# In 1993, Tom Waits heard a song he called “the most beautiful thing”. It marked a new movement in American music

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/in-1993-tom-waits-heard-a-song-he-called-the-most-beautiful-thing-it-marked-a-new-movement-in-american-music/
- Published: 2026-11-13T21:30:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-13T22:25:33+00:00
- Original publisher: Far Out
- Original article: https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/1993-tom-waits-heard-a-song-he-called-the-most-beautiful/
- Topics: Americas, Entertainment, Music, World

## Key points

- Waits called “Circling Pigeons Waltz” the most beautiful thing.
- The song came from a 1993 Texas-Czech polka compilation.
- Its folk sounds are heard in *The Black Rider*.

## Summary

Tom Waits praised “Circling Pigeons Waltz” as “the most beautiful thing” after discovering it on a 1993 compilation of Texas-Czech polka music. The article presents the song as an example of the cross-cultural sounds that fascinated Waits and influenced his genre-spanning work.

The compilation, *2 Bohemian-Moravian Bands by Texas-Czech*, celebrates Czech polka traditions in central Texas, where European musical heritage met local styles. Waits described the waltz as lilting yet “sour”, played on accordion, soprano saxophone, clarinet, bass, banjo and percussion; the article also hears its folk influence on his album *The Black Rider*, released in 1993.

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