Playlouder - Music is the Network

I never thought that I would ever get to see Tom Waits. Not the most profound introduction to a review, but it was as simple as that. He just seemed to play so few concerts, with his tours over the last decade being sporadic, to say the least. The announcement of the Glitter and Doom tour filled me, as I am sure it did many, with great excitement and hope of attaining a ticket.

Paris was exceptionally hot and the id requirements for entry to the concert provided several logistical problems. The main drawback was the endless queuing. The day before the concert, we went to pick up our pre booked tickets, thinking that this would be the sensible time saving thing to do. After waiting for an hour, we managed to acquire them thinking that entry on the following day would be a swifter affair. Wrong. More hours were spent waiting in the blistering heat before the show. The doors didn’t open until an hour and a half after the announced time. Then when inside, where there was no bar, the show was late starting. However, none of this could really detract from the event that followed.

Waits captivated all within seconds of his arrival, his sideshow hawking, demented ringmaster persona in full effect tonight. Taking place on a customised podium, rigged with several foot pedals which set off a thundering percussion through the rows of tannoy speakers that hung from the ceiling, he stomped on the wooden panelling of the podium, sending a cloud of sawdust into the air, emphasising his silhouette in the harsh primary coloured spotlights. Stomping and barking, gesticulating wildly and doing some rather nifty things with his hat, he dove into a set, lasting two hours in length, with only one break of a few moments.

This was all accompanied by further percussion, thanks to his sons Casey and Sullivan, with Seth Ford Young on upright bass, organs and lots of saxophone. The primary sound of the night was that of Waits’ recent material and style, more Blood Money and Orphans than Mule Variations and Big Time. The heavy gospel howls exemplified by the clunky blues riffs, dreamlike organs and thundering drums. Stomping his way through an earth shattering Rain Dogs, followed by a beautiful rendition of Falling Down, I was already bleary eyed and perfectly happy to sit and quietly revel.

His trademark banter and fantastical stories were as amusing and ridiculous as ever. His proclamation that he was going to show us all his glass eye, then bounce it around the stage, led into an eerie Eyeball Kid. Gods Away on Business, Lie to Me and Hoist That Rag left a shattering effect. Waits showed no signs of his 58 years, ever the showman; this was theatre at its best. The show was truly magnified by the decadent and intimate settings of Le Grand Rex, an old cinema and vaudeville joint, this could not have been more perfect for Waits. Cantankerous and wry, he stopped a song halfway as the crowd were clapping off time and putting him off. “It’s clear to me that none of you come from a musical background, you will clap when I signal. See this hat, this means I’m in charge. Now I feel that we’ve all come a little further in our relationship, we shall proceed.”  

After almost an hour of intense lighting and booming renditions, the band retired, leaving Waits solo on piano, for a short performance of some of his quieter songs, namely Tom Traubert’s Blues, Johnsburg, Illinois and conducting a beautiful sing along version of Innocent When You Dream, not one person could complain that the set was not varied enough. He took quality selections from his entire back catalogue. What I cannot wait for is to see if he will ever do a tour of playing his individual albums, like Sparks did. That would certainly be worth seeing. After the piano, it was back to the clomping around, his dusty work boots epitomising the junkyard vagrant side of the man. Dirt in the Ground was sad, Make it Rain was scary; Jockey Full of Bourbon was sublime. Very few artists can do all these things, let alone well.

So, after over a decade of affection, the man who has seen me through so many late nights, sparked so many conversations and evokes so many memories, was no longer just an idea, it was a joy to behold and an experience that I hope to achieve a few more times round at least. Here’s hoping the touring experience for him is a good one, for in a musical world so full of mediocrity and predictability, it’s a comfort to know that there are still men like Waits about, just to keep rattling things up.

The complete set list was as follows. Pictures to follow. Although cameras weren't allowed and we nearly got booted out for using it (even with no flash), but we got a few!!!!

Lucinda / Ain't Going Down To The Well No More
Rain Dogs
Falling Down
The Other Side Of The World
Lucky Day
God's Away On Business
Hold On
Eyeball Kid
Jesus Gonna Be Here
You Can Never Hold Back Spring
Johnsburg, Illinois
Tom Traubert's Blues
Innocent When You Dream
Lie To Me
Hoist That Rag
Heigh Ho
Lost At The Bottom Of The World
Hang Down Your Head
Poor Edward
Black Market Baby
Dirt In The Ground
Make It Rain
Way Down In The Hole

Jockey Full Of Bourbon
Anywhere I Lay My Head