Judy at Carnegie Hall, Judy Garland
Thanks to troubles with alcohol, pills and exhaustion (see, it’s been a celebrity code word for decades), Judy Garland was not doing well by the time the ’60s rolled around. Yet she shoved her way back into the limelight with an epic April 23, 1961, concert at Carnegie Hall. With a mix of standards (“When You’re Smiling,” “Puttin’ on the Ritz”) and personal classics (“Over the Rainbow”), Garland propelled herself through the now legendary concert, since immortalized on a Grammy-winning double album. Crooner Rufus Wainwright paid homage to the gay icon’s comeback moment by performing the album in full over several dates in 2006 and 2007.
