Leonard Cohen

Dante09

Greatest songwriter of all time? Discuss

lordgoat

Elliott Smith is better in my opinion.

Dante09

songwriting perhaps but lyrics not even close imo

keefg

Hmm...pointless discussion really because it all depends on your taste in music.

I know someone who thinks Kurt Cobain was the best songwriter whilst I myself am a fan of David Bowie.

I'm sure if you post this in the Rap forum someone else will argue that Eminem or Snoop-LL-Dre-Diddy-Dogg is/are the best :rolleyes:

CDfm

keefg wrote: »

Hmm...pointless discussion really because it all depends on your taste in music.

I know someone who thinks Kurt Cobain was the best songwriter whilst I myself am a fan of David Bowie.

we all know bowie is better

RadioGaGa

I recently downloaded "Waiting for the Miracle" after watching Natural Born Killers, great song. Anyone want to point me in the direction of any other good Cohen songs?

The Pontiac

RadioGaGa wrote: »

I recently downloaded "Waiting for the Miracle" after watching Natural Born Killers, great song. Anyone want to point me in the direction of any other good Cohen songs?

These would be my picks. Many more great ones though!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FE6j8eF9pXo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt_rlHdTYMU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r24_T-HOcyg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opJ2uNA7Zu8

CDfm

Suzanne and Bird on a Wire are my favorites.

Zxyton

Fantastic. My favorite is "Chelsea Hotel"

Crowcifer

Cohen is fantastic!

Some of my faves from his back catalogue:

Sisters of Mercy
Teachers
Avalanche
Dress Rehearsal Rag
Chelsea Hotel
Is This What You Wanted


The albums - Songs of Leonard Cohen, New Skin for the Old Ceremony and Songs of Love and Hate are my favourites of his. But there's good gear on pretty much every release.

Splendour

My first intrduction to Leonard Cohen was at the age of 12. I was in my cousin's house and 'Dance me to the end of Love' came on the TV. I remember being mesmerised by him though I hadn't a clue who he was. Took me a few more years to really discover Cohen, but hey what a discvery!

Tattoo Stan

"Hey that's no way to say goodbye" is heartbreaking.

Dante09

Look, LC is arguably the greatest there was and ever will be. Please click on the following for the reason why http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gh9l_DzRwlg
The story told and the poetry within are mesmerizing and unparalleled.
His only flaw is his vocal range but considering his style of music, its no major issue + his range has improved dramatically as he has grown older. Saw him live last summer and am going again in two weeks. Cant wait!

The Pontiac

The greatest cover of a LC song you'll ever hear. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MDlMdu2gjw

Dante09

yeh ive seen that before alright..its excellent! that guy/girl is on something though!
best cover ever?? close but buckleys hallelujah tops it for me

The Pontiac

Dante09 wrote: »

yeh ive seen that before alright..its excellent! that guy/girl is on something though!
best cover ever?? close but buckleys hallelujah tops it for me

Antony Hegarty always performs like that. I saw him live in Cork a few years ago and he performed in the exact same way.

It's hard to beat Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah alright. It's probably the greatest cover of any song, ever.

It's just when I was watching the Lian Lunson concert/documentary again, I got so blown away by this and I forgot about Hallelujah.

cormie

Antony is an amazing singer and does a great version of If it Be Your Will. I stupidly missed Antony and the Johnsons this year but can't wait till I get the opportunity again!

Cohen is undoubtedly one of the greatest lyricists, spending several years perfecting some of his songs and lyrics, he really puts his heart into it. I have a version of the Gypsy's Wife with Cohen reciting a poem he wrote about the break up with his wife over it and it's amazing! The music takes you to another place and the lyrics create imagery in your mind of being there in the song.

This is of course the English language were discussing, there's greats in other languages such as Fabrizio De Andre and the likes.

Even Irish Jimmy MacCarthy is a strong contender with some amazing lyrics. It's just a pity he only has 3 albums himself. Saw him in the concert hall just a few weeks ago and he continually spoke of wanting to be like Elvis or other great performers when he was younger but settled in the knowledge that he wouldn't ever be. But his concert was one of the best performances I've been to with explanations of each song and lyrics and a true connection with the crowd, unlike another brilliant songwriter, Bob Dylan, who just comes out to play and has no real interaction but still writes some brilliant songs.

yeah, if someone hadn't mentioned famous blue raincoat id have been giving out..
ooohh, im just itching for this gig!!!!..

Dante09

Deleted User wrote: »

yeah, if someone hadn't mentioned famous blue raincoat id have been giving out..
ooohh, im just itching for this gig!!!!..

same here! which night are you going?
do you know if the sets this tour will be roughly similar to last summers?
he left out chelsea hotel and famousblue raincoat last summer but that was the only fault--the gig was super
also have you heard who is opening up?

