Blue Valentine (studio album) by Tom Waits

Blue Valentine by Tom Waits
Year: 1978
Overall rank: 1,616th   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 269 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1978 (25th)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (314th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,616th)
Product Details
Availability

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FACTORY SEALED CD Blue Valentine by Tom Waits
Condition: Brand New


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Tom Waits - Blue Valentine 12" Vinyl Record 1978 Asylum Records SP Gatefold US
Condition: Used


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Blue Valentine by Tom Waits (CD, 1990)
Condition: Brand New


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Tom Waits bestography

Blue Valentine is ranked 8th best out of 27 albums by Tom Waits on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Tom Waits is Rain Dogs which is ranked number 111 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 12,168.

Tom Waits album bestography « Higher ranked (1,437th) This album (1,616th) Lower ranked (1,650th) »
The Heart Of Saturday NightBlue ValentineHeartattack And Vine

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Blue Valentine track list

  Track ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Blue Valentine rankings

Blue Valentine collection

Blue Valentine ratings

Average Rating: 
77/100 (from 269 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 269 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
70/100
 Report rating
03/21/2025 22:58 dukeboxkool  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,78673/100
 
85/100
 Report rating
01/03/2025 11:37 cicadelic  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 9,70273/100
 
80/100
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01/02/2025 06:19 Scrabbler  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 20678/100
 
85/100
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12/12/2024 07:02 matterhornrider  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 4,54281/100
 
70/100
 Report rating
11/27/2024 04:53 slatsheit  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 2,02481/100

Rating metrics: Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.3/100, a mean average of 75.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.5/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.9.

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Blue Valentine comments

Showing all 8 comments |
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Rating:  
10/100
From 03/28/2023 07:15
Tracks 1-3 ?? Other tracks ?
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 01/09/2022 15:24
A new favorite album for Friday evenings and a couple of glasses of Scotch...
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 12/31/2019 16:49
Great stuff.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 06/20/2019 22:00
Blue Valentine turns whatever you're doing into a movie scene. Something late 70s/early 80s, dark and moody, probably set in New York (though any urban area will do). I get in late from work, throw my Harrington on the hanger and whack this on. Turn the lights on low and pour some wine, and settle in on the sofa, watching whatever view happens to be out of the nearest window. Waits plays out the rest of the scene with his gravely serenade and sleazy instrumentation.

Blue Valentine's individual tracks are damn good in their own right, but when you listen to the whole record in one piece, it achieves a whole new status. Have a gander at the artwork too, both front and back of the sleeve look outstanding.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/11/2018 21:40
Bohemien innamorato del blues ed ancor più del jazz, romantico cantore della notte...
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 04/10/2017 06:22
A really chill one by Waits and in the same league as his other masterpieces. "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis", "$29", "Whistlin Past the Graveyard", and the title track are all just fantastic, as well as the fabulously evocative "Red Shoes at the Drug Store". If you like jazzy Americana, you've got it here.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 04/17/2016 14:48
Blue Valentine, is the album where Tom Waits starts to move away from the piano, and starts basing his songs around the guitar. It also features hints of his 1980's leftfield turn. The record starts of beautifully, with Waits' stunning version of, somewhere, from west side story. Next up it's, red shoes by the drugstore, it's one of the tracks here that wouldn't sound out of place on, swordfishtrombones, five years down the road. Christmas card from a hooker from Minneapolis, is Waits in character as a, well, you've guessed it, it's brilliant. There's a much more bluesy rock sound on this album with, Romeo is bleeding, $29.00, and, whistlin' past the graveyard, all very good. Almost hidden in all this is one of Waits' greatest ballads. Kentucky avenue, is lovely, anyone who thinks of their own childhood during this song cannot fail to be moved. The album ends with two excellent cuts, a sweet little bullet from a pretty blue gun, and, blue valentines, finish the record on a perfect note. It's a great LP, his second best of the seventies, after, small change.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 08/19/2010 00:58
Yep. It's another solid cocktail rocker. A couple numbers lower the score (Red Shoes by the Drugstore, Kentucky Avenue), but all in all this is good stuff with Whistlin' Past the Graveyard and Christmas Card from a Hooker leadin' the way.
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Best Albums of 1978
1. Darkness On The Edge Of Town by Bruce Springsteen
2. Parallel Lines by Blondie
3. The Cars by The Cars
4. This Year's Model by Elvis Costello
5. Die Mensch·Maschine by Kraftwerk
6. Van Halen by Van Halen
7. Some Girls by The Rolling Stones
8. The Kick Inside by Kate Bush
9. Music For 18 Musicians by Steve Reich
10. More Songs About Buildings And Food by Talking Heads
11. Dire Straits by Dire Straits
12. Hemispheres by Rush
13. Outlandos D'Amour by The Police
14. 3rd by Big Star
15. Chairs Missing by Wire
16. All Mod Cons by The Jam
17. Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! by Devo
18. The Modern Dance by Pere Ubu
19. Real Life by Magazine
20. Powerage by AC/DC
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