My Favorite Tom Waits Albums and Songs

It's been a while since my last real list, and, well, yeah. Anyways, with these kinds of lists, I've paid tribute to four of the greatest rock n' roll artists/bands in the history of the universe (Beatles, Kraftwerk, Bowie, Sonic Youth), and with this specific one that you are reading right this instant, I am adding a fifth member to Il Buono's pantheon of rock gods. That member is Tom Waits. Waits is one of the best, most prolific, and most consistent songwriters of the past century or two. He's able to change his style without ever sacrificing his identity while putting out albums every couple years--and he's done that for a good three and a half decades now. Obviously his calling card is his voice, which is certainly one of the most distinctly amazing voices in music, but his lyrics and arrangements match the power of his gravelly moan. From beautiful piano ballads to dirty blues romps, the man has covered a lot of musical territory; wherever he goes, though, he's sure to infuse the tunes with a hefty dose of experimenting and another hefty dose of bizarre, intricate storytelling. So here's to you Mr. Waits. You've earned your seat between Florian Schneider and George Harrison.

Oh, and here are my ten favorite Waits albums and thirty favorite Waits songs:

Albums

1. Rain Dogs

2. Swordfishtrombones

3. Bone Machine

4. Orphans

5. Mule Variations

6. Alice

7. Small Change

8. Blood Money

9. Night On Earth (Soundtrack)

10. Closing Time

Songs

1. Tango Till They're Sore

2. Jockey Full of Bourbon

3. Swordfishtrombone

4. Lie To Me

5. Gun Street Girl

6. 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six

7. Bottom Of The World

8. Goin' Out West

9. Lucinda

10. Big Black Mariah

11. Get Behind The Mule

12. Cemetery Polka

13. The Piano Has Been Drinking (Not Me)

14. Rains On Me

15. A Little Rain

16. Back In The Good Old World (Gypsy)

17. Frank's Wild Years

18. Big In Japan

19. Rain Dogs

20. God's Away On Business

21. Hoist That Rag

22. Reeperbahn

23. 2:19

24. Tom Traubert's Blues

25. Chocolate Jesus

26. Underground

27. Just The Right Bullets

28. The Earth Died Screaming

29. I Hope That I Don't Fall In Love With You

30. Table Top Joe

That's what I think. So there.