I read your piece on Leonard Cohen with an acute sense of loss. It has been a Blondie tradition to honor musician/writers by playing one of their songs in our shows when they pass. A few years ago around the time of Natural Born Killers, we did Leonard's song "Waiting for the Miracle" and now sadly I will look forward to playing it again when we put our next tour together. What a week indeed...........Deborah Harry
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I am so sorry to hear about Leonard Cohen. He was a great guy. I played mandolin on "So Long, Marianne" and Bass on "Teachers". David Lindley, Chester Crill and Solomon Feldhouse, from our band Kaleidoscope, were on "Songs of Leonard Cohen" as well. He came to see us when we were playing at the at the Scene in NY, co-billed with Nico, and asked us to play on that album.
The last time I saw him was in my town of Claremont when he was living in Mt. Baldy at the Zen Center. His head was shaved, he was drinking espresso and smoking a cig! I said "hi" and in our conversation he said, "You guys saved my album". There were no credits on that record, so a lot of people didn't realize who played on it.
One of a Kind!
Chris Darrow
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This from Leonard to me October 21 2016.
dear Steven, thank you for your wonderful letter, and please forgive the brevity of mine, it's a little tricky to write these days
yes, we have been on the same path for a long time, and I too wish you the courage and the stamina to continue this difficult course
I wish you success, great success on the coming senatorial race, but I know you will keep on going whatever the outcome
Love and blessings,
Your old comrade,
Leonard
We handled him for 20 years. When dad died Leonard left with the secretary.
He and I made up. I loved him. Knew him like very few could.
Steven Machat
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First of all, thank you for the wonderful tribute to Leonard Cohen....however, and not to take one ounce of credit away from his extraordinary talent, but to underscore how impossible it is to do it all on your own......Leonard's beginnings and resulting career was also a tribute to his life long friend, confidant and attorney, Marty Machat, who along with his very capable son and law partner, Steven, directed, protected and shepherded his career throughout Marty's life !
He and Marty are now together !
Peace,
Stephen-Craig Aristei
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Have you seen the footage of KD singing Hallelujah when LC was inducted I to the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame?
youtu.be/YYiMJ2bC65A And I'm sure you have heard about the letter he wrote to Marianne upon hearing she was in her last days:
www.google.ca/amp/www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/leonard-cohen-predicted-death-moving-9237657.amp?client=ms-android-rogers-ca I like to think he's gone to join Marianne.
I've been listening to versions of Hallelujah and had completely forgotten about Buckley.
Will listen (and cry again) when I get home.
Barbara Sedun
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Don Henley once said that Leonard had a profound impact on his approach to writing lyrics. I think he was referencing a non poetry non fiction work (maybe it was an essay).
Michael McCarty
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Ah, the first of the grand and painful end-of-the-year deaths. He wins for "And all I ever learned from love was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you," but John Cale gets credit for sorting through 18+ pages of Cohen's faxed verses of "Hallelujah" and creating the crystalline arrangement he recorded and Jeff Buckley totally copped to using. Au revoir, Leonard.
Margaret Moser
Austin Chronicle
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in 1988 with " i'm your man " he put the sex into electronic music with wit and verve and he still turned corners with his songs. goodbye baby & amen with thanks for all you gave us in that exampled, dignified , laconic way.
best, o
Andrew Loog Oldham
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I discovered Cohen in college, in the 80's with I'm Your Man, and worked backwards... I love that Jennifer Warnes album, it came out when I was a college DJ and got lots of airplay on my shows. One of my favorite covers of Cohen is from the little-known new folk act Washington Squares, this clip isn't the greatest sound quality but it's what I could find:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFGDOqj44nk Kevin Oliver
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He resonated with so many people across the world. His writing was second to none and we Canadians have lost an icon.
Chris Chapin
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Thanks for the reminder on the Henley "Everybody Knows"
Leonard wrote many great songs but there are a handful that enter that area that very few can touch
All the best
Jim McElwee
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Thank you for this. A great artist. A great life.
