Instead of throwing myself headlong into the new cool music that I know must be out there (and which people like nonononono and Flower are probably spinning away to right now with cool little white bud earphones in place) I have been recycling -- going through the collection and seeing what still works.
Based on a couple of posts here and elsewhere about how Tom Waits is someone who critics like but is mostly unlistened-to by real people, I dug out Swordfishtrombones, which had been gathering dust for a while. I had drifted back to the Heart Attack and Vine and prior albums when I listened to him at all.
Now I am not defending the whole album (you have to be in a very particular mood to listen to "Underground" and "Shore Leave" and a few other tracks there), but for some reason "Johnsburg, Illinois" has been ringing around my head now for days. A perfect little tune that could use a better singer.
You can listen to it here, I think.
