
Baby's leaving on the 2: 19
I said hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang
Come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
Sturm and Drang, the luster and the sheen
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Toss the baby with the water, and the preacher stole the bride
Sent her out for a bottle, but when she came back inside
Didn't have my whiskey, she didn't have my gin
But a hat full of feathers and a wicked grin
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
On the train you get smaller, as you get farther away
The roar covers everything you wanted to say
Was that a raindrop in the corner of your eye?
Were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?
I said hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
I said, hey
fan
This song is fucking incredible. Throw all the by-the-numbers, weak, imitation blues in the trash and play this 100x in a roe. This is raw as hell. The two guitars-
one with the fuzz box, the other with a wah-wah-are dynamite. The beat is so weird and cool. It sounds like a mambo pattern, but there's a few layers, such as whatever is going on with that monstrous bass drum sound and the hammer-on-anvil percussion. I first heard this maybe 12 years ago, and it never gets old. Waits' old-school-blues-meets-the-apocalypse aesthetics are so well honed.Miss Taylor
I lost everything I had in the '29 flood
The barn was buried 'neath a mile of mud
Now I've got nothing but the whistle and the steam
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Now there's a fellow that's preaching 'bout hell and damnation
Bouncing off the walls in the Grand Central Station
I treated her bad, I treated her mean
Baby's leaving on the 2: 19
I said hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Now I've always been puzzled by the yin and the yang
Come out in the wash, but it always leaves a stain
Sturm and Drang, the luster and the sheen
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Toss the baby with the water, and the preacher stole the bride
Sent her out for a bottle, but when she came back inside
Didn't have my whiskey, she didn't have my gin
But a hat full of feathers and a wicked grin
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
On the train you get smaller, as you get farther away
The roar covers everything you wanted to say
Was that a raindrop in the corner of your eye?
Were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?
I said hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
Hey, hey, I will remember you
Hey, hey, I don't know what to do
My baby's leaving on the 2: 19
I said, hey
Gary Good
Love him so much!!!!!
Clumsy Dad
this is what i'm talkin' bout ... this is my Tommy !
honouryourvomit
'was that a raindrop in the corner of your eye? were you drying your nails or waving goodbye?'
Eric Simpson
Thank you Tom wherever you are
Eushak_33
these lyrics are tufffff
Eric Simpson
TWFF
Rare that air
Hammond
Wicked grin
RIP Larry the mole Taylor
Masa
If there is any small town with a boast about how they relate to their Big City Counter Part and it's how The Heart of a Saturday Night relates To Orphans, Brawlers, Brawlers, and Bastards - Pawcatuck is one of them - and it's how it Relates to Miami - otherwise it's isn't Matti Salminen's Bicycle Hobbyist
Eric Simpson
Letterman
Everyone knows me, at the dump