Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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54 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Real Thing, February 24, 2002
I would like to correct a couple of possible misconceptions about this album. A previous reviewer alluded to "manufactured atmosphere". Don't construe this comment in any kind of negative way. I saw Tom Waits perform LIVE in the fall of 1975 at Alex Cooley's Electric Ballroom in Atlanta, GA. Leon Redbone opened for him. I have been to hundreds of live music concerts since, of all types, and this one remains the most memorable. Notice that the album was released in October, 1975. What you hear on this disc is EXACTLY what I saw & heard Tom perform that night. He had some props on stage, including old-fashioned gas pumps during "Burma Shave". The lighting effects were the best I've ever seen, and emphasized his expert use of cigarettes as props - his head & face were often shrouded in a cloud of blue smoke. What I'm getting at is the fact that this recording conveys almost perfectly the sense of being there, regardless of how it was done. Indeed, it is obvious that Tom strove for this live nightclub effect, and achieved it beautifully. The second misconception is the impression given by some reviewers that this is not one of his better ones. I disagree, and would nominate this recording as being the best example of the "essence" of Tom Waits. Others have correctly pointed out that he has inhabited 3 or 4 different personas during his career, with consequently different musical styles. However, I think there is a thread of essential Waits that is present on all the recordings, from the early ones like "Heart of Saturday Night" to "Bone Machine" and "Mule Variations", and I believe that we find that Essential TomWaitsness most perfectly captured on this recording. If you like this, you should like almost any of his old stuff, you would definitely like the "trilogy" "Swordfishtrombones", "Rain Dogs", and "Frank's Wild Years", and you probably would also like the newer Tom, "Bone Machine", "Mule Variations", etc. One of the 2 or 3 best in American Music.
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wistful - Funny - Swinging - Indolent - Beautiful - Hep, September 3, 1999
By A Customer
I have seen Tom Waits perform in New Orleans, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, NYC, and San Francisco over many years, and he has always come through with a great show. Even when he showed up in Philadelphia without his band (as a result of a group arrest after the previous night's show), he came through with a great acoustic performance. So. . . here's your chance to experience his show from the Seventies for yourself. Yes - I heard it was a studio recording as well, but that knowledge doesn't detract from the recording's allure, since it was done in front of a live audience in a big studio. The intent was to get get good sound quality, not stack the deck in terms of staged audience reaction.
If you're concerned about authenticity, let me assuage your fears. As someone who has seen Waits perform over 20 times, I can tell you that what you hear on this disc is what you would have heard in 1972 if you had seen him in person.
Great disc - I recommend it highly for both long-time fans as well as Tom Waits novices.
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tom Waits' Finest Lyrical Hour!, April 23, 2001
While I couldn't pin down my overall favorite Tom Waits album, I can point to "Nighthawks at the Diner" as my favorite work of Waits in regards to lyrics. Tom Waits gives prose a saucy depth that is all his own, and this album is the piece that brings that prose out in its greatest glory! This is a unique live album since the audience is a small gathering, so the cheers and chuckles sound like Waits is entertaining several dozen people at a party. This initimate setting works well since he does unforgettable spoken introductions for a number of his songs which are almost as poetic as the songs (IE " I was reaching the end of an emotional cul-de-sac"). My personal favorite tunes on this CD (for both lyric and song) are "Putnam County" (spoken to music; describing the lazy social going-ons in a tiny blue collar American town) and "Spare Parts" (awesome upbeat tune describing dawn in a seedy urban setting: "The stew bums showed up like bounced checks/rubbing their necks, and the sky turned the color of Pepto Bismol/ and the parking lots growled") This CD is not just a great Tom Waits CD; this is a great CD for anybody's collection!
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