Tom Waits Bizarre Lawsuit Against Frito Lay Over A Doritos Commercial 

Doritos or Tom Waits?

I would expect Tom to do a local commercial for like a scrap yard, or pawn shop. That's not selling out, just supporting your people.

Of course Tom Waits only commercial was for dog food.

Waits is an American treasure.

"Corn chip sermon" lmao, long live the gritty king

Tom should be proud of the dog ad. Now, whenever I see a big scruffy dog, I think it would have Tom's voice if it could talk!

DAMN. Never piss-off Tom Waits. P.S.: Good for him.

Tom will forever be a legend. A true one-of-a-kind genius. I dont care about snacks.

Tom is the best. Loved this one. Nice work getting the purina commercial in there. They did do a good job on the imitation. No wonder Tom got upset. We all want to hear Tom waits and be like him. 😂

Love how he continued to use metaphors and similies even when we understood what he meant right off the bat.

I just love Tom Waits. The dog food commercial is actually cool and it feels on brand for him. I had never seen that before, but it doesn't diminish my respect for him at all. Sounds like he had his way with it, talking about temptation and desire in that weird context. The Doritos commercial is just terrible. Glad he won in court.

Man, your research with these videos are incredible. My favorite on RU-vid. 👍🏼

This is one of the funniest rock and roll true stories I've heard yet - that Doritos commercial is hilarious 😂 😃 😄!

I can really relate to what that jersey said about thinking he was the criminal. The first time I saw him open for the headliner in the 70’s. I didn’t know what he looked like. The lights went down and the music started and a few minutes later someone dressed like a bum came out, snapping his fingers holding an old suitcase, and I thought it was an escaped mental patient

I remember when this happened because I was a huge TW fan and still am. I wasn’t surprised that he won the lawsuit because if you’ve ever seen an interview with TW you’d know how articulate as well as absolutely hilarious he is. I’m sure he had the jury wrapped around his little finger. Oh, and he was also right.

Good for you Tom. I remember seeing him a the Wilton in Los Angeles and the only prop he used was a huge old refrigerator. He performed a few songs and then opened the refrigerator and there was one beer in there. Brilliant.

The Tom Waits "soundalike" on the Doritos commercial sounds more like a California Raisin than Tom Waits

I for one would never mistake that voice for the voice of Tom Waits.

Tom Waits paints pictures with his songs like no other gets the visual the dialogue the emotion the narrative all perfectly a genius

Fun fact Tom Waits is the inspiration for the Heath Ledger Joker voice

I saw Tom in a former bowling alley turned music hall in West Hartford, Connecticut, circa… 1976? From the piped in fog to the lamp post prop Waits came out leaning on, I knew I was in the presence of a soon to be legend. The only thing that marred the evening was a severe headache, which is very rare for me. I only recall one other show I suffered from a headache at, the J. Geils Band up at the Jorgensen hall at UConn in 1981.

There is a funny footnote, some trailers for ’Imaginarium of Dr Parnassas’ are voiced by Terry Guilliam doing an impression of Waites. Tom is in the film playing The Devil, and he and Guiliam are good friends so in this case he didn’t mind.

Good for Tom. He *is*, however, a criminal. He's criminally talented and has stolen my heart thousands of times.

“We thought he was a criminal”! 😂

Thumbs up for a good choice of topic! This guy keeps pòpping up in my feed lately. His style is growing on me.

TW is one of my all time favorites. Very unique and identifiable style and voice. Great story.

Tom is what “cool” wants to be. He was the bartender in the 1983 movie Rumble Fish. Along with Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke and Diane Lane. Serious “cool” happening in that flick. Nick Cage was in it as well with uncle Francis directing it. Tom is still the leader in “cool”.

An inspiring story. Never get involved with litigation - unless you have to. I can imagine this entire ordeal provided Waits with enough material for 4 or 5 new songs. Bless him.

I was a young punk when this commercial aired so I had no idea it was stealing his whole persona, I just thought it was meant to be a generic, "cool daddio" jazz dude. What a story!

0:42 lol iconic and classic Waits ❤ he is an acquired taste so I appreciate that he appreciates his fans enough to not sell out

The voice in the commercial sounds like Rolf from the Muppets too. If Frito-Lay would have made a TV commercial with Rolf.. the lawsuit would probably have been dead on arrival...

