Wainwright was born in Rhinebeck, New York, USA, to folk singers Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle (they divorced while he was a child). He began to play the piano at age six, and by age thirteen he was touring with his sister Martha Wainwright, mother Kate, and aunt Anna as the McGarrigle Sisters and Family.
His song I'm A-Runnin', which he performed in the movie Tommy Tricker and the Stamp Traveller (in which he also played a minor character), was nominated for the 1989 Genie Award for Best Original Song and earned him a nomination for the 1990 Juno Award for Most Promising Male Vocalist.
He lived in Montreal with his mother for most of his childhood and briefly attended McGill University, where he studied both classical and 'rock' piano. Some of his songs feature his mastery of French. Wainwright still maintains a residence in Canada.
He came out as gay while still a teen.
Wainwright became interested in opera throughout his adolescent years (for instance, his track Barcelona features lyrics of Giuseppe Verdi). He also became an enthusiast of such performers as Édith Piaf, Al Jolson and Judy Garland.
After having been a fixture on the Montreal club circuit, Wainwright cut a series of demo tapes, one of which found itself in the hands of DreamWorks executive Lenny Waronker. The label signed him and he released the self-titled Rufus Wainwright album in the spring of 1998. This album received much critical acclaim in Canada, and was recognized by Rolling Stone magazine as one of the best albums of the year. Wainwright's second album, Poses (2001), brought similar acclaim.
Wainwright's first main exposure to the American public came as an opener to singer Tori Amos in 2001 and 2002. He garnered praise for his performance and began touring as a main act shortly afterwards. He has frequently toured as the opener for Sting and co-headlined with Ben Folds and Guster in the summer of 2004. He still often performs with his sister Martha Wainwright (now herself an emerging artist) on backup vocals. Despite a growing cult following and critical acclaim, Wainwright has experienced only marginal commercial success in the United States.
In addition to being a pianist, Wainwright is a guitarist, often switching between the two instruments when performing live; however, his mastery of the guitar does not approach his talent with the piano within the Piano rock genre. While some of his most moving songs feature just Wainwright with his piano, many of his songs display complex layering and harmonies, occasionally comprising hundreds of individual parts. Wainwright is an avid opera fan, and the influences on his music are evident, as well as his love of Schubert 'Lieder'; his music has been described as "Popera" (Pop Opera) or "Baroque Pop." His lyrics are filled with allusions to opera, literature, pop culture, and, more recently, politics (in songs such as Gay Messiah and Waiting for a Dream). Wainwright is a recovering crystal meth addict and a rape survivor; he uses the press to bring awareness to these societal problems.
His talent has been widely recognized and praised by such artists as Elton John, Morrissey, John Mayer, and Sting, and he continues to influence artists like Keane, Alanis Morissette, Scissor Sisters, and Ben Folds.
Wainwright's Want Two, from which four songs were released as the EP Waiting for a Want, was released by DreamWorks/Geffen on November 16, 2004. It is a companion to the 2003 release Want One. His latest, a live iTunes Sessions EP entitled Alright Already, was released March 15, 2005. A DVD entitled All I Want, featuring a biographical documentary, music videos, and live performances, was released on both sides of the Atlantic in summer 2005. The same year was also notable for two major contributions as solo vocalist to a pair of important records: the Mercury Prize winning I am a Bird Now and At This Time.
The pair of Want albums was repackaged as Want for a late November 2005 release to coincide with the start of a British tour. The version of Want One is that which contains the two extra songs Es Mus Sein and Velvet Curtain Rag. The Want (Want One and Want Two combined) package in the UK has two new extra tracks: Chelsea Hotel No. 2 and In with the Ladies, which replace Coeur de Parisienne — Reprise d'Arletty and Quand Vous Mourez de Nos Amours from 2004's augmented edition.
Rufus' fifth studio album Release the Stars was released by Geffen on May 15, 2007. The album was executive produced by Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys and featured Richard Thompson, Teddy Thompson, Martha Wainwright, Kate McGarrigle, Neil Tennant, Joan Wasser, Julianna Raye, Larry Mullins - pka Toby Dammit and Sian Phillips.[14]. It reached number 2 in the UK and debuted at number 23 in the USA. The first single of the album, "Going To A Town" was released on April 3, 2007 on the iTunes music store.
Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall is his sixth album. It is a live recording of his June 2006 tribute concert to Judy Garland. Backed by a 36-piece orchestra under the conduction of Stephen Oremus, Wainwright recreated Garland's April 23, 1961 concert, often considered "the greatest night in show business history." After overcoming many personal problems, her comeback performance of 25+ American standards spawned the double album, "Judy at Carnegie Hall."
As well as Tommy Tricker and the Stamp Traveller, Wainwright has appeared in the films The Aviator and Heights. Rufus has music in the film Brokeback Mountain, for which he recorded The Maker Makes and King of the Road, as well as a minor cameo as a guitar player.
Wainwright released his sixth studio album All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu in March 2010. In stark contrast to the lush ornamentation of Release The Stars, the album is a simple voice and piano rendition of a song cycle that includes versions of three Shakespeare sonnets, and an excerpt from his 2009 opera Prima Donna.
The Lulu figure of the title is said by Wainwright to be "the dark, brooding, dangerous woman that lives within all of us", similar to the Dark Lady character in Shakespeare's sonnets. The first part of the title comes from the final couplet of William Shakespeare's "Sonnet 43" ("All days are nights to see till I see thee...").
