Set list for the Hammersmith Apollo (23 November):
Hoist the rag (with Tom's?)
Make it rain
Jockey full of Bourbon
Don't go into the barn
The sins of my father (with Wade in the water)
Eyeball kid (with harmonium)
Straight to the top (Vegas / Rhumba medley)
Alice
God's away on business (harmonium)
November (harmonium)
Fish and bird (harmonium & Ribot on cornet)
Baby gonna leave me
Murder in the red barn
The day after tomorrow
Shake it (With Tom's son ?)
Trampled rose
Invitation to the blues (piano)
Johnsburg, Illinois (piano)
Come on up to the house (piano)
The house where nobody lives (piano)
Thanks to x.
37 comments:
That's the way I remember it....definitely Tom's son on percussion....Tom credited the band before he left the stage on Shake it and Sullivan got a mention....great show and so totally different to the first night in Berlin...nice to hear Fish & Bird....I don't think he played that anywhere else....his voice has definitely suffered over the tour but that just didn't matter....the night capped off for me by a singalong in a nearby pub with a bunch of Rain Dogs...thanks you guys
Now i am even more gutted i didn't manage to get a ticket. To see him play anything live would of been wonderfull, but Johnsburg, Illinois would of made everything right for a short while in a other wise messed up world... Truely one of his best songs. Damn it!
According to a friend who was right down the front, 'Sitting in front of me was Thom Yorke from Radiohead, behind me and to my left Jerry Hall and on my left and one row in front was Tim Burton, Vannesa Paradi, and Johnny Depp. I think they were all blown away by 54 year old Tom Waits and his amazing show and voice'
I think he did Come on up to the House last. What a song, what songs, what a gig!
Dan
wow, that was just amazing.
you said it was quite different from the berlin shows... what were the main differences (besides the set list)?
his voice was definitely as raspy as is possible without losing it, but that's just waits, isn;t it. eyeball kid was my high point.
only slightly sad thing was we were left cheering madly (the place was electric) for a minimum of 5 minutes with the house lights still down, and he was coming back. the lights came on and it was a real anti-climax. leave 'em starving for it, i guess.
for people who care about such things, thom yorke, colin greenwood, damon alburn, members of coldplay, johnny depp, tim burton, jerry hall and david grey were all sitting in our section. not a david grey fab at all, but he was madly into it.
That's the set as I remember it - really incredible, and a good mix of stuff - weighted towards the new (no complaints here!), but stretching back to the 80s. Only one song from the 70s (which may have upset some people), but if he's only going to play one, it may as well be 'invitation to the blues'! 'the day after tomorrow' was unbelievable - worth the ticket price alone. Most of the new stuff sounded really great, although on one or two songs they seemed to have trouble hearing and staying in time with the backing track 'mouth percussion'. Some funny stories too - especially the 'dead ringers' gag. And something of an apology - 'I know, I know... 17 years. But.... you look good!'
I didn't post that orignal comment but I was also at the first Berlin show.
Last night at te Apollo was amazing. The main differences for me were the size of venue. The Theatre des Westerns seemed so much intimate and is a truly stunning building. The theatrical side of Tom seemed more to the fore, most in evidence during what's still the highlight of the two shows for me, Misery´s the River of the World, God's Away on Business, Alice and the sing-a-long Table Top Joe - in that order, with a crazed-looking Waits banging away at the harmonium.
Last night's set was much more of a crowd pleaser, with, I think, at least one song off every album going back to Swordfishtrombones.
The larger audience made a big diffrence too. It's interesting that Tom limited audience paricipation to encouraging us to yell "Hail, Hail" and "Halelujah" during Eyeball Kid. I guess we Brits are just too reserved to give full effort to the chorus of Tabletop Joe or Innocent When You Dream.
That was my third Waits show (after Paris and Berlin) so I perhaps wasn't quite as excitable going into the theatre, but the friend I went with was moved and the guy sitting next to me was certainbly having a religious experience. Let's hope the rumours about a return to London next year are true!
Nigel
Reviews:
Independent:
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/reviews/story.jsp?story=586076
Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/reviews/story/0,11712,1358433,00.html
For me the first and the last songs were highlights - but the whole gig was just amazing - everything I wanted it to be.
Sat at work now where no-ones even heard of Tom - it's frustrating not being able to talk about last night.
What a song 'Hoist that Rag' is!!!
I hate you all so much!!! No, seriously I got to see Tom in Berlin so I'm only slightly gutted that I couldn't get to Hammersmith as well.
Interested to hear the contrasts from people who went to both shows; I agree Berlin was quite 'theatrical' but I sort of expected that.
I still can't get Hoist That Rag out of my head, and of all the Hammersmith 'oldies' not played in Berlin only Invitation to the Blues would have really made my night more special.
What's this about rumours of a return to the UK???
There's an interview with Tom in last week's issue of Time Out (London) in which he hints about a return to London next year.
Quote:
'We're going to do this one night,' he says, 'then we're hoping to come back and do like a couple of weeks at a place. I think that's the plan…' Next spring seems to have been tentatively pencilled in.
