It is moments like this when you have to pinch yourself to make sure you aren't dreaming.
The Wainwright-McGarrigle clan have had a busy week. First was Rufus Wainwright's live debut of his new
Out of the Game album in front of 5000 people at the
Luminato Festival. Then first thing the next morning began a full week of rehearsals and press appearances, all leading up to Friday's
Love Over and Over – The Songs of Kate McGarrigle tribute concert at
Massey Hall. The performance was a tribute to the late Kate McGarrigle who died in 2010 from a rare form of cancer.
When Rufus, Martha, Lily and Anna showed up at the Drive studio they were ready to work. We had them for exactly two hours, so there was little time to spare. A quick run through of the songs and an even quicker jaunt to get their make-up done for our video shoot and then the magic began.
We got four very special performances of some of Kate McGarrigle's most loved songs. First up, all four of our guests performed a folksy acoustic guitar rendition of "Come A Long Way." Rufus took a quick break while the girls sang "Cheminant a la Ville," which was followed by a stunning solo rendition of "I Am A Diamond" performed by Martha Wainwright. And the icing on the cake was Anna, Martha and Rufus performing "Talk To Me of Mendocino."
Before I knew it my two hours with Canadian music's royal family was over. As they left the studio Teddy Wainwright, who had so graciously organized the session for us said, "Sorry for the rush." My response was, "Don't apologize, I just spent two hours in heaven."
And listening again to this session, it really was like being in heaven for a couple of hours. What a thrill.
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posted by
Ron Skinner
on Jun 15, 2012