After his sophomore album, POSES, sailed critically but failed commercially, Rufus Wainwright fell into a pattern of hard drug abuse. Luckily, the support of friends and family landed him in rehab. Emerging newly sober and clearheaded, Rufus threw himself into his work. The result is WANT ONE, an unabashedly honest, musically sprawling record that finds the vocalist reaching a new level of maturity.
It becomes quite clear during the borderline satirical album opener "Oh, What a World" (which goes so far as to reference Ravel's "Bolero") that Wainwright has met his musical match in producer Marius de Vries (U2, Bjork). Rather than reigning in the singer/multi-instrumentalist's vision, de Vries understands that the sincerity and conviction in his voice keeps even the most over-the-top of tracks grounded. Standout moments include the epic "Go or Go Ahead", "14th Street", and the stunningly candid "Dinner at Eight". WANT ONE is the work of an artist who is, above all, determined to live life to the fullest.

Sep 2003

Rufus Wainwright, the artistically flamboyant US singer/songwriter, returns with his third studio album, 'Want One'. Recorded in New York and London with A-List producer Maurius DeVries (Björk, Madonna, Massive Attack, David Bowie), and featuring musical guests Kate McGarrigle, Linda Thompson, Charlie Sexton (Lucinda Williams, Bob Dylan), and Levon Helm (The Band's legendary drummer), it's a dramatic collection of songs performed with Wainwright's inimitable flourish. This UK edition includes two bonus tracks: 'Es Mus Sein' and 'Velvet Curtain Rag'.

'One of America's most colourful, least categorisable songwriters' - The Guardian

'A swaggering, mesmorising performer' - Time Out

'One of America's most unique and criminally neglected songwriters' - The Independent

• Rolling Stone (12/25/03, p.111) - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Best Albums of 2003"
  Rolling Stone (10/16/03, p.88) - 4 stars out of 5 - "This is a record of breathtaking, eccentric opulence....WANT ONE is a valentine to monogamy - craving it, not getting it, not quite giving up..."
  Entertainment Weekly (9/26/03, p.94) - "...A gorgeous meditation on emotional displacement, on finding yourself adrift when you want to love and be loved....If Sondheim had been reared on old Van Dyke Parks records, he might sound like this..." - Rating: A-
  Q (12/03, p.139) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...This is an exuberant return to gorgeous melodies, dynamic arrangements and a sharper focus on life and love. The musical scope is breathtaking..."
  Mojo (01/01/04, p.58) - Ranked #21 in Mojo's "The Best of 2003"
  Mojo (10/03, p.120) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Regret-filled ruminations like '14th St.' and 'Vicious World' perfectly evoke his old man's early Atlantic work..."
  Uncut (01/04, pp.84-7) - Ranked #37 in Uncut's "Albums Of The Year 2003"
  Uncut (11/03, p.124) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...WANT ONE takes his lush, orchestrated pop to staggering new heights..."
  Dirty Linen (p.51) - "[A] sweeping, dramatic, big, broad and brash record - it's grand in its aspirations, and it delivers quite beautifully..."
• NME - "Lush, orchestral pop magic."

This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: Rufus Wainwright (acoustic guitar, recorder, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Charlie Sexton (electric guitar); Simon Clarke (flute, piccolo, alto flute, alto saxophone, baritone saxophone); Kate McGarrigle (accordion); Tim Sanders (tenor saxophone); Roddy Lorimer (trumpet); Annie Whitehead (trombone); Nick Hitehens (tuba); The Kick Horns (brass); Marius De Vries (piano, vibraphone, programming); Jimmy Zhivago (piano); Jeff Hill, Bernard O'Neill (bass); Sterling Campbell, Matt Johnson, Levon Helm (drums); Alexis Smith (programming); Martha Wainwright, Jenni Muldaur, Linda Thompson (background vocals).
Recorded at The Maid's Room, Bearsville, Loho and Looking Glass, New York, New York; The Strongroom Studios, London, England.
U.K. edition features two extra cuts, "Es Mus Sein" and "Velvet Curtain Rag."
After his sophomore album, POSES, sailed critically but failed commercially, Rufus Wainwright fell into a pattern of hard drug abuse. Luckily, the support of friends and family landed him in rehab. Emerging newly sober and clearheaded, Rufus threw himself into his work. The result is WANT ONE, an unabashedly honest, musically sprawling record that finds the vocalist reaching a new level of maturity.
It becomes quite clear during the borderline satirical album opener "Oh, What a World" (which goes so far as to reference Ravel's "Bolero") that Wainwright has met his musical match in producer Marius de Vries (U2, Bjork). Rather than reigning in the singer/multi-instrumentalist's vision, de Vries understands that the sincerity and conviction in his voice keeps even the most over-the-top of tracks grounded. Standout moments include the epic "Go or Go Ahead," "14th Street," and the stunningly candid "Dinner at Eight." WANT ONE is the work of an artist who is, above all, determined to live life to the fullest.

Although Rufus Wainwright is the son of singer-songwriters Loudon Wainwright and Kate McGarrigle, since the 1990s he has firmly established his own musical presence. Though he's an introspective troubadour, he looks back beyond the folk and rock influences of his parents to the golden age of pop songwriting  la Cole Porter and the Gershwins. His keening, diva-manqu vocals and elegantly melodic compositions are as far from "rock" as any pop-based music can be. If he has any antecedents in the pop world, they would be similarly quirky L.A. songwriters of a previous era such as Van Dyke Parks (who co-produced Wainwright's debut album) and Randy Newman. His open homosexuality has endeared him to many in the gay community.