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The dvd is just wonderful. The sound quality on the cd is breathtaking.

Jarkko, I was wondering about these charts, where separate positions are shown for the cd and the dvd does the dvd standing relate to BluRay? As the cd and dvd are packaged together I cannot see how they can be separated. My brain cell is confused!

Evie B

to those who don't have this album yet, here's a chance to win cd + dvd :

on this tv-website http://achttv.avalon.brainlane.com/nl/w ... overzicht/, there's a contest that might let you win the cd&dvd, by answering the question :
which song is not on "Songs from the Road" ?
a Hallelujah
b Lover, Lover, Lover
c Blowtorch Your Daughter

they're showing a music special, next saturday, 2/10, 23.05h., local time on "acht tv", in belgium ;
also on sunday, 3/10, 9.55h & 19.15h

pe

"Songs from the Road" is such a treasure. I keep going back to it, hearing something new each time. Great credit is due to Ed Sanders in his unenviable task of choosing 12 only; he has done very well. I defy anyone not to be moved by Hallelujah at Coachella - despite all the exposure this song has got this is something special. For me, the vibrant version of Heart with no Companion is a special favourite. Less obvious choices like That don't make it Junk and Waiting for the Miracle earn their places too, and watching Leonard performing Avalanche I now understand why some Forum members long to hear it live - I was never particularly attracted to the studio version of it. In fact, great as the cd is with its lovely sound, it is the DVD that is the real gift; Leonard live, as we have seen and heard him for the last few years - we have been so lucky. There is a poignancy about the black-and-white slow motion laying down of the microfone at the end; we know this will not go on forever, but at least now "Live in London" and "Songs from the Road" record just how great it has been.

on this tv-website http://achttv.avalon.brainlane.com/nl/w ... overzicht/, there's a contest that might let you win the cd&dvd, by answering the question :
which song is not on "Songs from the Road" ?
a Hallelujah
b Lover, Lover, Lover
c Blowtorch Your Daughter

Thanks for this post, Pe.

Their question is quite funny. Also this sentence deserves translation:

"Wilt u een exemplaar voor niks krijgen? Weet u dan niet dat die sukkelaar uitgekleed is door zijn crapuul van een manager en alleen nog zijn famous blue raincoat overhoudt? Schaam u diep!" = Would you like to win a copy for free? Don't you know then the poor fellow got ripped off by his crapulous mangager and owns nothing more but a blue raincoat? You should be deeply ashamed!

Cheers,
Guy

Got it and I am enjoying it!

jarkko wrote:Below please find chart positions for various countries!

Australia:
DVD chart: # 1

What does that tell you
Maybe Leonard can also solve the original mystery of Hanging Rock when he comes here Seems nothing is impossible for him now!

Why is the version of Hallelujah on Songs From The Road so lifeless compared to the Live In London Version?

"The Partisan" has never been one of my favourite LC songs, but the version on SFTR is a masterpiece. The pace and sense of urgency and passion is tremendous, Javier Mas is truly amazing and Leonard's French sounds perfectly "French", i.e. as if he has smoked 20 Gauloises a day since he was 12
I just play it over and over.
Evie B

May have missed this but just got the DVD (in Ontario Canada) - there was no booklet inside?
Was there supposed to be?
If any one has it I would appreciate knowing what was said about the selection of Closing Time from London - I remember the show being very
upbeat and the audience clapping along very enthusiastically - but as I get older the memory gets hazy!

Hi stfa

Yes, there should be a booklet slotted into the cover. It gives information about each track and why it was picked. I can think of no reason why it would be any different to the European packaging. Also had a cellophane-type fish as a bit of fun but I don't think that was in the packs in some other countries. My cd/dvd was in a sealed polythene bag, was yours? If not, get back to the shop and ask for a replacement.

Evie B

Too bad that you didn't get a booklet. (I'd try to exchange your copy at the shop for a complete one.)

About the show: "Leonard loved being in Canada. It was no accident that the tour began there. On this performance in London, Ontario it is clear how much he is enjoying himself. Wherever we went in Canada the response was always the same - just wonderful - like a joyous homecoming over and over again."

Thanks very much to both of you - I am on my way Monday er make that Tuesday (Canadian Thanksgiving) to see what they will do.
Appreciate you taking the time to type that out neo.
Anyway the DVD is great - really captures some of the best moments and really interesting to see all the different types of venues and audiences.
Glad to see songs like "That Don't Make it Junk" were captured - that was a highlite for me of his early shows!
The documentary is excellent also. Generally I found the film sharper than the Live in London. Just makes one wonder how much more
outstanding footage is out there - wonder if any of it will see the light of day?

I love this album. I've been playing it over and over and the version of Lover Lover Lover is wonderful.

My review of the "Songs From The Road" Blu-ray. If you want to skip reading it, just go out and buy it immediately. Even if you already own the CD/DVD set, it's that good.


Leonard Cohen had not had a tour since the early 1990s, enjoying a retirement of sorts from the toil of public performances. Due to monetary issues not of his own doing, he struck back out on the road and performed over 150 dates during extended world touring in 2008 and 2009. Returning to rave reviews, attending one of the concerts was akin to a spiritual experience for many fans. Old in body but young in spirit, the 75-year-old singer's commitment to the shows seemed a parting gift to fans for a lifetime of devotion and admiration.

