Song by Song

Firmly rooted in South London and unavailable for sexual engagements, Sam, Martin, Elizabeth and Caspar join Tom Waits in reading over Charlie's shoulder. Big cast this week. Elizabeth questions the structure of a song with no chorus section, Caspar gets excited by the density of music (although probably not the lyrics), and we can all agree there's not a potato in sight. Song by Song is Martin Za...

Back once again with Sam, Martin, Elizabeth and Caspar, we join Waits hanging out outside the drugstore with Little Caesar and his red-shod ladyfriend. Some discussion this week of the musical environment created slides seamlessly, SEAMLESSLY into the textural features of Vangelis on the soundtrack from Blade Runner. It's another tight focused never-rambling episode of Song by Song. Song by Song i...

A trip to the musicals for this first episode on Blue Valentine, as Martin and Sam are joined by Caspar Salmon and Elizabeth Sankey to discuss another of Waits's rare covers. The (perhaps inevitable) comparisons between this and other versions of Somewhere, the nature of the song in its original context and the extent to which Waits reinterprets the material all kick off season six of Song by Song...

Season Six of Song by Song features Blue Valentines Elizabeth Sankey and Caspar Salmon from High Brow Low Brow, Jen Adamthwaite and Dave Pickering from The Family Tree, and Kit Lovelace from Romantic Misadventures. We'll be back on November 16th, so keep your Waits thoughts coming in until then! Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians who, out of some obsessive completist...

It's the conclusion of another album and another season, as Martin, Sam, Sam and Simon discuss the thematic oppositions between this final track and the themes and ethos of the rest of Foreign Affairs. 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: @songbysongp...

The four-part harmony-group of Martin, Simon and two Sams wanders in for a quick short back and sides as Tom Waits visits Mr Snip-Snip-Snip for this penultimate track of Foreign Affairs. The variety of this album, the beauty/technicality of barber-shop quartet singing, and the need for emotional commitment in musical performance are all debated, as well as some…mild diversions. Song by Song is Mar...

This week on Song by Song Martin, two Sams and a Simon head out onto the wide open roads of America to examine possibly one of the strongest songs on Foreign Affairs, with discussion of the origins of the Burma Shave advertising campaign, the interplay of voice and melody on the track, and the appearance of Farley Granger in Nicholas Ray's debut film They Live By Night. Song by Song is Martin Zalt...

Joined by Sam Clements and Simon Renshaw, Sam and Martin dive into the pomp and bluster of the orchestral stylings of Potter's Field. With the musical and lyrical setting clearly placed in the world of noir, we examine this song and its explicit influence, Sam Fuller's film Pickup On South Street, as well as some of the obscure storytelling choices made by Waits in this track from Foreign Affairs....

With some disagreement and friction, Martin and Sam discuss some of the musical borrowings and stylistic repetitions in this track from Foreign Affairs. Debating cliche, originality and their place in pop music, as well as Mary Hopkins's contribution to the theme in a very similar track, Song by Song returns for another discussion on Tom Waits. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; tw...

Song by Song reaches its fiftieth episode as Waits returns to one of his greatest influences, the beat poets. With mixed feelings, Sam and Martin discuss extreme vocal styling (and its overuse) as a storytelling tool, the value (or lack thereof) of California as a location, as well as touching briefly on one of cinema and recorded music's iconic figures, Al Jolson. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Aus...

The regular duet of Sam and Martin explore one of the few vocal collaborations Waits includes on his studio albums, with this piano-bar seduction of (and by) Bette Midler. The verbatim nature of the lyrics, the locating nature of music, and interference with postal carriers all feature in this week's discussion. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and disc...

Dreaming of a(nother) girl who left him, Tom Waits returns to mournful yearning for the second track of Foreign Affairs. Martin and Sam continue discussing the possible influences on this song through the person of Edie Adams and Muriel cigars, as well as the vocal stylings of Dolly Parton and the production choices on the album as a whole. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two mu...

