Selected Works by DONALD RUBINSTEIN

Donald Rubinstein_Piano, Guitar, Vocals, Synthesizers_ All music, lyrics, arrangements and orchestrations, by Donald Rubinstein (unless otherwise noted).

Pictured: Before I Think of Mars I Think of You_ Donald Rubinstein, 2022

“Rubinstein’s voice was raw and he played piano beautifully- real eccentric things you wouldn’t ordinarily think of. It inspires you to do something that stirs within.”  KYPA Radio, Los Angeles

“Imagine Korngold doing a song cycle, but instead of hiring an old white guy, Duke Ellington shows up out of the grave to play it, cracking his fingers, wanting to raise a little hell fresh out of heaven. That’s this.

It's cool. It's night. It's looking for an audience in a theatre of alleys. Imagine John Lennon making an album in the late 60s with Yoko that you actually want to Listen to more than once. That's still this.

I find it freeing and relaxing. A ghost in a sometimes dead world of music baying at the moon.”  —Music Dish

“What really knocked me out is the music for “Martin”, a showcase for Donald Rubinstein’s jazz chops. I’m amazed how varied it is: the instrumentation of course, but the approaches as well.” —Gary Giddins

"A terrific collection of 13 wildly diverse tunes by the multi-talented Donald Rubinstein and friends, performed on instruments ranging from harmonica to computer, from tenor sax to baroque violin. Each song heads off in a different, and usually unexpected, direction but they're all held together somehow by a subtly dark and sometimes eerie vibe. Rubinstein's voice fits in well with that vibe, and his stories and lyrics are engaging. The variety of well made, well played music on this disc is impressive -- it's a rich and satisfying piece of work". Irving Bellemead, Splendid eZine (Maya))

“A composer and songwriter of stellar proportions…and his songs, Elton John wished he wrote.” John Desnmore (The Doors)

“Donald is crazy. Like Charlie Parker was crazy. Like Kerouac and Bob Dylan are crazy.  Perfect crazy. Full of surprises. I can’t say anything better about anybody. ‘Crazy’ on this idiot planet is as good as it gets.  Donald is even better. A monster artist. (Not bad for a Yankee.)”  Terry Allen

“Donald Rubinstein’s jazzy score is a masterpiece of melancholia.” Gregory McNamee, Encyclopedia Britannica Blog,

“Rubinstein’s music for all three (George A. Romero films) are idiosyncratic, one-of-a-kind scores that stand apart in the genre, not only as effective film music, but great compositions in their own right.” __Scooter McCrae, Fangoria Magazine

“Rubinstein sings like an animal, his grizzled voice cracking with half-ironical desperation or descending to a conversational murmur…His tunes are instantly iconic.” Seattle Weekly

“I’m so lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Donald Rubinstein in all kinds of situations over the years. I’ve learned a lot from him. He is a total artist who uses everything – a guitar, a whistle, a symphony orchestra, spoken word, song, drawing, painting, dance, acting, etc., etc…whatever. There are not limits. After twenty years he’s still on that path, and still an inspiration” —Bill Frisell

”The Witness” is a musical revelation.  It displays Rubinstein’s highly developed skills for mood-inducing orchestral pieces and jazz…I played “Music For Chamber Orchestra for a couple of my “Rock and Roll” buddies, and even they were impressed with the heavy emotional fever that drives this work…To some, it will seem old-fashioned, but it is bold and ambitious nevertheless…. I am a firm believer in the power of “The Witness.” Mic Line

"Too Late to Die", Donald Rubinstein's nineteenth CD, features fifteen original songs including one co-written with Terry Allen. The contributing musicians include Lloyd maines, David Mansfield and Hani Naser. A follow-up to last year's acclaimed "When She Kisses the Ship on His Arm", this is the second in an intended series of four CDs exploring the art of the song via a very personal hybrid of Rock, Americana and Folk genres. Rubinstein's unique perspective, equally informed by the wide-ranging implications of multimedia conceptual art and by the immediacy and sincerity of classic roots-driven songwriting, makes for a refreshing and insightful listening experience. "Too Late to Die" may be his most personal statement to date." CD Universe

“You’ve never heard “My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean” sung with more feeling than Donald’s own Bonnie, God, that’s sad. However, my money is on the instrumentals of the CD like “Blues for Betti.” Improvisation or not, it’s interesting, spontaneous jazz that experiments within free jazz confines (if that makes any sense). “Hollywood” take the blues feel and transforms it into words. Donald’s world of vocalizing is the deep, lazy, rich sort. I can’t tell if he’s black or white. but the voice is colorblind. I hope he finds a home and genre for his realistic music. Oh yes, it’s realistic. Life is never sculpted from ABAAB patterns, you know. “ Ben Ohmart, Atn-Zone Magazine

"Paper Pieces for Keyboard" is a contemplative collection of piano solos...This is one of the CDs– along with the Bach violin solos by Christiane Edinger, and the Bach cello solos by at least three different people– that I can happily lose myself in, wandering through the black-and-white “landscape” of the keyboards.  Tom Geddie, Buddy Magazine

“Donald Rubinstein’s haunting score ("Martin") which blends elements of classical and jazz, has always stood out to me as something totally, and beautifully, unique.  His distinctive musical sensibility stems from the fact that he is not a film composer_at least not in the traditional sense…Donald is more than a composer, he is a true "Artist".  As a songwriter, musician, poet, and visual artist he is perpetually creating. In addition to my love for "Martin" and Romero, that is why I wanted to speak with him. I suspected his perspective on film scoring and horror would be as unique as his work, and I was correct…The result is a fascinating and detailed glimpse into the mind of an artist, his methods, experiences, motivations, and collaborative relationship- and friendship- with one of horror’s greatest and most influential auteurs.” - “Scored to Death ”  J. Blake Fichera 

“Singer/songwriter, pianist, jazz experimentalist, soundtrack composer, beat-style poet — Donald Rubinstein has somehow juggled all those hats over the lengthy span of his creative career.” —All Music Guide

I'd Rather Be a Wanderer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJlU9Vz35Fs

Be The One

Time Again

Blowin’ in the Wind