Sing Me the Songs: Celebrating the Works of Kate McGarrigle features highlights from three concerts in honor of the late singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle, held in London, Toronto, and New York. The 2-CD set was produced by Joe Boyd, who curated the concerts, and features performances by Rufus and Martha Wainwright, Anna McGarrigle, Emmylou Harris, Anohni, Norah Jones, Teddy Thompson, and others. The Guardian calls it "glorious." Net proceeds go to the Kate McGarrigle Foundation for sarcoma research.
On June 25, 2013, Nonesuch Records releases Sing Me the Songs: Celebrating the Works of Kate McGarrigle, which features highlights from three concerts in honor of the late Kate McGarrigle, the beloved singer and Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame member. After McGarrigle died of sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, in 2010, her children—the acclaimed musicians Rufus and Martha Wainwright—and her sister and musical partner Anna McGarrigle led tribute concerts in London, Toronto, and New York.
Proceeds from the concerts provided seed money for the Kate McGarrigle Foundation—a non-profit organization dedicated to raising money in the fight against sarcoma and also to preserving her legacy through the arts. Net proceeds from the sale of Sing Me the Songs also will be donated to the Foundation. The double-disc set was produced by Joe Boyd, who curated the concerts, and features performances by Rufus and Martha Wainwright, Anna McGarrigle, Emmylou Harris, Anohni, Norah Jones, and Teddy Thompson, among others.
The New York concerts were filmed for a feature documentary entitled Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You: A Concert for Kate McGarrigle, directed by Lian Lunson (Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man) and produced by Luson and Teddy Wainwright. Candid interviews with McGarrigle’s family and friends are paired with rousing performances of her music. Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You will be screened at Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) on June 25, followed by a Q&A with Rufus and Martha Wainwright and other cast members. It opens theatrically at Film Forum in Manhattan for an exclusive run starting June 26. Watch an excerpt from the film, featuring "I Am a Diamond," below.
On June 26, BAM presents a concert titled Kate’s Kids in its Howard Gilman Opera House. Rufus and Martha welcome a few very special guests, including Norah Jones, Emmylou Harris, and Mark Ronson for a benefit concert celebrating the rich career of their late mother. The concert will feature performances of McGarrigle’s deeply personal music, songs by Rufus and Martha, French songs, and more, paying tribute to McGarrigle while showcasing the musical legacy she helped to create. Proceeds from both events at BAM benefit the Kate McGarrigle Foundation.
Raised in an artistic family in St. Sauveur, Quebec, Kate McGarrigle moved to New York in 1969 to pursue a singing career while her sister Anna studied art in Montreal. Both wrote many songs during this period, including Anna’s “Heart Like a Wheel,” which eventually appeared on their debut album (and was made famous by Linda Ronstadt in 1974), and Kate’s “The Work Song,” which Maria Muldaur recorded in 1973. It was another Muldaur recording of a McGarrigle song that first brought the sisters to the attention of then–Warner Bros. Records President Lenny Waronker and launched their recording career with Kate & Anna McGarrigle (1976). Ten more albums followed, including 1977’s Dancer with Bruised Knees, which Nonesuch reissued in a set with their debut album—and a disc of previously unreleased demos—titled Tell My Sister, in 2011. Nonesuch also released The McGarrigle Christmas Hour in 2005.
'Sing Me The Songs That Say I Love You A Concert for Kate McGarrigle'...'I Am A Diamond' from Lian Lunson on Vimeo.
PRODUCTION CREDITS
Produced by Joe Boyd
Mixed by Jerry Boys and Joe Boyd at Livingston Studios, London
Mastered by Jerry Boys and Tom Leader
Design by Julian Peploe Studio
Cover image courtesy of WXXI Public Broadcasting, Rochester, New York
All songs written by Kate McGarrigle except “Swimming Song” (Loudon Wainwright III), “Heart Like a Wheel” (Anna McGarrigle), “As Fast as My Feet Can Carry Me” (Anna McGarrigle and Chaim Tannenbaum), “I Am a Diamond” (Kate McGarrigle, Jane McGarrigle, and Anna McGarrigle), “Over the Hill” (Loudon Wainwright III and Kate McGarrigle), “Dans le silence” (Anna McGarrigle, Kate McGarrigle, and Philippe Tatartcheff), “Travelling on for Jesus” (trad. arr. by Kate McGarrigle), “Darlin’ Kate” (Emmylou Harris), “Dink’s Song” (trad.), and “Love Over and Over” (Anna McGarrigle and Kate McGarrigle).
Norah Jones appears courtesy of Blue Note Records. Antony appears courtesy of Secretly Canadian. Richard Thompson appears courtesy of New West Records.
