How much of Tom Waits' persona do you think is real?

[gmoney]

I mean, do you think he's actually as odd as he comes off in person? Or does he play it up for purposes of creating this sort of throwback character for his audience, but in real life, he's just your basic suburban dude?

I guess the same could be asked about Captain Beefheart or Leon Redbone or others... is the thinking "let's do something weird" or are they genuinely weird people thinking "this is what's normal to do" ?

[graywarrior]

1. Yes

He lived in his car for a long while. He's insane...in a good way.

[jobycom]

2. I'm still wondering about MrScorpio's persona.

Is he really all smooth and clever, or is he just a nerd wannabee DJ sitting in a dark sound booth somewhere?

And how about madinmaryland? Mad? In Maryland? Neither? :shrug:

I've got too many questions in line before I get to Tom Waits.

[MrScorpio]

5. I didn't know that my coolness could be called into question

Perhaps, we need to reexamine our relationship, n'est-ce pas?

[jobycom]

15. !

Christ, that's some come-to-Jesus look! :rofl:

Alright, alright, I surrender. No soundbooth nerd could glare like that!

[Rabrrrrrr]

3. I think he's the real deal. I mean, he's not Billy Corgan - Waits is genuine, with integrity.

Not like Beyonce or Celine or any of those other fucking fakes.

[jobycom]

17. They're all fake.

You just think the ones that are marketing to you are more real than the ones marketing to teenagers. They learn the gimmics that turn their audiences on and make them scream "GENIUS!" Waits is no better nor worse than Corgan or Britney Spears, he's just stroking you instead of a high schooler.

[tekisui]

4. He is the real deal.

You can hear it in his voice and see it in his eyes.

[GReedDiamond]

6. Don Van Vliet...

...aka Capt. Beefheart, is very much the real thing, and then some. Eccentric genius/artist/musician, a true one of a kind. Saw him and the Magic Band in Los Angeles at the Whiskey, 1978. Fantastic dynamic performances by all involved, with live fade outs (including the drums) on some songs.

Tom Waits, seems authentic to me. Wasn't he a bouncer back in the early 70s?

Leon Redbone to me seems like he's playing a character, but I really don't claim to know. Saw him way back when, when he opened for the Band when they played their "Last Waltz" show in Los Angeles, at the Greek Theater. He was good, but the Band was better, although it's not a really fair (to Leon) comparison.

[tigereye]

8. what a cool thing to see Capt. Beefheart live! One of our faves here.

:hi: and welcome to DU (unless you are a name changer, of course.)

[GReedDiamond]

9. Yeah, it was a very good show...

...I was able to record most of the show on a portable stereo cassette deck.

I still have the tape somewhere, but I no longer have anything to play it on.

And thanks for the welcome, I think I've been around DU since last November or so...

[tigereye]

11. I was introduced to his music back in the late 70s by a friend who had very

eclectic tastes, and I am grateful. In fact, our friends with kids tended to joke that we parents with alternative tastes usually had kids who liked the Capt, i.e, Ice Cream for Crow is always a favorite.


:hi: There are a lot of folks here who like alternative music, always glad to see someone else on board who does...

[mitchum]

7. It's crusty poetic drunk shtick

enjoyable, but still shtick

[Noodleboy13]

10. The man takes his kids to junkyards as family outings.

He's the real deal.

saw him live 10 years ago. Mind blowing.


peace
Noodleboy

[likesmountains 52]

12. I think he's real...I saw him perform in a small venue in the early 1970s and

he hasn't changed much since then.

[mitchum]

13. Always remember this...he is in show business

[gmoney]

14. RIght... and it's show business, not show art, right?

But where else would someone who really acts like that wind up?

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

16. he is a weird dude, at least he was

when I hung with him a bit in the 80's

[cemaphonic]

18. Hmm. He comes across to me as a pretty private person

From everything I've heard about him, that sounds pretty genuine, as does his interest in old-timey Americana stuff.

What aspect of his persona are you talking about?

[Hell Hath No Fury]

19. It is all real.

I worked at the post-production house he edited "Big Time" at and interacted with him daily for a good month.

What you see is exactly who he is -- and what he is is a trip. :D

[Heidi]

20. Dunno, don't care.

I feel the same way about every other artist whose work I admire, including your own. :hug: