What's he POLLing in there? The Tom Waits ballot poll

http://cs315129.vk.me/v315129703/5deb/vEiD1xqsZus.jpg

You can vote for any of Mr Waits' studio recordings. Comprehensive list here:
http://www.tomwaits.com/songs/#/songs/song/59/A_Good_Man_Is_Hard_To_Find/

Up to 20 songs. no 1=20 points, 2=19, 3=18 etc. Voting closes on the 13th of October, and I'll roll out the top 50 (top 100 if this is somehow wildly popular) the following week. Send ballots to: joe dot goo✧✧✧@gm✧✧✧.c✧✧

Looking forward to seeing what you'll vote for!

Sorry, it mashed up my email address horribly: joe dot gooden at gmail dot com

http://cs315129.vk.me/v315129703/5deb/vEiD1xqsZus.jpg

Oh and you can send me your top five albums if you like as well.

Trying not to vote 90% Swordfishtrombones / Rain Dog / Franks Wild Years songs, playing some of the earlier records again make me think they sounded a lot better when I was 18 though.

aw i'll def throw a few votes toward heartattack & vine and closing time

you will balance out my 90% Bone Machine/ Black Rider /Mule Variations picks

Excited!!

Also - really looking forward to rediscovering Tom's stuff after a bit of a break away. I gave 'Bad As Me' a favourable review when it came out but never went back to it. In fact I stopped listening to him altogether and I'm not that sure why? Maybe 'Bad As Me' put a cap in his mystique? It was a very 'Hey I'm actually just an ordinary guy after all' kind of album.

I've got very little idea how this will turn out - couldn't predict a top five, let alone the winner.

I have a feeling it will be Sworddogyears dominated, at least in the top 5, but yeah, there might be a few Bone Machine/Closing Time creepers.

First ballot received courtesy of DL!

Ballot sent!

Plz eveybody, listen to Big Time again, I know the film was a bit flat and the sound of the performances a bit odd, but the record uses different versions. Sometimes I feel like the only person I know that rates that record. The versions of Big Black Mariah and 16 Shells, for instance, are scorching.

Can I just rep for 2 songs in particular
Firstly, this for its old time melody
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqRS828TmBA
Also Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis for the wry lyrics.
"Charlie, for chrissakes, if you wanna know the truth of it - don't have a husband, he don't play the trombone."

Something about Good Old World (Waltz) makes me tear up when I hear it. I think I went for quite a few ballads.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJFMq557xYw

And this is just the most desolate, brooding thing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIDEeaow-qc

Meanwhile, the Big Time version of Cold Cold Ground is great!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ow45kTJqhg

Plz eveybody, listen to Big Time again, I know the film was a bit flat and the sound of the performances a bit odd, but the record uses different versions. Sometimes I feel like the only person I know that rates that record. The versions of Big Black Mariah and 16 Shells, for instance, are scorching.

My favorite Tom Waits song period is the Big Time version of "Ruby's Arms", which I think was on the album but not in the movie. It's just devastating.

Just submitted my poll, it is definitely ballad-heavy.

Four ballots in, very dispersed so far. No song has received more than two votes.

What did people think of Glitter and Doom?

My favourite Waits ballad, languishing towards the end of Mule Variations:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dixxse4dpQ4

Ballot sent. Had to leave off Green Grass and cut $29 when I remembered how Lonely broke my heart once

otm about ruby's arms on big time, holy cow, that is a song.

My favourite Waits ballad, languishing towards the end of Mule Variations

I absolutely voted for this one, too

You guys are def voting for different songs from me. I don't even fully recognise all the songs being posted here and I'm a mega fan! Just testament to his greatness I guess.

Take It With Me is lovely. I'd never really listened to it properly because I don't listen to MV a great deal.

Very much a curate's egg, that album.

And yes, there have already been a number of songs that are new to me on the ballots! It's an education for me too.

My only regret with this poll is that late summer feels a bit early in the year for me to be having a TW revival. Normally happens around... NOVEMBER...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeAP1KyPDzM

Didn't vote for that one, but would have if I'd had a few extra spaces. TW makes more sense to me once it gets chilly and the Christmas lights go up.

How far out are we casting this net?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTynQTPoXcg

Another of my favorite piano ballads of his

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvZK8Wl7RQ8

this just up on the Quietus: http://thequietus.com/articles/13446-tom-waits-swordfishtrombones-review

Six ballots in, quite a surprising front runner (to me anyway).

what can I say, we all love Bette Midler.

http://cdn.twentytwowords.com/wp-content/uploads/Interesting-and-clarifying-details-from-Tom-Waits-childhood.jpg

Love Waits but don't know enough of his catalogue to vote - really excited to see how this poll turns out.

