Tom Waits, the songwriter’s songwriter, growls out this morning’s CarTune, “Ol’ ’55.” 

If you haven’t been a follower of Tom Waits until now, you can be forgiven for thinking “Ol ’55” is an Eagles tune. Their cover of the song has been played into the ground by Classic Rock stations across the country. Says Waits, “I thought their version was a little antiseptic.”

That’s one word that will never come to mind for any Waits performance, including this one of “‘Ol ’55,” recorded live in 1999. He wears his heart on his vocal cords. The tune, which first appeared on Waits’ 1973 studio debut, Closing Time, has been covered by multiple artists from Richie Havens to Sarah McLachlan, but Waits’ own version is closest to the bone.

Automobiles have appeared frequently in Waits’ song imagery through the years. In the lyrics “Ol’ ’55,” he never actually mentions the car’s make, but in the intro for this video he says it was a Cadillac. Other times, he’s described the car as a Buick. Waits, who professes an affection for big old American cars, has owned examples of each. When you listen, what car do you picture?