American singer, songwriter, composer and actor, Thomas Alan Waits (1949 - ), has been a major inspiration to artists, musicians, poets, writers and thinkers for almost 40 years. He is considered as one of the godfathers of grunge and poetic rock and is a master of contemporary narrative - able to weave emotion and intrigue into his stories of urban grit and rural abandonment. His sometimes jaundiced view of the underbelly of society serves as a rich source of visual imagery.

 

This master wordsmith creates disturbing narratives which sets him apart from other songwriters. From his achingly beautiful love songs to his social and politically charged tales, Waits generates powerful lyrics interlaced with unusual musical arrangements and with his penchant for unusual musical instruments (or objects used as instruments), the sound is a memorable one that hooks most listeners from the very first chord.

 

Waits launched his whiskey-soaked persona in 1973 with the release of Closing Time; an album of bluesy ballads of love gone sour that perfectly matched the atmosphere of the smoky places he played. His stage shows consisted of a piano, a lamp post, a pack of cigarettes and a bottle of bourbon, while he rasped his way through the lives of lovable losers. Almost four decades, a 2011 induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, 24 albums (including his most recent Bad As Me) and countless characters later, Waits is still making us smile, cry and sing along to songs that set the bar for what great writing is.

 

Instead of the altarpiece format from the Cohen exhibition this show is based on a roughly LP sized circular format (30cm in diameter). Most works hang on the wall but some artists that wanted to work in 3d, made use of the disc as a base or platform on which to build. There was no restriction on materials or approach. There was no process in selection of songs and each artist was free to use whichever lyric or section of lyrics that they choose (even if someone else had selected this too – artists seldom come up with the same solutions).

 

This show comprises around 90 works and was launched at the ABSA KKNK in April 2013. After the exhibition at the UJ Art Gallery in May, it will move to Grande Provence Wine Estate for the Literary Festival in June and the Johannes Stegman Gallery, Bloemfontein in September 2013.