Song By Song

Waits returns to the vignette form (at least by Sam's estimation) in this sentimental track that (in Martin's estimation) doesn't manage to hit on all levels. The value of sentiment, the origins of songwriting and the "truthfulness" of expression in music writing, and the ever-present question of authenticity all feature in this third conversation with Chad Clark. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Hold On, Mule Variations, Tom Waits (1999) Fast Car, Tracy Chapman, Tracy Chapman (1988) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Chad Clark rejoins Sam & Martin to discuss the second track of Mule Variations... or is it just a retread of the first? We pick apart the synthesis of old/new Waits, alongside more modern music fusions. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Lowside of the Road, Mule Variations, Tom Waits (1999) Old Town Road, 7 EP, Lil Was X (2019) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

We return and begin again, this time with Chad Clark of Beauty Pill joining Martin and Sam for the first track of 1999’s Mule Variations. We discuss Chad’s perspective on music label relationships, the production choices and where the album sits at the end of the 20th century, plus how Waits relates to the energy of punk music. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Big In Japan, Mule Variations, Tom Waits (1999) Making Plans For Bison, Pretty Little Baka Guy, Shonen Knife (1986) Do You Like Me, Red Medicine, Fugazi (1995) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

A couple of weeks out from the return of Song by Song to your podcatcher, here's a little preview of some of the conversations we've already recorded. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Big In Japan, Mule Variations, Tom Waits (1999) Chocolate Jesus, Mule Variations, Tom Waits (1999) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Martin and Sam conclude the Early Years with a slight shrug towards this Closing Time demo, albeit with some sadness and mixed feelings. Looking back on both albums, we consider what they illuminate in Waits’s writing, and how the Early Years songs may inform the coming phase of his career. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Old Shoes, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Waits taps his inner animal (or two) as Martin Seagull-perches and Sam Puppy-scampers through this penultimate track from The Early Years. And, as a bonus, we take the space to listen to a trio of intervals speaking directly from an animal’s perspective. Spoilers; we go a bit long talking about the Virtute cycle, so make sure you give those songs a listen. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: So It Goes, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993)Plea from a Cat Named Virtute, Reconstruction Site, The Weakerthans (2003) Virtute the Cat Explains Her Departure, Reunion Tour, The Weakerthans (2007) Virtute at Rest, Winter Wheat, John K. Samson (2016) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which

Dan's working on a crush this week (apologies Sarah), as we dig into crunchy chords, excited grunts and more examples on the piano in this plea by Waits to a wandering love. Personal and instrumental yearning, the interplay between flaws and personality, as well as the shift from "And I" to "But You're" in the lyrics all get some vigorous debate. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Please Call Me, Baby, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Walking In The Rain, Be My Baby: The Very Best of the Ronettes, The Ronettes (1964/2011) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

A knee-slappingly good episode with Dan and Sarah, as we return to Waits's love of the beat poets in this sung demo of his spoken-word track from The Heart of Saturday Night. Again we discuss choices and changes as Waits moves from demo to studio, the intimacy that is gained and lost with speaking and singing, and ideas around performance and interpretation. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Diamonds on My Windshield, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) The Green Automobile, Holy Soul Jelly Roll vol 1, Allen Ginsberg (1994) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Actor/musicians and vocal coaches Sarah Mahony and Dan De Cruz join Martin and Sam for some fruit-based imagery, a little demo/studio comparison, and some proper musical illustration courtesy of a guest with real musical facility. Also, 250 episodes, woo! website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Grapefruit Moon, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Pink Moon, Pink Moon, Nick Drake (1972) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Still no pirate-clown voice for Jeremy and Elizabeth, as Song by Song revisits this most sea-faring of Waits songs. We discuss its eulogistic tone, Waits's other oceanic music, as well as comparisons to a very different style of singing. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Shiver Me Timbers, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Poor Wandering One, The Pirates of Penzance, Linda Ronstadt/Gilbert & Sullivan (1981) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Elizabeth and Jeremy return for this gentle pastoral sketch of Waits's desire for another, and discuss the universality of this wanting sentiment, traditional masculine presentations of desire in music, and the irresistible rise of girl-power. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: I Want You, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Wannabe, Spice, The Spice Girls (1996) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Together again for the first time, Elizabeth Sankey and Jeremy Warmsley (aka Summer Camp) visit Martin and Sam for a discussion over demo-to-final-version transitions, the process of choosing tunes and harmonies, and of course… clown-pirates. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Nobody, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Love of My Life - Electronic Demo, single b-side, Summer Camp (2020) Love of My Life, Romantic Comedy, Summer Camp (2020) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

