Tom Waits announces vinyl reissues of ‘Alice’ and ‘Blood Money’, shares live versions of two album tracks

nme.com:

Tom Waits has today (August 9) announced that his twin 2002 albums, ‘Alice’ and ‘Blood Money’, will be reissued on vinyl.The albums – which this year celebrate their 20-year-anniversary – will be pressed on translucent blue and red vinyl respectively, with the reissues expected to hit record stores and Waits’ merch website on October 7.

Both reissues are currently available for pre-order via Waits’ webstore here.Coinciding with the announcement, Waits has also shared a pair of live recordings set to feature on each of the upcoming reissues: ‘All the World Is Green’ from ‘Blood Money’ and ‘Fish and Bird’ from ‘Alice’.Check out the live recordings below.Waits’ live version of ‘All the World is Green’ adds a flamenco flair to the original, and was recorded during the singer-songwriter’s Milan show as part of his 2008 Glitter and Doom concert tour.

Meanwhile, the previously unreleased rendition of ‘Fish and Bird’ was lifted from Waits’ 2004 show in London, and pairs his live vocals with stripped-down piano keys.Speaking of the original albums in press materials at the time, Waits recalled his avoidance of string instruments, saying that “too many of [his] songs were drowning in strings.”“I didn’t want to hear another blasted violin.

So, we found string players who felt the same way about their instrument, formed an odd, skeletal chamber orchestra and tried to avoid all the old familiar phrases where strings love to play,” Waits said.Both ‘Alice’ and ‘Blood Money’ were borne out of Waits and co-writer Kathleen Brennan’s years-long collaboration with playwright Robert Wilson.