features a virtuosic piano arrangement that dances between darkness and light.
The Canadian-American singer, who turns 50 in July, has described “Folkocracy” as a “birthday present to myself.” But the project is also clearly the work of a vocalist who holds himself to the highest standard of the craft. When I spoke to him over video last month, he had just wrapped up a five-night residency at New York’s legendary Café Carlyle, where he performed songs by composer Kurt Weill.
But the impetus for “Folkocracy” comes from a “somewhat dubious source,” he admitted with slight mischief in his voice: he wants to win a Grammy. “I’m very fortunate to be in one,” said Wainwright, “and I and I like to celebrate that fact. We’re not talking about vast fortunes or Hollywood contracts. It’s about the music, and about beauty and excellence.”
For the cover of Neil Young’s “Harvest,” Wainwright hands the keys to multi-instrumentalist Andrew Bird. “I’ve performed ‘Harvest’ for years,” Wainwright said. “I tend to do it in a more lugubrious fashion: a lot slower, a lot more seductive. But Andrew Bird’s direction it more upbeat, a bit more masculine.”