05.The Art Teacher
Rufus Wainwright Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Looking at the art teacher
I was just a girl then;
Never have I loved since then
He was not that much older than I was
He had taken our class to the Metropolitan Museum
He asked us what our favorite work of art was,
Oh, I wish I could tell him,
Oh, I wish I could have told him
I looked at the Rubens and Rembrandts
I liked the John Singer Sargents
He told me he liked Turner
Never have I turned since then
No, never have I turned to any other man
All this having been said,
I married an executive company head
All this having been done, a Turner, I own one
Here I am in this uniformish, pant-suit sort of thing,
Thinking of the art teacher
I was just a girl then;
Never have I loved since then
No, never have I loved any other man
"The Art Teacher" by Rufus Wainwright is a nostalgic and bittersweet song about the singer's unrequited love for her high school art teacher. The song opens with the singer viewing her former art teacher while she was still in uniform - hence, still in high school. She reminisces about the teenage crush she had on him, and how she never really loved anyone since.
The singer discloses that she was never quite able to articulate her emotions to him, as the art class was taken to the Metropolitan Museum on a field trip. The singer speaks of her favorite pieces of art in the museum without realizing that it was the art teacher who had overlapped her preferences. She admits that she wishes she could have told him how she truly felt about him.
In the present day, the singer has married an executive company head, which implies her life is successful, but even with a Turner painting in her house, she remains emotionally invested in her memories of the art teacher. The lyrics suggest the powerful and everlasting impression that the teacher had on her, both personally and stylistically, in terms of the paintings he recommended to her.
Line by Line Meaning
There I was in uniform
The singer is reminiscing about her youth, particularly a moment where she was wearing her school uniform.
Looking at the art teacher
The singer is remembering an art teacher she had.
I was just a girl then;
The singer recalls this moment from her childhood, when she was very young and naive.
Never have I loved since then
She is revealing that this art teacher was the only man she ever truly loved.
He was not that much older than I was
The artist describes the art teacher, saying that he wasn't very much older than her.
He had taken our class to the Metropolitan Museum
The art teacher brought his class to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for a field trip.
He asked us what our favorite work of art was,
The teacher asked his students to choose their favorite piece of art from the museum's collection.
But never could I tell it was him
The artist admits that she never told the teacher that her favorite piece of art was actually him.
Oh, I wish I could tell him,
The artist expresses regret that she never told her art teacher about her feelings for him.
I looked at the Rubens and Rembrandts
The artist recalls looking at paintings by Rubens and Rembrandt at the museum.
I liked the John Singer Sargents
She enjoys works by the American painter John Singer Sargent.
He told me he liked Turner
Her art teacher shared that his favorite artist was J.M.W. Turner.
Never have I turned since then
The singer implies that she has remained faithful to her art teacher since that moment.
All this having been said,
After reminiscing about her past, the singer acknowledges her present situation.
I married an executive company head
The singer reveals that she married a man who is successful in business.
All this having been done, a Turner, I own one
Despite her successful marriage, the artist owns a painting by J.M.W. Turner, her art teacher's favorite artist.
Here I am in this uniformish, pant-suit sort of thing,
The artist is again wearing something resembling a uniform, which reminds her of her school days and her art teacher.
Thinking of the art teacher
She is still preoccupied with thoughts of the art teacher and their brief time together.
No, never have I loved any other man
The singer has never loved anyone else besides her art teacher, despite getting married.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: RUFUS WAINWRIGHT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kojiro.519
There I was in uniform
Looking at the art teacher
I was just a girl then;
Never have I loved since then
He was not that much older than I was
He had taken our class to the Metropolitan Museum
He asked us what our favorite work of art was,
But never could I tell it was him
Oh, I wish I could tell him --
Oh, I wish I could have told him
I looked at the Rubens and Rembrandts
I liked the John Singer Sargents
He told me he liked Turner
Never have I turned since then
No, never have I turned to any other man
All this having been said,
I married an executive company head
All this having been done, a Turner - I own one
Here I am in this uniformish, pant-suit sort of thing,
Thinking of the art teacher
I was just a girl then;
Never have I loved since then
No, never have I loved any other man
Dana Banana
I wish I could tell Rufus how much this song has moved me but I truly am at a loss for words. His brilliance hasn’t just moved me, but it has deeply disturbed me. I feel I will never be the same after hearing this song. Absolutely out of this world
Street Works Media
I met him at durham theater in 2012 along with some other folks who came backstage / the parking lot exit. he signed our set lists and took photos with us, was a really fun time.
Alan Hope
Would you want to be the same though? You just listened to four minutes of greatness.
Debb3rod
One of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard. This is my favorite version. Will always hold a special place in my heart!
john
One of the best songwriters ever! Thanks for the upload.
BJ13X
A genre all his own, one of the best to ever do it.
Patricia García
the lyrics of this song though . 😍
melody s.
@Pat Mercer I love the subject of this song and I love to listen to it as I walk the halls of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I also like to listen to Miles Davis while i do this.
Pat Mercer
@John Herr Can you translate your comment into proper English?
John Herr
I love his subject and I love to listen to this as I walk the hands halls if the MFA in Boston. Miles Davis too!