Tom Waits - Rain Dogs

The middle album of the trilogy that includes Swordfishtrombones and Franks Wild Years, Rain Dogs is Waits's best overall effort. The songs are first-rate, and there are a lot of them--19 in all, ranging from grim nightlife memoirs ("9th and Hennepin," "Singapore") to portraits of small-time hustlers ("Gun Street Girl," "Union Square") to bursts of street-corner philosophy ("Blind Love," "Time"). The album also contains the original version of "Downtown Train," which Rod Stewart turned into a smash hit. The image of "rain dogs"--animals who've lost their way home because the rain has washed away their scent--is an appropriate symbol for the entire cast of characters Waits has brought to life over the years, and this album has thus far proved to be his most enduring effort. --Daniel Durchholz Amazon.com essential recording

The ruling triumvirate

I consider "Rain Dogs", "Swordfishtrombones", and "Heartattack and Vine" the three core albums that any Tom Waits fan must have. While his earlier albums have an an aesthetic that some fans enjoy--I don't as much--these three show him finding his new footing as an artist. They are the three that I simply could not do without. The subsequent albums are treasures as well, but are, to a certain degree, fine tuning of his style, with a few variations. "Rain Dogs" contains a perfect balance of sentimentality and noir callousness in brilliant poetry that any artist can achieve once in a lifetime if they're lucky. March 31, 2008

One of my favorite albums

Tom Waits is really one of those artists that perfectly fits into the "love or hate" category, but no one can deny he is a great musician. Rain Dogs perfectly combines the experimentation of Swordfishtrombone with the melody of his early material. There are some "noisy" songs on here, but for every "noisy" song there is a softer one such as the beautiful "Anywhere I lay my head." Overall even if you aren't the biggest fan of Tom Waits I think it is worth checking out before making judgments. March 15, 2008

Tom's best album

With most of my favorite musicians I can't pick one CD that stands out over all the others, but much as I love Tom's other work I am convinced Rain Dogs is the best album. March 6, 2008

Take that, Britian!

One thing you need to know about Tom Waits is that you can't have just one of his albums. Not because at so many of his records on this site are labeled Essential Recording (those don't mean ______ remember?). It's true, if you get hooked on this guy, you will need more of Tom Waits. Chances are, if you really like albums like Rain Dogs and Bone Machine, don't hesitate to dig deeper into the library of Tom Waits, he's got quite a bit. True, all of his albums may not be winners for you (or me), but that's what sound samples are for (as well as listener reviews, but they shouldn't be your main source for wanting to buy albums).

Regardless if you like Tom Waits or not, you got to give the man props for getting such a rabid fanbase and a voice that no one else can match. Indeed, there will never be a singer like Tom Waits. And he's on top form during the 80's.

The term Rain Dogs refers to a dog who has lost all scents from the rain and can't get home, and the whole album are about those people like those dogs. Signapore, Cemetary Polka, Anywhere I lay My Head, Downtown Train, and Rain Dogs are all about the following. Indeed, the lyrics on here are fantastic as usual, he creates a character that you can't help but like. It's another one of those albums that don't have lyrics about one certain thing that's so obvious. Some will open your imagination, while some are quite unexplainable. But those characters are all rain dogs. It's got imagery that will conjure up as well. Really, how could you go wrong?

The best thing is the music, of course. It's got the signature Tom Waits blues and country, but some of the songs are more than that. Clap Hands, Cemetary Polka, Midtown, Signapore. Talk about unconvential. I do love the way Cemetary Polka sounds like a carnival song, Signapore's Sea Shanty. Indeed, there's a perfect balance of totally listenable and cryptic music. No matter what his band does, it works. I tip my hat off to Marc Ribot's guitar playing. Love his playing.

Oh, and you got Tom's voice, as emotional and ruff as you want it. I think that goes without saying, his voice is incredible. Eat your heat out, disney. You'll never touch the way real singers do.

I'll say one thing bad, Downtown Train is a musical disaster. Not only is the song rather weak (Wait's version), Rod Steward killed it. Thankfully, all the other tracks make up for it. It's nearly an hour, anyway.

It's common these days that the word singer/songwriter ain't exactly that powerful. With hacks like Daniel Prowter and John Mayer plugging up the airwaves, it's not getting any better. But this guy is truly a talented soul. I understand this guy, and you just might to. If you don't, that's fine. If you do, you've found an artist. February 4, 2008

You can love him, or hate him...

...There's almost no in-between. The majority of the tracks on 'Rain Dogs' are listenable and fun. Just a couple of clinkers. This is a good CD for the car when your on a long trip alone. Never try to explain Waits to a lady friend. December 28, 2007

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