Net proceeds from the sale of Sing Me The Songs will be donated to the Kate McGarrigle Foundation, which supports cancer care and research. The Kate McGarrigle Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charity dedicated to raising money in the fight against sarcoma, the cancer that took Kate’s life in 2010, and also to preserving the legacy of Kate McGarrigle through the arts—concerts, films, and recordings. For further information, contact the Foundation at 3003 S. Kanner Hwy, Stuart, FL 34994 or at katemcgarriglefoundation.org.
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MUSICIANS
Rufus Wainwright, disc 1: tracks 1–4, 6, 11, 15; disc 2: tracks 1, 5, 8, 9, 11, 16
Martha Wainwright, disc 1: tracks 1–5, 9, 11, 12, 16; disc 2: tracks 1, 9–11, 16
Anna McGarrigle, disc 1: tracks 1, 4, 5, 11, 12; disc 2: tracks 3, 9, 10, 15, 16
Jane McGarrigle, disc 1: tracks 1, 4, 5, 11
Lily Lanken, disc 1: tracks 1, 4, 5, 11; disc 2: tracks 3, 4, 10, 15, 16
Sylvan Lanken, disc 1: tracks 1, 4; disc 2: tracks 3, 11
Dane Lanken, disc 1: tracks 1, 11; disc 2: track 11
Sloan Wainwright, disc 1: tracks 1, 16
Greg Prestopino, disc 1: tracks 1, 11; disc 2: track 7
Jenni Muldaur, disc 1: track 2; disc 2: track 7
Teddy Thompson, disc 1: tracks 2, 8; disc 2: track 7
Norah Jones, disc 1: tracks 3, 14; disc 2: track 4
Emmylou Harris, disc 1: tracks 4, 6, 12, 14; disc 2: track 15
Krystle Warren, disc 1: tracks 4, 10, 12
Jimmy Fallon, disc 1: track 7
Anohni, disc 1: track 13; disc 2: track 5
Kate McGarrigle (recording), disc 1: track 16; (home demo), disc 2: track 18
Broken Social Scene (Kevin Drew, Amy Millan, Ariel Engle, Andrew Whiteman), disc 2: tracks 2
Justin Vivian Bond, disc 2: track 6
Chaim Tannenbaum, disc 2: tracks 7, 13, 16
Robert Charlebois, disc 2: track 9
Peggy Seeger, disc 2: track 12
Linda Thompson, disc 2: track 14
Richard Thompson (guitar), disc 2: track 14
Royal Festival Hall, London, June 12, 2010 (disc 1, tracks 5, 6; disc 2, track 14)
Band: Brad Albetta, bass; Martyn Barker, drums; Thomas Bartlett, piano; Calum MacColl, guitar; Chaim Tannenbaum, banjo, mandolin; Joel Zifkin, violin
Curator: Joe Boyd
Co-Producer: Catherine Steinmann
Music Director: Calum MacColl
Commissioned and Produced by Southbank Centre as part of the Meltdown Festival, 2010
Town Hall, New York, NY, May 12, 2011 (disc 1, tracks 2–4, 7, 11, 13, 14, 16; disc 2, tracks 1, 3, 5–7, 15–17) and May 13, 2011 (disc 1, tracks 1, 9, 10, 12, 15; disc 2, tracks 4, 13)
Band: Brad Albetta, bass; Thomas Bartlett, piano; Bryan Devendorf, percussion; Calum MacColl, guitar; Jane McGarrigle, piano; Michel Pépin, guitar; Chaim Tannenbaum, banjo, mandolin; Doug Weiselman, guitar, saxophone, clarinet; Joel Zifkin, violin
Curator: Joe Boyd
Producer: Absolutely Live Entertainment Co-Producers: Catherine Steinmann, Teddy Wainwright Music Director: Calum MacColl, Brad Albetta, Thomas Bartlett
Luminato Festival, Massey Hall, Toronto, June 13, 2012 (disc 1, track 8; disc 2, tracks 2, 8–12)
Band: Brad Albetta, bass; Thomas Bartlett, piano; Michelle Josef, drums; Calum MacColl, guitar; Jane McGarrigle, piano; Michel Pépin, guitar; Chaim Tannenbaum, banjo, mandolin; Joel Zifkin, violin
Curator: Joe Boyd
Co-Producers: Catherine Steinmann, Teddy Wainwright
Music Director: Calum MacColl, Brad Albetta, Thomas Bartlett
Commissioned and Produced by Luminato Festival
Recorded by CBC
This album includes songs from the film Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You: A Concert for Kate McGarrigle, directed by Lian Lunson (disc 1, tracks 2, 7, 11, 12, 16; disc 2, tracks 1, 5, 6, 15, 16)
