Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years

Amazon.com
Tom Waits pulled off a neat trick with the 1983 release of Swordfishtrombones: he disengaged himself from the present (and his own recent achievements) and allied himself with the past. And yet no one could accuse him of becoming mired in nostalgia. A decade before the phrase lo-fi gained favor, Waits purposely ravaged his songs by stomping them into peculiar shapes and utilizing arcane instruments and recording techniques to further bend them into new kinds of aural sculptures. The result was a genuine musical breakthrough. Beautiful Maladies gathers 23 tracks from Waits's seven post-Swordfishtrombones Island LPs. These pretty/ugly tracks provide a riveting view of Tom's wild years. While at least four Waits Island titles qualify as essentials, Beautiful Maladies and the 1988 live set, Big Time, provide compact introductions to a matchless body of work. --Steven Stolder

Product Description
Same as USA Version

Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years

Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years,Tom Waits,Island,Album Rock,College Rock,Experimental Rock,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop,Singer/Songwriter

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Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years

Average customer rating: You need it for the live version of "Cold, Cold Ground" Amazing, as always Review for you: Whether you are obsessed with, or just curious about, Tom Waits Good Starting Point Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years ~ Tom Waits

Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years Tom Waits Manufacturer: Island ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Experimental Rock | Rock | Alternative Styles | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music Singer-Songwriters | Pop | Styles | Music Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music General | Rock | Styles | Music Album-Oriented Rock (AOR) | Classic Rock | Styles | Music Pop | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Classic Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Alternative Rock | Styles | Blowout Music | Stores | Music All Blowout Music | Blowout Music | Stores | Music More Titles at Least 25% Off | Blowout Music | Stores | Music Similar Items: Used Songs (1973-1980) The Early Years, Vol. 2 Rain Dogs The Early Years, Vol. 1 Alice ASIN: B000007QQL Release Date: 1998-06-16

Tracks:

1. Hang On St. Christopher
2. Temptation
3. Clap Hands
4. The Black Rider
5. Underground
6. Jockey Full Of Bourbon
7. Earth Died Screaming
8. Innocent When You Dream (78)
9. Straight To The Top
10. Frank's Wild Years
11. Singapore
12. Shore Leave
13. Johnsburg, Illinois
14. Way Down In The Hole
15. Strange Weather (Live)
16. Cold, Cold Ground (Live)
17. November
18. Downtown Train
19. 16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought Six
20. Jesus Gonna Be Here
21. Good Old World (Waltz)
22. I Don't Wanna Grow Up
23. Time

Amazon.com

Tom Waits pulled off a neat trick with the 1983 release of Swordfishtrombones: he disengaged himself from the present (and his own recent achievements) and allied himself with the past. And yet no one could accuse him of becoming mired in nostalgia. A decade before the phrase lo-fi gained favor, Waits purposely ravaged his songs by stomping them into peculiar shapes and utilizing arcane instruments and recording techniques to further bend them into new kinds of aural sculptures. The result was a genuine musical breakthrough. Beautiful Maladies gathers 23 tracks from Waits's seven post-Swordfishtrombones Island LPs. These pretty/ugly tracks provide a riveting view of Tom's wild years. While at least four Waits Island titles qualify as essentials, Beautiful Maladies and the 1988 live set, Big Time, provide compact introductions to a matchless body of work. --Steven Stolder

Album Details

Same as USA Version

Customer Reviews:

You need it for the live version of "Cold, Cold Ground".......2006-02-04

Here's the question - Do I need this one if I already own verything from "Heartattack and Vine" on up?

The answer is "Yes". Waits' singing on the live version of "Cold, Cold Ground" murders the studio one. Murders it!

Not recommended as an introduction to the curious since there are a ton of songs in Tom's catalog that could put this collection to shame.

Then again, anything that has "16 Shells From A Thirty Ought-Six", "Clap Hands", "Jockey Full Of Bourbon", "Straight To The Top" and "Hang On St. Christopher" is no lightweight collection either.

Amazing, as always.......2005-09-25

Tom Waits is a true original. This compilation spans the seven albums he recorded for Island. This span of music, particularly in the beginning, accomplished his transformation from a gruff singer of fairly straightforward hard-luck ballads to a unique voice unlike anyone else on the musical scene ever. The way he tortures and contorts his voice and instruments makes for music that is by turns frightening, beautiful, and melancholy--and often all at once. There are some puzzling omissions from this set, but it's still loaded with great music.

Review for you: Whether you are obsessed with, or just curious about, Tom Waits.......2005-09-24

If you're already a Tom Waits fan, a true believer (like I am), then you know all of the albums anthologized on this disc, and own half or more of them. The question is: Is it worth buying a CD that duplicates songs you have, for the ones you don't have? As other reviewers confirm, this is a fine collection of the '83-'93 arc of music anchored by his popular 1985 Rain Dogs album (the music on the Down by Law soundtrack). To add to the Amazon listing, here are the songs on this CD broken down by the albums that this collection is drawn from -- to help you make the purchase tradeoff decision:

* Swordfishtrombones (1983)
Underground
Shore Leave
Johnsburg, Illinois
16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought Six
Frank's Wild Years

* Rain Dogs (1985)
Singapore
Clap Hands
Jockey Full Of Bourbon
Time
Downtown Train

* Frank's Wild Years (1987)
Hang On St. Christopher
Straight To The Top
Temptation
Way Down In The Hole
Innocent When You Dream

* Big Time (1988)
Cold, Cold Ground (Live)
Strange Weather (Live)

* Bone Machine (1992)
Earth Died Screaming
Jesus Gonna Be Here
I Don't Wanna Grow Up

* Night On Earth (1992)
Good Old World (Waltz)

* The Black Rider (1993)
The Black Rider
November

If you're not already a Tom Waits believer, but rather are shopping for a taste, this is the perfect mid-career starter set for an artist with a huge, long, and still-ongoing musical dance. It has a mix of approachable and challenging tracks, and captures the essence of Tom Waits at his best, summed up in the editorial review: "you know, the usual: love, death, failure, abject despair, existentialism--with a display of filthy irreverence and furious intellect."

Good Starting Point.......2005-07-06

Despite a voice that sounds like a chainsaw through concrete, Tom Waits (like Dylan before him) is the best interpreter of Tom Waits. This collection comprises his Island years, the most fertile and iconoclastic of his career so far. Some might argue to just use Swordfishtrombones or Mule Variations as a starter, but this compilation gives a wider view of an already versatile artist. Whether bopping along to "Hang On St. Christopher" or tuning in to the chilling wastescapes of "November," this CD is a manic-depressive's joyride through the mind of a twisted genius. And then, when you get to a song like "Downtown Train" which is perfectly suited to the pop market, your mind really blows open.

Beautiful Maladies: The Island Years ~ Tom Waits.......2005-05-20

Tom Waits is one odd and strange fellow. This compilation takes tracks from the time that he recorded for island records. Waits has created some really strange and avantgarde music. It is not really blues, or rock and I to be honest I can not put my finger on it. Yet, it works and he is a quite accomplished lyricist and writes very escoteric yet functional lyrics. The cover for this compilation is very well done and the photo is very nice and the book-let is well done with easy to read font. His vocals are very unusual but for this kind of music (call it what you want), it works and Tom Waits is truly an eccentric genius that creates great music and writes some odd but effective lyrics.

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