Tom Waits- Cemetery Polka & Jockey Full of Bourbon (REACTION//DISCUSSION) 

A bunch of years ago, Tom was a guest on David Letterman and got to talking about taking his kid's class on field trips. "I took about 30 kids to a music store. And we got there and I'm kinda standing over by the pianos and I'm thinking, well, I'm gonna be recognized any minute now. Then I decided to move over by the percussion. I'm ready. I'm ready for: 'Aren't you that guy?' Nothing. I went over by the guitars and I waited. Nothing. I was a little let down. A week later they asked me to drive on another fieldtrip. This time they are going to the dump. Recycling and all that. ...Twelve guys surrounded my car!" And that's the story of Tom Waits' mainstreamness.

Nah, Tom Waits has never been mainstream. He was more of a piano lounge singer than a mainstream singer/songwriter in his early, Asylum, years. Three years later he's with Island and his style has taken a drastic left turn into the experimental. No gradual transformation. Piano to experimental. Personally, I think everything he's done is genius. He may not be everyone's cuppa tea, but for those that do dig him, it can almost be an obsession. It'll take you years to listen to and react to what he's all put out, but I think you'll enjoy it. A lot.

Tom is such a story teller, weaving stories of (sometimes) his life and also real characters into his songs. He often uses nursery rhymes or old songs (modified) as a chorus to emphasise what he is talking about. Don't know any other songwriter who does that. 'Cemetery Polka' makes me smile as he pokes humour at his relatives' quirkiness....it's like Tom actually going to the cemetery, reading the headstones to you and describing his past ancestors. 'Jockey Full of Bourbon' is a down and out bum who drinks his life away in seedy bars, has two pairs of pants and a mohair vest to his name along with a weapon that is useless to protect himself. A 'Jockey' can be used as a word to describe a manipulator or someone who does everything to get the advantage over the next person. You described the setting of this song very well. More of Mr. Waits please Justin.

Jockey Full of Bourbon plays over the title sequence of Jim Jarmusch’s masterpiece Down By Law, starring Tom Waits. You should watch it.

This album is GREAT, as are Swordfishtrombones, Mule Variations, Franks Wild Years and most of the others too.

Marc Ribot is an AWESOME guitarist, who worked with Waits for many albums. He has his own band, Marc Ribot & The Rootless Cosmopolitans, and they are pretty good as well!

There are NO bad Tom Waits albums. Certified genius songwriter. Spend a few indulging everything from the Asylum years, to the Island years, to the Anti years. Every era of Waits is an adventure. Every song a novel.

Nice to see you dipping into some Waits for me one of the very greatest song-writers and story-tellers of all time, it's almost impossible to guess where he'll take you next and what jalopy he'll use to transport you there one minute he'll try to beat your into submission with his voice next he'll sing you a truly beautiful and heartbreaking ballad, to me the man is truly a singular genius.

A great musician AND a great actor.

Love me some Tom Waits. I never used to like him at first, but as I've got older I've found him more relateable. He was an old soul from an early age. You were thinking of Swordfishtrombones 🙂

"Jockey Full of Bourbon'" was featured in the indy film "Down By Law", written and directed by Jim Jarmusch, in which Tom also stars. Definitely worth watching. Incidentally, in the line "Dutch pink on a downtown train", Dutch pink is slang for blood.

A splendid artist. A huge back catalogue. And covers a wide variety of styles.

Jockey Full of Bourbon, the opening song to the movie "Down by Law", one of my all-time favorite songs, and I haven't go a clue as to what it actually all means. I almost think the colorful imagery is used to create an atmosphere rather than form a coherent picture or story.

Swordfishtrombones was my introduction to Waits, loved it and went on to buy pretty much everything after. I've always thought of Raindogs and Swordfish as a matching pair, mainly as I had them on either side of a cassette!

Well, you never know what to expect from him, and I think that's a good thing. One of my favorite lyrics from him is: "Never trust a man in a blue trench coat Never drive a car when you're dead"(Telephone Call From Istanbul)

Don't forget to pay attention to Mark Ribot's great guitar playing.... an artist you should check out as well! He basically invents a part of the "typical" Tom Waits atmosphere in this era of his work.

