16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six

16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six is a song by Tom Waits appearing on his 1983 album Swordfishtrombones. In 1988, it was released as a single in support of his live performance album Big Time.[1]

"16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six"
Single by Tom Waits
from the album Big Time
B-side	"Big Black Mariah"
Released	1988
Recorded	August 1982 at Sunset Sound, Hollywood, CA
Genre	Experimental rock Blues rock
Length	4:10
Label	Island
Songwriter(s)	Tom Waits
Producer(s)	Tom Waits
Tom Waits singles chronology
"Hang on St. Christopher" (1987) "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six" (1988) "Goin' Out West" (1992)

Accolades

Year	Publication	Country	Article	Rank
2000	Vanity Fair	United Kingdom	Costello’s 500[2]	*
2010	Rolling Stone	Germany	The 50 Best Songs of the 1980s[3]	*
2011	1001 Songs[4]	Australia		*

(*) designates unordered lists.

Formats and track listing

All songs written by Tom Waits.

UK 7" single (IS 370)

1. "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six" – 4:10
2. "Big Black Mariah" – 2:41

UK 12" single (12 IS 370)

1. "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six" – 4:10
2. "Big Black Mariah" – 2:41
3. "Ruby's Arms" – 4:44

Personnel

Adapted from the 16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six liner notes.[5]

• Tom Waits – vocals, production

Musicians

• Victor Feldman – drums, snare, bells
• Joe Romano – trombone

Production and additional personnel

• Biff Dawes – recording, mixing
• Daniel Hainey – photography

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
United Kingdom	1988	Island	LP	IS 370

References

1. Maginnis, Tom. "Tom Waits: 16 Shells from a Thirty-Ought Six > Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
2. "Costello's 500". Vanity Fair. November 1, 2000. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
3. "The 50 Best Songs of the 1980s". Rolling Stone. 2010. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
4. Creswell, Toby (2005). 1001 Songs: The Great Songs of All Time and the Artists, Stories and Secrets Behind Them. Hardie Grant. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
5. 16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six (sleeve). Tom Waits. London, United Kingdom: Island Records. 1988.CS1 maint: others (link)

External links

• "16 Shells From a Thirty-Ought-Six" at Discogs (list of releases)