October marks the 50th anniversary of Tom Waits’ 1975 album “Nighthawks at the Diner” originally released on Asylum Records. The reissue via ANTI- Records will come out on 24th October 2025. The label is celebrating the anniversary with two limited edition variants of yellow vinyl: a Tom Waits Webstore Exclusive in 180g Ducky Yellow and an Indie Record Stores release with 180g yellow marble.
The record takes its title from Edward Hopper’s painting “Nighthawks” (1942). It captures the spirit of Waits’ early live performances: intimate, theatrical evenings where inventive songwriting mingled with storytelling and sharp-witted asides. “Nighthawks At The Diner” was recorded over four sessions at Studio C of the Los Angeles Record Plant with a small invited audience. Waits and his manager apparently chose the studio as Barbara Streisand had managed to fit an orchestra in the room and they wanted to perform the tracks live for people including, according to the Record Plant history ”Buzz Me In”, a burlesque stripper.
Waits was accompanied by Pete Christlieb – tenor saxophone, Bill Goodwin – drums, Jim Hughart – upright bass and Mike Melvoin – piano, electric piano, guitar. It was produced by Bones Howe whose lengthy CV stretches back to 1950s jazz recordings.
“Nighthawks At The Diner” stands as an artifact of Waits’ early period, crystallising the artist that would bridge “The Heart Of Saturday Night” (1974) and “Small Change” (1976), as well as featuring some of his most memorable songs of the era, including ‘Eggs And Sausage’, ‘Warm Beer And Cold Women’, and the epic ‘Spare Parts’.
You can pre-order the Webstore version via this link and the Indie Record Store version here.
You can watch a short interview with Waits plus a performance of ‘Eggs And Sausage’ below.
