There’s nothing more embarrassing than a person who tries to guess what the great American public would like, makes a compromise for… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
They have removed the struggle to find anything. And therefore there is no genuine sense of discovery. Struggle is the first thing… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
I dunno, when I started writing really I was like, filling out applications and stuff real early. Last name first, first name… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
The sight of the first woman in the minimal two-piece was as explosive as the detonation of the atomic bomb by the… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
The first time I started listening to Irish music, I had a very strong connection. Strangely enough, there's a great many Japanese… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
My first big gig was an opening show for Frank Zappa, and I think that was difficult. — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
Most of us have the residue of thousands of songs in our ears, that if you end up songwriting, I think you're mostly smoking… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
Bill Hicks - blowtorch, excavator, truthsayer, and brain specialist. He will correct your vision. Others will drive on the road he built. — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
“an all time favorite: "The large print giveth, the small print taketh away.” — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
For a songwriter, you don't really go to songwriting school; you learn by listening to tunes. And you try to understand them and take… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
The world is a hellish place, and bad writing is destroying the quality of our suffering. — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
I'm always looking for sounds that are pleasing at the time. The sound of a helicopter is really annoying until you're drowning, and it's… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
There's not much difference between what I appear to be on stage and what I am. I think people like that, that I'm not… — Tom Waits Copy Share Image