Just chuck a couple of your favourite tunes on a ballot Roz, doesn't have to be 20. The more the merrier!

I'd like to do this but I've never voted in a poll before, can somebody hip me to the process? Sorry for noob question.

chap, I could prob come up with 20 tbh - they'd just be a very random selection. Will try to vote!

MaresNest, just list your top 20 songs, e.g.:

1. Hold On
2. Time
3. ...

etc.

... and then email it to chap at the address at the top of the thread.

Does lex vote in polls?

Too much like following a recipe.

xp - usually no, but he made an exception for the pj harvey one

Bump

i will def vote

Ditto.

Yes, please vote in this!

What's average amount of ballots sent in these things? I guess it varies quite a lot artist to artist.

I'd have thought Waits was a fairly popular choice. Used to be lots of rabid fans around these parts. Maybe not so much any more?

chap already sent mine, can you confirm you have it?

Yep, got it. Ta.

Probably my favourite version of this one

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZ4sK-Q42AU

I've been trying to forget it since it came out. A travesty of an archive with re-recordings and piles of refuse.

Well, that's just like, your opinion man!

this is really difficult, the order is gonna be m/l arbitrary

Tom Waits theme park!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq13TiqOZd8

Chap, is that initial image with the kitten a movie still?

Orphans is a weird one. I can't really treat it like a proper studio album. It's sprawling and I rarely listen to the Brawlers side (never really enjoyed Tom when he tries to rock out) but a lot of the Bawlers and Bastards cuts are great.

Still never heard Orphans, but looking through the track listing it's amazing to see how many songs he's written for really crappy movies.

Fourteen ballots received, 123 songs have got points. Voting has been quite diffuse, no two voters have picked the same song as their number one yet.

The frontrunner has just broken the hundred point mark.

Had this whole thing imagined about a Tom Waits amusement park ride, but I don't know, might let it marinate in some diesel first.

Any unspecified Innocent When You Dream votes from now on I'm just going to assign to 78 rather than Barroom because I prefer it.

whoosp yes that was me, I meant to check before submitting. I'm pretty sure I was intending 78.

You just put a question mark after it! Don't worry you're not the only one.

And thanks for the ballot.

haha, I know, that was my reminder to myself to relisten and check which one I preferred. Hasty C&P, the bane of my life.

Check your email woof, you've got a duplicate in your ballot!

No idea why anyone would put the Barroom version above the 78.

Weekend bump.

One week left to vote. Will be bumping every day from now on.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ov7-Ujz1ecs

Just saying.

I don't see nothin wrong with a little bump to remind.

I'm going to vote in this, by the way, just need a bit of time

Six days left.

Imma do this I swear but I just moved and Waits catalogue is so daunting.

Five

voted, btw

Two of the better songs Waits gave away (though there wasn't quite space on my ballot for Waits's versions):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yU4y5NZcM-Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P5AVz5A5Ak

Four

Three days left. We've hit the twenty ballot mark. Thanks to everyone who's voted so far!

definitely gonna throw one together this weekend

Me too. I'm past a work mini-deadline so I'll have time finally.

I'll be rolling out on Monday afternoon, so will accept ballots up to noon GMT on the 14th.

Just mailed mine over.

I don't know that the heck this is, but I like it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ2znlF5TVM

Oh yeah, I've heard that before. Pretty cool. I like the thought of Waits and Kool Keith hanging out.

Saturday reminder. You have until Monday afternoon. No vote no voice.

STEP LIVELY! LET'S HAVE SOME MORE BALLOTS!

(Imagine in shouty Tom Waits voice)

whuppin' my ballot into shape right now

Phoned-in ballot from Istanbul -- sent.

Hi everyone - my internet's been down all day so only just checking in. Just a reminder that I will still be accepting ballots till around noon UK time.

just sent mine!

My number one was 'hold on' ; number two was 'long way home' from orphans

My favorite tom waits is a lovelorn hobo strumming an out of tune guitar on the back do a pickup filled with pigs

my ballot is 35% lovelorn hobo ballads, 30% marimba sea shanties, 25% junkyard no wave and 10% water damaged vaudeville piano rolls.

god i really can't see the good points in 'hold on' but i'm sure we'll get to thrash over that one in a friendly and convivial manner during the countdown.

Thirty-odd ballots received and correlated. Look out for results thread within the next hour.

"Hold On" is not a personal favorite and i was surprised to see it as his 2nd most popular song on Spotify (in general the listener stats for Waits are confusing on there, makes Rain Dogs look like one of his least popular albums). but when i sat down and listened to "Hold On" this weekend i was like oh yeah there are some really good lyrics in this song.

Many thanks to everyone who voted. Tracks will start rolling out in about ten minutes:

Way down in a POLL: ILM's top 50 Tom Waits tracks