Morley Walker
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There's also this version of "Everybody Knows" from Concrete Blonde, the first version that I heard. It was on the soundtrack for the 1990 Christian Slater vehicle Pump Up The Volume.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5Fb4K8pNmg Mike Daley (and many more)
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It was the opening theme to the Generation X classic movie "Pump Up the Volume"
Dennis Joyce (and many more)
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My favorite Leonard Cohen cover is Jackson Browne's version of A Thousand Kisses Deep.
Russ Paris
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For me it's John Cale's "Hallelujah" (the version that Buckley lifted), and Concrete Blonde's "Everybody Knows."
Gonna miss him.
Hugh Brown
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Check out Tom Robbins' liner notes to the 1995 compilation "Tower
of Song," it's a masterpiece. If writing about music is like singing
about architecture, this is an opera to the Parthenon—
www.leonardcohenfiles.com/robbins.html Armak
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A lovely homage to Leonard.
I'm a native Montrealer now living in Toronto. I grew up with Leonard's music, books and poetry. I did an English Lit degree at Loyola in Montreal. My Canadian Lit Prof and I shared a passion for Leonard's work.
He was an integral part of my musical experience in the 70s. Songs like Suzanne and So Long Marianne can transport me back in seconds. His gift is magical and yet very real. When I listen to or read his work, I am in the presence of genius. And like the great poets, he gives me a glimpse of the infinite, the divine. Leonard was a great poet. The real deal.
My love, Jojo and I have seen him perform three times. The first time at Toronto's Massey Hall, there was a palpable surge / jolt of energy when Leonard walked out on stage. I have never before or since experienced anything like it. And to this day, that concert remains the most intense and magical concert experience I have ever had, bar none.
Thank you for your piece on Leonard. It means a lot to a fellow Montrealer, a major admirer and fan. And thank you, Leonard!
Best Regards
Bob Bisnett
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Great tribute to Leonard Cohen. I’ve been listening to his music a lot over the last two - three years. While I love Hallelujah and Everybody Knows, including Buckley’s and Henley’s versions, my favorite is Who By Fire. Many versions and videos out there but try this one:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2T274bXIxU. Damn, this has been a tough year.
Regards,
Greg Wilson
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I'm a huge Ken Nordine fan, and I was searching for him on YouTube one night, and I came across an appearance on Night Music, hosted by David Sanborne and Jools Holland (remember that show?). Other guests were Sonny Rollins, Was Not Was, and Leonard Cohen.
The closing song at the end of the show was "Who by Fire," with Cohen, backed by members of Was Not Was and three solos by Sonny Rollins (!!), and it blew me back in my chair. Here's the link...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCaD6GAQmjA Dave Wood
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gonna miss this man.
I was in a band a few years ago, just something to get our minds off work and everything else once a week, and jam good tunes.
we named ourselves Who By Fire
Shaun Booysen
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We will all miss Lenny. I happened upon him in the early 70s when Nanette taught me guitar using an LC song Book with Bird in the Wire as my first ever strum.
Fast forward 35 or 40 years later when he had to tour and what a blessing for us!
His live performances demonstrated his genius and human kindness and Gentleness.
I saw his live show twice. The first in columbus Ohio and second at radio city. The columbus show was so very intimate and we sang all the songs along with him and stood and swayed and clapped and cheered the entire evening. He was much loved and he felt it and talked to the audience a lot.
The highlight was the Marianne penultimate encore and everyone sang with him loudly and proudly
m.youtube.com/watch?v=4UzSImogK_E Then a month or so later I took my much mystified son Chris to see him at radio city in $700 seats closeup. Just before Lenny came on stage and after the lights went down there was a commotion and the two empty seats in the first row center in front of us were suddenly filled by John Bon Jovi and his wife. The performance soon began with my son more interested. It was a great show on a bigger stage than columbus but there was less audience community in such a big arena. However again near the show end Lenny came Skipping out to sing Marianne
But this time the crowd sensing something special rose as one as lenny started singing the well known opening. And we sang along -- all of us and that meant Bon Jovi as well. I put my heart into it and so did my once reluctant son Chris And darned if John didn't turn around And gave us both a big happy smile as he sang and we sang and our voices joined as one.