I absolutely adore Tom Waits. Got into his music 4 years ago through Rain Dogs and have been obsessed ever since. I think you'd enjoy the album 'Bone Machine'. It's experimental, eerie and raw. Also, in terms of artists that are kind of similar to Tom you should check out Fiona Apple's later stuff: particularly Fetch The Bolt Cutters which uses a lot of heavy DIY percussion that's reminiscent of Tom's work.

Great reaction. Great album. What a freak show that first song was.

Cemetery Polka: perfect marriage of lyric and music.

First Tom Waits Album I ever heard and I was HOOKED

Thank you so much for taking on Tom Waits, indeed he has two different careers from 1973 to 84 he was a piano blues singer songwriter influenced by Dylan, Sinatra and Kerouac. Then starting with swordfishtrombones he took over his own production and became more of an avant garde artist, you are listening to the second cd after he changed direction. It s great to hear someone tackle this great American masterpiece, I look forward to your reaction to the spoken word piece of this cd 9 th and Hennepin, I almost got turned off to watching reaction videos when I saw someone do a poor response to one of his spoken word pieces What's he building in there because they had no concept of what a spoken word piece was. In your next video you will be tackling Tango till they're sore, one of my favorites, I also look forward to hearing your take on the song Time another favorite. One day I was at work sing Tango til they're sore and a guy from another shift heard me singing it and he said "if you know someone is a Tom Waits fan that's all you need to know about them to be friends" words I have lived by ever since.

Yes yes yes please keep going on this album so many more great songs Personal favourite tango till your sore coming up. Great reaction

A singer/writer I've sort of grown up with. Right from his earlier folkish songs. You should listen to his duet with Bette Midler. I never talk to strangers. 👍

That band. That imagery. That voice! Such a great album! Next: Frank's Wild Years!

Yes! So excited to see you continuing with this album, a lot more twists and turns on the way!

The guitar on Jockey....🔥

So happy to see you liking this! Tom is unique, and one of my favourite artists.

Tom Waits for no one. Tom was a pass-around pleasure here in hippietown. That's how I caught wind. Then he came here in the 70s, to UNC-Charlotte, and had a groovy outdoor concert, featuring his two local favorites, "The Piano Has Been Drinking" and "Step Right Up". Here are some teaser lyrics from each: "Cause the bouncer is a Sumo wrestler Cream-puff casper milquetoast And the owner is a mental midget with the I.Q. of a fencepost Cause the piano has been drinking The piano has been drinking...not me." (The Piano Has Been Drinking) "...the large print giveth, and the small print taketh away." (Step right Up) Here is Tom on "Fernwood Tonight" a latenight groovy show in the '70s, with the greats Fred Willard and Martin Mull...who would end the show by saying: "Thank you for coming...or however you reacted." ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-44smgtX4LGc.html

"I'm on the lawn with someone else's wife." LOL

The album is phenomenal. And it's not the only Waits album you can say that about.

I've always loved this album. It is so fun watching you experience it for the first time. I can tell you, after 100 listens it is still undecipherable in the best way.

Been a fan for 40+ years. No one like him. From folk to R&B to Jazz and then to somewhere. I envy the journey you are taking into Tom Waits. Try Tom Troubolts blues. It will take you out of that chair and put you the street or an alley.

Love me some Tom Waits. I’ll say it again: Ruby’s arms (to convert the sceptics in this comment section 😘). Thanks Justin, loved your reaction today.

He’s brilliant on a Captain Beefheart level. I love the twisted French Cabaret/Carnival Freak Show vibe of Cemetary Polka. For some reason, the goth feel reminds me of “Coin Operated Boy”by the Dresden Dolls. It’s not anything I’ll probably ever throw on a playlist, but it’s brilliant. “Full of Bourbon” sounds like a song Squirrel Nut Zippers or maybe Morphine should have covered. Those kitschy swing revival bands of the 90s would have been much more interesting doing stuff like this.

My favorite Tom Waits lyric is "If it's heads I'll go to Tennessee, if it's tails I'll buy a drink, if it lands on its edge I'll keep talking to you." I often think of this when a drunk at a bar is chewing my ear off, and my mind wanders.

I'm glad your doing Rain Dogs. I found it unlistenable back in the day, yet I love lots of Tom Waits music. You're helping me re-evaluate the album. But still not easy. Hope you don't give up. Other albums are more accessible with many brilliant tracks. e.g. Blue Valentine and Small Change.

