The Spirit Of New York Thrives in Rufus Wainwright

For many, turning 30 can signify a crossroads in life whether it comes in the form of career, relationships or family.

For singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright, his crossroads came in the form of several distinct instances reflected on his stunning new album "Want One" (2003, Dreamworks Records).

"Want One" is a 12-track album that mirrors Wainwright's perspective on fame and life on the road, along with his recovery from a drug addiction; his tumultuous relationship with his singer/songwriter father, Loudon Wainwright III; and his reaction to Sept. 11.

The work, the first installment in a series of two albums - "Want Two" will consist of the remaining tracks recorded during a six-month session - further solidifies Wainwright's love for classical and opera music intertwined with the spirit of rock 'n' roll.

Born in New York City and raised in Canada, Wainwright currently lives near one of his favorite places in lower Manhattan, the Metropolitan Opera House. His passion for opera continues to shine through on "Want One," as it also has on his two previous works, "Rufus Wainwright" (1998) and "Poses" (2001).

Wainwright's interest in presenting compositions from the expansive and heavy to the melodic ballad with only his voice and a piano are the impetus to a style and approach to music that appeals to a wide array of listeners who are most likely listening to everything from Schubert to Radiohead.

"Want One" features classical orchestra arrangements, some of which were written by Wainwright. It highlights the talent of guitarist Charlie Sexton, The Band drummer Levon Helm, vocalists Martha Wainwright (his sister) and her husband, Teddy Thompson, son of the famed folk musicians Linda and Richard Thompson -- the former also contributed to the record -- and Wainwright's mother, Canadian folk singer Kate McGarrigle, who plays the banjo.

Wy talked to Wainwright about his new album now out in stores, and his experiences on tour and in the studio

Wy: On the album's first track, 'Oh What a World,' you're singing with an orchestra. Was this done live?

Rufus Wainwright: No, that was all done in layers. Layered, layered, layered. We started with the tuba part - the boom, boom, boom bass line - I sang over that and then I worked on the harmonies. We did the orchestra much later in London.

The lyrics on 'Oh What a World' seem to be a reaction to the more depressing aspects of being on the road touring.

It's definitely a song about sort of the cycle of monotony on the road, but also within the surrealistic life that I lead. I mean, at the time when I wrote the song I was nearing the end of the "Poses" tour and it had really been a shocker of a year with 9/11 and everything, and my continued success in a lot of ways, but in a very "work for" way. I really had to work for all of the success I experienced. So, I was basically exhausted and the song sort of became a mantra in a lot of ways to remind myself that though I'm not particularly feeling anything right now and I have no sense of what's actually going on, life is still beautiful.

Some musicians talk about the songwriting process earlier on in their career vs. what they're writing today and many recall trying to throw everything they knew about music into earlier compositions that in looking back wasn't always the best way to write a song. Was this something you experienced on your two previous albums?

Well, for me, I do throw everything I know into the songs and even on this album, and certain producers had a problem with it. But then other producers, especially Marius (deVaries), my last producer, welcomed the opportunity to try it out. At the end of the day, I think one of the most important things about both songwriting and producing is editing. Even if you're attached to something, it's about being able to do without it for the sake of the project. So I think it's good to get it all out there first and then get rid of it.

I really enjoy your harmonies and everything that you do. I'm wondering if you come up with them before you record the song or are you going back over the song and then thinking of what you want to put in?

I have certain lines that haunt me beforehand, but mainly I put on my headphones, roll the track and sing along as if I was Sly and the Family Stone. I like to be pretty fresh sounding.

The lyrics to 'Vicious World' are for me, depressing, but the music to the song has a kind of hopeful and romantic tone to it. Did this song kind of evolve into something different once you were in the studio?

Yeah, I had originally written that song for piano and voice, and it was quite bombastic and exclamatory, but I think that coupled with the negative lyrics, gave it a little too much angst. So I then switched the piano sound to a Fender Rhodes sound and it lightened it up. I'm very happy how it turned out to be ironic. 'A happy blues,' my father would say.

Musicians talk about writing on the road and some always write on the road while others wouldn't dream of it. Are you writing songs at both home and on the road?

I think if you're a songwriter, you have to write songs everywhere. I mean I guess some people (pause) oh, well, you don't have to do anything, but I write songs on the road, off the road. I like to go with that old Brill Building ethic, "We need a hit. We need it now."

Of course the scenery is different, but does it feel different writing in transit as opposed to at home in your living room?

Yeah, in transit, I don't understand how anyone couldn't write on the road. I'm very inspired by the landscape and the weird people who make up this country. I definitely think you can certainly experience the most credible loneliness known to man driving around from city to city for months and months doing music. Oftentimes for me, songwriting becomes a real comfort.

In terms of lyrics and music, do you allow the lyrics to paint a picture of what you want the music to sound like?

I usually have a little bit of music and a little bit of the lyrics at first. It's usually something like a chorus or the beginning of a song. Then usually the music kind of tumbles out of the caravan of my imagination (laughs) and then I work for a while on the words. Words for me are much more of a crafty kind of thing.

Are you classically trained?

Somewhat. I studied piano for years and I studied a bit of composition. I went to music school for a tiny bit. I was always very bad technically in classes and I always missed everything. Instead of practicing scales, I wrote songs. But I've always had a great affinity for classical music and the opera.

The song 'Pretty Things' is one I really enjoyed just because I think it's a great example of how just a voice and a piano can be so poignant. Was this kind of the idea you wanted to present with this song?

I definitely wanted to give the listener a breather and I think one of my main influences is that Schubert-ian or parlor music where people just sang little ditties for each other before television was around and such. I've always admired that period and I actually kind of lived in that period oddly enough at my house. My grandmother was 45 when my mother was born so all of us skipped a generation and we would sing a lot of old songs in the house growing up in Canada.

The song '14th Street' for me has this welcome-home feel to it. With a lot of these songs, they kind of seem to exhibit your perceptive on fame, how things change when you're in that space and how people react to you differently.

I think these songs are written in the midst of fame but there's a real search for an anchor of stability in terms of my own life. It's a very, very personal album and I'm basically trying to cut through the fame bull---- to get to sanity. Not that I'm that famous. Even so, it's kind of funny in that way, famous for being not famous.

Now you wrote some of the orchestra parts and that seems like a huge undertaking?

Yeah, it's pretty daunting, but I think what happens is you write the parts, and then you get a great producer like Marius and also an orchestra leader with some great players. You get out there and they're all professionals and it's also very expensive since there is no time for dallying so it's like white heat. You get down what's good and then you make edits that have to be made so, if anything, it's exhilarating. Frightening, but exhilarating.

What are you listening to these days?

I still mostly listen to opera. I'm trapped in a gilded cage of opera records. But I also like Chicks on Speed; they're pretty great. I also like Radiohead's new album. I've also always been a big fan of French music.