The So-Called Prime of Miss Rufus Wainwright

With considerable apprehension, PalJoey will be there. But this excerpt from the article, at least, bodes well:

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The melodrama of Garland as a consummate victim is seemingly of less interest to Mr. Wainwright than that of Garland the musician with the phenomenal instrument and profound capacity to inhabit a lyric and a tune...

Before anything else, Judy Garland was a musician with an almost shamanistic ability to divine the meaning of a lyric and to add an interpretation of her own to even the most overplayed tune.

"After 9/11, when we first were going to war and the state of things looked pretty dismal, I bought the rerelease," Mr. Wainwright said, referring to the remastered double-CD recording of the 1961 concert. "Somehow that album, no matter how dark things seemed, made everything brighten. She had this capacity to lighten the world through the innocence of her sound. Her anchor to the material was obviously through her devotion to music. You never feel that she didn't believe every word of every song she ever sang."


Judy:


Rufus:

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The weird thing, Rath, is that he's NOT doing an impersonation.

He's going to perform the entire consert as Rufus.

Now I can hear the ballad sections in his voice, but the barnstormers? The thrilling songs she did at the top of her range that made our spines tingle? How can he pull those off?

Chicago? San Francisco? Rockabye?

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"He's going to perform the entire consert as Rufus."

How arrogant do you have to be to want to do that? Am I the only one who finds this sickening?

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I find it silly. I personally don't understand why anyone would want to see it. There doesn't appear to be any point.

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Am I the only one who thinks this might be interesting? I have to find something of Mr. Wainwright's to listen to, but unless the arrangements are just awful (think standards by Michael Bolton and Rod Stewart), it might be fun.

Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:21 PM

*goes to sit by herself in a corner*

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Thanks, chita33!

If that's YOU in your av, I think I'm in love.

*pours cold water over his head*

*performs much-needed reality check*

*calms down*

Rathy--Don't sit by yourself in a corner. Give our Rufus Messy-Boy a chance. Let's see what he has in mind first.

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I think it's an interesting idea, but I simply cannot stand the sound of his voice. It's what I'd imagine a sheep with emphysema would sound like if that sheep decided to cut an album.

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Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:48 PM

No. That's not me. I'm 40! But he is nice to look at.

edit: back on topic, I just listened to "I'll Build A Stairway To Paradise" by Wainwright and I liked his voice but it did seem like he didn't have enough air? It felt a little weak. Let's see how he does with the big sock 'em numbers...

Updated On: 6/4/06 at 01:50 PM

Do you really want to hear Rufus sing "Stormy Weather"? "Do It Again"? "The Trolley Song"?

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I was against seeing this when it was first announced. I'm not a big fan of Rufus anyway (I thought he butchered "The Origin of Love"), but anything to do with Judy in the least gets me interested. This is beyond camp though. It screams of arrogance to me.

Tsk, tsk, tsk Rufus, stay where you're better aquainted.

Perhaps he'll knock it out of the park. He's never struck me as an idiot, so I'll give him the benefit out the doubt. Of the people who actually know who he is, I find that I'm in the minority in not caring for him. I just hope he opens his mouth wider than he usually does on some of the more belty numbers, because he always sounds like he's barely making an effort, like it's a big hassle for him to have to sing.

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