Geffen Records
2007
Rufus Does Judy (At Carnegie Hall)
About This Album
If Release the Stars displayed Rufus Wainwright as a weary, wannabe expatriate who was "so sick of America," then Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall -- released just seven months later -- shows him falling in love with the country (or, at the very least, its traditions) all over again. Few things are as American as the American Songbook, which Wainwright tackles here with energy, camp, and a sly wink. Reprising the entirety of Judy Garland's 1961 concert at Carnegie Hall, he regains much of the momentum that was lost in Release the Stars' slower moments, performing live with a brisk 36-piece orchestra and several family guests. Perhaps there are people better suited to this task than Wainwright, singers who more closely embody the innocence that Garland always seemed to radiate in spite of her growing addiction to booze and Benzedrine. But Wainwright is obviously enamored with Garland -- who, in addition to her role as one of America's greatest female entertainers, has also become an enduring icon in postwar gay history -- and he revels in the glamour and glitz of her 45-year-old set list. These songs hail from a golden era dotted with trolley cars, Cadillacs, and glitzy jazz clubs, an era in which Wainwright never lived but still has the ability to convey.
Track List

Disc 1 (try tracks 2,4,5,6,8,9,10,11 and 12)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.

Disc 2 (try tracks 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,11 and 12)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.