Rufus Wainwright

[D_Relentless Original]

Just caught some of his music and quite impressed. Is he quite famous in the states ?.

 

[D_Jared Padalicki]

He is known for the song 'Halleluja' from Shrek

 

[D_Relentless Original]

Thanks Pieter, i heard him sing The Maker Makes from the film Brokeback Mountain quite a haunting song and Oh what a world we live in. Just wondered how popular he is .

 

[daveypie]

im sure Hallelujah was sung by Jeff Buckley in the film, but I know he's sung it too!!

 

[allerton1000]

He is not as famous as he should be here. He recently re-created Judy Garland's performance at the Hollywood Bowl in LA. I wasn't there, but all my friends said it was incredible.

 

[D_Portelay Porquesword]

Rufus W is a music icon in the gay realm of entertainment. He is open and out. Has been for years. A bit on the quirky side but a good artist in any case.

 

[Branleur49008]

He's the son of a well-known folk singer Louden Wainwright. I really like his music. Some of my favorite songs are "Cigarettes & Chocolate Milk" and "Gay Messiah".

 

[Northland]

I have heard his name a few times over the past few years and occasionally heard some of his work.

Being from an earlier generation, I am unfortunately constantly reminded of the works done by his father; Loudon Wainwright,lll; including Dead Skunk: Loudon Wainwright,3rd performing Dead Skunk it still gives me a chuckle.


Crossin' the highway late last night
He shoulda looked left and he shoulda looked right
He didn't see the station wagon car
The skunk got squashed and there you are

You got yer
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
You got yer dead skunk in the middle of the road
Stinkin' to high Heaven

Take a whiff on me, that ain't no rose
Roll up yer window and hold yer nose
You don't have to look and you don't have to see
'Cause you can feel it in your olfactory

You got yer
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
You got yer dead skunk in the middle of the road
Stinkin' to high Heaven

Yeah you got yer dead cat and you got yer dead dog
On a moonlight night you got yer dead toad frog
Got yer dead rabbit and yer dead raccoon
The blood and the guts they're gonna make you swoon
You got yer
Dead skunk in the middle
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
You got yer dead skunk in the middle of the road
Stinkin' to high Heaven

C'mon stink

You got it
It's dead, it's in the middle
Dead skunk in the middle
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
Stinkin' to high heaven
All over the road, technicolor man
Oh, you got pollution
It's dead, it's in the middle
And it's stinkin' to high, high Heaven


And now back to Rufus-here's the entry from nndb: Rufus Wainwright

 

[B_IanTheTall]

Though not my usual musical taste his quirkiness and irreverence, mixed with good friend and food/drink, makes for a great night.
Oh, Rufus is very flirtatious with the audience.

 

[D_Ireonsyd_Colonrinse]

Rufus also does a great version of John Lennon's "Across the Universe" which I like better than the original.

Very idiosyncratic & unusual voice. The live version of "Art Teacher" on the Want Two CD is also really good

 

[D_Percival Puddleford Pukehorn]

Rufus also does a great version of John Lennon's "Across the Universe" which I like better than the original.

i prefer fiona apple's rendition.

Rufus is alright. a bit too gay for my taste at times. :redface:

 

[D_Rod Staffinbone]

from brokeback mountain


and on gay marriage in his own words...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7736275.stm

 

[cocktaste]

Rufus just threw away the entire gay community for coming out against gay marriage, making it all about him. He's a fucking dickhead, and has been known to be so for years, totally bitter about anyone who has had more success than him. Bitchy queen at it's worse!

 

[cutthefx]

I think rufus' version of hallelujah is played @ starbucks.... my store at least.
I ADORE his duet with Dido "I Eat Dinner (When The Hunger's Gone)" from Bridgette Jones' Diary
^_^

other than that, he's meh...

 

[love shadow]

I like the whole album which was released last year. Favorite songs are "Going to A Town", "Between My Legs" and "Sanssouci"

 

[flame boy]

I downloaded his entire back catalogue, there are a few great songs but overall I found his music to be quite righteous yet hollow. I have about 70+ songs of his on my iTunes yet only about 3 of them are actually on my iPod.

 

[Meniscus]

Tardis, Rufus is fairly well-known among the gay community in the U.S., but not so much among the general public. I don't think I've ever heard one of his songs on the radio, and I doubt I ever will. Most people have probably heard his covers of "Halleluja" and "Across the Universe," but wouldn't know who did them.

He is known for the song 'Halleluja' from Shrek

im sure Hallelujah was sung by Jeff Buckley in the film, but I know he's sung it too!!

Rufus's version is in Shrek. Jeff's Buckley's version is quite different. Many, many people praise Buckley's version, and Rufus has said that if he had heard Buckley's version first, he would never have covered the song himself. (Personally, I prefer Rufus's version. I find Buckley's version hard to listen to, but I think most of his music is hard to listen to. That's one thing he had in common with his father, although their styles are rather different otherwise.)

Rufus also does a great version of John Lennon's "Across the Universe" which I like better than the original.

I like both, but I lean towards Rufus's version. As for his album, I liked the first one quite a bit, but was disappointed by his subsequent efforts. People call his music "quirky," but I think a lot of his compositions just don't work, and I'm baffled by his choices of instruments and other aspects of his arrangements. It's a pity, too, because I know he's capable of making beautiful music, but he chooses to experiment instead. I've got nothing against experimenting, but he needs to be a little more discerning about which of his experiments work and which don't.

 

[Deno]

Rufus just threw away the entire gay community for coming out against gay marriage, making it all about him. He's a fucking dickhead, and has been known to be so for years, totally bitter about anyone who has had more success than him. Bitchy queen at it's worse!

He has a right to his opinion, and so do you, don't mean the whole world agrees with you though. Even if I found a dude I wanted to spend the rest of my life with I certainly wouldn't want to do that.

 

[Meniscus]

Rufus just threw away the entire gay community for coming out against gay marriage, making it all about him. He's a fucking dickhead, and has been known to be so for years, totally bitter about anyone who has had more success than him. Bitchy queen at it's worse!

Unless you know something I don't, he never actually said he was against gay marriage. What he actually said was, "I'm actually not a huge gay marriage supporter." Then he proceeded to argue against laws against same sex marriage or, indeed, any laws related to what people do in the bedroom.

TwentyFourBit - Rufus Wainwright "Not a Huge Gay Marriage Supporter"

As for him being a "dickhead"...well, I know someone who hung out with him during that time when he was into crystal meth and anonymous sex. The stories aren't pretty, but that's no surprise. I'm inclined to believe that he probably was a dickhead during his addiction--again, that's no surprise. Whether or not he still is now that he's sober (if he has remained sober), I don't know.

 

[Strathos]

He's an incredible musician. I'm not THAT crazy about his voice, but I can say it's very unique.

Here's my favorite song by him-

YouTube - Rufus Wainwright - Slide Show

I love his songwriting style.