Mule Variations is the thirteenth studio album by American musician Tom Waits, released on April 16, 1999, on the ANTI- label. It was Waits' first studio album in six years, following The Black Rider (1993). The album was backed by an extensive tour in Europe and North America during the summer and autumn of 1999, which was Waits' first proper tour since 1987. Other promotional stops included a solo performance on VH1 Storytellers.
Mule Variations won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album and was nominated for Best Male Rock Performance for the track "Hold On". It has sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide. In 2012, the album was ranked number 416 on Rolling Stone<nowiki>'</nowiki>s list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Reception
Upon its release, Mule Variations received widespread critical acclaim. AllMusic reviewer Stephen Thomas Erlewine stated that "the album uses the ragged cacophony of Bone Machine as a starting point, and proceeds to bring in the songwriterly aspects of Rain Dogs, along with its affection for backstreet and backwoods blues, plus a hint of the beatnik qualities of Swordfish. So Mule Variations delivers what fans want, in terms of both songs and sonics" and awarded the album four out of five stars. Zach Hooker of Pitchfork awarded the album a 9.5 out of 10 rating, describing it as "a great album" and further saying that "sonically, it picks up where Bone Machine left off, but drops some of that album's artifice: the clattering, trebly out-back-of-the-shed sound is still here and the inexplicable presence of Primus persists." and number 1 on Norway's album chart. The album was certified gold in Canada in July 2001 after selling over 50,000 copies and as of April 2009 had sold more than 500,000 copies worldwide. Mule Variations won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album at the 42nd Grammy Awards and was nominated for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance.
In 2010, Mule Variations was awarded a platinum certification from the Independent Music Companies Association, which indicated sales of at least 500,000 copies throughout Europe. As of 2006, sales in the United States have exceeded 440,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Track listing
Personnel
- Tom Waits - vocals (1–7, 9–16), The Voice (8), guitar (1–3, 6–7, 9, 12), piano (5, 11, 13, 15–16), organ (3), pump organ (7), percussion (9–10), Chamberlin (9), optigan (2)
- Andrew Borger - drums (9, 14, 16), percussion (14)
- Ralph Carney - trumpet (1), saxophone (1, 16), alto saxophone (11), bass clarinet (10), reeds (8, 9)
- Les Claypool - bass (1)
- Greg Cohen - bass (11–12, 15), percussion (10)
- Linda Deluca-Ghidossi - violin (13)
- Dalton Dillingham III - bass (13)
- Joe Gore - guitar (3, 16)
- Chris Grady - trumpet (2, 14)
- John Hammond - blues harp (7)
- Stephen Hodges - percussion (3–4)
- Smokey Hormel - guitar (4), dobro (7), chumbus, dousengoni (2)
- Jacquire King - programming (2, 14), recording engineer, mixing
- Larry LaLonde - guitar (1)
- Bryan "Brain" Mantia - drums (1)
- Christopher Marvin - drums (6)
- Charlie Musselwhite - blues harp (4, 12, 14, 16)
- Nik Phelps - baritone saxophone (11, 16)
- DJ M. Mark "The III Media" Reitman - turntable (8–10, 14)
- Larry Rhodes - contrabassoon (10)
- Marc Ribot - guitar (3, 9–10, 14), lead guitar (5), guitar solo (6, 9)
- Jeff Sloan - percussion (8)
- Larry Taylor - bass (3–6, 14, 16), guitar (14), rhythm guitar (5)
- Wings Over Jordan Gospel, Bali Eternal - turntable samples (10)
;Technical
- Oz Fritz - recording engineer, mixing
- Matt Mahurin - cover photography
Christopher Marvin, the son of actor Lee Marvin, was featured as a guest drummer as a nod to Waits' membership in the Sons of Lee Marvin, a humorous secret society of Marvin look-alikes.
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
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! scope="col"| Chart (1999)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
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! scope="row"| Canadian Albums (Billboard)
| 17
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! scope="row"| US Billboard 200
| 30
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Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
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! scope="col"| Chart (1999)
! scope="col"| Position
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! scope="row"| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)
| 83
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! scope="row"| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)
| 75
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