http://www.the-numbers.com/movies/2006/LCIYM.php


Don't laugh. I grew up on his albums, own seven of his cd's, and have listened to him for more combined hours than any other musician. He has the best lyrics, and has written a couple books. One of them, Beautiful Losers, I even read. He's a total self entitled Montreal mysogenist intellectual, and I love him.

I can't believe they are doing a documentary about him. I will be waiting two hours before the doors unlock for the first screening to see this.

I will feed this page with album reviews, favorite lyrics, urban myths, everything.



<center>**The Wonderful Trailer!**</center>

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Early love! 100% ! http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1000584 ... _your_man/

"A funny, frank and incisive look at the philosophical singer and poet." - Shlomo Schwartzberg, BOXOFFICE MAGAZINE

An affectionate and intimate celebration of the acclaimed troubadour in stirring music and words. - Michael Rechtshaffen, Hollywood Reporter

"Cohen's songs have always had a epic quality ('Anthem' for the most obvious), and going in I couldn't imagine there being any way to elevate them higher... but the film does." - Mark Bell, FILM THREAT</center>

This is going to be THE Musician Doc of my life.

In celebration I am going to talk about each album I have of his and haggle poor Eagle to upload some of my favorite songs to post in this thread.

My love for Mr. Cohen: Part I

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Songs of Leonard Cohen: 1968

1. Suzanne
2. Master Song
3. Winter Lady
4. The Stranger Song
5. Sisters Of Mercy
6. So Long, Marianne
7. Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye
8. Stories Of The Street
9. Teachers
10. One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong



Songs of Leonard Cohen is one of Three records my parents had when I was growing up, so I heard it over and over and over and over and over again. I loved it. I would choreograph dance routines to it in our living room. It was one of the first five CDs I went out and purchased my senior year in high school before going off to college. Suzanne is by far the most famous song, and Cohen writes about it often. Apparently he doesn't own the copyright on it. He heard sailors singing it on the Caspian Sea some years after its release...or something like that. :-) Peter Gabriel did a cover for it decades later when a group of artists produced Tower of Song: Songs of Leonard Cohen in homage to him. Other artists included Sting, Tori Amos, Bono, Suzanne Vega, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Elton John, Aaron Neville Jann Arden, Martin Gore, Trisha Yearwood and Don Henley. See. Everyone loves him! Sisters of Mercy, from this album, is also covered in that album.

My favorite songs are Suzanne, Stories of the Street, The Stranger Song, and Hey, That's no way to say Goodbye.

So I went on a short trip with my parents this weekend, and we listened to Leonard Coeh the whole way back. :-) My mom three-peated I'm Your Man, and I got Halleluja in twice before we made it home. But that's still awhile down the album road. Up next, Songs from a Room, Cohen's second album, and another oe of the good 'ol vinyls I grew up on. Bird on a Wire is probably the most famous, but its not my favorite. My two favorites are A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes and The Old Revoultion.

I have a weakness for Lady Midnight too, which I might a painting of in high school. My first ever use of acrylic. It wasn't very good. It was a woman's face half in light blue and half in dark blue with blood red lips (yeah...real creative, I know).

Everyone, there are alot of samples of all these songs on the internet, so check them out and I'll try to upload some of them to link to this thread one of these days.

1969
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1. Bird On The Wire
2. Story Of Issac
3. A Bunch Of Lonesome Heroes
4. The Partisan
5. Seems So Long Ago, Nancy
6. The Old Revolution
7. The Butcher
8. You Know Who I Am
9. Lady Midnight
10. Tonight Will Be Fine

Next up on my little list here, and the last of the three records I listened to growing up on my parents turntable: The Best of Leonard Cohen.
His first Best of (he's had a couple more) is the album I would recommend anyone get who doesn't know him and wants a brief introduction.

