Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall
Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall | ||||
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Live album by | ||||
Released | December 4, 2007 (US) | |||
Recorded | June 14–15, 2006 | |||
Venue | Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage, Carnegie Hall, New York City | |||
Label | Geffen | |||
Producer | Phil Ramone | |||
Rufus Wainwright chronology | ||||
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Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall is the sixth album (and first live album) by the
For his album, Wainwright was also recognized by the Grammy Awards, earning a
Guests on the album include Wainwright's sister Martha Wainwright ("Stormy Weather"), his mother Kate McGarrigle (piano, "Over the Rainbow"), along with one of Garland's daughters, Lorna Luft ("After You've Gone"). Related to the album, the February 25, 2007 tribute concert filmed at the London Palladium was released on DVD as Rufus! Rufus! Rufus! Does Judy! Judy! Judy!: Live from the London Palladium on December 4, 2007.
Conception and development
According to Wainwright said the following of his appreciation for the album during that turbulent time in American history:
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.[11]
I find the political and socioeconomic environment we live in very oppressive and very worrying, but every time I put on that live album, I was immediately put in a better mood. I was given a sense of hope and a sense of escape, only because so much of modern-day culture and radio—and what's prized by our society—is so empty. And then of course I would sing along.[12]
Wainwright observed while driving in his car that "it [would] be funny to redo this as a song cycle".[10] Soon afterwards, he took the idea to New York-based theatrical producer Jared Geller (who would later co-produce the tribute concert with David Foster), hoping to turn a dream into a reality.[13] Geller initially thought the idea was "insane", but he and Wainwright continued discussing options. Eventually, Geller agreed to assist with the production and the two found space in Wainwright's schedule to book Carnegie Hall a year in advance.[13] Once the venue was booked, staging elements such as lighting, microphone location and amplification were discussed. Stephen Oremus signed on as the conductor of the 36-piece orchestra and Phil Ramone took charge of the recording.[14][15] Rehearsals began in April 2006, and while it would have been easier to practice in rehearsal rooms, large theaters such as the Lynch at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Museum of Jewish Heritage were utilized because "Rufus wanted a feel for performing this material on a stage".[13] As a result of financial restrictions, full orchestra rehearsals took place only two days before the show and the day of each performance (practice with smaller groups of instruments began a few months before the concerts).[14]
Tribute concerts
Due to popular demand, Wainwright's tribute was performed a total of six times. After tickets for the first show (June 14, 2006 at Carnegie Hall in New York City) sold out, a second show was added at the same venue for the following night (June 15). Increased demand resulted in three concerts in Europe: February 18, 2007 at the
Promotion, celebrity participation
Part of the success of the tribute concerts can be attributed to the amount of press attention received and the eagerness of other artists to participate in the event. As written by
In fashion designer Marc Jacobs' menswear boutique in Greenwich Village, "virtually nothing was for sale except T-shirts advertising the show" (the bright orange shirts contained the text "RUFUS RUFUS RUFUS" and "world's greatest entertainer", mimicking promotional material used for Garland 45 years earlier).[19] Film director Sam Mendes planned to create a documentary about Wainwright's re-creation and the work leading up to it, though the project fell through.[20]
Dutch designers Viktor & Rolf outfitted Wainwright and his family members for the concerts.[21] To return the favor Wainwright wrote the song "Ode to Antidote" and allowed its use in the promotion of the design duo's cologne, "Antidote".[22] He also helped premiere the cologne at the after-party for his first Garland tribute and later performed "Over the Rainbow" at the premiere of their Spring 2007 fashion line.[23] Wainwright wore clothing by Tom Ford at the Hollywood Bowl concert.[24]
To promote the album, Wainwright's website linked to an online store where fans could purchase merchandise, including several shirt designs, concert posters,
Like the shirts sold by Marc Jacobs, much of the promotional material mimicked posters used for Garland's concert years before.Celebrities attending the Carnegie Hall shows included
Music
Songs
