[reformed_democrat]

I sat right next to Keith Richards at a Tom Waits concert in Manhattan.

You saw Tom Waits!!! How cool is That!

I've been a fan ever since Nighthawks at the Diner.

[dead]

Not once, but twice. On the Frank's Wild Years tour (You can't really call it a tour, since he does about six shows nationwide per album.)

Then I saw his very next show in the NYC area, about a decade later - for the Mule Variations "tour."

It was a really hot ticket, as you might expect. My brother and I sat in the eighth row, next to Keith Richards, as I said. He was with Patty Hansen. Right across the aisle, with worse seats than ours, was Elvis Costello, his wife (who was in The Pogues) and Joe Strummer.

If you EVER get the chance, get yourself to a Tom Waits show. For a guy who hardly ever tours, he puts on one of the greatest shows you'll ever see. Tight band, great songs, and he's funny as hell.

One of my favorite moments was during the Frank's Wild Years show. The band left the stage, and he sits down at the piano on the front of the stage and says, "Now for some of the old favorites." After the crowd finishes going nuts, he says "Not your f#*king favorites! My favorites!" and launches into a kickass version of James Brown's "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag." Just him, banging the piano like a psycho and belting out the lyrics. Awesome.