Chris to this day tells his friends that story of Lenny and John and his dad at radio city
That's the kind of magic Lenny gave to so many people
Rick Vogt
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Rest In Peace Mr Cohen as you were at peace with your life. Your mark has been made and the legend is now laid to rest amongst the others who forever will light our ways when we are lost.
Neville Kaye
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My main immersion to Cohen was on the soundtrack of "McCabe and Mrs. Miller". It was such an expansive time with Cohen, Altman, Julie Christie, and Warren Beatty doing an amazing collaboration on an amazing movie. Pauline Kael became part of the heady creativity by writing about the movie in The New Yorker and saying that she could never date anyone who didn't love it. Of course, I had to buy "Songs of Leonard Cohen" which I played a lot.
I saw Cohen at the Boston Symphony Hall and he was backed by Perla Batalla and Julie Christenson. I didn't know them at the time but when I moved to Ojai they became good customers of my old store, Ojai Creates! Julie Christie would occasionally come in to develop film and I sold many copies of the movie "I'm Your Man", which was all Leonard Cohen songs.
"Suzanne" was a partial soundtrack for my relationship with a wild artist girlfriend. "That's No Way to Say Good Bye" is still a nostalgic soundtrack for a beautiful girlfriend who left me many years ago.
I'm really glad that I got to see Leonard live when he was in his prime. Tonight the Ojai Film Festival showed a film about Robert Blye who I also saw live in Ojai. He is nearing his end but was one of the greats; a rock star of poetry. John Densemore showed up to play drums and answer questions. He was in the movie and the soundtrack. During the Q&A he announced the passing of Cohen, which shocked me and the audience.
There have been so many musicians and artists that have touched me and helped me to expand. Thank you for reminding me!
Peace,
John Azevedo
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Great obituary Bob. Bearing in mind his considerable non-musical achievements, including two well reviewed novels, it's a pity he didn't get the Nobel before going.
Paul Nash
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Perfect. Thank you. I hope you’ve read Sylvie Simmons bio of the man. If not, I recommend it.
Greg Conniff
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Thanks Bob. Cohen had the artistic ability to cut through all the noise and get right to the point. His songs often made Top 40 radio in Canada, including "Suzanne". My favorite moment was when he won a Juno award to which he responded "only in Canada could a man like me win Male vocalist of the year". Classic!
Regards, John Corcelli
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What about Dance Me To The End of Love? Transformative.
Susan Nadler
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Hey Bob. Try "everybody knows" by The Duhks. Infectious.
Big loss, thanks for covering it. How could you not?
Tom Scharf
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Wasn't sure if you've heard this - but a really beautiful connection these two were having during this interview IMO.
www.npr.org/2016/10/21/498810429/leonard-cohen-on-poetry-music-and-why-he-left-the-zen-monastery _________________________________________
Thanks for this article. I cried this morning when I heard the news. As a Canadian, he made me feel patriotic. His lyrics are a high watermark for our young poets. He was our Dylan, a bit of an alternative to Young and he was cool, man.
I'm grateful that he resurrected his career (even if it was for an unfortunate reason) and that I was able to see him croak out all my favourite tunes.
I wasn't alive when he was a young, current artist, but his lyrics are timeless and I was drawn to his music at an early age. I'm sad, but I'm grateful.
Sincerely,
Joe Sgro
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What a huge loss, and what a time for him to leave us. He's needed more than ever right now.
Jason Consoli
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I bridged the generational divide with Leonard, also. It was the aural match of lyric and sound: "Avalanche" off "Songs of Love and Hate"...I grabbed my Mom from her dishes...she had to hear it! Cohen wasn't just his poetry and lyrics...he created a soundscapes of atmosphere, mood and tone...even if you were in some suburban backwater, when you listened to him you were transported to Greewich Village..to a smoky cafe...with a sophisticated, spiritual, artistic community...he was that good. You could put him on to set a mood in much the same way as you would "Electric Ladyland.
