Tom Waits - Kentucky Avenue

Thomas Alan "Tom" Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, composer and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by critic Daniel Durchholz as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car." With this trademark growl, his incorporation of pre-rock music styles such as blues, jazz, and vaudeville, and experimental tendencies verging on industrial music, Waits has built up a distinctive musical persona. He has worked as a composer for movies and musical plays and as a supporting actor in films, including Down By Law and Bram Stoker's Dracula. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his soundtrack work on One from the Heart.

Lyrically, Waits' songs frequently present atmospheric portrayals of grotesque, often seedy characters and places -- although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads. He has a cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters despite having little radio or music video support. His songs are best-known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artists: "Jersey Girl", performed by Bruce Springsteen and "Downtown Train", performed by Rod Stewart. Although Waits' albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries. He has been nominated for a number of major music awards and has won Grammy Awards for two albums, Bone Machine and Mule Variations.
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eddie graces buick got 4 bullet holes in the side
charlie delisle sittin at the top of an avocado tree
mrs storm'll stab you with a steak knife if you step on her lawn i got a half pack of lucky strikes man come along with me lets fill our pockets with macadamia nuts then go over to bobby goodmansons and jump off the roof hilda plays strip poker and her mamas across the street joey navinski says she put her tongue in his mouth dicky faulkners got a switchblade and some gooseneck risers that eucalyptus is a hunchback theres a wind up from the south let me tie you up with kite string and i'll show you the scabs on my knee watch out for the broken glass, put your shoes and socks on and come along with me lets follow that fire truck
i think your house is burnin down
then go down to the hobo jungle
and kill some rattlesnakes with a trowel
we'll break all the windows in the old anderson place
and steal a bunch of boysenberrys
and smear em on our face
i'll get a dollar from my mamas purse
and buy that skull and crossbones ring
and you can wear it around your neck
on an old piece of string

then we'll spit on ronnie arnold
and flip him the bird
and slash the tires on the school bus
now don't say a word
i'll take a rusty nail
and scratch your initials on my arm
and i'll show you how to sneak up
on the roof of the drugstore

take the spokes from your wheelchair
and a magpies wings
and tie em to your shoulders and your feet
i'll steal a hacksaw from my dad
and cut the braces off your legs
and we'll bury them tonight in the cornfield

put a church key in your pocket
we'll hop that freight train in the hall
and we'll slide all the way down the drain
to new orleans in the fall

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Tom
• Waits
• Kentucky
• Avenue
• Blue
• Valentine
• original
• studio
• version
• with
• lyrics
• high
• quality

[shenora1116]

Listening to tom waits is like watching the greatest movies in your head.

[SociallyRejected]

Yet again I'm a blubbering mess after hearing this

[robstan42]

One if the greatest reflections on youth I've ever heard. Makes me bleed. "... and your feet..." that part destroys me. Waits was a master thirty years ago. Now, he's only toying with us, as he hasn't had anything to prove in decades.

[txabibilbao]

how beautiful...........tears in my eyes again........thanks Tom

[THRILLHOUSE85]

I find his lyrics almost unquotable, as so much is in their delivery. Frankly, I think he could probably read a grocery list and make it soulful.

[MrTouchstrings]

this is absolutely truly amazing, the lift in the music is over whelming.wicked!!!!!!!

[lemonpartyhellyeah]

i cant seem to listen to this all the way throgh..his voice just annoys me sometimes..whats wrong with me lol

[Genxben]

24,584 views and not a single dislike! There is still hope for this world!

[slump75]

oh its just horrible

[Lucithen]

"I'll take the spokes from your wheelchair, and a magpie's wings...and I'll tie them to your shoulders, and your feet..." this always gets me crying...

[gregvader]

Tom can create incredible atmospheres with his music. This number is like a time machine. It brings vivid memories to mind that you didn't even know you had...

[frflinstone]

A timeless classic from one of the half a dozen greatest songwriters ever.