Wild Years: The Music and Myth of Tom Waits

I once heard a music journalist say that Tom Waits came from nowhere. He went on to explain that if you look at any artist you can usually see who they took their lead from. He then said that with Tom Waits there is only him, it is like he perfected his act in the desert then came to town. I didn't exactly agree with him but I thought that he voiced something that all Tom Waits fans instinctively feel. Whilst I would say that there were people before him there is no-one like him now.

I was nervous about reading this as I really like the music of Tom Waits and you know what it is like when your heroes are exposed to the light of inspection. But I was warmed to soon discover that Jay S Jacobs is a big fan too. This makes him somewhat show more biased when it comes to Tom Waits. Although this is update to an older biography it still read to me as if it was written yesterday. Being an "unauthorised" biography means that Tom Waits had no part it is creation or content therefore it is all secondhand reporting. Having said that it is nonetheless comprehensive.

One of the biggest elements in this is Tom Waits mythologising himself via stories, anecdotes and sayings that are attributed to him. You get the feeling that Tom Waits has created "Tom Waits" rather skillfully by merging the traits of the characters he sings about with details of his own life. Living in cheap hotels, drinking, hanging out with weird people, saying strange things in that raspy voice.

For example, on Letterman, Letterman reels off a list of films Waits had been in up to that point, but can't remember one. When he asks Tom which movie it was, Waits replies "Ben Hur". Waits talked about his folks who are teachers and about his children. Letterman asked how old his kids were, and Waits says "My boy is older than I am." Letterman asked Waits which place he likes living better - New York or LA. Waits sort of ducked the question, but said that NYC is like a great ship sinking in the ocean, and the ocean's on fire. Waits says that the cover photo of Raindogs was taken in Hamburg and he told the names of the two people in the picture. One was supposedly Rosicrucia.

There is lots here to please any fan. This book charts his career via his discography from whoa to go. It chronicles his life and times without destroying any of the mystique along the way.

I found this picture somewhere and I think it just kinda sums it all up show less