"Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" is a song written and performed by the Canadian–American singer-songwriter

Rufus Wainwright Rufus McGarrigle Wainwright (born July 22, 1973) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and composer. He has recorded 10 studio albums and numerous tracks on compilations and film soundtracks. He has also written two classical operas and set ...

. It appears as the opening track on his second studio album, '' Poses'' (2001). The song addresses decadence and desire, and has been called an "ode to subtle addictions and the way our compulsions rule our lives". A reprise version of the song appears as the last track on the album.

Music video

The music video for the track, 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. The audio track of the video is actually the reprise version, with the added percussion backing.

Reception

In his review for

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, Matthew Greenwald wrote that the song "combines classic Gershwin/

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

pop feels along with a strong sense of French

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

show tune A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context. ...

s", and called the shifts in

modulation In electronics and telecommunications, modulation is the process of varying one or more properties of a periodic waveform, called the ''carrier signal'', with a separate signal called the ''modulation signal'' that typically contains informatio ...

coupled with

dissonant In music, consonance and dissonance are categorizations of simultaneous or successive Sound, sounds. Within the Western tradition, some listeners associate consonance with sweetness, pleasantness, and acceptability, and dissonance with harshness ...

chords "intoxicating".

Personnel

– vocals, piano, string

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

s * Jeff Hill – bass *

Jim Keltner James Lee Keltner (born April 27, 1942) is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session work. He was characterized by Bob Dylan biographer Howard Sounes as "the leading session drummer in America".Howard Sounes. ''Down ...

– drums * Yves Desrosiers –

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

, guitar *

Pierre Marchand Pierre Marchand (born 1958) is a Canadian songwriter, musician and record producer. Marchand is known for his ongoing collaboration with Sarah McLachlan, having produced all of her albums since '' Solace'' in 1991. He also co-wrote several of M ...

– string arrangements * Stephanie Allard – violin * Jean-Marc LeBlanc – violin * Melanie Belair – violin * Genevieve Beaudry – violin * Julie Dupras –

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

* Wilma Hos – viola * Veronique Potuin – viola * Greg Hay – viola * Carla Antoun – cello * Christine Giguere – cello * Jean Paquin –

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

* Pierre Savoie – French horn * Normand Forget –

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

Appearances

Apart from being the opening and closing track on ''Poses'', a live performance of "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" from

Central Park SummerStage Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

appeared on Wainwright's 2005 music DVD, '' All I Want''. Wainwright also performs the song on the 2001 DVD ''Circuit 9''. "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" appears on the soundtrack to the Italian film ''Caos Calmo'', as well as the following

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

s: '' Live at the World Café: Handcrafted'' (2002), ''107.1 KGSR Radio Austin – Broadcasts Vol.10'' (2002), '' Oh What a Feeling 3'' (2006), and '' Northern Songs: Canada's Best and Brightest'' (2008). The reprise version appears on the soundtrack to the film '' The Last Kiss'' (2006). It also appeared in the

How I Met Your Mother ''How I Met Your Mother'' (often abbreviated as ''HIMYM'') is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005 to March 31, 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his ...

season 5 episode "

Last Cigarette Ever "Last Cigarette Ever" is the 11th episode of the How I Met Your Mother (season 5), fifth season of the CBS situation comedy ''How I Met Your Mother'' and 99th episode overall. It aired on December 14, 2009. Plot Future Ted explains how frustra ...

Covers

On ''Yellow Lounge: Compiled by Rufus Wainwright'', a 2007 compilation album of Wainwright's favorite classical pieces, the

Fauré Quartet The Fauré Quartet is a German piano quartet, named after Gabriel Fauré. Founded in 1995, they have performed internationally and recorded, including works written for them by composers such as Volker David Kirchner and Toshio Hosokawa. History ...

performs instrumental versions of Wainwright's songs "Cigarettes and Chocolate Milk" and "Hometown Waltz". A

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

by Djelem Project appears on their 2008 album, ''A Sky with No Clouds''.

References

External links

Review A review is an evaluation of a publication, product, service, or company or a critical take on current affairs in literature, politics or culture. In addition to a critical evaluation, the review's author may assign the work a content rating, ...

from

{{authority control 2001 songs Rufus Wainwright songs Songs about tobacco Songs written by Rufus Wainwright