Good news! Leonard Cohen made $9.5 million last year. Poor guy needed the cash. @4:00 PM 3
"Watching performances of 'Hallelujah' by people who aren’t Cohen—whose original take has an archness that’s wiped away by the clear-eyed sincerity offered up by his successors—you see one common thread: each singer really feels the song, closing their eyes at least once in every performance to properly communicate that what they are singing is Serious Business." @10:40 AM 23
For obscure historical reasons plenty of people have asked me what I thought about Justin Timberlake's cover of the Leonard Cohen standard "Hallelujah" during that Haiti telethon the other night. And, you know, whatever, at this point there's nothing that could be done to that song that would surprise—or, probably, interest—me. What DOES interest me today is an assessment of Leonard Cohen written by "an octogenarian who still considers Dylan's 'Blowin' in the Wind' and Baez's 'Diamonds and Rust' to be two of the greatest folk songs ever written." He appears not to be a fan. 58
Leonard Cohen, "That Other Blues Song" @9:50 AM
Here's Leonard Cohen debuting a new tune, provisionally referred to as "That Other Blues Song," in Chicago last week. If you're a fan—and if not, bite me—you should watch this before it gets yanked. (You can find the debut of another new one here, but it seems like it might have been yanked.) Enjoy. 4
On Leonard Cohen @4:15 PM
"Cohen's lyrics stand up in a variety of settings, and his limited vocal range tends to leave his melodies unfinished, allowing room for experimentation. On Buckley's version of 'Hallelujah,' for instance, the verse melodies ascend, and the open-throated singing transforms the chorus into a kind of earnest incantation that the songwriter probably wouldn't attempt himself. Cohen may sing about transcendence, but he seems never to fully endorse it."
Slightly late on this one, but Sasha Frere-Jones has a nice appreciation of Leonard Cohen over at the New Yorker. 3
Leonard Cohen As Tired Of "Hallelujah" Montages As Everyone Else @2:12 PM
"I was just reading a review of a movie called Watchmen that uses it, and the reviewer said 'Can we please have a moratorium on Hallelujah in movies and television shows?' And I kind of feel the same way. I think it's a good song, but I think too many people sing it."
Great interview with Leonard Cohen in the Guardian; check it out. 9
Musical Notes From All Over @10:06 AM
Palestinian Leonard Cohen fans can catch the singer on September 26th, when his world tour makes a stop in the West Bank city of Ramallah following a show in Israel two days prior. 2
Of chords, sacred and otherwise @11:28 AM
Here's Leonard Cohen singing "Hallelujah" at Coachella this weekend. You know why. 8
