Customer Reviews

Big Time

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Being that Tom Waits doesn't like touring much anymore, this might be the closest any of us will get to experiencing him live (as the corresponding video is also out of print).

This album, contrary to what other reviews have said, is most definitely an essential. It provides new insight to songs, especially "16 Shells from a Thirty-Ought Six" - for the first time, I felt as though I really understood the song. On this album, it takes on a very groovy shuffle feel.

Ballad-wise, Waits plays the living hell out of them. Highlights - Waits' banter before going into a brilliant, moving rendition of his "Train Song." Also, "Ruby's Arms" and "Time" gain even more power in these live versions (if that's possible).

However, I think it's in his more experimental works that the man really shines. The dark, brooding Yesterday is Here gains even more edge as he attacks some of the lyrics with a ferocity that is lacking on the studio version. Also, "Clap Hands" is spectacular too.

All in all, there are no weak songs on this album. Some of them are good live versions that just don't add anything particularly new. And then there are some tracks that are like revelations - the songs are completely re-worked. The album is fascinating.

Big Time is a satisfying, though not revelatory, live album from Tom Waits. It features mainly a selection of the best of his material from Swordfishtrombones, Rain Dogs, and Frank's Wild Years, as well as a few tracks from earlier albums. Waits is an artist who has rarely performed live (especially in later years, and especially this material), and it is quite a treat for fans to hear him live. The performances here are all well, but they generally stick fairly close to their studio counterparts, and only a few are revelatory. In contrast with his earlier live shows, Tom rarely talks to the audience here - when he does, it's for a totally wry aside that you'll love and treasure. As anyone who has heard any of Wait's music since the early 80's, it's quite complex music and uses an extremely odd and unique array of instrumentation. You'll be quite surprised to learn, then, that the band that Tom has assembled here reproduces these songs in all their glory quite well. That said, though, there is also that fact's counterpart to be said about the album: since these songs aren't that much different from the original versions - aside from (perhaps unintentional) differing vocal inflections from Tom - you probably won't want to pick up this album unless you are a die-hard fan. A couple of the versions here are definitive, and an immense improvement over the studio versions (Way Down In The Hole), and there is also the previously unavailable studio recording, Falling Down, stuck into the middle of the album. I recommend getting all of Tom's excellent studio albums first, and then picking this up later if you want more.

Tom Waits challenges both the insane and those that stare down the barrel of sanity. His albums are, without a doubt, pieces of art - and this is no exception. Some highlights:

1. 16 Shells ... I never really cared for the studio version but this live take gives it a new sense of energy especially with Tom's howling at the end and the excellent guitar solo.

6. Yesterday Is Here ... A song I loved off of Frank's Wild Years and a song I was pleased to see included in this live album. One of Tom's most underated tunes in my opinion.

7. Way Down in the Hole ... You can't beat Tom getting religious.

8. Falling Down ... A non-live track which is a great extra. Totally Tom.

12. Train Song ... I believe this song could sum up Waits.

14. Ruby's Arms ... Big crowd favorite here. I believe it's just Waits and his piano. Truly beautiful.

15. Telephone Call from Istanbul ... Even though it does not have the organ solo like the studio version does, this live take is truly crazy and one helluva song to drive to when 3 a.m. rolls around.

16. Clap Hands ... Another song that was re-energized. I believe that's a toy ray gun I hear ... hmmm.

You could probably say something about every song on here but since there's a limit of words. I'd better stop now. Cheers to Tom Waits and his wife Kathleen Brennan - you are original and distinct. I can't wait 'til the two new Waits albums, Alice and Blood Money, are released in May. Thanks.

From a Tom Waits junky, I can tell you: this is his best album ever. It's culled from live performances in Dublin, Stockholm, Berlin, etc. Tom's traveling band of virtuosos includes guitar-sorcerer Marc Ribot. (Dont miss his dissonent solo on "16 Shells"). Not a bad song in the bunch, and every one is far, far better than the studio version it covers. Tom Waits live-- fat city, satori, numero uno.

