Leonard Cohen

no, I never did, but I understand that JLNobody has had some contact with Cohen.

IMHO, it's the depth and nuances of his words. That is one writer that has his art down. He is more like a literary novelist than almost anyone. Bob Dylan does that for me, too, as does Joni Mitchell.

I was not aware but there is a movie about him called Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man (2005).

More recent works such as Famous Blue Raincoat where he sings duet with Jennifer Warnes are gems.

My very first encounter with LC was the song Suzanne, circa 1968.

Here is one of my fave versions of Hallelujah, done by Jeff Buckley:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8AWFf7EAc4&feature=av2e

His collected poems, written before he became a recording artist, are worth a look also. He was a prize winning poet, early on. Some of his songs were adapted from these early works.

excuse me while I devolve to cohen songs.

I gave dys my copy of his poems for one of his birthdays.

bad girl, in that I hadn't read them.

One of my coworkers plays in several bands. When I went to work today, he immediately launched into a discussion of Leonard Cohen.

Conspiracy or coincidence? You decide!

Was he at least knowledgeable about the gentleman singer?

Very! This man is super intelligent, has a memory like an elephant and, as I said, plays in at least three bands.

One of Cohen's novels is called Beautiful Losers. A passage from the book was composed and recorded by Buffy Sainte-Marie.

For me he has good deep texts, and never acted vulgar for the sake of cheap publicity, always acted cool.

My favorite song of him http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oI7tuRn3RC0

Aw, I just found a youtube with Cohen doing Suzanne in 2009 (near instant tears from me).



I ruined, I think three, copies of his Songs album, back in the day, by playing them endlessly.


Ah, and next I find a video with Leonard Cohen singing Nancy, and then Fabrizio de Andre doing a cover years later. I've gone on about de Andre here on a2k many times.

Just look at the cool people who are his fans.

He has something to live for, a well of life that keeps him vigorous, those who lose sight of anything posetive, anything to live for will vane.

Another thing may lie in simple good genes.

How would this poem work as lyrics in a song?

Kindness by Naomi Shihab Nye

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to mail letters and
purchase bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you every where
like a shadow or a friend.

that's beautiful, JL...

Has anyone heard any of the tracks from his latest album, Old Ideas? It's going to released at the end of the month.

They're streaming the album at NPR's All Song's Considered but I can't give it a listen because the system admins at work are blocking the streaming feature.
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/22/145340430/first-listen-leonard-cohen-old-ideas

I already read a glowing review in the Village Voice this week:
http://www.villagevoice.com/2012-01-25/music/sing-another-song-leonard-cohen/

No, I haven't heard it yet, tsar.
Didn't know there was a new album until your post.
Just listened to the title track.
Kinda wry & melancholy.
Gotta love Leonard!
Will read the review in a minute.
Thanks very much for posting this!

Yep. I agree with you there Lady Olga. Gotta love Sir Leonard!

I tried to listen to the song samples at the Amazon's MP3 store but they haven't put them up on the album page quite yet.

Seems so wrong (& so unfair!) that I can listen to it from your link, tsar, but you can't.
But soon, soon .....

I listened to it yesterday. Pretty good!