Closing Time (album) - Reception

Reception

Upon its release, Closing Time was received by the American music press with positive critical acclaim, although its coverage was limited. In its original Rolling Stone review, the album was positively referred to as "a remarkable debut album", compared to Randy Newman, and was branded as a "boozier, earthier version of same and delights in rummaging through the attics of nostalgia, the persona that emerges from this remarkable debut album is Waits's own, at once sardonic, vulnerable and emotionally charged" while former Village Voice editor and Pazz & Jop reviewer Robert Christgau noted that with his "jazz-schooled piano and drawling delivery Waits exploits an honest sentimentality which he undercuts just enough to be credible", also noting his similarity to Newman. Allmusic held the album in high regard, describing "his lovelorn lyrics" as being "sentimental without being penetrating. But he also has a gift for gently rolling pop melodies" and his "self-conscious melancholy can be surprisingly moving." Billboard referred to the album upon its release as "hauntingly lovely which captures the essence of a moment, a thought or a love."

The album received little coverage the United Kingdom and elsewhere internationally, with its promotion being little more than a featured advert in the NME. However, in recent years, NME has described Waits as a "veteran singer-songwriter." Closing Time did not chart upon its release although in 2000, the album peaked at number 28 in the Irish Albums Chart. The album was certified Silver in the United Kingdom in 2004 with shipments of over 60,000 copies and was later certified Gold in 2012 with shipments of over 100,000 copies.