Where his last album collapsed under the weight of opulent arrangements that disguised the fact it only had one great tune, this is just Rufus and a piano. Or Rufus! Naked! as many a fan will shiver in anticipation. At times it reaches the heights of the ‘Want…’ diptych: ‘Who Are You New York?’ is a swirling paean to the Big Apple and ‘Zebulon’ has a stately melancholy that would make a statue weep. Elsewhere, however, it disappoints. The glitzy froth of ‘Give Me What I Want And GIve It To Me Now!’ is an annoying party piece and the three (three!) arrangements of Shakespeare’s sonnets are passionless exercises. So one third’s great and two thirds grate, which is an improvement at least.
Anthony Thornton
Click here to get your copy of Rufus Wainwright’s ‘All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu’ from the Rough Trade shop