I'd love to see a video like this about Devo's music being used in commercials. It's hilarious to see Beautiful World in things like Target ads, when that song's exactly against the saccharine BS in commercials like that.

Favorite line; cutlet started beating shit out my cup of coffee, coffee wasn't strong enough to defend itself!

Brilliant piece. I love Waits.

Musician: *makes anticapitalist song* Ad Companies: - That’s exactly what we need to sell our product!

I also liked Tom Waits movement to free the glutens

In 1988 if you had played that ad for me I’d have thought it was Louie Armstrong too.

2:44 “Grovely style”? You mean “gravelly”? I’m assuming the reader didn’t write the script.

Wow that sounds exactly like him! Tom Waits is my spirit animal.

Now all I want is to try those f-ing Doritos! And I know they're probably not around anymore...

There was another commercial I saw once on late night TV in the 80's, with someone dressed as the Creature from the Black Lagoon floating on a log raft in a dark foggy swamp, playing an upright piano and singing like Tom about corn chips. When I first heard about the lawsuit years ago, I assumed it was for that ad.

I heard of this debacle when I was working at my first job at a guitar store. I had no idea it was over Step Right Up. That has to be one of my top three Waits song. It’s so so so funny. It’s probably the funniest songs ever written.

2:47- Waits grovelly style? Grovelly isn’t even a word, but it’s obviously related to groveling. Pretty sure he meant gravelly, sounding like gravel.

Loved Waits on Ferwood 2 Night with Martin Mull and Fred Willard. He performed "The Piano Has Been Drinking." [1977]

Tom Waits is a true boss , real musician badass

BTW that endless one-minute radio ad in question is from 5:42-6:42 and it is execrable.

Audi, Opal, and Frito Lays used Tom Waits voice but nobody's heard of him. Yeah, right. lol. Go get 'em, Tom Cat.

Bette Middler and Tom Waits have collabed many times. She covered Martha on SNL. In 1979. He's easily as well known, just not to the snack chip suits.

To me the first aired ad sounds to me that the same case could be made for Dr John.

On the 102nd day of jury deliberation, the foreman approaches the judge: "No, your honor, we haven't come to a decision. We are still doing research. We will need a few more things. That is a 2 bottles of rye whiskey and the album Closing Time, a bottle of tequila and Raindogs, and some antidepressants and cigarettes. Also, Mule Variations - juror nine like that one the most. Yes your honour, ummm...again. I know but, we want to make sure we can understand...just understand...just understand you know? We all feel like we are on the edge of a great epiphany of understanding what he is trying to tell us."

So the Frito Lay people were banking on the public wanting to eat "River Sauce" flavoured Doritos?!

Damn I was ready to have some of that Butchers Blend dog food.

I just stopped this video, and went n listened to Step Right Up. TOTALLY worth it!!! ☺️☺️☺️☺️☺️ Thanks for the tip! 🖐️😊 Youve been great value for me lately.... → Y'all prompted me go and listen to The Cult's Ceremony yesterday, for the first time in 3 years, and it.. ..set my soul harp on fire! 😌🙏 [Drop everything and and go immediately listen to Sweet Salvation, the Cult ! I promise you an uplifted spirit inside 60 seconds.]

really interesting story, love your channel!

9:51 now i just picture tom waits in a supermarket with a bunch of shopping carts filled with candy

Awesome that the case turned the jurors into Tom Waits fans🤣

I can see why Frito-Lay took the risk of getting sued. Every time I hear Tom Waits' voice I get hungry for corn chips.

The fact that he let "Way Down In The Hole" be used and covered repeatedly for The Wire to use as an opening song on all 5 seasons says a lot. He's fine with good art, not hustling for dollars for somebody else.

Good to know Tom hasn’t changed all that much since I knew him almost 60 years ago.

I wonder why Frito's was so invested in having a Waits sound-alike that they would risk a lawsuit?

i love his quotes ,he can never speak without painting colourful images

Tom Waits comes through when the Chips are down!

