Tom Waits - 'Nighthawks at the Diner'

'Nighthawks at the Diner' was at recorded at The Record Plant in Hollywood, CA. on July 30 & 31and released in 1975 as a double LP on the Elektra/Asylum Records label.

This is Tom at his peak as a beat-poet, barroom philosopher.  It blends moody, late-night jazz with spoken-word monologues and storytelling, evoking a smoky, intimate, 2 a.m. lounge ambiance, featuring characters like drunks, dreamers, and hookers, and delivers a highly atmospheric, almost cinematic experience.

Tom wanted to record a live album. Asylum Records founder David Geffen whom at the time was pushing Tom into a jazzier direction came up with the idea of staging it in a studio to emulate the atmosphere of a small club. Why they just didn't record it in an actual small club, is beyond me.

Be that as it may…

They rented the back room of the Record Plant, which had a large seating area and a glass booth for the recording equipment.  Four shows were planned for the last two days of July 1975 with a different audience attending each show.  Admission was by invitation only, though free tickets were handed out at Tom Waits’ old haunt, the Troubadour in West Hollywood.  As such, the crowd was filled with friendly ears conducive to his charms, from hip Elektra-Asylum employees to existing fans of the musician.  The back room of the Record Plant was set up like a nightclub: big tables with candles, checkerboard tablecloths, peanuts, pretzels, wine, and beer. 

Tom's backing band was Pete Christlieb on saxophone, Bill Goodwin on drums, Jim Hughart on bass, and bandleader Mike Melvoin on piano.  All were elite session musicians who recorded with Frank Sinatra, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Vince Guaraldi, and many others.  The interaction between the band and Tom is wonderful. You can hear this innate connection between the musicians 51 years later; their patience, trust, and responsiveness are remarkable.

The opening act for all the four shows was an old-fashioned tassel twirling burlesque stripper named "Dwana" [sigh…—Ed] who was an old friend of Toms.  What could be more appropriate for the warm-up for a Waits show than an old school stripper?

Tom Waits’ one-liners, non sequiturs, surprisingly sweet asides, scatting, self-deprecating stories, observational humor, and sadness all contribute to a perfect personality portrait in 'Nighthawks at the Diner'.

Waits’ wandering words paint a vivid picture of a funny, broken boozer, almost transcending the music itself.  The recorded evidence shows that Waits had truly developed his stage persona, characterized by a joking, rambling, Beat-rhetorical style reminiscent of Charles Bukowski poetry or Lenny Bruce routines. This showcases a whiskey-soaked, and gravelly-voiced persona, with long, often humorous, spoken-word introductions that sometimes overshadow the songs.

The freeload is limited edition CD-sized gatefold mini LP replica Japanese reissue from 2010, It was remastered by Isao Kikuch for the Japanese domestic market, and it sounds terrific.  If you've freeloaded any of my previous Tom Waits posts, you know what I'm talking about.

For the freeload, what are some of your favorite Tom Waits quotes and lyrics?