Tom Waits is a genius. Nighthawks at the Diner, Swordfishtrombone and Rain Dogs are masterpieces.

There was a book called 'Hog On Ice' which explored some strange idiomatic language. "A person who exhibits an air of haughty confidence and independence but is, in reality, utterly inept, powerless, or insecure. Thought to be a reference to a pig stranded on a body of ice, freed from its pen but unable to walk or stand upright properly." It also included "rope of sand : something of no cohesion or stability : a feeble union or tie." Tom dangled from one in 'Singapore'. Note: 'Hog on Ice' did not supply these exact definitions. But it was suggested that Tom read a copy, and liked the expressions. It is a shame that you will generally only hear all this great music once... and never get a chance to actually incorporate these sounds into your life for a few months. With Tom Waits, that might be a wise thing to do. Don't ignore Bone Machine!

Every appearance on Letterman - from 82’ on up is golden and hilarious. All are on RU-vid. Run to watch them.

You can NEVER know what to expect with Tom lol!!!

It's great to enjoy this masterpiece, but mediated through your experience of it. And thank you for listening to it, properly (something that's conspicuous by its absence from most reaction videos). 'Jockey Full of Bourbon' easily finds its way into my Waits Top 20.

LOL ! ! ! THIS IS 'THE CRACK ! ! !'👍👍👍

The guitar work on this album is magical. Marc Ribot is a genius.

U...got so much brilliance to get thru....

Love this album. You chided yourself for thinking you knew what to expect, yet predicted it perfectly in the first reaction with "dilapidated carnival" :)

I love the first two of your Tom songs and the second two were the first four - as obviously there was that Cemetery Polka shock, and another shock with Jockey Full of Bourbon.

Dude in the 70's I saw him in a Holiday Inn meeting room. Man what a "concert". A crowd of about 25 or so.

The songs he did for the movie "One From the Heart" are amazing, especially "I Beg Your Pardon" and "This One's From The Heart", both incredibly atmospheric and jazzy.

Great review JP

It's Kathleen Brennan that makes the difference for late Waits. Waits says so, too.

Loving your journey through Raindogs. The first time hearing Cemetery Polka, I also got a Tim Burton/Danny Elfman vibe. Cheers!

Circus Sideshow or Freakshow is Tom Waits subgenre, all on his own. And yet even within this genre, he has written some beautiful songs, weird as they are in their details. "Innocent When You Dream" and "Downtown Train" are just such examples.

Nice that you talk about the lyrics. I love this album. For me the lyrics are just part of the atmosphere.

Tom Waits is way different than any other musician I’ve ever heard and I listen to every genre

As I've said before : This ( brilliant ) album, opens...with some difficult to love songs. From Jockey full, and onwards, it's amazing!

Tom Waits... Tim Burton Separated at birth? Tom is the embodiment of film noir. Wait for it.... Small Change.... .....Step Right Up.... Just fabulous!

the bit about fly away home, your house is on fire, and your children are alone, is maybe from a nursery rhyme.

Actually, the lyrics for Cemetery Polka are mostly true! He is actually singing about his family, which is hilarious. After the album came out, He got an angry telephone call from his mom, "dont tell our family secrets in public".😄

This is probably my 3rd favourite album of the 80s magnificent album and he’s so many other belters

I went to see Down By Law in the cinema back when it was released and this song is the opening scene/credits. So I went out and bought this album. Keith Richards is on guitar on the song Rainbdogs and possibly others. The movie stars Tom Waits, John Lurie and Roberto Benigni, the only actor (comedian actually) among them. It's a great movie by the way. And very much in the spirit of Waits hobo-esque scoundrel persona. After hearing Raindogs I bought his third album Nighthawks At The Diner. After that bought one album after the other. I have a lot of his albums in vinyl still.

Justin, you should definitely watch a couple of Tom's appearances om Letterman. Letterman loved him, and had him on pretty often.

Love Jockey Full of Bourbon. You should watch the movie Down By Law, directed by Jim Jarmusch. Tom Waits did the soundtrack (largely this album) and is one of the 3 leads, along with John Lurie (of the Lounge Lizards) and Roberto Benigni. It was my introduction to Waits.

Sir. You laughed at the same points that I did when I first heard it. I was once told that I would not understand Frank Zappa. I said that I would stay with Tom Waits. There is magic here.