The songs on the album are identical to those performed on Garland's 1961 album, Judy at Carnegie Hall, except Wainwright's album included "Get Happy" as a bonus track in the UK and on iTunes in the US.[30] "Hail[ing] from a golden era dotted with trolley cars, Cadillacs, and glitzy jazz clubs",[1] the set list included more than 25 American swing tunes, jazz and pop standards, including two Rodgers and Hart classics ("This Can't Be Love", "You're Nearer"), three from brothers George and Ira Gershwin ("Who Cares? (As Long as You Care for Me)", "How Long Has This Been Going On?" and "A Foggy Day"), two from duo Howard Dietz and Arthur Schwartz ("Alone Together", "That's Entertainment!"), Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin, Noël Coward and more. Wainwright performed the songs nearly identically to Garland, even "flubb[ing]" the lyrics purposely on "You Go to My Head" to mimic the mistake made by Garland years before.[9]
Orchestrations
Stephen Oremus, musical director for the tribute concerts, faced the task of resurrecting Mort Lindsey's original concert arrangements written for a 36-piece orchestra.[14] Although it is no longer common to have orchestras so large (Oremus acknowledged that even Wicked on Broadway only had 22 pieces), Wainwright and Oremus insisted the full 36-piece ensemble should be utilized to create "as exact a replica as [they could] muster".[14] Some of the well-known arrangements by orchestrators like Nelson Riddle and Conrad Salinger had to be reconstructed, since their music charts were not available, and most of the songs had to be transposed, since Wainwright was performing them in a different key.[14]
Gay elements
Garland was a gay icon,[31] even before Wainwright was born. Gay identification with Garland was being discussed in the mainstream as early as 1967. Time magazine, in reviewing Garland's 1967 Palace Theatre engagement, disparagingly noted that a "disproportionate part of her nightly claque seems to be homosexual". It goes on to say that "[t]he boys in the tight trousers"[32] would "roll their eyes, tear at their hair and practically levitate from their seats" during Garland's performances. Time then attempted to explain Garland's appeal to the homosexual, consulting psychiatrists who opined that "the attraction [to Garland] might be made considerably stronger by the fact that she has survived so many problems; homosexuals identify with that kind of hysteria" and that "Judy was beaten up by life, embattled, and ultimately had to become more masculine. She has the power that homosexuals would like to have, and they attempt to attain it by idolizing her."[32]
Garland always had a large base of fans in the
Wainwright never intended to impersonate Garland or create a
I don't think it would have been possible for anyone other than a gay male to do this concert. In a weird way, a gay man has some sort of perspective on it, I believe.[36]
While Wainwright did not dress in drag at any of the tribute shows in New York or Europe, he did return to the stage in "Judy drag" for an encore at the Hollywood Bowl performance, "bedecked in a double-breasted
Critical reception
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Slant | [44] |
The Times | [45] |
Uncut | [10] |
Overall, reception of the album was positive. Stephen Holden of Blender called Wainwright's tribute "a fabulous stunt in which a gay singer channeled the spirit of the ultimate gay icon", and declared the album was "as good an introduction to the great American songbook as any".[39] Pitchfork Media's Stephen Troussé wrote that Wainwright "elegantly outdoes [Garland] on a couple of the ballads" and also compliments guest performer Martha Wainwright, "who turns in a stunning, showstopping 'Stormy Weather' in an appropriately brazen bid to steal the show".[9] In his review for Rolling Stone, Robert Christgau stated it was "a relief to hear him essay the show tunes and Tin Pan Alley chestnuts of this tribute album". Furthermore, he wrote that the songs "expand [Wainwright's] melodic compass", allowing him to "bring something new to them too – namely, sexuality in the sensuality as opposed to gender-preference sense".[43] Dave Hughes of Slant Magazine had positive comments about the album: "That Wainwright has the temerity to cover such a bona fide classic—and the chops to pull it off without breaking a limb or his brain—speaks both to his ambition and to his prodigious abilities."[44]
The album did receive some criticism. After noting Garland's lifelong attempt to master pitch and articulation, Christgau claimed Wainwright's habit of "slid[ing] past notes and draw[ing] out the final syllables of lines are signatures indistinguishable from tics".[43] Entertainment Weekly's Chris Willman wrote that Wainwright's "delicate upper range is nicely attuned to some of the ballads, but anything that requires belting is pretty much a loss".[40] Mark Edwards of The Times called Wainwright's performance an acquired taste, stating his "trademark delivery" is "lazy and somewhat slurred".[45] Dave Hughes' review pointed out Wainwright's "problem with the brassy high notes in an otherwise energetic take on 'That's Entertainment'", but admits it would be unfair to hold this against him since Garland's live performance was not perfect either. Hughes appropriately notes, "Ain't nobody perfect".[44]
Chart performance and recognition
