Hey there folks.
So in the interim between episodes, we thought it might be nice to share some of the thoughts coming out of our first season, looking at Closing Time. The response was really gratifying, and listeners seem to have taken up our offer to treat it like a book club for Waits's music, reassessing albums/songs that maybe we hadn't thought about for a while.
First thing is to acknowledge the many many listeners who pointed out the various covers that Waits has performed, which we totally failed to remember when talking about Midnight Lullaby; most notably "Somewhere" from West Side Story on Blue Valentine, as well as "Big Joe and Phantom 309" by Red Sovine on Nighthawks at the Diner. A full list can be found here.
On the subject of covers, Stelrad Doulton provided us with the link to an interesting cover of "Rosie", performed by The Beat Farmers. Worth knowing about... though not sure what we would have said about it.
We've also had some lovely stories about how people first discovered Tom Waits - from having albums handed down from their parents, to battling through arguments with friends over his "weird and unpalatable voice," the arrival of Waits into people's lives always seems to mark some kind of shift. One listener (who we will keep nameless) had fond memories of using Closing Time to create a seductive atmosphere during romantic moments. Presumably the "Blowing my horn" lyric set the mood beautifully...
Finally we'd be interested to know if we're providing useful contextual material for the show. It's been suggested that including lyrics in the show-notes might be handy. Any other thoughts? The spotify links all working well? (Anyone need another drink, a coffee, anything?)
So once again, thanks again for listening, and we'll see you next week.
Sam & Martin