This was my first Wait's album. So damn good. But his last album "Bad as me" was made in 2011. His last tour was at 2008. I'm wondering what that man has been doing since then, and why he does'nt make new music. Can anybody tell me?

All of Waits’ 80s albums you would never know they were recorded in the 80s. All his songs - everyone of them - sound different from the previous. Especially in the 80s and mid 90s

Once again I heard Tom Waits in a friend’s collection. I think he had Closing Time, his first, all the way to Heart Attack and Vine, that’s seven albums I was hit with. Blue Valentines was one that stuck out, so I bought that for me, later on after, I bought Swordfishtrombones and Rain Dogs on release. Those are my trilogy. I love Tom’s newspaper names and cartoon lyrics, great entertainment for me. Mark Ribot really added another level of insane musicianship. Lots of crying and boohooing about this album but, we’re going to drown them out. Rough week at work, so I’m a little late. Peace and jockey full of Music

More, More, More!!!

Beautiful, thanks - Tom Waits is my favorite poet - Charles Bukowski's got nothin' on him. I'd like to request a couple of songs from Tom's BLUE VALENTINES album: Romeo Is Bleeding and Kentucky Avenue. Tom Waits is a too well kept secret - please don't stop!

Tom Wait's voice is a force of nature. While Tom has never been "mainstream", some mainstream artists have covered his songs. For example, Bruce Springsteen does an excellent version of "Jersey Girl", and Rod Stewart's cover of "Downtown Train" is pretty good.

I love the guitar sounding like it's next door.

I listened to this song for 25 years before I looked up the name Edna Million. You didn't even wait for the song to finish.

He was definitely more "mainstream" folk (if that's a thing), but Swordfishtrombones was his beginning of going into what we've known/heard Tom do for the last 30 years.

he is a cult legend who has also participated in several movie projects,also as an actor

Might I suggest expanding your Tom Waits experience with "The piano has been drinking" and "The Heart of Saturday night".

Justin? Have you ever listened to Gogol Bordello? Tom Waits style, a lot of times, reminds me of that Eastern Europe “Gypsy” sound.

I’m a massive Waits fan and while I want to say a million things I’ll refrain for the moment and just say 2 things- 1) you cursed yourself by saying you thought u knew what to expect and it was amazing to watch. 2) I can’t imagine the balls it takes to make an album like this in any decade let alone smack in the middle of the 1980s! That said, it’s clear Waits was determined to do his own thing.. and not give one sh*t what anyone thought. He made several albums (I think with Asylum ) and went for a few years without a record contract.. before hitting this period of his career. I’m so grateful he kept making music. He’s audacious - you’ll never be a great artist without the ability to take the ball and run as far as you can with it while not caring an ounce what other ppl think.

if you only ever listen to one other Tom Waits song, please listen to his version of 'Buddy can you spare a dime' - beautiful.

Swordfishtrombones has some remarkably sensitive songs on it. Very soul stirring, dare I say! He touches on a very deep, dark loneliness, that as a 20-something year old, I didn't know existed. You expect a bit of theater and comedy.......not existentialism!

More please!

My introduction to Tom Waites was Small Change which I heard in 1979. I was immediately hooked. I've now got all his albums and maybe it's because I was a trembling Tom Waits virgin when I heard it and you never forget your first or maybe it's because it was in a seafront bar during a sun-drenched and sun burnt Greek island holiday (no place for virgins of any description) but it's still my favourite. Or maybe it's just because it's a damn fine album. [edited because my damned OCD won't let me ignore punctuation errors.]

For a more mainstream, and gorgeous song, try Downtown Train.

Chicken Ranch? You be my Dixie chicken, I'll be your Tennessee lamb and we will walk together down in Dixie land... The lyrics of JFB are obscure. I think there is a lot of regional slang terms, I just don't know which region. CP is likely the strangest song (as far as I remember) on the album. I love this album. There are still many treats on it yet to be discovered. When you are finished it, I think you should go back to his first (more folkie) or second (getting a bit more bluesy) before tackling Swordfish Trombones or some of his later work.

been a tom waits fan.since i first heard the song.the piano has been drinking.now in his 70s.there is only one tom waits.better catch him while you can.