From a Tom Waits junky, I can tell you: this is his best album ever. It's culled from live performances in Dublin, Stockholm, Berlin, etc. Tom's traveling band of virtuosos includes guitar-sorcerer Marc Ribot. (Dont miss his dissonent solo on "16 Shells"). Not a bad song in the bunch, and every one is far, far better than the studio version it covers. Tom Waits live-- fat city, satori, numero uno.

From a Tom Waits junky, I can tell you: this is his best album ever. It's culled from live performances in Dublin, Stockholm, Berlin, etc. Tom's traveling band of virtuosos includes guitar-sorcerer Marc Ribot. (Dont miss his dissonent solo on "16 Shells"). Not a bad song in the bunch, and every one is far, far better than the studio version it covers. Tom Waits live-- fat city, satori, numero uno.

If you're new to Tom Waits, skip over this CD for a while. If you've lived with Tom Waits's songs for some time you might be ready to hear this eclectic, bizarre, and energetic collection of live performances. Some of the songs are almost totally reinvented - recognizable only by the lyrics (Red Shoes, Big Black Mariah). Some are played exactly the same as the original recording with sometimes better results (Ruby's Arms) and sometimes inferior results (Johnsburg, Illinois, Train Song). There's also the delightfully strange and funny pre-song banter and story telling that he's well known for. For me, the absolute highlight of the CD is the song "Falling Down" which is the only studio track and ranks among the best songs of his entire career. It's oddly buried in the middle of the CD without fanfare, but to me it's a major selling point of the CD. Recently, I viewed the video "Big Time" (long out of print and a collectors item - check Ebay -- they go for over a hundred bucks!) and was quite surprised to find that there is very little overlap between the movie and the CD. Even some cases where the same song is on both, it is a different version. I guess that's just one more quirk in this quirky CD.

I was young in the eighties, so my images are scattered. Unfortunately, the music memories that I DO have consist of up-beat pop sensations like George Micheal, Cindy Lauper, etc., etc., and, of course, the white trash hair bands like Skid Row and Poison. Now, in the Twenty-First century, I have discovered the maniacle genius of Tom Waits, best displayed in this masterpiece. The album begins with Wait's sharp welcoming wail, "GOOD EVENING!" and never looses it's edge. We hear instruments I thought had gone extinct, it is only with Waits that they come alive. I can only imagine the audiences who attended the shows comprised of hipsters, Kerouac disciples, prostitutes and pimps, they were all spoken to, chastised and embraced by Tom Waits. So dance naked to this album (Rain Dogs), cry to this album (Train Song), and laugh to this album(monolouges between songs). Whether you enjoy Wait's music on albums such as Swordfishtrombones and Rain Dogs or not, this album displays the songs from those albums most accessably. Enjoy!

To say there's even a listenable Tom Waits record, you have to buy a ticket and take the ride. It is very much an aquired taste, with a delivery that has all the conviction and rage of a storefront preacher whose down to his last three fingers of Gin.

Waits takes us through the land of the (barely) working poor, telling us first person stories of burnouts, losers, and the hopeless. We see them search for love, redemption, and sometimes, another drink. Some of the references Waits makes can be confusing, as Waits often uses pre-1955 slang in general, and hobo slang in particular. Combined with music that is equal parts Carney and Weill, you'll either love it or hate it.

How to make the introduction? Waits has recently lost his major label deal, forcing (temporarily) much of his catalog out of print. The song selection on "Big Time" is as good as it gets. It's a great selection of early and mid period material, often times with the read on "Big Time" outshining the original. "Big Time" is all killer and no filler. There simply isn't a bad track on the disc.

Adding the "live" element, like the hilarious story he tells before a wrenching "Train Song," this disc does the best job showing most of the facets of Waits. Hopefully with Waits doing the label shuffle, "Big Time" will soon show up on DVD.

This is the best live album of all time if you throw out Dylan's Live 1966. It is also the single best Waits Album to date. If I had to take five albums to a desert island this would be one of them.