A second week with Charlie brings his brief SbS return to a close, as we revisit this excellent demo version of Blue Skies. We broadly acknowledge our love of the simple 1971 version, before digging into Solange's 2016 image of Cranes in the Sky, and the beautiful complexities of that song’s structure. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Blue Skies, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Cranes in the Sky, A Seat at the Table, Solange (2016) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Charlie Harding of Switched On Pop returns to Song by Song to discuss this interstitial about between-moments-romance. What this love is, who it's directed towards and what that might mean is up for debate, and Charlie, Sam & Martin discuss the differences between ideas of middle/averageness on either side of the Atlantic. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: In Between Love, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Inbetweener, Smart, Sleeper (1995) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

It's a bit of a downer this week, as Nick, Sam & Martin get together to talk about at least one hosts' least-favourite Tom Waits song so far. We have a discussion about the success and failure of simplicity in music, as well as some of the complex history of the 1960s calypso hit Yellow Bird. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Mockin' Bird, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Mockin Bird, Step Right Up - Waits Tribute, Tindersticks (2004) Yellow Bird, Cherokeely Swings, Keely Smith (1962) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

Nick returns for a second week’s chat with Sam and Martin about classic cars (and their parking logistics), the evolution of Ol’ 55 (from Early Years to Closing Time to The Eagles), as well as the role of the car in rock and roll (as well as American culture in general). Note: Sam refers to a car advert using the Joplin song as Porsche, when it's actually BMW - video on the website. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Ol' 55, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Mercedes Benz, Pearl, Janis Joplin (1971) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

For the first track from this second half of our 2-volume Early Years season, Martin and Sam are joined by Nick White from KCRW's Lost Notes to talk about this laid-back version of a Closing Time classic, including comparison to the early work of an icon of punk. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Hope I Don't Fall in Love with You, The Early Years vol 2, Tom Waits (1993) Love Comes In Spurts, Spurts: The Richard Hell Story, The Neon Boys (1973/2005) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please support artists by buying their music, or using services which guarantee artists a revenue - listen responsibly.

For the last episode of our 2020 film mini-season, we welcome back Helen Zaltzman and Jenny Owen Youngs (of The Allusionist, Buffering The Vampire Slayer, and Veronica Mars Investigates) for a somewhat contentious discussion of this vampire-staple retelling. With some strong feelings and heavy levels of confusion, as well as a solo outing by Sam as guy-who-can-find-a-positive-in-almost-anything, Song by Song… well, we kind of get this one out of the way. Sorry to all the big fans, we did our best to find a balanced response, it just wasn't loved OK WHAT'S NEXT? Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every single Tom Waits track in chronological order. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Clips from Dracula, dir. Francis Ford Coppola (1992) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the sh

For our second Stripped Media crossover, Martin & Sam are joined by Helen Sadler & Kobi Omenaka for the Song-by-Song-by-Flixwatcher podcast, and take a look at the (at time of recording) available-on-Netflix-film Seven Psychopaths. With as many tangents in our conversation as there are in the film itself, lots of positive thoughts about a film all four hosts feel is fundamentally flawed, and with a very respectable Flixwatcher-patented-scoring-system-score, we end up with a varied but engaged response to the movie. Check out flixwatcher.tv for more Netflix-based movie reviews. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every single Tom Waits track in chronological order. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Clips from Seven Psychopaths, dir. Martin McDonagh (2012) Misty Eyes, MightyPeople, via Soundcloud & courtesy of Flixwatcher (201

The first of our Stripped Media film crossovers finds Sam Clements & Louise Owen of the 90 Minute Or Less Film Festival joining regular SbS hosts Sam & Martin for the only Tom Waits film short enough for us to both discuss. With some mixed feelings about the effectiveness of the film, albeit with general enthusiasm for specific elements, we debate some of the details of this debut film by Dukić and try to trace the reasons for some of its shortcomings. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every single Tom Waits track in chronological order. website: songbysongpodcast.com twitter: @songbysongpod e-mail: songbysongpodcast@gmail.com Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include: Clips from Wristcutters: A Love Story, dir. Goran Dukić (2006) We think your Song by Song experience will be enhanced by hearing, in full, the songs featured in the show, which you can get hold of from your favourite record shop or online platform. Please supp