Wow, I’m so glad you decided to pick up right where you left off. This album is nicely representative of Tom’s middle (and best) period. He was never “mainstream” or “poppy”, but he did make sappy ballads that became hits for bands like the Eagles in the first decade of his career. He had this boozy, bohemian persona and tried to sound like Louis Armstrong. Waits made some clever music and was a good storyteller, but I think what he did earlier in his career only hinted at the more avant-garde turn he took in the 80’s which he attributes to meeting his long-time songwriting partner and wife, Kathleen Brennan. I’m pretty sure the big shift in his approach also correlates with his move from Hollywood to New York. The Scott Walker comparison isn’t completely off: like Walker, he got better and more experimental as he got older. Unlike Walker, however, Waits was a weirdo with no place in popular music from the very beginning. Man, I wish the outro to “Jockey” just kept going for another few minutes. The saxophone is such a tease there. Marc Ribot really shines on guitar, and if you continue to explore Tom Waits you will get to hear a lot more of him. Just wait until you hit the title track. Ribot is a genius in his own right, and has some incredible albums of his own. You’ll also hear Keith Richards if you continue listening to Rain Dogs, as well as a bunch of other notable players over the course of his career (including Flea and Les Claypool on his most recent album, which I’ve always found funny for some reason). The musicianship is always top-notch, and always is in service of the atmosphere or texture that Tom is trying to create. It’s been pretty great seeing someone vibe with Tom Waits and get what he’s about musically and aesthetically pretty much instantly. It was a much longer adjustment period when I started listening. I hope you’ll finish out Rain Dogs and then check out some other stuff. You’ve gotten a great idea of what Tom is about with these four songs, but at the same time you’ve barely scratched the surface. I’ve got my fingers crossed that you aren’t too strongly steered by the comment section toward the 70’s stuff, a lot of which I love but it just isn’t as interesting or singular as what he did from 1983 onwards.

Can we then go Tango Till Their Sore and Big Black Mariah as the next two???

For me, his "Mule Variations" album is the perfect middle ground between the more "normal" and "demonic carnival" music he's recorded.

Love me some Tom Waits. Howza bout Emotional Weather Report. Or anything from Nighthawks at the Diner.

Oh I'm looking forward to this, mostly new to me... CP didn't do it for me. agree with the Tim B feel... second tune vocals and beat sounded like Santana ripped him off... kidding, but still another one that doesn't do much for me. I did enjoy your reaction though

To get a sense of the story at least listen to Frank's Wild Years from swordfish. It will put the rest in context. There is a concert film made after the trilogy is complete but is very edited from the entire live performances. Still some magic moments. Tom is as Original as it gets. Also His earlier stuff was more mainstream jazzish check out the guitar on Blue Valentines ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wsw0aWXufqM.html One of My fav Jazz guitar pieces. So Clean!

The Baby's is early Tom Waits. Radio songs but still excellent. The Baby's, Every Time I Think of You The Baby's, Isn't it Time

Don't read too much into the lyrics Justin. Just revel in the richness of the writing and let the characters come to life in your mind. Tom Waits has his own " world" , and its nice to pay a visit there once in a while.

I don't know why but this album kinda reminds me of Mr. Bungle. Same sort of discordant yet musical insanity. Tom Waits is a fairly deep rabbit hole. The album of his that you were trying to remember Justin is Swordfishtrombones. I especially like "Down, down, down" from that album. Another very good Waits album is Bone Machine, which has the excellent songs "Black Wings" and "Murder In the Red Barn". Both have that gloomy, island percussive weirdness. Tom Waits may be an acquired taste, but I do dig his shit.

Jockeys ride the horses in horse racing. Love this album btw

While I can appreciate a lot of his later junkyard-circus-on-bad-acid stuff, I definitely prefer his earlier, piano-bar stuff...

Just go ahead and do the whole damn thing

What came first? The poet or the verse? The stroller or the hearse? With a good bottle of bourbon, and Tom playing all night, you could do worse! Peace to all the Hippies, Hawks, and Hobos.

... always loved Mr Waits. This, like some other songs, is highly influenced by Kurt Weill. B.t.w., it's said he's the Charles Bukowski of music, I'd agree to this :-) ...

The Jockey he is referring to is a cab driver

I also would like to recommend the funny and sad movie Down By Law. I think it will fit to your kind of humor. 😁

Swordfish bones is the album you are thinking of