What other music do you like?

General discussion about Leonard Cohen's songs and albums
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

and anything with a violin...
Raffi Hagopian ~ "Enchanting Violin Music" ~ Wonderfully Melodic and Great
Raffi Hakopian ~ "Gypsy Fever with Eva" ~ Good, but Unexpectedly 'Hollywood'
Venga Navidad ~ "Gypsy Flamenco" ~ Roots-Rich and Transcendental-Awesome
Epurcelly
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Post by Epurcelly »

Thanks Liz,
Venga Navidad is a great name! :D
I wish that was my name. I'll download some stuff (shame on me) and let you know...
ep
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

Yes, I think that's the 'group' name [maybe :? ]....though by the music, you'd think it was the name of a particular 'band of gypsies.' As it was recorded for 8) me [thank you, Ania :D ], I have no idea and know nothing other than its being incredible music! It sounds like someone took microphones into the middle of a gypsy gathering, in the night, and put it all on an official recording later. I don't say microphones to suggest lack of quality, but rather to speak to its authenticity. One song [Track #5] grabs me by the solar plexus and doesn't let go until after it ends. Very visceral, all of it.
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

Linmag and Margaret [and anyone else, who may be interested] ~

Dang! You're sure getting a lot more opportunities than I had! After England, he returns to the States for more performances, but none anywhere near me :( . In answering someone's question, he said he decides his 'playlist' shortly before the show, and that with playing approximately 8 songs, out of approximately 200 songs to choose from, two shows are, literally, never the same. Even though 8 isn't many, his show is still well worth it. His playfulness and segues are wonderful, and the content of the songs excellent. Any formal recordings should, rightfully, include his segues, but I know that's highly unlikely. Just remember that he will come back for encores :D .

April 1, 2004 Redwood City, CA Little Fox -

May 5, 2004 Aylesbury, England Aylesbury Civic Center Box Office 01296 486009
Purchase tickets online at
http://www.aylesburycivic.co.uk
Tickets £14.50

May 6, 2004 Gwent, England Ebbw Vale Beaufort Theatre Box office 01495 350360
Box seats - £17.50

May 7, 2004 Sheffield, England Memorial Hall -

May 9, 2004 Glasgow, Scotland The Renfrew Ferry Box office - 01698 265 511
Tickets - £16.50

May 11, 2004 South Shields, England The Customs House -

May 14, 2004 Liverpool, England The Philharmonic Hall Box Office 0151 709 3789
http://www.liverpoolphil.com
Box seats - £18.50, all other seats £14.40

May 15, 2004 Coventry, England Warwick Arts Center Box Office 024 7652 4524
http://www.warwickartscentre.co.uk
Tickete £15.50 - On sale March 5

May 16, 2004 Cardiff, Wales St. Davids Hall Box Office 029 2087 8444
Patrons may book online at
http://www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk
Tickets £12.50

May 17, 2004 Leeds, England City Varities -

May 19, 2004 Wolverhampton, England The Robin 2 Box Office 01902 401211
http://www.therobin.co.uk
Tickets £14.00 in advance, £15.00 at the door

May 22, 2004 Huddersfield, England The Huddersfield Drome Box Office 01484 222444
(Normal office hours)
http://www.picturedrome.net
Tickets £15.00

May 23, 2004 Manchester, England The Lowry Box Office - 0870 787 5783
All seats £15 - show starts at 7:30pm

May 25, 2004 Worcester, England Huntington Hall Box Office - 01905 611 427
All seats £16

May 26, 2004 Milton Keynes, England The Stables Box Office - 01908 280 800
Tickets £19.50 - £17.50

May 27, 2004 Croydon, England Croydon Ashcroft Theatre Box Office - 020 8688 9291
Tickets £17.50 - £15.50

May 29, 2004 London, England Queen Elizabeth Hall Box Office 020 7960 4242
24-Hour Ticket Hotline 0870 735 5000
http://www.bookingsdirect.com
Tickets £22.50, £18.50 in advance

May 30, 2004 Southampton, England The Brook Box office 023 8055 5366

June 1, 2004 London, England Bloomsbury Theatre
15 Gordon St. Box office 020 7338 8822
http://www.thebloomsbury.com


Love,
Elizabeth

[Too bad we can't be doing this for Leonard's performance schedule :cry: .]
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margaret
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Post by margaret »

Thanks Elizabeth, I'll be booking tickets for his appearance in Liverpool! :D
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

You're welcome, Margaret :D ! I'm happy for you, and wish I could be there! If I were, though, I'd be making sure to take in more than one [since I'm so used to driving distances :wink: ], so as to personally hear more of his songs. Anyone with any interest, at all, in history should find him very pleasurable. I hope he sings the one about Joseph Stalin [Joe from Georgia is how he refers to him ~ not sure if that's the title, of course] ~ he calls it a 'dance song.' You actually could dance to it, very easily, and it'd be fun. He played one, what he called 'seduction song' ~ "the only one of the evening, so you better take advantage of it. So, touch the leg of the person sitting next to you ~ preferably, one you don't know." If his return engagements here weren't so dang far [many states] away, I'd definitely be going again within a few months.

The humourous upshot of my Saturday night/early Sunday AM trip was that yesterday [my car not having been touched or even looked at since my 3:00 AM return on Sunday], when I went to drive, I realized that the bumpiness as I tried to back out was due to a right-front, flat tire. So, that means, at any point between 11 PM and 3 AM, I could have been stranded along deserted and/or rural roads........someone was watching out for me, and wanted me to at least live to tell about having seen him :wink: . The areas aren't really such good ones for being in a vulnerable position.

