Playing St. Louis for the first time in more than 30 years, Tom Waits seemed to have brought every piece of musical (and non-musical) equipment that he’s gathered in that time period and placed it on the stage of the Fox Theatre. From one side to the other, the stage was littered with bullhorns, bells, upside-down drums, guitars, horns, washboards, and a speaker system that looked like about 45 old public address systems strung together on a fence.

It was clear that there were a few people in the crowd that had no idea what they were in for, but the majority of the people that had lined around the block for more than 3 hours prior had been waiting for this show for a very long time, and got exactly what they hoped for.

Waits and his band took the stage a little after 9 pm, and for the next two hours, Tom Waits became his songs. His oversized boots stomped out the rhythm that his son Casey was providing from the drum set to Waits’ immediate right, and his arms jettisoned out from his body with every line sung in his weathered voice.

Waits culled material spanning almost 25 years back in his career, with a good balance of newer material such as the opener “Lucinda,” off the Orphans three disc set, and going all the way back to 1983’s Swordfishtrombones with the two songs “Johnsburg, Illinois” and “16 Shells From A Thirty-Ought-Six.”

After drawing every member of the Fox Theatre’s packed audience into his world, Tom Waits left the stage after one encore, inviting the crowd to join along for the final lines of “Innocent When You Dream.” Nobody left the Fox Theater disappointed, only wanting more in the best way possible, hoping they wouldn’t have to wait another decade or two to see this amazing showman perform again.

-NPL