leonardcohenforum.com

Kush,
don't forget "Forever Young"....one of the most beautiful psalms of the 20th century. That's my opinion. What gets me is that Bob Dylan said it only took him a few minutes to write the song. How can this be possible?
Still speechless after all these years,
Andrew.

the genius of bob dylan is almost too much for me to wrap my head around. it's hard to believe that he is just one person.

there is nothing that "pisses me off" about leonard cohen's music. as a fan and admirer of his art i place my complete trust in his vision even if i, at first, cannot fully comprehend what he is attempting to uncover. as i stated earlier, the beauty of an artist like leonard cohen, bob dylan, etc..etc... is the communication of shared emotion that takes place between them and the listener, whether it be love, hate, confusion, understanding, despair, or joy...

Kush wrote:But yes I do appreciate songs like If It Be Your Will or Hallelujah not to mention Dylan's Every Grain of Sand.

i cannot agree more on these songs. AND forever young, which is my favorite birthday song i play to all my friends if there's a guitar near.

like i said, it's rarely or never in Cohen's work just the sort of 'spirituality' that i disslike, or simply don't get. it happens to appear in interviews and documentaries, though. not often, but i seem to notice it here and there. sometimes in other people's readings of his songs. this sort is best described by an example: Paulo Cohelo, Richard Bach and some work by Herman Hesse are the best known examples.

that sort of 'weekend Buddhism' is another. you know - the people who practise yoga or tai chi twice a week and bore you with their 'spiritual discoveries' every time you try to talk about something that is not soccer.

they all have easy ansvers to existential questions and everyday problems, but they still tend to be easily irritated and unsure of themselves.

jjjonathan lllivingstone ssseagull

The fact that he traded his guitar for a shit 80s synth really pisses me off

The only thing that pisses me off about LC is his laziness in terms of output. I mean, when you look at the "blackening pages" section, certainly there´s stuff enough for a couple of albums that would have fit somewhere between "The Future" and "Ten New Songs". I wasn´t interested in Cohen at the time of "The Future", but today, the mere thought that I would have to wait for the better part of a decade for Leonard´s next offering... Still, I hope even those pieces of poetry only accessible through LC Files shall live to see the light of day in a musical form.

Karri

Leonard gets paid for being himself, and I don't.

Well, I've never liked one song from Death of a Ladies Man, but I blame that on Phil Spector. And I guess I can blame Sharon Robinson because I really hate Ten New Songs to the point where I can't listen to it. In fact I've never made it through the album one whole time. And my heart sank when I read that she's heavily involved in Dear Heather. I guess I'm the odd person out here, but I think her melodies are awful and her production sounds like she's using a Casio. Why would this be? She's deeply respected in the music business, everyone seems to really appreciate her. What am I missing?

I love Leonard's 60s work with acoustic guitars and folk instruments, and I loved it when he added violins and went into a Gypsy/Eastern European direction. It's the kind of music that fills a hollow night. But this new album and the last one are painful for me to hear. His words deserve better than a drum machine. Think of "If It Be Your Will" and how profoundly simple and beautiful that is. What's happened to that?

Anastasia

I would vote for the entire Death of a Ladies' Man, which I have yet to listen to in its entirety.

And Greensleeves, which he scrheeeeeeches most gratingly on.

I, also, am somewhat ticked at Leonard's apparent "laziness" in terms of output. Naturally, I would like to see him scribbling away 24/7, however, quality is often sacrificed for quantity. I haven't heard Dear Heather in its entirety, but I didn't care much for 10 New Songs. The songs I have heard from Dear Heather lead me to believe that I might not like this one as much as his earlier material but my opinion is just one of many. I think Leonard knows when he has enough for an album. I think he knows when he's emotionally ready. Not to mention he does seem to have a pretty full life. He has no obligation to continue recording (record company contracts aside).

I hate to say it, but I like the old Leonard. I do like his newer stuff, no question. But I have to say, I miss those gems. When we talk about favourites, they are usually from older albums. So, if Leonard doesn't feel that he has enough quality product for a CD, I would rather he didn't record as I hate it when someone dries up but continues to record. At least Leonard can write. Must be tough for J.D. Salinger fans.

Just reading down this thread and seeing "Forever Young" ~ my former husband plays blissfully exquisite guitar [lyrical finger-picking melodies] and has an emotion-laden basso profundo voice and heavenly whistling. When he's played and sung for family's and friend's weddings, he does "Forever Young." That and "The Wedding Song" ~ stunning treatment of both. Once anyone hears him do them, they want him to do them at theirs.

Anastasia, you certainly are not the odd one out. I think Leonard should trust himself when it comes to melodies. Sharon Robinson writes the most pedestrian, the blandest "tunes" ever. L.Cs involvement with such inferior talents is on a par with Dylan's dalliance with Dave Stewart, Arthur Baker and the egregious Mark Knopfler in his lost decade the 1980s.

I have to agree. I do not think Sharon Robinson has been good for LC.* But it's his world and I have to live in it.

*with the exception of Everybody Knows and Waiting for the Miracle.

I loved that laugh on First We Take Manhatten when I was 10 years old. It used to crack me up. I understand though what you mean by 80s tackiness. The first time I heard that laugh, it made me think of Vincent Price's laugh at the end of Michael Jackson's Thriller, which came out 6 years before First We Take Manhatten. There is also a lot of laughing on Madonna's Angel.

Tom, I'm really sorry you like 'Be For Real' so much as to have had the Future named after it, but it isn't Leonard's song. If you recall at the end of the song he says "thanks for the song Mr. Knight" - a musician on the CD.