Tom Waits

Tom Waits (born Thomas Alan Waits on December 7, 1949 in Pomona, California) is an American singer-songwriter, composer and actor.

Related Topics:
December 7 - 1949 - Pomona, California - American - Singer-songwriter - Composer - Actor

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With his gravelly voice (described by the MusicHound Rock Album Guide as "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"), experimental tendencies and love of pre-rock Americana styles, such as blues, jazz and Vaudeville, Waits has built-up a distinct musical persona. Trouser Press called Waits "at once a throwback and a visionary."http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=tom_waits.

Related Topics:
Bourbon - Americana - Blues - Jazz - Vaudeville

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Lyrically, Waits? songs are known for portraying bizarre, seedy characters and places, although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads.

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Waits has built-up a devoted cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters with little radio or music video support. Waits? songs are best known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artists, such as The Eagles, Bruce Springsteen and Rod Stewart. And though Waits' albums have usually been commercially ignored in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries.

Related Topics:
Cult following - Radio - Music video - Cover versions - The Eagles - Bruce Springsteen - Rod Stewart - Gold album

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Waits has also worked as a composer for movies and musical plays and as a supporting actor in films like Short Cuts, The Two Jakes, Mystery Men and Bram Stoker's Dracula, as well as having a starring role in the film Down By Law.

Related Topics:
Movie - Musical play - Supporting actor - Short Cuts - The Two Jakes - Mystery Men - Bram Stoker's Dracula - Down By Law

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