The most commercial song Tom Waits ever wrote after his 1983 career transformation into the man we know and love, “Downtown Train” was actually a Top 3 hit for Rod Stewart in 1989. Patty Smyth and Bob Seger also had minor hits with it, in 1987 and 2011 respectively. Safe to say it’s not exactly Waitsian.
So I guess the question for those covering “Downtown Train” is whether to follow a famous cover version or Waits’ obviously rougher original. Singer Eddie Skuller, who has been active for decades but has released relatively little music under his own name, opts for a middle course. In 2025 he released an EP of Waits covers but “Downtown Train” was not on it. Instead, he’s put it out now.
When I say Skuller has charted a middle course, it’s because, as Skuller admits himself, his voice is a lot more conventional than Waits’, so much of the grit that Waits himself adds to his music through his voice is completely absent from Skuller’s performance. And Skuller does attack the chorus like other singers do – it’s hard for them to resist, as it’s pretty big.
But Skuller is accompanied only by two guitars, stand-up bass and drums. That’s a full band, sure, but it’s significantly sparser than Stewart’s very big arrangement, or even Waits’ original arrangement that features three guitars, organ and percussion in addition to bass and drums. This relative sparseness gives Skuller’s version a little bit more of the feel of Waits original, despite the massive difference in their voices and singing styles.
And the result is that Skuller’s cover feels restrained and tasteful compared to, say, Stewart’s. Have a listen below:
