"Back in the Crowd" is a song by American rock musician Tom Waits. It is the second single and seventh track from Waits' seventeenth studio album, Bad as Me.[2][3] Written and produced by Waits and his wife Kathleen Brennan, the song was released on September 27, 2011 as a digital download via iTunes and Spotify.[4]
| "Back in the Crowd" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Tom Waits | ||||
| from the album Bad as Me | ||||
| Released | September 27, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Rock, Latin | |||
| Length | 2:49 | |||
| Label | ANTI-, Epitaph[1] | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan | |||
| Producer(s) | Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan | |||
| Tom Waits singles chronology | ||||
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Music
"Back in the Crowd" is a guitar-driven Latin-influenced midtempo ballad.[5] It features guitar work from Los Lobos guitarist and vocalist David Hidalgo and longtime collaborator Marc Ribot.[4]
Tom Waits described the song as "an old fashioned jukebox tune for a slow dance with your girl (or guy)."[3][6]
Critical reception
Upon its release, the song received mainly positive reviews. Thom Jurek of Allmusic described the song as "the wasted lover's plea in the West Texas mariachi."[7] Filter magazine wrote: "the song is obviously short and oftentimes tinged with bittersweetness", also adding that "Waits' deep croon evokes the sadness found in the song's mellow melody and lyrics."[8] Luke Larsen of Paste magazine praised the song, reporting that "the song sort of just casually shows up and then disappears, but its mood is infectious."[9] Katie Hasty of Hitfix described the song as a "The Southwestern, nylon-string-enhanced loner ballad" and "a trending bawler," also further explaining that "she just slow-danced by herself and had a good cry."[10] Michael Roffman of Consequence of Sound indicated that "the song doesn’t sound like a track that’s on an album titled Bad as Me", while commenting that it is "most likely something your grandparents danced to after the war."[11]
Personnel
- Tom Waits - vocals, guitar, production, writing credits
- Marc Ribot – guitar
- Casey Waits – drums
- David Hidalgo - guitar, percussion
- James Whiton – bass
- Kathleen Brennan – production, writing credits
Chart positions
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop Flanders)[12] | 73 |