Fingers crossed...
I was there last night and it was amazing. I've been a waits fan for years and to see him live was a dream come true. I sympathise with the poster who said 'nobody at work has heard of him' cos I feel the same but it's better this way - kinda cool - just like the man himself.
The set list was spot on with something for everyone. I just cannot get over his voice - so loud - so amazing. Definately one of the best gigs I've seen. I am a lucky boy. He also played Jockey full of bourbon which is a personal fave but for me I thought make it rain was awesome.
i saw him in amsterdam twice and would have loved to have seen him in london for comparison. amsterdam was a bit wierd. the crowd were deathly silent during songs sitting poker straight in their seats while tom was rokin out. it felt like watchin a ballet rather than a concert. was it like this in london or was it just that the continental fans are like that? would prefer to stand at a concert personally or at least to be able to have a drink during the performance. amsterdam was like watchin tom in a funeral parlour or something. that said he was really excellent. really love the way his songs improve when played live. particular faves were Reeperbahn, eyeball kid, november, what's he buliding, straight to the top, hoist that rag, house with no name,alice, shake it, sins of the father,lucky day. actually every song was pretty brilliant so i'll stop listing them all. though sound was poor on the louder/rockier songs, in particular tom's rythm guitar was inaudible and you had to strain to here the bass guitar on the sunday night show. tom was checkin the monitor speakers now and then and seemed to be having trouble hearing himself too, but nothing changed. saturday night started off even worse but tom stopped mid song and straigtened that out pretty quick so on the whole saturday sound was better than sunday. don't understand (not being a sound engineer) but why is it so hard to get things balanced why doesn't someone sit in the audience listen and go back in and fix it. felt like shouting out tom turn up your guitar or plug it for god's sake, likewise larry turn up the mic for your double bass.
i saw him in amsterdam twice and would have loved to have seen him in london for comparison. amsterdam was a bit wierd. the crowd were deathly silent during songs sitting poker straight in their seats while tom was rockin out. it felt like watchin a ballet rather than a concert. was it like this in london or was it just that the continental fans are like that? would prefer to stand at a concert personally or at least to be able to have a drink during the performance. amsterdam was like watchin tom in a funeral parlour or something. that said he was really excellent. really love the way his songs improve when played live. particular faves were Reeperbahn, eyeball kid, november, straight to the top, hoist that rag, house with no name,alice, shake it, sins of the father,lucky day. actually every song was pretty brilliant so i'll stop listing them all. though sound was poor on the louder/rockier songs, in particular tom's rythm guitar was inaudible and you had to strain to here the bass guitar on the sunday night show. tom was checkin the monitor speakers now and then and seemed to be having trouble hearing himself too, but nothing changed. saturday night started off even worse but tom stopped mid song and straigtened that out pretty quick so on the whole saturday sound was better than sunday. don't understand (not being a sound engineer) but why is it so hard to get things balanced why doesn't someone sit in the audience listen and go back in and fix it. felt like shouting out tom turn up your guitar or plug it for god's sake, likewise larry turn up the mic for your double bass.
Last night was just fantastic. That voice, that presence - Waits has more charisma in one of the hairs on his backside than most artists have in their whole bodies. He totally captivated the crowd - no talking during songs, no mobiles going off etc. Highlight? Had to be "Fish & Bird" which had tears running down my face and has just gone up there with "Martha" as my fave Tom track. Genius.
It was a very special night - even the lack of bar & 30 minute delay didn't seem to annoy anybody that much. We were in the presence of a true one-off. I could hardly believe what I was hearing & seeing. I saw Tom Waits! Amazing.
Just got back home to jersey after taking my wife to see Tom Waits in London last night. We were lucky i guess, managed to get tickets on the phone after 20 minutes of trying rather than paying ebay style prices. I was lucky enough to see Tom in Paris when he last played Europe and both times he has blown me away. Completely different style, much more arty and bluesy with Marc Ribot than he was with his band in Paris. And he played around with the songs so much more in London. My wife and I played Invitation to the Blues at our wedding and it's always kind of been our song so when he started playing that on the piano during the encore we both welled up. We love you Tom.Come back soon.
So did anyone record the show?!
Derbyshire Paul here - yes; fantastic gig, with a great set list. Fish & Bird was beautiful, the harmonium numbers were great, the piano work was great, and the audience did work. In terms of the venue and previous comments, Hammersmith Apollo is one of those places that can feel anythig from intimate to barn-like. The audience respect during Day After Tomorrow was almost profound.
If a live album could be culled from the various shows, the quantity of material there seems massive. I am impressed that Tom took the care to have such a bank of songs behind him, and I think the London set-list reflected a recognition of the gap since he was last in the UK.
Derbyshire Paul again - One gripe against the Apollo: for a venue with 3,500 capacity, the provision of only two wheelchair spaces is appalling and a disgrace in this day and age. The mate of mine who introduced me to Tom Waits' music (I won The Black Rider off him in a game of scrabble) is a wheelchair user and massive fan. I'd got through to the Apollo 3 minutes after tickets went on sale and the wheelchair spaces had already gone, so he missed out altogether. Artists ought to boycott places that pay such lip service to access.
