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I just have to say I am so in love with these new songs & I'm feeling a lot like Cate, with her post about feeling like a teenager. I can't wait to take a long drive through the desert with just the company of the new album. There's some bittersweetness about it all, though, you know? I'm reluctant to elaborate on that bittersweet stuff cause I don't want to be a downer. It's just a little sad watching Leonard get older, getting to see some of the letting go.

I wasn't going to listen to this song before I got the album but I decided to give it one play today, as a friend in France thoughtfully sent me a link. As Abby suggests, there is a sadness in hearing this early "farewell song" (maybe Leonard wanted to get the farewell album out of the way while he gets on with the next one!). I love the music on this and it may have a touch of Serge Gainsbourg about it, but I'll save my comments till later. This is probably my favourite of the three songs I've heard, but I'll wait and be carried along by the momentum of the album, as Leonard suggests. It originally seemed strange that "Born in Chains" wasn't on "Old Ideas", but since Leonard has been working on that since the Eighties, I guess he hasn't quite nailed it, and is saving it for the next album. If Sony preview any more songs, they could lose sales (especially since the first three are on youtube already!). Since I know "Crazy to Love You" from Anjani's album, I definitely want the other half a dozen songs to be fresh, when I get the album. What a difference to "Various Positions"...the first I knew about that was when I saw it in the window of a record shop in Central London!

Okay...I know I'm going to take a lot of flack for saying this, but here goes...

So far, I have been a bit unimpressed with "Old Ideas". I absolutely love, love, love the Darkness. I think, lyrically, it is right up there with ANY song Leonard has written. I've been listening to Show Me The Place at least once a day since it became available online. I don't know if it's because I find it to be almost too somber, or what, but it reminds me of something I would hear at a funeral home. Just yesterday I stumbled upon the link to hear Going Home. In my opinion, it is one of Leonard's weakest songs, lyrically. Please keep in mind that I personally believe Leonard is probably the best song writer in the history of music...I have a hard time believing that Leonard didn't write this song in 30 minutes. Having said that, we all know that Leonard puts a tremendous amount of thought into every single word when crafting a new song. Going Home doesn't feel like Leonard struggled to find these words. The man is a genius and this seems like a song that he could have just written off the top of his head, if you said "Hey Leonard...Invent a new song, right now, and write it down..." Moving on to Lullaby, the very first time I heard the song was from a YouTube video. To me, it doesn't feel like a Leonard Cohen masterpiece. I'm not saying that I feel every song he has written is a masterpiece, but even the songs that I don't particularly love from Dear Heather, I get the feeling that Leonard really crafted those lyrics as best as he could. On to Crazy To Love You...I'm not familiar with this track, but I do know that it has been released by Anjani and to me, that's a bit disappointing. The album contains 10 songs, and I would have liked to see all original work, considering this will probably be his final new studio album. I'm just praying that I enjoy the song.

So, I've already been critiquing four out of the 10 songs. I really hope the six songs that I haven't heard yet move me the way most of Leonard's albums do. Frankly, I still haven't been able to say that Dear Heather is a typical Leonard Cohen masterpiece. I am praying that Old Ideas ends up being a much more enjoyable album than Dear Heather, for me. Admittedly, albums and even songs tend to grow on me. When you absolutely love an artist, the way that I love Leonard Cohen, sometimes I probably unfairly expect too much from the man. When I think of the genius that is Songs of Leonard Cohen, Songs From a Room, Songs of Love and Hate, etc., I want every new album to be as insanely awesome as those. Again, perhaps in time I will warm to songs like Lullaby or Show Me The Way. For now, I have to be honest with myself and say what is on my mind...

Chris

Chris I agree with everything you've said. Darkness seems to be the odd track so far in that it is a solid song. As you said Going Home and Show Me aren't bad but they are lightweight songs. I just heard Banjo and I like it but again it seems very slight.

I have just hear the two new Songs (after the release of "Show me the Place" and "The Darkness" (both of them are just great; normally I do like Live-Versions more than Studio-Songs, but "The Darkness" - Studio - Version is great. Just a little bit faster, more "nuances" with the Instruments...). And I really do like "Going Home" and "Banjo". I am really looking foreward for the release of the CD. Can't hardly wait. And if Mr. Cohen really do, what he told in the "Cocker" - Interview: well, cant' wait to see you all on the Road, in Europe, in America, in England or wherever he want's to play...
Imagine: another Tour with Mr. Cohen! What a Future. Please make it happen.
Does anybody know something about the new announced "Songs Album" in the AMAZON-Shop? Just another compilation? Would not make much sense, they have just released two new Compilations...

Have a good Time: Susanne + Uwe

Jerry, you and I must be twins because I just listened to "Banjo" for the first time and after listening to it a second time I wrote, in the official "Banjo" thread, that I liked the song but I thought it lacked meat, just like you thought. It's funny that you and I both think "Darkness" is a great track, but the others that have been released thus far are sub-Cohen quality. I think we are the only two. Or, at least, the only two who have admitted such. Criticizing Cohen breaks my heart. He's my favorite songwriter!

Chris

I listened to the snipets for all of the songs again. Crazy To Love You and Different Sides are closer to the type of song Darkness is. I was almost going to say that these 3 songs sound like actual songs. Not the other songs are not actual songs but Darkness,Crazy,and Different Sides seem to move along at a different pace. A pace that catches your attention immediately. Many of the other songs such as Show Me,Going Home,and Banjo are more like LC reciting poetry with a background of music. For me that's harder to connect to and it doesn't stay with me after I've heard it like an actual song does.

Old ideas -New inspiration

What a great line
"A lazy bastard living in a suit "

And the blues harp on Lullaby is haunting and beautiful