The Black Rider (album)


The Black Rider is the eleventh studio album by Tom Waits, released in 1993 on Island Records, featuring studio versions of songs Waits wrote for the play The Black Rider, directed by Robert Wilson and co-written by William S. Burroughs. The play is based on the German folktale Der Freischütz, which had previously been made into an opera by Carl Maria von Weber. The play premiered on March 31, 1990, at the Thalia Theater in Hamburg, Germany. Its world English-language premiere occurred in 1998 at the Edmonton International Fringe Festival.
Waits would later collaborate with Wilson on the plays Alice and Woyzeck, the music to which were released on the albums Alice and Blood Money, respectively.

Track listing

All songs written by Tom Waits, except where noted. Recorded in 1989 by Gerd Bessler at his Music Factory in Hamburg, Germany, and in 1993 by Tchad Blake and assisted by Joe Marquez at the Prairie Sun Recording Studios in Cotati, California. Musical Director Greg Cohen. All songs mixed by Biff Dawes At Sunset Sound Factory, Hollywood, CA.
  1. "Lucky Day Overture" – 2:27
  2. *Tom Waits – vocal, calliope
  3. *Ralph Carney – saxophone
  4. *Bill Douglas – bass
  5. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  6. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  7. *Joe Gore – banjo
  8. *Nick Phelps – French horn
  9. *Kevin Porter – trombone
  10. "The Black Rider" – 3:21
  11. *Greg Cohen – bass, percussion, banjo, viola
  12. *Tom Waits – pump organ, vocal
  13. "November" – 2:53
  14. *Tom Waits – piano, banjo, vocal
  15. *Greg Cohen – bass, accordion
  16. *Don Neely – saw
  17. "Just the Right Bullets" – 3:35
  18. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  19. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  20. *Joe Gore – banjo
  21. *Ralph Carney – bass clarinet
  22. *Tom Waits – vocal, piano
  23. *Larry Rhodes – bassoon
  24. *Bill Douglas – bass
  25. *Francis Thumm – organ
  26. "Black Box Theme" – 2:42
  27. *Tom Waits – Chamberlin
  28. *Don Neely – saw
  29. *Bill Douglas – bass
  30. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  31. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  32. *Nick Phelps – French horn
  33. *Larry Rhodes – bassoon
  34. *Joe Gore – banjo
  35. "'T' Ain't No Sin" – 2:25
  36. *William S. Burroughs – vocal
  37. *Tom Waits – marimba, Emax
  38. *Greg Cohen – bass clarinet, Emax
  39. "Flash Pan Hunter/Intro" – 1:10
  40. *Henning Stoll – Contrabassoon
  41. *Stefan Schäfer – bass
  42. *Volker Hemken – clarinet
  43. "That's the Way" – 1:07
  44. *Hans-Jorn Braudenberg – organ
  45. *Henning Stoll – viola
  46. *Stefan Schäfer – bass
  47. *Volker Hemken – clarinet
  48. *Tom Waits – vocal
  49. "The Briar and the Rose" – 3:50
  50. *Hans-Jorn Braudenberg – organ
  51. *Henning Stoll – viola
  52. *Stefan Schäfer – bass
  53. *Volker Hemken – clarinet
  54. *Tom Waits – vocal
  55. "Russian Dance" – 3:12
  56. *Tom Waits – Emax strings
  57. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  58. *Linda Deluca – viola
  59. *Bill Douglas – bass
  60. *Kathleen Brennan, Clive Butters, Tom Waits, Francis Thumm, Joe Marquez – boots
  61. "Gospel Train/Orchestra" – 2:33
  62. *Linda Deluca – viola
  63. *Nick Phelps – French horn
  64. *Larry Rhodes – bassoon
  65. *Kevin Porter – trombone
  66. *Ralph Carney – bass clarinet
  67. *Joe Gore – guitar
  68. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  69. *Bill Douglas – bass
  70. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  71. "I'll Shoot the Moon" – 3:51
  72. *Kevin Porter – trombone
  73. *Francis Thumm – organ
  74. *Bill Douglas – bass
  75. *Ralph Carney – saxophone
  76. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion, marimba
  77. *Joe Gore – guitar
  78. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  79. *Tom Waits – vocal
  80. "Flash Pan Hunter" – 3:10
  81. *Ralph Carney – bass clarinet
  82. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  83. *Joe Gore – banjo
  84. *Larry Rhodes – bassoon
  85. *Bill Douglas – bass
  86. *Francis Thumm – organ
  87. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  88. *Don Neely – saw
  89. *Tom Waits – vocal
  90. "Crossroads" – 2:43
  91. *Tom Waits – guitar, Chamberlin, vocal
  92. *Greg Cohen – bass
  93. *Gerd Bessler – viola
  94. "Gospel Train" – 4:43
  95. *Tom Waits – train whistle, vocal, conga, log drum
  96. *Greg Cohen – percussion, bass
  97. *Ralph Carney – bass clarinet
  98. *Bill Douglas – bass
  99. "Interlude" – 0:18
  100. *Henning Stoll – bassoon
  101. *Christoph Moinian – French horn
  102. *Volker Hemken – clarinet
  103. "Oily Night" – 4:23
  104. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  105. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  106. *Bill Douglas – bass
  107. *Ralph Carney – saxophone, bass clarinet
  108. *Nick Phelps – French horn
  109. *Kevin Porter – trombone
  110. *Larry Rhodes – contra bassoon
  111. *Joe Gore – banjo, guitar
  112. *Linda Deluca – viola
  113. *Featuring "The Boners"
  114. "Lucky Day" – 3:42
  115. *Tom Waits – pump organ, vocal
  116. *Bill Douglas – bass
  117. *Ralph Carney – baritone horn
  118. *Matt Brubeck – cello
  119. *Kenny Wollesen – percussion
  120. *Joe Gore – guitar
  121. "The Last Rose of Summer" – 2:07
  122. *Tom Waits – pump organ, vocal, Chamberlin
  123. *Greg Cohen – bass
  124. "Carnival" – 1:15
  125. *Tom Waits – Chamberlin, Emax
  126. *Greg Cohen – bass
Hans-Jörn Brandenburg, Volker Hemken, Henning Stoll, Christoph Moinian, Dieter Fischer, Jo Bauer, Frank Wulff, and Stefan Schäfer were The Devil's Rhubato Band ; Ralph Carney, Bill Douglas, Kenny Wollesen, Matt Brubeck, Joe Gore, Nick Phelps, Kevin Porter, Lawrence "Larry" Rhodes, Francis Thumm, Don Neely, Linda Deluca were The Rhubato West Group.
Songs performed in the play, but not included on the album: "Chase the Clouds Away" and "In the Morning".