Years ago I worked in a place where we could listen to whatever we wanted while we worked. One of my coworkers said to me one day "Hey you don't mind if I play Tom Waits, do you?" and I was like, "No, why would I?" and he answered "Some people have a....visceral.....reaction to hearing him, I just wanted to be sure you weren't one of them.". LOL

Kudos to Tom ! His voice is unique and his music is deep with integrity, that being said if he decided to use his work for financial gain especially if he needed to put food on the table it's his work and his decision to do so and would not trivialize his artistic integrity to me anyway, it's his property and intellectual property at that and that's also a financial asset. But.. he didn't allow it I'm a musician.. without the incredible catalogue of music as Tom W .. an American Treasure in my humble opinion.

He also sued Levi's and Screaming Jay Hawkins. Hawkins covered Heart Attack and Vine and then send let the advertising agency use in (a pretty good) 80's commercial. Waits sued both Hawkins (as far as I remember) and the ad agency (maybe also Levi's). Tom won. I'd love to see a video on this as I can't remember the details. I waited till the end before posting so I know the Channel did mention it.

Gravelly not grovelly. Gravel not grovel. As this points out, Waits is not prone to grovel. Don't go into that barn.

I remember those Doritos, them were a tasty treat. Taco bell flavor was great as well.

Love the bit about the witness thinking Waits was the accused and was escaping - and the photo on the Heart Attack and Vine lp. It’s a set. No comb included.

I liked how "Rockapella" actually put their Ads in their sets

Yah. Grovelly style. Crunchy vibes. Gnarly to the max, brochacho.

One note... Tom and Bette used to be an item. They dated and broke up in the late 70s prior to her marrying one of The Kipper Kids Martin Rochus Sebastian von Haselberg ... and as you know von before a german last name means he's technically royalty.

I think Tom Waits is being way too hard on himself for doing that dog food commercial. It was an easy check for some voiceover work. He didn't do some embarrassing spokesman routine or act like a mascot and he didn't sell one of his songs... And even if he had done that, I don't think even his most loyal fans would've minded. If any recording artist has reached that level of high regard and respectability, it's Tom Waits.

The radio commercial sure fooled my ears - verdict, Waits!

Not only did they have Carter imitate Tom Waits' voice, but they ripped off his music. It was a double whammy.

Good for Tom. You have to respect integrity.

The large print giveth, the small print taketh away!

I remember the Tom Waits Doritos case.

Yea we all hold our breath for Tom's long awaited comedy album "Unrequited Love For Advertising"lol😂🎉

I’m kinda bummed we didn’t get an entire generation of commercials narrated by Waits.

i always thought the Frito Bandito song was tom waits. AYYEEEE AYE AYE AYEEEEEEEEEE.YO SOY EL FRITO BANDITO!

I remember that dog food commercial!

Tom probably knows what it is like to be hurting for a square meal, like a dog could be, hence the use of his voice to offer dog food.

There's a difference. A "voice" is something someone (or thanks to GPT, someTHING) can mimic. The idea that Tom Waits himself had to audition for Ads looking for a "Tom Waits" voice isn't as uncommon as you think. I think Tom is referring to the Process of actually putting a musical arrangement together and making it sound like something to be happy to call your own

The dog commercial was a voice over. Not one of his songs. He shouldn't feel like a sellout over that.

Unbelievable how much that dude sounds like Waits.

Yo...that commercial sounds like a goddamn fever dream. It's terrifying.

...Great memories of Waits. It's fine to hear he's still around.

I came here because there is a current news article (July 2023) about use of artificial intelligence in advertising, and in that article there was discussion about the former misappropriation of the professional likenesses of Tom Waits and Bette Midler.

I'm a fan of Tom's music. 👌🏼

Waits is a throwback to when artists had principles and would never allow their music to be used as a jingle. Modern musicians will trample each other rushing to sign their music over to Madison Ave.

Salsa Rio Doritos were tasty though! I hope Tom enjoyed his candy!

So much for my ad I was do for MCDONALD'S new Phillipino box spring hog sandwich

Jeep or some car company is using a riff from Tom's Swordfishtromboes as an underscore to their vehicle ads. Someone should alert him.

I guess Frito Lay just decided to let the chips fall where they may.

'Is Frito a Bandito?' LOL

That radio commercial sounded nothing like him it just sounded insane

And Tom Waits had a duet with Bett Middler back in the 70s

In what world is Tom Waits not well known??

He does have good music on a Walt Disney album called Stay Awake.

Honestly, the commercial sounds more like Louie Armstrong than Tom Waits. Which is the defense that I'd have used. Especially when the tune kinda has that jazzy sound.