Song by Song

"... we've been Song by Song" - Final Season Specials

Aaaaaaand finally... we're delighted to welcome Sam Clements to the show for an extended farewell to the podcast, discussing the process involved in producing a weekly mu

The Old Favourites pt 2 - Where did we end up? - Final Season Specials

Having gone through all of Waits's music Song by Song, we're obviously well-placed to say which ones are best... or maybe least-worst... perhaps just from our perspective

The Old Favourites pt 1 - Where do you begin? - Final Season Specials

Having done the work, put in the hours and carefully considered all the options, Martin and Sam discuss exactly where they think a new listener to Waits's music might wan

Music Videos pt 2 (1999-2012) - Final Season Specials

Our second set of music videos brings Philippa back to Martin and Sam for the last decade-and-change of Waits music videos. Sampling the work of Jesse Dylan, Matt Mahurin

Music Videos pt 1 (1979-1992) - Final Season Specials

Continuing our season of specials on material outside the show's main remit, Philippa Spanos returns to help Martin and Sam consider the creative and commercial aspects o

Mailbag Episode #7

Our final season wouldn't be complete without a look at the emails sent in by you, dear listeners, covering some errors and omissions, new theories, questions about remas

"He's a real Mensch" - Barney Hoskyns on the music of Tom Waits - Final Season Specials

We're delighted to bring you an extended interview with the man who literally wrote the book on Tom Waits, Barney Hoskyns. Bouncing through a selection of Waits's materia

True Orphans pt 7 (2010-2023) - Final Season Specials

Just imagine... at one point we thought this surprisingly epic True Orphans series might fit in two episodes, HA! Anyway, for this final episode Martin and Sam consider t

True Orphans pt 6 (2000-2009) - Final Season Specials

As we enter the new millennium, Waits pushes into new sonic territory with various collaborations, covers and spoken word pieces, including nostalgic re-inventions and so

Christmas Break 2023

Just a brief FYI that Song by Song is taking a (previously unannounced) seasonal break for two weeks. We'll be back on January 10th 2024 with the penultimate episode of o

True Orphans pt 5 (1992-1999) - Final Season Specials

Rounding out the second half(?) of the 1990s, Waits explores collaborations with old friends and some unusual covers, as well as the building of experimental musical inst

True Orphans pt 4 (1990-1992) - Final Season Specials

Into the 1990s, Martin and Sam return for more unreleased Waits tracks, splitting the decade into two more manageable chunks. This first episode sees some repurposed musi

True Orphans pt 3 (1980-1989) - Final Season Specials

More discussions of Waits's unreleased recordings brings us to the 1980s, featuring several demos, a bunch of covers, and significant collaborations with other musicians,

True Orphans pt 2 (1977-1979) - Final Season Specials

Our second episode dealing with the non-album work of Tom Waits (and our second from the 1970s) brings a variety of covers, live performances, outtakes and re-uses from s

True Orphans pt 1 (1971-1977) - Final Season Specials

Having determined not to waste everyone's time with a comprehensive coverage of ALL of Waits's recordings... Sam and Martin return to the podcast to do exactly that. Sorr

After You Die, Bad As Me, Tom Waits [429]

WE DID IT! Just over 8 years and several hundred episodes since Ol' 55, we've songed all the songs there are to Song by Song. Along with a little look back at Bad As Me,

Tell Me, Bad As Me, Tom Waits [428]

A quintessential and sincere song of advice and experience for Kirk, Martin and Sam this week, perhaps also bordering on the sentimental? We discuss the paired imagery in

She Stole The Blush, Bad As Me, Tom Waits [427]

Diving into the three bonus tracks from the Bad As Me Deluxe edition, Sam and Martin welcome Kirk Hamilton of the Strong Songs podcast to explore isolated sax stabs, irre

New Year's Eve, Bad As Me, Tom Waits [426]

At the end of the album-proper, Andrea, Martin and Sam consider the festive season as well as all its associated traumas. We return to Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, Rickie Le

Hell Broke Luce, Bad As Me, Tom Waits [425]

With serious discussion of disturbing events from the start, Andrea illuminates for Sam and Martin some of the context for this song of military trauma. We consider music