Did you get a chance to see him perform from the front rows on the world tour at a good venue? Fortunately I was able to attend several shows and enjoy the experience firsthand, but if you did not get the chance, do not despair. Watching this Blu-ray is as close a perfect document of the show as any concert I have seen in high-definition. A remarkably tasteful and restrained edit of various concert performances, twelve songs were picked to showcase on the BD for their power and intensity, which are exactly the same ones found on the CD and DVD package. Image quality is inconsistent from song to song, as each venue posed their own unique challenges for capturing to HD video. In conjunction with the magic of the music though, it fully captures what it was like to attend one of the shows from a premium seat. The intimate filming style zooms in on Cohen's face as he sings, allowing one to catch the slightest details. What brand of microphone he is using, or the fact that he had a very scruffy beard at the concert in Helsinki, Finland for The Partisan. Other angles fare less well in terms of resolution and clarity, but the camera rarely strays from the singer outside of the solo instrumentals.

The opening performance of Lover, Lover, Lover in Israel, under less than ideal shooting conditions, looks the worst of any song on the Blu-ray. For this performance alone the side-shots appear to be from standard-definition cameras. That proves distracting when the image goes soft with a significant drop in resolution. A curious choice it was chosen to open a disc highlighting the best possible video and audio fidelity. Though the rendition is sublime and the audio does sound incredible, as the two audio options given on the BD are phenomenal in quality. Outside of Hallelujah, taken from the performance at the outdoor Coachella Music Festival, the rest of the songs look more typical of a modern concert shot on HD video under controlled conditions. The artificial lighting does pose a slight challenge at times, leading to blown highlights and clipped whites in the picture. But the bulk of the songs demonstrate excellent depth and sharpness, amply creating the illusion of a window effect through your television display.

One audio option is a full 2-channel LPCM track at 24-bit/96kHz, while the other option is a 5.1 Dolby TrueHD soundtrack at 24-bit/96kHz. The sound was mastered by legendary mastering engineer Doug Sax, one of the most respected and acclaimed men in the business. The Blu-ray version is far superior in tonality, resolution and transparency in comparison to the sound from either the CD or the DVD, both of which I performed extensive comparisons in preparation for this review. Listening to the Blu-ray is like being at the concert, right at the soundboard with a good set of headphones plugged in. Hear the delicacy and rhythm of Javier Mas' 12-string guitar at work from the right side of the sound stage.

The main concert feature consist of twelve songs from eleven different venues, clocking in at just over 71-minutes. Sony Legacy wisely made the BD region-free and presents the video at the source resolution of 1080i, in its native aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The direct and up-close shots of Leonard Cohen performing, which predominate throughout the feature, were shot on a digital HDTV-camera which explains the resolution. The video is encoded in AVC on a BD-50, though the average video bitrate appears to have been negatively impacted by the audio bandwidth at times.

While no BDInfo scan is available at the present moment, an estimate close to 20 Mbps for the average video bitrate is reasonable based off my observations. Peaks rarely exceed the upper range of the twenties, to allow room for the impressive audio specifications. That does impact the picture quality on occasion, as hints of video noise and artifacting appear during the darker shots. The lack of fast movement on the screen, as the camera trains itself on either Leonard, or his backing singers and band members, precludes macroblocking in the image. Touches of digital video noise creeps into the frame, likely due to the cameras used for production.

Packaged in a standard Blu-ray case, the set also includes a fine booklet featuring extensive liner notes and production information with large photographs. The booklet is identical in content to the one included in the CD/DVD package, but formatted to a bigger size to fit the Blu-ray case. Leon Wieseltier, literary editor for The New Republic, in the liner notes writes an ode to Leonard Cohen and the tour simply titled, “The Art Of Wandering.” His descriptions are apt and timely observations, as he writes “The shows were unforgettable. I saw two of them. They were elegant, witty, warm, dark, and light. The love with which Cohen was met by his audiences was oceanic.” Another section is written by Edward Sanders, the producer and person responsible for picking out the twelve performances from the hundreds that were captured on tour. He deftly goes through the reasoning behind each choice in lucid and clear logic. Also included is a mysterious novelty, the Fortune Teller Fish. It is supposed to reveal your emotional state if you follow the directions provided. As they say, your mileage may vary with it.

One bonus feature is included, a short behind-the-scenes documentary called Backstage Sketch that runs slightly over 21-minutes. Created by Lorca Cohen, the daughter of Leonard Cohen, it was shot on the tour using a HD-camera that actually looks better than the main concert footage. Interviews with the band are the primary focus, though glimpses of other songs from the tour are teasingly included. It is encoded in AVC for the video and is also presented in 1080i, with a 2-channel PCM track at 16-bit/48kHz provided. One piece missing that feels conspicuous by its absence, is a direct interview with Cohen himself. Every band member and singer talks in Backstage Sketch except for Cohen. The documentary is still interesting and you do get to hear a decent amount of stories from the tour, from people like Sharon Robinson and the Webb sisters.

A superb audio presentation and good enough image make for a fantastic concert to relive on Blu-ray. Several of the songs sound better than ever, such as Heart With No Companion and Closing Time. Never have I heard a better version of Waiting For The Miracle. The performance of Closing Time is a raucous and rousing end to the proceedings. It would have been nice to hear a couple of more songs from the vast discography, as the main feature ends leaving you wanting more. Hopefully more material from the world tour is made available in such high quality as this disc in the future. If you are capable of playing Blu-ray discs, the CD/DVD set is a distinctly inferior option in both audio and video quality. Only on the BD can you hear the audio as it was meant to be heard from the original live recordings.

Subtitles available for Backstage Sketch:
English
Dutch
French
German
Italian
Spanish

Phantom Stranger,

Thank you for your wonderful, detailed, technical review. Much appreciated!

Best regards,
Mary