The Master Song

General discussion about Leonard Cohen's songs and albums
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lostsaint
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Location: Manchester, uk

The Master Song

Post by lostsaint »

For almost every night for the past few weeks I have been trying to absorb the meaning of the Master Song, one of L/C's earlier works.
I can gather that it tells of a kind of triology but in where does Leonard fit ?

Is he some kind of Slave to both the Master and the Woman?['And now you bring your prisoner Wine and Bread'?]

Was he once a Mentor to the 'Master' ['I taught him all that he knew']?

Was he the Lover of Both 'Master' and presumably 'The Woman'?['I taught him how he would long for me, no matter what you say or what you do']

Or Is he or has been The Master himself?

Any thoughts mush appreciated,
Failed Saint
Nicolas
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Post by Nicolas »

Hello Lostsaint,

I can only suggest you to read the analysis made by Judith Fitzgerald which stands on the http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com website
Click on Alanlysis and you will see it.
I, myself have wondered very long about the meaning of the song and really love it.

Regards
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lyndaim
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Agreeing

Post by lyndaim »

This is an amazing song and I have also wondered much about it.
Thanks for the link.
Zoe Martell
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Post by Zoe Martell »

I don't profess to know what LC means, but I've always read it a bit the way you describe -- a love triangle of sorts, wherein LC's woman runs off with another man (with his permission?), thus enslaving them all....and there is indeed a strong hint at male/male sexual intimacy here, too.

One of my very favorite of the early songs.

Calls up the same type of triangular dynamics to me as famous blue raincoat, a bit.... and also of the gypsy wife...
Now that my ladder's gone
I must lie down where all the ladders start
In the foul rag and bone shop of the heart

W.B. Yeats
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Partisan
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Post by Partisan »

By all means use the link, just remember some people cannot see the wood for the trees.

p.
Cohen Kid
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Post by Cohen Kid »

it changes, but Master Song must be my favourite Cohen piece, especially when that tremelo guitar starts :P
I wondered too about the meaning, but it's nice to read about it here :D
A sip of wine, a cigarette
And then it's time to go
I tidied up the kitchenette
I tuned the old banjo
-10 new songs, Boogie Street
Medusa0blongata
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Post by Medusa0blongata »

Look at the triad from Beautiful Losers...
IsaacOfTheNewts
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Re: The Master Song

Post by IsaacOfTheNewts »

I'm bringing up a very old thread, i know. But it deserves more discussion.

On a BBC radio broadcast in 1968, Cohen says this before he begins the Master Song:
"It's about the Trinity. Let's leave that to the scholars... it's about three people."

The Judy Fitzgerald link in the first post references this too.
I agree with PARTISAN'S post about overcritquing, though, and would rather draw out simpler conclusions than fitzgerald...

So, i assume Cohen means to reference the christian trinity (you know, the Lord, his son, the holy spirit?). What's interesting is who he refers to as the 'master', who as the master's disciple, and who as "I".
There are hints of there being a woman, etc, but those could be symbolic.

So, any takers? Who's who?

ps- samples of that bbc broadcast on this blog: captain's dead
IsaacOfTheNewts
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Re: The Master Song

Post by IsaacOfTheNewts »

Oh. There's already a topic in the POETRY AND NOVELS section. No need for the necro after all.
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=23694&start=15
John Etherington
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Re: The Master Song

Post by John Etherington »

For a discussion on other dimensions of "Master Song" see the other "Master Song" thread that I've just pulled-up to the top area of this section!
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remote1
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Re: The Master Song

Post by remote1 »

"We are so lightly here"
Eklectika
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Re: The Master Song

Post by Eklectika »

Heroin. Relisten to the song but with an open mind....whilst considering that the 3rd person, i.e. the master, is heroin. Makes perfect sense to me.
Dennis W
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Re: The Master Song

Post by Dennis W »

I remain unpersuaded by Judith Fitzgerald's interpretation. What tips me off she might be on the wrong track is in the first paragraph. She quotes Leonard Cohen saying "it's three people" and then proceeds to explore a notion the song might be about three selves.

A self is an aspect of a person as an identity also is an aspect of a person. These terms are interrelated, but they are not the same. I'll defer further discussion of "selves" until I'm interacting with someone who has a basic understanding of Self Theory as it is presented in the works of George Meade and Carl Rogers. I'll just say the use of the term "self" here is at best informal. At its worst, it changes what Cohen actually said and likely meant.

I believe when he said "it's about three people" he literally meant three people. Further, he suggests the work might be subject to academic interpretation. Granted he appeared unwilling to participate in that academic discussion, but he clearly implied one might exist.

I still suggest the three people are most sensibly, Emily Dickinson (who heard her master sing), William Blake (who described the animal and spiritual nature of humans similar to "an ape with angel glands"), and Leonard Cohen himself. In this light the poem/song is seen as the masterpiece that it is. The writer yearns for the romanticism so strongly prevalent in their day that he dreams of stealing the great and alluring Emily Dickinson away from the powerful and masterful William Blake.

In this it is but yearning and not bragging, boasting, or challenging. It simply is the poet's yearning for the skills of the masters. I believe he largely succeeded in that endeavor.
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