I'm certain you'll enjoy him........ 8) :D His humour will probably be more tailored to Brits. Don't know if he'll mention Rock 'n' Roll, or burst into the beginnings of some of that genre's songs, as much as he did here, and talk about being born either 10 years too late [where the simplicity of the Ricky Nelson type songs ~ oo wah, oo oo wah uh; doo wah ditty ditty ~ took him straight to the bank] or 10 years too early [where the disco songs had all the multiple repetitions of beat, strung together by words]; but instead, he was born alongside Bob Dylan, and the number and content of the words of one song were more than all the others put together. This was used as a segue leading into a song, whose first line must have at least 15 words in it, if not more :wink: .

His onstage personae is so personable, clever, and appealing 8) . His performances have a real spontaneous air about them. I hope you can see him in a small[er]-type venue. He's just so delightful! He's subtly so and very sweet with it. I'm very glad you're going! Enjoy :D !!!

~ Elizabeth
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linmag
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Post by linmag »

Thanks, Elizabeth. Worcester looks about the nearest to us.
Linda

1972: Leeds, 2008: Manchester, Lyon, London O2, 2009: Wet Weybridge, 2012: Hop Farm/Wembley Arena
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

You're welcome, Linmag ~ I'm really hoping for a small venue for you. I sure wish I had as many options to choose from. There was one Florida visit, and that was it. Though I did overhear someone ask about his perhaps returning to South Florida at some point. He sounded agreeable. I sure wish I was going with you :( . I love the substantive, historical nature of his songs 8) , and his gentle, subtle humour :) :D :lol:
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linmag
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Post by linmag »

The Worcester date turned out to be really inconvenient, so I have just booked for Sunday May 16th in Cardiff. Will we see any of the welsh contingent there? He has a really nice website at http://www.alstewart.com/

That's two weekends in May that I'm really looking forward to now :)
Linda

1972: Leeds, 2008: Manchester, Lyon, London O2, 2009: Wet Weybridge, 2012: Hop Farm/Wembley Arena
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Kush
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Post by Kush »

Butch Hancock is the greatest American songwriter and I'll stand on Steve Earle's coffee table in my Dallas Cowboys shirt......just kidding!! :)
But Hancock's up there with the very best of them - I like to hear all the original voices be they icons and rockstars (Dylan, Springsteen) or those who barely make a ripple on the club circuit (Hancock) or those in between (Cohen). It's the luck of the draw. Hancock's been decribed as a West Texas mystic equally adept at romantic border balladry and Zen paradox. His songs have also been describes as "when nonsense takes on higher sense" Here's two different types of lyrics:

(From 1981: A Spare Odyssey)

In the Gulf of Mexico
Exxon and Texaco
And all the big boys
Are sucking oil.
Just to build some avenue
So internal revenue
Can bleed you till you boil
But the All-American town
Is about all that’s going down
Who sleeps with who and why and where
Though the city dreams
While self-pity screams
The sweet lady of liberty
Sleeps alone.
Now the feds came filin' in
To stop the violence
From playing a dirge
For the dying dove.
And the President’s motorcade
Took a turn the voter made
Its inside out now
Below is above.
So now the preacher
He wants your money
And the banker
Wants your soul
But when your conscience
Turns to nonsense
Will you remember
Where you lost control
Now the wheels I'm ridin’ in
And the hills I’m hidin’ in
They all run me back to town
But I wear my working pants
When I ride with circumstance
You got to be ready
For when the deal goes down
I’ve talked with Mother Space
And I’ve talked to Father Time
You can’t tell my time from His
But the rule is general
And every interval
Has that little island
No man is.


(From Banks of Guadalupe)

We slept like time itself under diamond skies
Far from the bright lights and the city's lies
Our love arose like a morning dream
And it was washed in the rippling waters of a rambling stream.

Well the mountain dreams of a blanket of snow
And the wild wind dreams of directions it might go
But the river's dream is a dream of love
And the dream of sweet reflections from above.

Down by the banks of the river of change
We watched the waters running from the wishes of the mountain range
And the stars and the wildwood played the season's theme
And it was washed in the rippling waters of a rambling stream.
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

I really like them both, Kush.....each for their own reasons, which most likely are the same as why you chose these particular two.
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Kush
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Post by Kush »

Well they were two very different types of songs IMO so I picked them for the versatility :)
If you'd like I can send you a collection of Texas songwriters - the Big Four as I call them - Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Tom Russell and Butch Hancock.
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lizzytysh
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Post by lizzytysh »

Hi Kush ~

Their well-executed versatility was how I saw your reasoning....not so much their politics. The love one....well, who can be against love? The other....well, clearly one that I identify with.

That'd be great...not that I'm not already hearing enough from Texas at the moment :wink: , but the music will be far more palatable. Thanks! Shall I look for any 'Texan' similarities in style? I've really only heard of Townes.

~ Elizabeth
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Kush
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Post by Kush »

I tend to see things more in grey....there's been too many contradictions -in my own life and in the world around for me to see things black & white.
It's not that I disagree with the socio-politics of the first one, I do identify with it to some extent but i don't take it as gospel. he is a singer-songwriter (and an architect and a river guide) and I am a professional. Our worlds are different in many respects. Our worlds collide when I hear the music and I really appreciate it in those moments and then I go about my business. :)
Epurcelly
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Post by Epurcelly »

[the Big Four as I call them - Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, Tom Russell and Butch Hancock

Guy Clark is one of my favorite songwriters. Haven't heard of Tom Russell...
ep
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