Tag Archives: Rufus Wainwright

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Song of the Day #973: ‘Dinner at Eight’ – Rufus Wainwright

I’ve described so many of these albums as ‘Desert Island Discs’ already that I fear I might have already reached my limit. If that’s the case, I’d have to kick something out the make room for Rufus Wainwright’s 2003 album Want One.

This is a record I’ve described as my favorite ever, though I’ve also bestowed that title on Paul Simon’s Graceland and Ben Folds Five’s debut album. At any rate, it’s in the running, definite top five material.

(As an aside, I won’t be featuring the Ben Folds Five debut during this series because I explored it in full late last year, dedicating a day to each of its 12 tracks. But rest assured, it belongs on any list of my favorite albums and it is represented here in spirit).

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Song of the Day #901: ‘Martha’ – Rufus Wainwright

Best Songs of 2010 – Honorable Mentions

Rufus Wainwright released his most straight-forward and personal album this year. Titled All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu, it featured just vocals and piano on a series of ballads inspired by the illness of his mother (who died shortly before the album’s release).

It’s a touching and contemplative work, though it doesn’t represent what I love best about Wainwright. I’m drawn to his brash theatricality and the way he blends horns, strings, choirs, banjos, you name it, into his complex compositions. On this album he leaves his bag of tricks behind, which is effective in its own way but not as much fun.

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Rufus Wainwright – All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu

Rufus Wainwright has never been an artist who disregards the commercial and popular accessibility of his music.

I suppose that’s a funny statement to make about a guy who recently penned an opera in French, but it’s true.

Fault him for overestimating the public’s appetite for his brand of flamboyant pop cabaret but make no mistake… he writes hook-laden music for the masses and he’d be absolutely thrilled to land an album or a song high on the charts.

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Song of the Day #305: ‘The Maker Makes’ – Rufus Wainwright

brokebackI found myself with one extra song that I didn’t want to scrap, so Rufus Wainwright Week has been extended by a day. Lucky you! 🙂

Wainwright contributed this somber ballad to the soundtrack of Ang Lee’s powerful Brokeback Mountain. It played over the end credits, after that haunting final scene in which Heath Ledger’s stoically passionate Ennis Del Mar strokes his dead lover’s shirt and murmurs “Jack, I swear.”

I can’t believe that movie lost Best Picture to Crash! Come on!

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Song of the Day #304: ‘Another Believer’ – Rufus Wainwright

robinsonsWainwright’s 5th, and most recent, studio album was Release the Stars, probably his weakest effort to date but still one of the best albums I’ve heard in the past few years. Unfortunately it’s been almost impossible to find YouTube clips from this album. I’ve previously highlighted ‘Going to a Town,’ one of my favorite tracks on the album, and a live version of ‘Sanssouci‘ on this blog, so feel free to check those out.

Instead of a crappy live version of another Release the Stars track, I’m turning today to one of the many soundtrack contributions Wainwright has made over the years, this one for the animated film Meet the Robinsons.

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