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."
Table Top Joe
Tom Waits Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On the day I was born
I was born without a body
I got nothing but scorn
But I always loved music
All I had was my hands
I dreamed I'd be famous
And I'd work at The Sands
Singing, Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
Now everyone will know
That I'm Tabletop Joe
I had trouble with the pedals
But I had a strong left hand
And I could play Stravinsky
On a baby grand
I said, â??I'm gonna join the circus
Cause that's where I belong'
So I went to Coney Island
I was singing this song
Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
Now everyone knows
Yeah I'm Tabletop Joe
They gave me top billing
In the Dreamland show
I had my own orchestra
Starring Tabletop Joe
And the man without a body
Proved everyone wrong
I was rich and I was famous
I was where I belonged, yeah
Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
Now everyone knows, yeah
Tabletop Joe
Take it home boy
Tom Waits's song "Table Top Joe" tells the story of a man who was born without a body which led his mother to reject him. All he had were his hands, and he learned to love music. He dreamed of becoming famous and playing at The Sands, but because of his condition, he had trouble with pedals. His left hand, however, was strong enough to play Stravinsky on a baby grand. He decided to join the circus where he felt he belonged and went to Coney Island singing "Table Top Joe". There, he got top billing at the Dreamland show with his own orchestra, proving everyone wrong who thought he was incapable. He became rich and famous, and finally, found his place in the world.
The lyrics seem to be a metaphor for the idea that no matter what limitations we are born with, we can still achieve great things through our talents and hard work. The song highlights the power of music and the transformative effects in breaking down societal boundaries and attitudes. It shows that despite all odds, one can still overcome.
Line by Line Meaning
Well my mama didn't want me
My mother did not desire to have me.
On the day I was born
The day I arrived into the world.
I was born without a body
I entered the world without having a body.
I got nothing but scorn
I received nothing but disdain and disapproval.
But I always loved music
However, I always had an affection towards music.
All I had was my hands
My hands were the only body parts I possessed.
I dreamed I'd be famous
I harbored aspirations of being renowned.
And I'd work at The Sands
And one day, I wanted to perform at The Sands.
Singing, Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
My vocals echoed 'Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe'.
Now everyone will know
Now everyone is aware of me.
That I'm Tabletop Joe
That I, the person singing, was Tabletop Joe.
I had trouble with the pedals
I encountered difficulty with the pedals.
But I had a strong left hand
However, my left hand was sturdy and capable.
And I could play Stravinsky
I was proficient in playing Stravinsky's music.
On a baby grand
I could perform it beautifully on a baby grand piano.
I said, 'I'm gonna join the circus
I declared 'I am joining the circus.
Cause that's where I belong'
As that's where I feel I am meant to be.
So I went to Coney Island
Consequently, I went to Coney Island.
I was singing this song
I was singing the song 'Tabletop Joe'.
Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe once again emanated from my vocal cords.
Now everyone knows
At this point, every person was cognizant of who I was.
Yeah I'm Tabletop Joe
It was me, who was called Tabletop Joe.
They gave me top billing
They allocated me the highest billing.
In the Dreamland show
It was in the Dreamland show where I received this honor.
I had my own orchestra
I had an orchestra that played music for me.
Starring Tabletop Joe
As a principal performer, who was Tabletop Joe.
And the man without a body
The individual without a physical torso.
Proved everyone wrong
Demonstrated that everyone's negative perspective was erroneous.
I was rich and I was famous
I achieved financial wealth and celebrity status.
I was where I belonged, yeah
I was in the place where I felt I belonged.
Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe
For the final time, Tabletop Joe, Tabletop Joe was liberated through my mouth.
Now everyone knows, yeah
Now everyone was aware of me, without a doubt.
Tabletop Joe
Tabletop Joe.
Take it home boy
Conclude it, lad.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KATHLEEN BRENNAN, THOMAS ALAN WAITS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Warrior Star
Heard this song 15-16 years ago, forgot it existed and rediscovered it in 2018! I like it even better than when I was a little kid, probably because I actually know what the lyrics are about.
Armory
Listening to Waits and knowing the lyrics are two different things. As a musician/composer just listening makes you appreciate it, knowing his lyrics makes you respect him as a story teller. but singing Waits... It makes your throat bleed. I'm growing tonsil stones from the heavy vibrations disturbing my tonsils, and I sound like I just smoked an oak tree, but damn, is it satisfying to sing along!
pretorious700
That's diaphragm singing, not throat.
ACE
Nobody in the history of music except Tom Waits can make a love song sound like this.
pretorious700
My favorite Waits album. Beautifully weird and original.
Aptrgangr
Love this song, one of my favorites for sure.
Big Dictator Energy
"I was rich and i was faaamouuus" no matter how poor or unseen as long as i could hit repeat on this one.
Grandmaster Kush
That intro cracked me up, Tom Waits voice is one of a kind crazy
gold E hawn
the 1st time i heard this song, a few weeks ago, i got this image of a drunk guy singin in the bathtub. and i liked the sound and rawness of it.
ChuckleFists
Fun fact: I was drunk off bourbon when I first heard this song. Made my night even better 👌