The “Harlequin” standard vinyl with a poster from the record jacket The Xavierite
On Sept. 27, Lady Gaga’s accompanying album to her new film, “Joker: Folie à Deux,” was released, entitled “Harlequin.”
“Harlequin,” contrary to popular belief, is not a soundtrack album for the film. Her first solo album since the release of her sixth studio album “Chromatica” in 2020, Gaga described it as a “companion album” to “Joker: Folie à Deux” in the Instagram post announcing the album. There is a separate soundtrack album for the film that was released on Oct. 4, which, too, shares seven songs with “Harlequin.”
Gaga did re-record all of the songs separately for “Harlequin” from when they were produced for “Joker,” however.
“Harlequin” overall has a very jazzy and theatrical feel to it, similar to that featured in the two albums, “Cheek to Cheek” and “Love For Sale,” Gaga made with legendary jazz singer Tony Bennett. Gaga’s passionate, belting voice graces each song on the record, and she sounds positively impeccable on every track.
Eleven of the thirteen tracks on “Harlequin” are covers of older songs. However, Gaga has proven with songs such as “Smile” and “Close To You” that she undoubtedly holds a candle to even the most classic of artists.
“That’s Entertainment” was the first song off the record that stuck out to me, and is definitely one of my favorites. Gaga’s voice, tone, and pitch as she vivaciously belts the lyrics perfectly mirror that of an early-twentieth century jazz singer.
“Gonna Build A Mountain” takes the cake as my number one off of “Harlequin,” cover or original. The way Gaga recreates this iconic Sammy Davis Jr. song with a modern twist is absolutely mesmerizing.
Gaga took a more rock-‘n-roll approach to my third favorite track off the record. “Oh, When The Saints” features an electric guitar and is a catchy, powerful rendition that brings life and light to an old Christian hymn.
While many songs on the album are remakes of older ones, there are two original tracks: “Folie à Deux” and “Happy Mistake.”
“Happy Mistake” is my favorite of the two original songs, and it seems to be the most successful commercially. I found that the other original track, “Folie à Deux,” didn’t do much for me in terms of sound or lyricism.
This track specifically stood out to me in the sense that it notably differs from the rest of the album sonically. Whereas most of the songs, including “Folie à Deux,” have a theatrical, almost soundtrack-like feel to them, “Happy Mistake” sounds completely organically produced, rather than made to fit the plot of the accompanying film.
I can say the same for “The Joker.” This track didn’t sound as though it should be part of a movie soundtrack as opposed to most of the others. Either way, “The Joker” is another song from “Harlequin” that was one of the first to capture my attention during my first listen.
“Close To You” is one I find to be unique to the record as well. Its lyrics are lovey-dovey and romantic, much unlike the others, and is in second place in terms of my favorites, just above “Oh, When The Saints.”
I absolutely loved the choice for the final track on the album. “That’s Life,” which was featured at the end of the prequel film “Joker,” is a fun and airy ballad that was originally performed by jazz artist Marion Montgomery and popularized by Frank Sinatra some time later. It allowed the album to end on a jovial note, which I found to be completely satisfying.
Maybe I am just a biased lifelong fan, but listening to “Harlequin” for the first couple of times was truly an extraordinary experience. As per usual, Gaga’s all-encompassing and ever-powerful vocals still pleasantly floored me, though I didn’t expect less.
Hearing the unique spin she took on eleven classic songs was so enriching, seeing as she did so much justice by each of the artists from the original recordings.
All in all, “Harlequin” is a hit in my book, and I’ll be looking forward to more music from the amazing Lady Gaga in the future.