Brian Colleary
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Losing Leonard Cohen is a big one. I had the honor and the pleasure of working with him at Columbia Records off and on for many years. I was so taken by his art that I used to carry a big blue book of poems he had written and every day I would just flip the pages at random and pick one to read.
Leonard was very deep to be sure, but every once in while you’d get a little smile out of him. In 1979 we took a small road trip to do some interviews at radio promoting his latest album "Field Commander Cohen." I was calling him Field Commander and he seemed to get a kick out of that. On another occasion out of nowhere he seemed to confide in me for a moment. He looked at me and said, "You know, I have the worst luck with women. But, it makes for great songs!" And he gave me wink.
In the early 1990’s my department developed a live radio series that ran for many years called The Columbia Records Radio Hour. It started as a singer songwriter show on Sunday mornings live from Sony Music Studios via satellite and aired on over 100 stations. We featured both new and established artists and put together many great collaborations. On occasion we’d be blessed to have someone like Bruce Springsteen or Leonard do the show. For artists of this caliber we’d often travel to a location where they were on tour or rehearsing for one. The Radio Hour aired live from 11:00AM to 12:00PM noon Eastern time. Leonard said he wanted to do the show at great recording studio in Los Angeles called The Complex. I said that would be great, but the radio audience expected the show to run at 11:00AM East Coast time and that would mean that he and his band would have to perform at 8:00AM in the morning! I’m thinking Leonard is a late night coffee house type guy, and he surprised the hell out of me when he said, “I’m a Buddhist, I get up every day at sunrise and chant, don’t worry we’ll be there and we’ll be great.” Sure enough, Leonard and a very big band with back up singers and the whole nine yards showed up at 7:00AM to get warmed up and prepare. Our small studio audience showed at 7:30 and we gave everyone bagels, orange juice an coffee. The show started exactly on time and that band and Leonard were on fire—you would have thought it was 8:00PM at the Bottom Line in New York City! What a pro!
That reminds me of another good story that a friend who is an old Columbia colleague told me. Leonard had been working with a new artist, Anjani. He wanted to help as much as he could not only creatively but also promoting her. He took a meeting with the head of Starbucks at the time to see if he could get Anjani’s album in their stores. So he goes down there all dressed up with a suit and tie, briefcase, etc.. and the head of Starbucks begins to tell Leonard what kind of music they like to have playing in their stores. The guy says, "You know, in our coffee houses…" Leonard stops him dead in his tracks, looks up and says, "What?? These aren’t coffee houses!!" Ha, ha, ha. You gotta love it.
Lastly, I was once doing a radio special with Leonard and had a writer interview him for the show. The album Columbia Records was promoting at the time ended with a live track that was an out-take from a particular recording session. I thought it was actually pretty cool and was featured as a “bonus” track. So I’m listening back to this interview and Leonard is complaining about the fact the label had kind of talked him into adding this track to the album. "It’s an 'out-take,' he said, "that means I consciously chose NOT to put it on an album…not up to my standard. So why do they think it’s all-of-a sudden better now???"
What a fantastic and precious artist. Most of you probably know Leonard's music quite well. I urge you to pick up some of his poetry. Leonard was, and is a very deep and beautiful soul and you will be moved in magical ways by experiencing it.
Paul Rappaport
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I've always been an admirer of Leonard Cohen's. He was a muse
for me and so many of my friends who wrote words upon words trying
to make sense of life and change in the 60's and 70's, and beyond.
He was like the quiet learned man in the family who knew the answers,
or at least was trying to find them. And his answers always came from
the heart.
He will be so deeply missed.
Your tribute is beautiful and full.
Thanks so much.
S Janger
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I will never delete this post. I will return to it for the rest of my
life. Thank you.
James J Spina
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