Despite the popularity of Wainwright's tribute concerts, an abundance of press regarding the album, and generally favorable critical reception, album sales were limited. However, Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall reached a peak position of number 84 in
Chart (2007) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) | 84 |
Netherlands Albums Chart | 88 |
U.S. Billboard 200 | 171 |
Track listing
Disc 1
- Overture: "The Trolley Song" / "Over the Rainbow" / "The Man That Got Away"
(Ralph Blane, Hugh Martin) / (Harold Arlen, Yip Harburg) / (Arlen, Ira Gershwin) – 4:15 - "When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You)" (Mark Fisher, Joe Goodwin, Larry Shay) – 3:44
- Medley: "Almost Like Being in Love" / "This Can't Be Love" (Alan Jay Lerner, Frederick Loewe) / (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) – 6:10
- "Do It Again" (George Gershwin, Buddy DeSylva) – 5:15
- "J. Fred Coots, Haven Gillespie) – 2:40
- "Alone Together" (Howard Dietz, Arthur Schwartz) – 3:21
- "Who Cares? (As Long as You Care for Me)" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) – 2:08
- "Puttin' On the Ritz" (Irving Berlin) – 1:56
- "How Long Has This Been Going On?" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) – 5:46
- "Just You, Just Me" (Jesse Greer, Raymond Klages) – 2:03
- "The Man That Got Away" (Arlen, I. Gershwin) – 4:59
- "San Francisco" (Walter Jurmann, Gus Kahn, Bronisław Kaper) – 4:53
Disc 2
- "That's Entertainment!" (Dietz, Schwartz) – 2:27
- "I Can't Give You Anything But Love" (Dorothy Fields, Jimmy McHugh) – 8:11
- "Come Rain or Come Shine" (Arlen, Johnny Mercer) – 3:56
- "You're Nearer" (Rodgers, Hart) – 1:58
- "A Foggy Day" (G. Gershwin, I. Gershwin) – 2:55
- "If Love Were All" (Noël Coward) – 2:33
- "Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart" – (James F. Hanley) – 3:48
- "Stormy Weather" (Arlen, Ted Koehler) – 6:45 (performed by Martha Wainwright)
- Medley: "You Made Me Love You" / "For Me and My Gal" / "The Trolley Song" (Joseph McCarthy, James V. Monaco, Roger Edens) / (George W. Meyer, Edgar Leslie, E. Ray Goetz) / (Blane, Martin) – 4:37
- "Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody" (Sam M. Lewis, Fred Schwartz, Joe Young) – 5:45
- "Over the Rainbow" (Arlen, Harburg) – 4:47 (featuring Kate McGarrigle)
- "Swanee" (Irving Caesar, G. Gershwin) – 1:54
- "After You've Gone" (Henry Creamer, Turner Layton) – 2:57 (featuring Lorna Luft)
- "Chicago" (Fred Fisher) – 4:30
Bonus track
Track listing adapted from AllMusic.[1]
Personnel
- John Engstead – photography
- engineer
- Peter Gary – digital editing
- John Mark Harris – engineer
- Christian Hebel – concert master
- Alex Lake – photography
- John Loengard – photography
- Kate McGarrigle – performer, liner notes
- John Oddo – piano
- Stephen Oremus – conductor, director, performer, musical direction
- Jack Pierson – art direction, photography, cover photo
- Bucky Pizzarelli – guitar
- Kevin Porter – assistant engineer
- B.J. Ramone – assistant engineer
- Phil Ramone – producer
- Vincent Della Rocca – saxophone
- Jim Saporito – drums
- Richard Sarpola – bass
- Ryan Smith – mastering
- Jeanne Venton – A&R
- Martha Wainwright – performer
- Rufus Wainwright – executive producer
- Missy Webb – assistant engineer
Credits adapted from AllMusic.[1]
See also
References
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- ^ a b c d e Vincentelli, Elisabeth (April 27 – May 3, 2006). "Countdown to Judy – Week 2: Stephen Oremus". Time Out. Archived from the original on February 4, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
- ^ Vincentelli, Elisabeth (May 25–31, 2006). "Countdown to Judy – Week 6: Phil Ramone". Time Out. Archived from the original on February 4, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
- ^ "Rufus! London! Paris! Judy! Let's DO IT AGAIN!". rufuswainwright.com. October 23, 2006. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
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Gay Histories and Cultures George Haggerty.
- ^ ISSN 0040-781X. Archived from the originalon December 15, 2008. Retrieved December 26, 2007.
- ^ Shulman, Randy (March 11, 2009). "The Wainwright Stuff". Metro Weekly. Washington, D.C.: Isosceles Publications. Archived from the original on October 11, 2008. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
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- ^ Wigney, James (January 7, 2008). "Rufus Wainwright delights in Judy Garland revival". Herald Sun. Melbourne, Australia: The Herald and Weekly Times. Archived from the original on September 9, 2012. Retrieved February 14, 2009.
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- ^ CBS Interactive. Archivedfrom the original on April 24, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ a b Holden, Stephen. "Rufus Wainwright : Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall". Blender. Alpha Media Group Inc. Archived from the original on May 10, 2008. Retrieved February 13, 2009.
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- )
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External links