Why Tom Waits Was Not a Fan of Eagles’ 1974 Cover of “Ol’ ‘55”

Taking on another famous musician’s song as a cover is no easy feat. There’s always a chance that the former won’t be a fan of the latter’s cover; and unfortunately for Eagles, that’s precisely what happened with famous deep-voiced crooner Tom Waits.

Videos by American Songwriter

Eagles’ cover of “Ol’ ‘55” was originally a Tom Waits classic, straight from his debut album Closing Time. The song tells the story of a man (likely Waits) leaving his new beau’s abode in the morning, setting off into the world after the lovely encounter. It’s your typical, delicious, jazz-tinged Tom Waits song, and a great early-career piece of work.

“Ol’ ‘55” works so well because of all of the elements that make Tom Waits, as a whole, so easy to love: That nostalgic melody, those super underrated, gritty vocals, the depth of it all. Waits always knew how to seamlessly blend gruff with fluff, melancholy with genuine delight. It’s the hallmark of Waits’ incredible songwriting ability.

Eagles’ version, sadly, lacked much of that magic, particularly in terms of depth. Their cover made an appearance on the 1974 album On The Border. We can’t help but sympathize with them, considering Tom Waits is not an easy artist to emulate with a cover. Still, it must have stung to read what Waits said of the cover in an interview with WAMU the following year.

Tom Waits Didn’t Hold Back in His Critique of Eagles Back in 1975

“I frankly was not that particularly crazy about their rendition of it,” said Waits. “The song is about five years old, it’s one of the first songs I wrote, so I felt like it was kind of flattering that somebody wanted to do your song, but at the same time I thought their version was a little antiseptic.”

“Antiseptic” feels like the worst kind of burn a musician could give. However, we understand why the cover wasn’t up to par.

At the time of On The Border’s release, Eagles were determined to gain commercial success. That was, for the most part, the antithesis of what Waits wanted. He knew he would never become a pop icon and instead opted to stick to the integrity of his art. Eagles, on the other hand, wanted to turn becoming pop icons into art itself.

The royalties Waits received definitely benefited him after the Eagles started to make it big. But that didn’t sweeten his opinion of the band, and Waits went on to give an even more scathing critique of them soon after.

“I don’t like the Eagles,” said Waits. “They’re about as exciting as watching paint dry. Their albums are good for keeping the dust off your turntable and that’s about all.”

Ouch.

Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.