1975
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1. Suzanne
2. Sisters Of Mercy
3. So Long, Marianne
4. Bird On The Wire
5. Lady Midnight
6. The Partisan
7. Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye
8. Famous Blue Raincoat
9. Last Year's Man
10. Chelsea Hotel No. 2
11. Who By Fire
12. Take This Longing


Yes, you might notice Cohen dedicates half his songs to tortured self-destructive enigmatic ladies, but that's half the reason i like him (oddly). The newest additions out side of my faves from his past albums, are Chelsea Hotel No.2 which urban myth whispers had a bit to do with Janis Joplin, and my complete favorite Take This Longing. Of all his older songs, its probably my favorite; even more than Suzanne. Its seriously a very sexy song, even though its miserable. I always had this feeling of Cohen singing it to a woman's backside, when she's on the other side of the room but is vaguely aware he is there.

I did my first etching, conveniently on bathroom paper towel, to my vision of Chelsea Hotel's ruined room in the morning. I still don't know if its upscale or delapitated but I always envisioned it as being a room that is a bit small and cluttered.

Famous Blue Raincoat is good too. In fact, its all good, though Who By Fire is just a little more blunt and less creative than his other songs (lyrically that is).

I had an orgasm when I saw this was coming out. Cohen has written so many great songs, it amazes how many people don't realize songs they love were actually written by him.

This is the year of the musician doc.

What's one to do.

Cohen rules! I hope I get to see this at some point.

Chelsea Hotel No. 2 is an awesome song! I especially love it for the last verse - like he suddenly realises he's opened up and quickly builds a macho wall again

Meh. Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah is a extraordinarily beautiful song.

Yeah, it is. I had no idea Cohen did it, too. I knew Buckley's version was a cover of some sort, but I didn't know it was from Cohen. Is it?

But yeah, Buckley's version is one of my top five favorite songs of all time.

Yup, Cohen originally

IMHO, he gets better too

That's all. I don't think of you that often.



I love the Cohen version. Is that what you meant by "he" gets better? Cohen does the best version of it. You guys should try to find somewhere to listen to it online. But I haven't reached that CD I own yet.

*ahem*
1977
<center>Death of a Ladies Man</center>
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1. True Love Leaves No Traces
2. Iodine
3. Paper thin Hotel
4. Memories Listen
5. I Left A Woman Waiting
6. Don't Go Home With Your Hard-On
7. Fingerprints
8. Death Of A Ladies Man

Seriously, a very overlooked album. But to be taken with a grain of salt. He collaborated with Phil Specter, and som of the songs, including Don't Go Home With Your Hard-On (a guilt pleasure of mine) has that wall-of-sound Specter feel. But Cohen doesn't let it become to generic. He manages to make that "wall" sound an awful lot like bawdy drunks in a tavern.

There's also some remarkably soft and "quiet" songs here, including I Left a Woman Waiting, which is a small gem. The album changes up the typical amount of Cohen's voice vs. background instruments and vocals. His earlier work is usually driven by the man's crooning (and tortured voice box) and now there's a huge campy aspect as the music gets all loud and jolly and there is women's vocal accompanyment throughout. The entire album sounds like it was recorded in someones basement, or a barroom, which makes it a bit more raunchy.

An interesting turn for Cohen, and it would leave it mark, as all his later songs including I'm Your Man, Everybody Knows, Hallelujah, etc all have "bigger bands" supporting him, and alot more background vocals. So this album is like a turning point that can't decide if it wants to go big or settle for the soft wailing and guitar of the early seventies.

I agree his version is the best, but what I mean is I don't think it is his best song (though I don't have a comprehensive knowledge by any means ). It is very pretty, but there's not really a great deal to it and I couldn't listen to it a lot without getting fed up of it.



Hmm you've inspired me to go buy an album Dolce - I like the sound of songs from a room and death of a ladies man, any advice between the two?

Really depends on what you like. They're very different. One still has that early folk-y feel to it. A man and his guitar. The second is more "big band," and a little less musically complicated, but a bit faster. If you really don't have any album of his and where going to get one, I would recommend starting with his first greatest hits, actually. Its a great selection. Plus its got your Chelsea Hotel on it.

I will try to have Eagle link up some songs for me before this movie actually hits theatres, so you can hear them and pick and choose.

OKAY GUYS! HERE'S THE MUSIC!

