RUFUS: I’LL BEGOING BACKTO FUTURE
By performing his earliest material again, Wainwright is celebrating his past & preparing for the next phase of his career
ONE of the greatest male vocalists and songwriters of his generation, Rufus Wainwright has made a career out of always looking forward. Never one to rest on his laurels, the 45-year-old American is as likely to come out with an opera or a Shakespeare-inspired orchestral project as a new record. Which makes it all the more interesting that he’s coming to Scotland to play his first two albums in their entirety. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of his selftitled debut, he’ll be running through that and its 2001 sequel Posies – but Rufus being Rufus, it’s as much about the future as it is the past. He said: “It’s celebrating the anniversary of the birth of my career. It’s kind of a reminder that I’ve survived the wars of music. “I’m also in the process of putting the finishing touches to my next album, which will be out in about a year, so it’s setting the stage for what is the latter part of my career.” As well as the well-known songs, there are still plenty he has rarely revisited. It’s been an interesting experience for him. He said: “What’s been nice about this project is to revisit the lesser-performed pieces and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how well they’ve stood up. “They still feel potent for both Wainwright veterans and newcomers alike. “Without actually being a Hindu, I’ve always maintained a Hindu belief in that a person is not just a person. “They’re comprised of many different personalities and individuals, like you’re more of a tree, where as you get older more branches and facets are created.”
Many of us daydream about our youth, moments from it or places we’ve lived. But for a musician, songs are like audio diaries which, when older, have good and bad points.
Rufus said: “To go back and hang out on a limb of my youth is very powerful for me. It’s both sentimental and a little sad as I was so troubled in those times.
“I’m pleased by how unique I was at the same time, though.
“Nobody was saying stuff like that in that particular way. I’m very happy to make the trip.
“What always strikes me is I have so many distinct memories of being restless and impatient.
“I was hungry for all the experiences that art provides but now, when I look back on it, it feels like yesterday.
“It feels like it was only an instant ago when I arrived in Hollywood with all my big ideas.
“It’s a weird paradox of both remembering the boredom but feeling like it all happened so fast at the same time.”
Looking back at the Rufus of 20 years ago, he recognises himself still. And despite bumps along the way, he insists he wouldn’t tell his younger self to do anything different.
Rufus said: “I would say not to change a thing because I was doing it all perfectly correct, at least in the arts. There’s other facets in my life I could probably have navigated a little smoother.
“What’s most matured for me in the best way over the years is my voice, as I started to really focus on the timbre and pronunciation, like learning how to breathe properly when singing.
“That’s how the Judy Garland material came into being. I wish I’d done that a little bit earlier, though they do say great singing comes with age and experience.
“It takes a lot of practice, like a muscle. I got there eventually, though I could have worked a little harder.”
The son of folk singers Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle and the brother of Martha, Rufus has constantly reinvented himself.
Like David Bowie, he sees himself as a “restless being” who doesn’t understand why other musicians – from the Rolling Stones to Status Quo and Oasis – would find a style and stick with it.
He said: “Some people just hit this stride and that’s them repeating themselves forever.
“Maybe it’s because I’ve never made millions of dollars or had tremendous fame to manage.
“I’ve dodged a bullet in a way that I’ve had to get my thrills from working in the studio and not driving a Ferrari.” Plans for the future include writing a new musical. He’s already written two operas and music for plays but never attempted a Broadway show.
Rufus grinned and said: “Everyone for years has been pleading with me to attempt that, so I’m looking forward to that challenge. And if it’s successful, maybe I’ll get to buy that Ferarri. Finally.”
Rufus Wainwright plays Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall on April 25. Tickets are available from www. tickets-Scotland.com
I was hungry for all the experiences art provides but now it feels like yesterday