If there is a good recording of the gig around, I'd like to get my hands on it for my mate. Small consolation, but it would help.
Wow - what can I say? In the top 3 of all time best concerts I've ever been to. First time I ever saw Tom, and hopefully not the last. Make It Rain was so electric - like some kind of evangelical experience. Tears welled up in Jockey Full of Bourbon. He played my two favourite songs: Fish & Bird, and Johnsburg, Illinois. Amazing.
So this morning I'm shopping in Selfridges and bump into Nicky Wire from the Manics, so I shake his hand & have a little chat about Tom Waits - really nice down to earth guy. I go out into Oxford St, and send a text to my mate to say 'I've just met Nicky Wire' then I swear to God, 2 mins later, I'm walking down Oxford St and who should be walking towards me, but Tom Waits! He's with his son (Sullivan?) and I don't want to hassle him, but as we approach I blurt out 'Hey Tom, great show last night' and Tom replies 'Hey thanks a lot, buddy' and then we carry on in our opposite directions!! I had my ticket stub on me, and one of the Hammersmith posters that I managed to blag, and I never thought to ask him to sign anything - but I suppose he maybe wouldn't have appreciated it, what with being with his son and everything. Unbelievable!
Just a quick comment to say = amazing show last night. My first TW show, unlike any other gig I've been to, theatrical, extreme, touching. It had everything.
Only downer, was getting fleeced for 150 quid buying a forged ticket off a tout, for the non existent standing circle area. Apparently many people were caught out - the reason I thought the ticket was ok was that it looked perfect, and the seating chart had rear circle standing on it, AND earlier that day I'd seen rear circle standing tickets for sale on Ebay.
Anyway, soon after, I managed to buy a proper ticket from a fan for just over face value (guy from Bristol - thanks!), and despite being tempted to sell on the fake to another tout, I decided to swallow it and chalk it up to experience.
Awesome night anyway, hope to see Tom again, in less stressful and less expensive circumstances!
Ken.
Wanna know why tickets were so hard to come by for Hammersmith? Because of the 3,400 available seats, 1,400 went to journalists and the "industry" and only 2,000 went on sale to fans.
I have that on very good authority indeed. Only small consolation is that EVERBODY, Thom Yorke and all, had to pay for their tickets.
Oh, and the story about coming back to London for a residency is bullshit apparently, just Time Out flying a kite. Rumoured European venues for a brief tour next year are Italy and Russia.
Russia as part of a European Tour? You shouldn't be teasing Putin like this now. However...maybe spread the rumour that Ukraine will be part of a European tour.
...and Hail! Hail! to the Eyeball Kid for this excellent blog and for keeping us so well informed over the past months.
Hallelujah!!!!
A great concert at Hammersmith. I had the great fortune to buy a ticket from the venue on the afternoon of the show. They could only have sold a couple that day and I and the man next to me were two of the luckiest chaps in London!
Can anyone tell me which record Fish and Bird comes from? (looked more like a French horn than a cornet)
While it was a great evening, the exclusivity thing is a pain in the ass. The tickets were too expensive. I think I preferred the man when he came over and played three/four nights at the same venue so everyone could see him, when celebrities weren't interested in him and he was a great musician of genius rather than a cult God... But perhaps I am being churlish. Why shouldn't he play the name game? Answers on a postcard please...
Fish and Bird is on Alice.
i wouldn't say he plays the name game. that's the promoter. artist just picks a venue and agrees a fee that he gets. everything else is the promoter's decision, i.e. who gets the tickets and how.
saw the Paris shows at the wonderful rex and i wish i could have travelled to Apollo, If anyone has or knows of a decent(digital) recording of this gig maybe we can do a swap.
BBC 6 Music has a short interview with Tom from last week's show plus fans' reactions. Link to it at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/presenters/music_week/
find 'listen again' and its after about the first 5 minutes of the programme.
On the Celeb spotting count - near the back was Phil Jupitus and I'm fairly sure Chris Eubank was there as well (though may be mistaken). Not quite A-list I admit...
Particular highlights for me were Alice and the piano encore - especially Come on Up to the House.
it was a good show, but very predictable.
Not to exacerbate people's justifiable disgruntlement, but I know for a fact that not all journalists had to pay for tickets. The gig was magnificent (I paid, by the by) but the exclusivity was shoddy and... again, some journalists and +1s got in for nowt. Simmer on, people, it's only right...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/shows/bobharris/
Bob Harris said last night on his show that the plan was for more shows in London next year.
Fast forward to the 1hour 45min mark, he says it just before playing 'How's it gonna end'.
For Andrew Nash - Hi Andrew, Derbyshire Paul here. Thanks for your posting re my mate and the Tom Waits gig. You can email me off the site at pandba@tiscali.co.uk - would be great if there is something we might salvage from this for my friend. Thanks, Paul.
Was it my imagination or did he do a blues version of Murder in the red barn?
Tripod
Hi,
You can find the video of this amazing show on easytree.org (torrent file), as the audio recordings of all the real gone tour!!!!
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