Welcome to the fifth season of Song by Song! Martin and Sam return to take a listen to Waits's 1977 album, beginning with the instrumental Cinny's Waltz. With discussion of the tone of this album, the cross-pollination of creative inspiration between film and music, and more than a few bad similes, we begin our journey through Foreign Affairs. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two...

Welcome back to Song by Song - we're taking a couple of weeks out before starting our fifth season on Foreign Affairs to get some plans made, listen to some music, watch some films and argue about eggs. Do the same, and please rejoin us later in August for more Tom Waits discussions. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians who, out of some obsessive completist compulsion,...

Concluding our shuffle through Tom Waits's Small Change, Sam, Callum and Martin struggle to wrap up their duties and get back to their respective avenues. This final track's relationship to the album as a whole, backstage vs. onstage personas, and the concept of work in opposition to art all help us wrap up our fourth season of Song by Song. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two m...

Hitting the apex (or the wind-down?) of the album with its title track, Martin, Sam and Callum work through the details of the untimely death of Small Change, discussing some of the societal commentary in the song, choices of harsh and clinical language and the amazing Jazz stylings of Lew Tabackin. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every...

It's storytime again, as Martin, Sam and Callum are taken on a series of single-verse vignettes. Watching the way Waits creates a series of spaces, the kind of shamed men who live there, and his ability to simultaneously retain a sense of fun all form part of the conversation on this week's Song by Song. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing e...

Martin and Sam welcome their new guest host Callum Hughes, immediately getting side-tracked by old sitcom themes and how old Geoffrey Palmer might be. Casablanca misquotes, internal rhyming structures, intertextuality and depression - all on Song by Song. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every single Tom Waits track in chronological order...

For her final track with Song by Song, Lucy Dallas discusses with Sam and Martin some of the social setting and politics of this bump and grind number from Small Change. The relationship of satire and exploitation, sex and sexiness as well as the extent of Waits's critique on the characters he plays and embodies all appear, set to a thumping beat! Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay;...

An invitation to musical analysis (as well as rambling nonsense), Song by Song returns to the diner for another longing message to an unattainable woman. Martin, Sam and Lucy Dallas return to discuss how realistic this longing is, how attainable the draw of independence and freedom might be, and whether Sam should practice piano on-air or in his own time. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and...

Whether it's actually possible for a piano to drink or not, it is totally conceivable that a podcast can be hosted by creampuff fencepost-IQ mental midgets, and here they are with another episode of Song by Song. As Martin, Sam and Lucy peel back the layers of writing on this track, comparing it to the comic genius of Les Dawson as well as Waits's own singing persona, the question arises as to whe...

Martin and Sam are joined by their latest guest host Lucy Dallas, wandering arm-in-arm through the streets and debating (again/still) the merits of truth and authenticity in the storytelling of Tom Waits. Whether we buy into the mythmaking of this group and location, or whether Waits is as successful as some of his heroes at creating these idealised places is challenged in weeks episode. Song by S...

Liars, liars, all their pants on fire, Sam, Martin and Jeffrey explore the fakery and tall-tale-telling of Waits's drunken persona, debating the truths and lies of the song's narrative and questioning whether we should disbelieve the stories... or believe that a man could really live such a life. Neo-futurist theatre, George Plimpton and the rise of the hobo all join us for another episode of Song...

For your consideration, at value price, cut bargain basement availability for one night only and in any shade and texture you could wish for, Martin, Sam and Jeffrey return to package, wrap, fold, spindle and mutilate another conversation on everyone's favourite anti-salesman, Tom Waits. Song by Song is Martin Zaltz Austwick and Sam Pay; two musicians listening to and discussing every single Tom W...

Sam and Martin welcome Night Vale writer Jeffrey Cranor to this first track from season four of Song by Song, ploughing straight into Waits's Aussie-faux-bo song with instant disagreement and conflict. It's good to be back... Duality of tone and meaning, the unknowability of Danish lyricism and the lure of the open road all feature in the discussion, as well as our putative Waits Theme Pub. Song b...