Franks Wild Years
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [2] |
| Los Angeles Times |  [3] |
| Mojo | [4] |
| Q | [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
| The Village Voice | B[7] |
Franks Wild Years is an album by Tom Waits, released 1987 on Island Records. Subtitled "Un Operachi Romantico in Two Acts", the album contains songs written by Waits and collaborators (mainly his wife, Kathleen Brennan) for a play of the same name. The shared title of the album and the play is an iteration of "Frank's Wild Years", a song from Waits' 1983 album Swordfishtrombones.
The play had its world premiere at the Briar St. Theatre in Chicago, Illinois on June 22, 1986, performed by the Steppenwolf Theatre Company.
Various versions of "Way Down in the Hole" were used as the theme music for the HBO series The Wire, including Waits' original version for the second season. The songs "Temptation" and "Cold Cold Ground" were used in Jean-Claude Lauzon's film Léolo (1992). "Cold Cold Ground" was also used in the series Homicide: Life on the Street. "Temptation" and "Straight to the Top (Vegas)" featured in the film Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005), and "Innocent When You Dream" featured in the film Smoke (1995).[8]
Chart information
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Switzerland | 14 |
| Billboard 200 | 115[9] |
Track listing
Tracks written by Tom Waits, except where noted. Recorded by Danny Leake and Biff Dawes. Mixed by Biff Dawes at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, California.
Side One
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hang on St. Christopher" | 2:46 | |
| 2. | "Straight to the Top (Rhumba)" | Waits, Greg Cohen | 2:30 |
| 3. | "Blow Wind Blow" | 3:35 | |
| 4. | "Temptation" | 3:53 | |
| 5. | "Innocent When You Dream (Barroom)" | 4:15 | |
| 6. | "I'll Be Gone" | Waits, Kathleen Brennan | 3:12 |
| 7. | "Yesterday Is Here" | Waits, Brennan | 2:29 |
| 8. | "Please Wake Me Up" | Waits, Brennan | 3:36 |
| 9. | "Frank's Theme" | 1:49 |
Side Two
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "More Than Rain" | 3:52 | |
| 2. | "Way Down in the Hole" | 3:30 | |
| 3. | "Straight to the Top (Vegas)" | Waits, Cohen | 3:26 |
| 4. | "I'll Take New York" | 3:58 | |
| 5. | "Telephone Call from Istanbul" | 3:12 | |
| 6. | "Cold Cold Ground" | 4:07 | |
| 7. | "Train Song" | 3:20 | |
| 8. | "Innocent When You Dream (78)" | 3:08 |
Musicians
- Jay Anderson - bass
- Michael Blair - drums, conga, percussion, maracas, marimba, orchestra bells, glockenspiel
- Kathleen Brennan - vocal arrangements
- Angela Brown - background vocals
- Les Warner - drums
- Richard Battin - guitar
- Power Butts - rhythm guitar
- Ralph Carney - sax, baritone horn, violin, tenor sax
- Greg Cohen- bass, alto horn, horn arrangements, Leslie bass pedals
- David Hidalgo - accordion
- Leslie Holland - background vocals
- Lynne Jordan - background vocals
- Marc Ribot - guitar, banjo
- William Schimmel - piano, pump organ, accordion, Leslie bass pedals, cocktail piano
- Larry Taylor - bass, upright bass
- Moris Tepper - guitar
- Francis Thumm - prepared piano, pump organ
- Tom Waits - vocals, pump organ, Optigan, guitar, vocal stylings, rooster, piano, Farfisa, Mellotron, drums, conga, tambourine
References
- ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Franks Wild Years – Tom Waits". AllMusic. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-857-12595-8.
- ^ Cromelin, Richard (August 30, 1987). "Waits: Dreamlike, Distant". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
- ^ "Tom Waits – Franks Wild Years CD". CD Universe. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
- ^ "Tom Waits: Franks Wild Years". Q (73): 101. October 1992.
- ^ Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. pp. 854–55. ISBN 0-743-20169-8.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (January 26, 1988). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114478/soundtrack
- ^ http://www.billboard.com/artist/430114/tom-waits/chart?page=1&f=305
External links
- Frank's Wild Years at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company
- Franks Wild Years (album) and Frank's Wild Years (theatrical), info at the Tom Waits Library