The album, which as previously reported is due May 20 via Atco Rhino, contains 10 covers by the gruff, booze-soaked singer and one original called, “Song for Jo” penned by Johansson and producer Dave Sitek of TV On The Radio.
What Waits songs is she covering and from what era? After all his career spans over 30 years. Evidently A mix of songs that tends to draw from Waits more recent albums. Bowie lends his vocals to the tracks “Fannin Street” (from the album Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards) and “Fallin’ Down” (Big Time). Johansson apparently wanted to originally make a standards cover album but then became drawn to the idea of all Waits-c0vers. “His melodies are so beautiful and his voice is so distinct,” she told reporters at a press conference.
As previously reported, Anywhere was produced by TVOTR’s Dave Sitek and features members of the band Celebration and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner throughout. Sitek told reporters that he was going for a “cough medicine/Tinker Bell” vibe. According to a source close to the Playlist, the album sounds as if it were “produced like a Cocteau Twins record [with] big synth washes, crazy swampy blurs of sound,” and hushed vocals by Scarjo. Rolling Stone said, “the ambient music Sitek created features a church organ, a brass section, drum machines, a musical box,” and he compared Johansson’s deep voice to Debbie Harry.
Sounds like Sitek has really made his mark on this thing and we should be expecting something very Pitchfork-friendly.
Anywhere I Lay My Head tracklist
“Fawn” (from Alice)
“Town With No Cheer” (from Swordfish Trombone)
“Falling Down” (from Big Time)
“Anywhere I Lay My Head” (from Rain Dogs)
“Fannin’ Street” (from Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards)
“Song for Jo”
“Green Grass” (from Real Gone)
“I Wish I Was in New Orleans” (Small Change)
“I Don’t Want To Grow Up” (from Bone Machine)
“No One Knows I’m Gone” (Alice)
“Who Are You?” (from Bone Machine)
Download: Tom Waits – “Fannin’ Street”
Download: Tom Waits – “No One Knows I’m Gone”
Watch: Tom Waits – “I Don’t Want To Grow Up”