Think Loudon Wainwright III's Forty Odd Years box set is exhaustive? The singer-songwriter's son, Rufus, just topped it - and then some.
We previously reported that Rufus Wainwright was planning a massive career-spanning box set, but Universal Music just revealed details on the scope of House of Rufus, due out this summer. Altogether, the set includes 19 - count 'em, 19! - discs, featuring every studio and live record Wainwright's ever released and then some.
According to a post on Rufus' Facebook page, House of Rufus will have:
- Expanded versions of all six of Wainwright's studio albums: Rufus Wainwright (DreamWorks, 1999), Poses (DreamWorks, 2001), Want One (Geffen, 2003), Want Two (Geffen, 2004), Release the Stars (Geffen, 2007) and All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu (Decca, 2010)
- Expanded versions of both of Wainwright's live albums: the two-disc Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall (Geffen, 2007) and Milwaukee at Last!!! (Decca, 2009)
- Four discs of additional material - one devoted to rare and unreleased songs, one devoted to soundtrack appearances (to films like Shrek (2001) and Meet the Robinsons (2007), another consisting of collaborations with friends (Pet Shop Boys, Burt Bacharach, Leonard Cohen) and family (father Loudon, mother Kate McGarrigle, sister Martha and aunt Anna McGarrigle)
- Six DVDs: concerts (Live at The Fillmore (2004), Rufus Does Judy! Live from the London Palladium (2007), Milwaukee at Last!!! (2009)), the deluxe album commentary DVD that came with some pressings of Release the Stars and two documentaries: All I Want (2005) and Prima Donna (2009), the latter of which chronicled Wainwright's opera of the same name
Additionally, the packaging will be "a red velvet encased, 90-page hardback book containing rare and unseen photos, Rufus' early hand-drawn tour posters, handwritten lyrics, four art prints and other memorabilia, extensive sleeve notes featuring interviews with Neil Tennant, Martha Wainwright, Linda Thompson and Lenny Waronker and an introduction by Rufus."
Universal Music U.K. is offering pre-orders on the box - either with or without a limited canvas art print (50 of the 200 prints made will be signed by Rufus) - with a July 18 release. It's not cheap; the set starts from £159 - approximately $260 in America - but if you're a Rufus superfan with a deep pocket, your mind has probably already made itself up.
Keep it tuned here for more info on this box as it's available.
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