Dante09

<Ollie> wrote: »

Antony Hegarty always performs like that. I saw him live in Cork a few years ago and he performed in the exact same way.

It's hard to beat Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah alright. It's probably the greatest cover of any song, ever.

It's just when I was watching the Lian Lunson concert/documentary again, I got so blown away by this and I forgot about Hallelujah.

yeh i was the same when i watched that documentary and completely forgot about buckley.
His version of hallelujah is imo the greatest cover ever. It even surpasses cohens original.

The Pontiac

Dante09 wrote: »

yeh i was the same when i watched that documentary and completely forgot about buckley.

FILM-MAKER STUNNED BY HEGARTY'S VOICE

Film-maker LIAN LUNSON was so touched by British pop star ANTONY HEGARTY's rendition of LEONARD COHEN's IF IT BE YOUR WILL she struggled to edit the performance for a new tribute to the Canadian folk legend. Lunson filmed the ANTONY + THE JOHNSONS singer performing at a 2003 tribute to Cohen at the Sydney Opera House in Australia and admits the song he sang left her in tears. And she struggled with the footage every time she came to it while completing her documentary study of Cohen, LEONARD COHEN: I'M YOUR MAN, because Hegarty's voice played on her emotions. Lunson says, "He really affected me. He was added to the lineup for this tribute show about a week before it happened - at a time when no one really knew who he was. "I just found him fascinating. He was this angelic beauty who just left me sobbing. Leonard Cohen, himself, loves the footage." And Lunson feels sure her new documentary will introduce Hegarty to the masses: "We held a screening in Banff (Canada) and everyone went out to buy his tunes afterwards."

hiscan

Closing Time wins hands down;):)

vincenzo1975

'There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.'

Leonard Cohen, Anthem

vincenzo1975

Originally Posted by <Ollie>
Antony Hegarty always performs like that. I saw him live in Cork a few years ago and he performed in the exact same way.

It's hard to beat Jeff Buckley's Hallelujah alright. It's probably the greatest cover of any song, ever.

It's just when I was watching the Lian Lunson concert/documentary again, I got so blown away by this and I forgot about Hallelujah.


But does Buckley leaving out chunks of lyrics no change the meaning of the song??? I always thought this song was compromised by the cover versions, despite how beautiful they sound.

vincenzo1975

aplogies, for some reason I have loast the ability to edit posts....

Buckleys version of Hallelujah leaves out the following verses:

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah


For me, these are some of the strongest lyrics and give the song a depth of desperation and angst that buckleys seems not to have. The song loses a bit of the battle between lust and love that is tormenting cohen.

The Pontiac

vincenzo1975 wrote: »

aplogies, for some reason I have loast the ability to edit posts....

Buckleys version of Hallelujah leaves out the following verses:

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah


For me, these are some of the strongest lyrics and give the song a depth of desperation and angst that buckleys seems not to have. The song loses a bit of the battle between lust and love that is tormenting cohen.

I think Buckley's version is a direct copy of the John Cale version. I think even Cohen's version on the Cohen Live album adds additional verses to the original. I'm not sure why the two verses mentioned above were omitted by Cale in the first place. They seem so powerful.

After I saw him perform at the Beacon I asked if I could have the lyrics to “Hallelujah”. When I got home one night there were fax paper rolls everywhere because Leonard had insisted on supplying all 15 verses. Nobody recognises my version but I always save that song until the end of the set. He and I were chasing after the same woman in London for a time. I called him one morning and she answered – and that was that. It didn’t matter that Cindy was my wife. John Cale

rathgorma

I recently saw a Leonard Cohen concert circa 2007 on BBC3 tv. Am not ashamed to say i was in tears by the end of it.. Absolutely amazing and emotion drenching. Everyone talks about Jeff Buckleys version but (controversially), I think Rufus Wainwrights version of Hallelujah is the best. Check it out on Youtube.

vincenzo1975

check out the kd lang version, the closest in essence to cohens in my opinion
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_NpxTWbovE

Dante09

thats a gorgeous version alright

The Pontiac

The KD Langer version gets the thumbs up from me too!

That reality show version there a while ago was cringeworthy.

JamesTaylorfan

No doubt he's one of the greats but far from the best.
The best were the oldies like Cole Porter and Jerome Kern.
I think James Taylor,Don McLean and John Denver might pip Leonard to the post where
everyday songwriting is concerned, not to mention sales of same.

Amazotheamazing

Funny how much praise Hallelejuah gets, it's no where near his best song and frankly, the Jeff Buckley version is too pretty, imo. It's a song of bitterness and defiance.

Now, Dress Rehearsal Rag, there's a song you could ruminate on for a long time. Four o'clock in the afternoon and I didn't feel like very much...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mxQ3nttY6g

Dante09

thats a super song. Glad to know you have the same taste in music as I Mr.Amazing...might ease the tension on the legal threads;)