Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

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merton
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Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by merton »

Hi,
The above article has just been released In the March issue of Crosscurrents, Vol.65, Issue 1. The writer is Mary Anne O'Neil. Below is an abstract and author details.
Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible
Mary Anne O'Neil
first published: March 2015Full publication history
Although Leonard Cohen only recently achieved rock star status, two of his most popular works, “Suzanne” and “Hallelujah,” achieved fame years before their composer. Both are inspired by the Bible, an influence Cohen readily avows. In a 1993 interview entitled “I am the little Jew who wrote the Bible,” he says, “at our best, we inhabit a biblical landscape, and this is where we should situate ourselves without apology….That biblical landscape is our urgent invitation…Otherwise, it's really not worth saving or manifesting or redeeming or anything, unless we really take up that invitation to walk into that biblical landscape.” His faith has left a mark on his songs not always fully recognized by a secular audience that might be more interested in the rhythm of the music or the octogenarian Cohen's energetic performance style. But if we discount the central place the Bible plays in his art, we also miss the connections between Cohen and earlier European artists who, from the Middle Ages through the twentieth century, used poetry and song to praise and express the soul's longing for God.

Mary Anne O'Neil is professor emeritus of foreign languages and literatures at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington. In 2012, she published From Babel to Pentecost. The Poetry of Pierre Emmanuel with McGill-Queens University Press. In this book, she analyzes the poetic opus of one of France's most important religious poets of the twentieth century. Emmanuel wrote epics based on biblical themes as well as shorter poetry that recalls the English Metaphysical poetry of the late Renaissance in its theological concerns and intellectual density. Her interest in the symbolism of the Bible and the allusions to this symbolism in Western literature from the middle ages to the twentieth century led her to study Leonard Cohen as a poet who transmits the devotional tradition in popular song to a contemporary audience



All the best,
merton
merton
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by merton »

Hi,

This article is currently freely available online at:
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 12112/epdf

All the best,
merton
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WiTS
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by WiTS »

the link is closed. :cry:
anyone saved a pdf?
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HugoD
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by HugoD »

WiTS wrote: Fri Nov 02, 2018 11:55 am the link is closed. :cry:
anyone saved a pdf?
If I click on the link it still works. it can not be downloaded as a pdf, but it can be downloaded as an image.
Lille 2010, Dublin 2012, Mannheim 2013, Rotterdam 2013, Montréal 2017
Happiness is just the side effect of a meaningful life.
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WiTS
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by WiTS »

HugoD wrote: Fri Nov 02, 2018 12:58 pm
WiTS wrote: Fri Nov 02, 2018 11:55 am the link is closed. :cry:
anyone saved a pdf?
If I click on the link it still works. it can not be downloaded as a pdf, but it can be downloaded as an image.
Thanks Hugo.

I've tried again (registered and signed in) but Wiley Online Library still shows me the first page of this article. I've tried clicking 'read full text' but all I can access is just the first page.

I guess I may need an academic/institutional account to access the full article? :cry:
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2008-06-29 Pyramid Stage, Glastonbury Festival; 2008-07-17 O2 Arena, London
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HugoD
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by HugoD »

I was a bit to fast to say that the article was still available (for free). It is still available but you have to pay for it. USD 36,-- (!) to have the pdf file which is a alarming high price The other way is to “rent” the article for 6 USD for 48 hours, you can only read it online and not print or copy the article. And, as you said, you probably have to register for it.
If someone has the article I to would love the read it!
Lille 2010, Dublin 2012, Mannheim 2013, Rotterdam 2013, Montréal 2017
Happiness is just the side effect of a meaningful life.
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HugoD
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by HugoD »

Big thanks to Merton for making the pdf available for the forum members. It can be downloaded here : https://1drv.ms/b/s!AiwTxPslIr0hirFCgOAZu-Wn31l07Q
Lille 2010, Dublin 2012, Mannheim 2013, Rotterdam 2013, Montréal 2017
Happiness is just the side effect of a meaningful life.
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Mabeanie1
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by Mabeanie1 »

That's a big thanks from me too. Really appreciate it Merton.

Wendy
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LisaLCFan
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by LisaLCFan »

Interesting article, but it would have been nice had the author been able to correctly identify the albums from which certain songs originated (there are numerous errors on page 97, and why cite a Jennifer Warnes album for one of them when Leonard recorded the song himself?).

Thanks, nonetheless, for providing it to us!
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WiTS
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by WiTS »

Thanks for the pdf, Merton
Thanks for uploading, Hugo
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Squidgy
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by Squidgy »

Merton: Thanks for posting, though I can't access it either. But the very suggestion that the Bible--gasp!--might be the greatest influence on the greatest poetry and literature and music in western civilization ..!...these days elicits, at best, bewilderment, and at worst, outrage. I can't help remembering with a smile the old Leonard Cohen newsgroup, when, during discussions of songs like Hallelujah and The Future invariably some nameless, long-suffering lurker would clear his throat and pipe up to inquire, earnestly, "Who, exactly, was this David guy?" or to insist that Leonard himself is "the Lord of song" so he's standing before a mirror serenading himself.
The best one, though, was "Why does Leonard choose between a person and a city? Comparing St. Paul, Minnesota with Stalin-- I just don't get that."
Anyhoo, just random thoughts & disjointed (seriously, I need a doobie in the worst way) memories. Carry on!
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lizzytysh
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Re: Leonard Cohen, Singer of the Bible

Post by lizzytysh »

It took forever to get there. Microsoft took me into an alternative universe, but I can now at least see the text. Interesting that the writer sees the lyrics about You know that you can trust him / For he's touched your perfect body with his mind, as being Leonard talking about following Jesus, something I've never seen him inclined to do. I've always seen those lyrics as ones of reciprocity of trust between Leonard and Suzanne, with him speaking 'for her' in these lyrics.
Gotta get some sleep now. Will finish her perspective on Suzanne, and then go on to Hallelujah.
"Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken."
~ Oscar Wilde
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