Poses (album) - Songs, Themes and References

Songs, Themes and References

Debauchery is a primary theme throughout the album, stemming from Wainwright's struggles with addiction and quest for fame. "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" best reflects this motif, directly addressing decadence and desire ("Everything it seems I like's a little bit sweeter/A little bit fatter, a little bit harmful for me"). The song has been called an "ode to subtle addictions and the way our compulsions rule our lives". The music video for "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk", directed by Giles Dunning and released by DreamWorks in 2001, features Wainwright performing the song at a piano inside a warehouse and scenes of him walking around New York City.

Asserting that successful pop albums evoke a particular lifestyle that other people have experienced, Rolling Stone's Ben Ratliff claims Poses does just that, manifesting the "young, gay, narcissistic achiever in New York". "But", Ratliff clarifies, "the Chelsea Boy is only a magnified version of practically every kid new to a big city who's got a job and an apartment and worries about weekend plans: The Chelsea Boy just has sharper clothes, higher standards of beauty and a better tradition of mordant humor to console himself with."

An "ode to queer love", "Greek Song" touches on beauty, passion, and adventure while incorporating Asian string instruments. Pitchfork Media's Joe Tangari complimented the title track, stating that it "stands as one of Wainwright's finest songs, with an aching melody and Spartan piano backing". The song is semi-autobiographical, mirroring Wainwright's struggles with addiction and desire for fame ("I did go from wanting to be someone/Now I'm drunk and wearing flip-flops on Fifth Avenue").

Coated with thickly layered vocal harmonies, "Shadows" was co-written and produced by Propellerheads' Alex Gifford. Rolling Stone said the following of the track: " keeps a dry funk drumbeat, a dab of piano chords, some low clarinet lines and, finally, a swarm of seraphic multitracked voices; it's one of the many songs on the album that build up to moments of cinematic perfection, in which your goose bumps are exactly the ones Wainwright intended." The programmed beats on "The Tower of Learning" were contributed by contemporary composer Damien LeGassick.

The music video for "California", also directed by Giles Dunning, features Wainwright performing the song karaoke-style while reading lyrics from a monitor that projects a black-and-white video of Rufus and Martha dressed in 1940s garb. The video also features Wainwright and his band performing the song out of character.

"The Tower of Learning", originally written for Baz Luhrmann's 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, was resurrected when Wainwright "saw this guy whose eyes were very beautiful, and all of a sudden the whole subject of falling into someone's eyes and how electrifying that can be" inspired him. "Grey Gardens" is a tribute to the documentary film of the same name and Thomas Mann's Death in Venice, written as if Tadzio (a character from the novel) is in the Beales' mansion and Wainwright is "Little Edie".

"Rebel Prince", once described as flag-wavingly homoerotic, tells the story of a hotel resident waiting for his prince to come rescue him before he " dirty mind of all of its preciousness". Written from the perspective of a companion praising his queen, "The Consort" sounds of a "dusty minuet beamed in from the harpsichord Elizabethan age". "One Man Guy", originally written by Wainwright's father (folk musician Loudon Wainwright III), features vocals by friend Teddy Thompson and Wainwright's sister Martha Wainwright. Tangari called the cover "faithful and endearing", admitting Wainwright's performance "proves has at least a touch of dad's folk roots in him".

Wainwright said the following of "Evil Angel":

'Evil Angel' is an interesting song. It's actually to do with a journalist who, uh... I was in France at the time and quite delicate... and this guy basically seduced me in Strasbourg... he gave me a tour of the town and it was very romantic, and we did actually make out in the middle of this town square... and then I went and did the show and I never heard from him again. And I just felt incredibly used. I think a lot of it has to do with, once you get into this business, you do have to become some kind of a machine. You do have to be heartless at times and be able to plough through certain situations. I don't want to totally become that person, but it's good that I'm thinking about it.

The simple "In a Graveyard" has been described as a "soulful reflection on moribund themes that momentarily leaves the oboes and strings at the door for a direct heart-to-heart with the listener". The music video for "Across the Universe", originally used to promote I Am Sam, was directed by Len Wiseman and released through V2 Records. The Lennon–McCartney track appeared on the soundtrack to the film, but was re-recorded to become a bonus track for the reissue of Poses.

Songs mentioning locations include "Greek Song" (China, Rome, Mecca), "California" (which describes Wainwright's feelings about the West Coast state), and "The Tower of Learning" (Paris). Famous landmarks mentioned include the Tower of Pisa ("Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk"), the Eiffel Tower ("The Tower of Learning"), the Beale estate known as Grey Gardens in the song of the same name, and the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City ("Rebel Prince"). Fictional characters referred to include Raggedy Andy ("Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk"), the rag doll brother of Raggedy Ann created by Johnny Gruelle, and Tadzio ("Grey Gardens"), from Thomas Mann's 1912 novella Death in Venice. "California" also contains references to the entertainment industry, from Rhoda and That's Entertainment! to actresses Ginger Rogers and Bea Arthur, as well as a nod to The Wizard of Oz's fictional region known as Munchkin Land.