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Rufus Does Judy At Carnegie Hall [2 CD]

Rufus Wainwright - Rufus Does Judy At Carnegie Hall [2 CD] Audio CD

A fair review of the Rufus Wainwright "Rufus Does Judy At Carnegie Hall [2 CD]" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Rufus Wainwright reviews here, or go back to the Rufus Wainwright tabs.

Band: Rufus Wainwright
Title: Rufus Does Judy At Carnegie Hall [2 CD]
Rating:

Release Date: 2007-12-04
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Overture: The Trolley Song/Over The Rainbow/The Man That Got Away 2: When You're Smiling (The Whole World Smiles With You) 3: Medley: Almost Like Being In Love/This Can't Be Love 4: Do It Again 5: You Go To My Head 6: Alone Together 7: Who Cares? (As Long As You Care For Me) 8: Puttin' On The Ritz 9: How Long Has This Been Going On 10: Just You, Just Me 11: The Man That Got Away 12: San Francisco 13: That's Entertainment 14: I Can't Give You Anything But Love 15: Come Rain Or Come Shine 16: You're Nearer 17: A Foggy Day 18: If Love Were All 19: Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart 20: Stormy Weather (Starring Martha Wainwright) 21: Medley: You Made Me Love You/For Me And My Gal/The Trolley Song 22: Rock-A-Bye Your Baby With A Dixie Melody 23: Over The Rainbow (featuring Kate McGarrigle) 24: Swanee 25: After You've Gone (featuring Lorna Luft) 26: Chicago

A LOT OF FUN; A LOT OF GOOD MUSIC
Talk about emoting! Talk about theatrical! It is one of the greatest solo performances I have ever seen, and it's also a lot of fun to listen to it on the CD. I saw some of this performance on PBS a while back and love the music, and was particularly enthralled with Rufus' sister Martha's rendition of STORMY WEATHER. Rufus' voice is fine and I particularly love the humor you can hear in his voice as he is singing these great songs. It's a lot of fun to listen to (as well as to watch). It is thrilling to hear him sing SAN FRANCISCO. I love the live orchestra. I really love hearing the audience's tremendous appreciation/applause at the end of each song.

I did buy "Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall" and listened to it right after Rufus' CD. There is no argument that Judy had a fantastic voice, much better than Rufus, but that does not take away from the pleasure of hearing him sing these timeless songs. I highly recommend both CDs, and no matter what you think of Rufus his sister's version of STORMY WEATHER will stay with you always.

I know why, but....
While I can certainly appreciate why he--or anyone--might want to undertake such a project, wanting to do so does not necessarily provide sufficient grounds for being allowed to do so. Sorry, all, but this is an appalling effort. I won't say the man can't sing, but he pretty much demonstrates that this material as a whole is beyond him--or at least, the old Mort Lindsey arrangements are beyond him. He can't swing, and most of the time he sounds as though he's having trouble opening his mouth wide enough. And then there's indisputable fact that on frequent occasions he doesn't appear to know the words to the songs--at least not as Judy sang them on her Carnegie Hall album, something that anyone who has embraced that recording is bound to notice.

I gave it a chance
Seriously. Loved the orchestral overture. It had all the excited brassy blasts and soulful swings that made the old Broadway overtures so invigorating -- "Glad you're here, get relaxed in your seat, now look toward the stage, we're going to take you on a quite a ride tonight!"

And I was prepared to like Rufus. I have several of his other CDs, and I even put my "queer theory" hat on, hoping to recognize what fresh flavors might come from an unabashedly queer man channeling a female show business icon from two generations earlier. (And yes, I know about the night Judy died, although I was 14 and living clueless in Tampa at the time. )

But this concert is painful to listen to. It's not just his pinched voice; it's his inability to shape a phrase or convey a meaning. He has about three vocal tricks in his kit: An unrelenting and (mostly) on-pitch legato, regardless of whether the lyric calls for sound or silence; a tendency to swoop, which he uses almost every time he needs to rise to a note; and incredible breath control, although when he wants to sing louder at the end of a phrase he has to pinch his throat a little more, which makes his grating voice even more nasal.

I know this makes me sound like some old vocal coach in a cardigan sweater, which I'm not. But there's a reason these songs became standards of the American Songbook. They were -- and still are, in many cases -- performed by people who knew how to match their singing to the particular needs of the words and melody in a particular song.

This was a great idea, conceptually. And I guess it made money. But I can hardly listen to it without feeling very sorry for both Mr. Wainright and Ms. Garland.

Maybe, in some twisted way, pity was the point?.

why so many negatives?
Wainwright's best work. Honestly, I think this is one of R. If you don't like his voice, then I guess that ruins it, but he really puts a lot of soul and feeling in his music. For people who think they could have done better karaoke, I think you are crazy.

Favorite tracks:
San Francisco
Stormy Weather
After You've Gone
Chicago

If you don't understand Rufus, then don't buy the CD. Otherwise, this CD makes a great addition to your RW collection.

Rufus is an experience.
Judy Garland is woven throughout, from Rufus rejecting folk music as a kid and embracing the swing music of the Garland era to her concert's impact on the Stonewall riots. To appreciate Rufus in this concert is to understand him, his family, the influences on Rufus' talent and the gay rights movement. Judy is a gay icon for MANY reasons and as Rufus has grown as a gay man, he is celebrating his life and this is a way for him to tie a lot of things together. I happen to think the man has an incredible voice. . . a singing voice and voice for individual freedom. I am older and so admire our young gay musicians who can live out and proud. I think he channels Judy's spirit beautifully. I plan to give this CD as a gift to friends this season. .

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