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."
Big Black Mariah
Tom Waits Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill
Big light on the back street, hill to ever more
Packing down the ladder with the hammer to the floor
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen the big black Ford
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
A yellow bullet with a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, got an old bell Jim
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
Sent to the skies on a Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper like a Linda bride do
He got to do the story with the old widow Jones
Got a wooden coat, this boy is never coming home
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen that big black Ford
Cut through the canebrake, oh yeah
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets shook a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, on a bell you win
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
The lyrics of Tom Waits's song "Big Black Mariah" are somewhat cryptic and open to interpretation. It seems to be a tale of some sort of ominous authority figure arriving in town, possibly to take someone away. The opening lines suggest a stormy, foreboding atmosphere, with thunder rolling and the sound of someone approaching in a large vehicle. The phrase "Big Black Mariah" is a slang term for a police wagon, which fits with the idea of someone being taken into custody.
The following verses introduce various characters, including someone named Black Johnny and a blind man. The lines "Off to bed without his supper like a Linda bride do / He got to do the story with the old widow Jones" suggest the idea of someone being punished or sent away for wrongdoing. The repeated refrain of "Here come the Big Black Mariah" builds tension and adds to the sense of impending doom.
Overall, the lyrics of "Big Black Mariah" paint a picture of a gritty, noir-ish world full of shady characters, violent weather, and a looming sense of reckoning or justice. The song's meaning is somewhat elusive, but its atmosphere and evocative imagery make for a memorable listening experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, cutting through the cane break, rattling the sill
The Big Black Mariah is making its way through the thick and dense brush and shaking things up as it advances.
Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill
The loud and ominous sound that the Mariah creates sounds like thunder and is heard when it rises above the top of the hill.
Big light on the back street, hill to ever more
There's a big light show in the back street, and it continues on up the hill.
Packing down the ladder with the hammer to the floor
They're packing up with the ladder and slamming it down on the ground, most likely in preparation for activity by the Mariah.
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen the big black Ford
The Mariah is finally arriving, and the big black Ford that drives it is in sight.
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Hunted Black Johnny with a blind man's cane
A yellow bullet with a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, got an old bell Jim
The Mariah has someone in it who's boxed up, caught Black Johnny with a cane, and has a yellow bullet and a tiger who can't see but has an old bell named Jim.
Sent to the skies on a Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper like a Linda bride do
He got to do the story with the old widow Jones
Got a wooden coat, this boy is never coming home
They've sent someone named Benny Jag Blue up to the skies, and he's gone to bed without supper like a Linda bride would. He has to do a story with an old widow named Jones and he will never return because he's been given a wooden coat, which implies he's been killed.
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets shook a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, on a bell you win
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
The Mariah is still transporting the boxed up person on a red belle dame, and it has Flat Blue Johnny with it who uses a blind man's cane. They're also carrying a hundred yellow bullets and an old blind tiger with a winning bell. The Mariah and the big black Ford driving it are still here and coming.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, JALMA MUSIC
Written by: THOMAS ALAN WAITS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@nicholaskinsey5160
Well, cutting through the cane break, rattling the sill
Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill
Big light on the back street, hill to ever more
Packing down the ladder with the hammer to the floor
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen the big black Ford
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Hunted Black Johnny with a blind man's cane
A yellow bullet with a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, got an old bell Jim
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
Sent to the skies on a Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper like a Linda bride do
He got to do the story with the old widow Jones
Got a wooden coat, this boy is never coming home
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen that big black Ford
Cut through the canebrake, oh yeah
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets shook a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, on a bell you win
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
@Tsureiki
These are the correct lyrics
Cuttin' through the cane break, rattling the sill
Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill
Big light on the back street hill to Evermore
Packin' down the ladder with the hammer to the floor
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
I see the Big Black Ford
Well he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Hunted Black Johnny with a blind man's cane
A yellow bullet with a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger get an old bell, Jim
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Ford
Sent to the skies on a Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper like the Linda brides do
Now he's got to do the story with the old widow Jones
He's got a wooden coat, this boy is never coming home
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
I see that Big Black Ford
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Cut through the cane break...
Well he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Fat Blue Johnny on a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets shook a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger on a pair of new wings
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Ford
@BloodyDeeJay
Cooler than the other side of the pillow man
@wackostvshow1509
THE FIRST TRACK WE HAVE HEARD of TOM WAITS ! .... INSANELY AWESOME ! .....................
@BOWMANTUNES
That’s a great way to start!
@benzell4
So much good, out there!...
@HarleyForMayor
Rain dogs was the first album of Tom's I discovered. still can't believe this came out in 1985!
@tahoedharmabum
...if you ain't feelin' this in your hips i'm afraid your mojo ain't workin' squidlips...
@JM-io6966bili
Tom and Keith
Good Combination.
@robertmcquillan7823
Tom & Keith 🙌✌️🇨🇮
@nicholaskinsey5160
Well, cutting through the cane break, rattling the sill
Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill
Big light on the back street, hill to ever more
Packing down the ladder with the hammer to the floor
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen the big black Ford
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Hunted Black Johnny with a blind man's cane
A yellow bullet with a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, got an old bell Jim
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
Sent to the skies on a Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper like a Linda bride do
He got to do the story with the old widow Jones
Got a wooden coat, this boy is never coming home
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, I seen that big black Ford
Cut through the canebrake, oh yeah
Well, he's all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets shook a rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger, on a bell you win
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the Big Black Mariah
Here come the Big Black Mariah, here come the big black Ford
@kerry1390
Tom have a good summer