<center>Songs of Leonard Cohen

Suzanne
Master Song
Stories of the Street


Songs from a Room

A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes
The Old Revolution


Best of Leonard Cohen

So Long Marianne
Chelsea Hotel No.2
Take this Longing


Death of a Ladies Man

I Left a Woman Waiting
http://www.worldofkj.com/Pictures/Eagle ... ard-On.m4a <------Don't Go Home With Your Hard-On (You will have to copy and paste the link due to punctuation)


More Best of Leonard Cohen

Everybody Knows
http://www.worldofkj.com/Pictures/Eagle ... ourMan.m4a <-------I'm Your Man (You will need to copy and paste the link due to punctuation)
Hallelujah</center>


These are a selection of favorites from each album I own. :-) Please enjoy and feel free to comments on the ones that you love or dislike (Impossible as that may sound), and let me know how much more excited you now are for this documentary.

Those links sort of destroy my computer. Crrrrrash.

What do you mean? They work ok for me. They are m4a, which is itunes. Is there a way I can make them easier to access? I want to make sure everyone can hear Cohen's genius. Is everyone else having trouble too? It should let you open or save them.

Oh, I have itunes... but no dice. I don't get the open or save option, this is a Mac.

I tried to understand the genius, but you failed me, dolce.

I'll try again or just find links elsewhere.....

Oh, I've heard Suzanne before. Great song!

Dolce choreographing moves to Suzanne? *writes this down quickly*

One day, when you're good and old and I'm hot rich stuff making movies like mad, wait and see a scene with ^^ that playing.

I'm guided by a signal in the heavens
I'm guided by this birthmark on my skin
I'm guided by the beauty of our weapons
First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin

Aaaaaaaaand, the last CD I own with the exception of his Ten New Songs which I purchased and then dumped (Hey, everyone has to make a couple erorrs in their lives).

<center>More Best of Leonard Cohen, 1997</center>

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Some of the songs included here are probably those with his widest reach due to their inclusion in films. Everybody Knows was in Atom Egoyan's Exotica, I'm Your Man was in Secretary and Hallelujah just seems to be the song everyone here as already hear.

I also really like Dance Me To The End of Love. In fact, the whole collection is pretty good, and indicates his continued creativity, activity, and ability to change. The lyrics have become a bit more sarcastic at times, and these songs have a much stronger background compared to his upfront vocals. Democracy (is coming to the USA) is pretty mean (in a good way), and there's a great live version fo Suzanne on it.

1. Everybody Knows
2. I'm Your Man
3. Take This Waltz
4. Tower Of Song
5. Anthem
6. Democracy
7. The Future
8. Closing Time
9. Dance Me To The End Of Love
10. Suzanne
11. Hallelujah
12. Never Any Good
13. The Great Event



I like it, and the last three songs I included are from here. You can sense the changes. Less one-man accoustic guitar and more inclsion of eerie sounding instruments which I'm guessing are synthesizers and maybe keyboards?

Hm. I will give it another go, but, initially, I would have to call the "Essential Leonard Cohen [CD1]" boring as cluff.

And I prefer pretty much every cover of Hallelujah I've heard (Jeff Buckley, Allison Crowe, Rufus Wainwright, John Cale, Gavin DeGraw, Bono - What can I say, big fan of covers :O) to the Cohen version on this disc.

Regardless, that must mean you find him to be an interesting song writer, no? A good mind if not a great voice?

Yes, the version of Hallelujah I linked in this thread is different than the clip I heard on Amazon from essential. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Anyways, onto the fabulous lyrics, his poetry, and novels. I've only read Beautiful Losers By him.

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Um, it was interesting to say the least. I don't think I'll read it a second time, but it was very revealing of his thought process. I don't know how else to explain it. Very rough around the edges, but I guess when you read it you see what would be the beginning steps of his lyrics. His lyrics are much more polished and seamless, so you don't catch how he forces language and imagery to ellide. In the book....you do.

Let it also be noted that this man is a great poet

Have you read any of his poems Box?

Here is a brief compilation of his other works if anyone is interested.

Book of Longing

Stranger Music : Selected Poems and Songs

Book of Mercy

Leonard Cohen Anthology

Dance Me To The End of Love


The Favourite Game


Cohen: Selected Poems