Foreign Affairs
A duet with Bette Midler and a black-and-white movie look on his fifth album.
Tom Waits, 1977
- Released
- 13 September 1977
- Recorded
- July to August 1977
- Label
- Asylum
- Producer
- Bones Howe
Recording took place in July and August 1977, with Bob Alcivar as arranger. Howe, who produced and engineered it, said that when he heard Waits's demos he thought they sounded like a black-and-white movie, and that idea became the cover. The Hollywood portraitist George Hurrell photographed Waits with Marsheila Cockrell, who worked the box office at the Troubadour.
Bette Midler sings a duet with Waits on I Never Talk to Strangers. Deusner of Pitchfork notes that the record opens with the instrumental Cinny's Waltz and gives strings a larger role. Robert Christgau gave a mixed review, praising the Midler duet and Barber Shop. The album did not make the Billboard top 100 and reached number 113 in the US.
Personnel
- Tom Waits vocals, piano
- Bette Midler vocals on I Never Talk to Strangers
- Jim Hughart bass
- Shelly Manne drums
- Gene Cipriano clarinet solo on Potter's Field
- Jack Sheldon trumpet solo
- Frank Vicari tenor saxophone solo
- Bob Alcivar arranger
More from Tom Waits
Closing Time (1973), The Heart of Saturday Night (1974), Nighthawks at the Diner (1975), Small Change (1976), Blue Valentine (1978), Heartattack and Vine (1980), Swordfishtrombones (1983), Rain Dogs (1985), Franks Wild Years (1987), Bone Machine (1992), The Black Rider (1993), Mule Variations (1999), Alice (2002), Blood Money (2002), Real Gone (2004), Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards (2006), Bad as Me (2011)
Sources
- Foreign Affairs (Tom Waits album), Wikipedia
- Tom Waits: Closing Time to Heartattack and Vine reissues, Pitchfork (2018-03-24)
- Tom Waits, Wikipedia