The self-described “Gay Messiah” got back into the game this year with his most seventies-esque album called “Out Of The Game.” Under the tutelage of producer Mark Ronson (Amy Winehouse), Wainwright delivered a record sonically more in line with classic Steely Dan than the baroque, rococo sound of his last few releases. Wainwright has said he was trying to recapture the feel and sound of his first two pop-oriented records, and while the record is sonically smoother than his recent work, it is not the danceable confection he had promised leading up to its release. But underneath the glossy production is another set of classic songs including this love letter to his infant daughter, Viva. The two dads are Rufus Wainwright and his partner Jorn Weisbrodt, and Viva’s mother is Lorca Cohen who is the daughter of Leonard Cohen. Montauk is a town in Long Island where the Wainwrights have a house. This is a live version of the song performed on Studio Q.
Rufus Wainwright
Song Of The Day by Eric Berman – “Jericho” by Rufus Wainwright
As if it weren’t enough that Obama has finally come out supporting same-sex marriage…now Rufus Wainwright is back…and in full-on ’70s pop songsmith mode with his new Mark Ronson-produced album, “Out Of The Game.” This truly is a good day for America! For those who don’t know, Mark Ronson was the guiding force behind Amy Winehouse’s album “Back To Black,” and while Wainwright is his own artist, Ronson does move him back into the pure pop direction he’s turned away from over the last couple of years. Gone is the over-the-top Judy in drag of his “Carnegie Hall” album…also gone is the orchestral and operatic flair that set the two rococo “Want” albums apart from the rest of his discography. Although all of his releases have something worthwhile to offer, it is nice to hear an album that harks back to his most song-oriented records, “Release The Stars” from 2007 and “Poses” from 2001…especially after the dark, bummer that was his previous album “All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu.” Over the past decade, Wainwright has become one of the finest singer-songwriters on the planet and a true artist in every sense of the word.
