Sometime in the late 1990s I saw Black Rider by Tom Waits performed at the local theatre. Not knowing much about Tom Waits or his music this experience really surprised me. A story hard to understand combined with the music that to me sounded very weird live in the theatre. But something must have hit me anyway because I bought the Black Rider album shortly after but the music was difficult for me to take in. Still today some 20 years on I have to sit down with no disturbances to concentrate on Waits hoarse vocal when I listen to it because there are so many elements on this record that I feel that something new comes up every time. Black Rider is therefore a favourite of mine although I still have difficulties understanding it – but maybe this is the charm about Tom Waits.
