Album: Songs of Leonard Cohen
Artist: Leonard Cohen
Born: Montréal, Québec
Released: December 1967
Genre: Folk
Influenced: John Cale, Nick Cave, Tori Amos, Bill Callahan
27th December '67: Columbia Records releases John Wesley Harding and Songs of Leonard Cohen to little or no fanfare. If there's another date in history on which a label launches two classic albums with minimal publicity, then I'm not aware of it. As first albums go, there are few that compare in quality, originality and influence; Velvet Underground & Nico marked out an equally radically new path for pop music earlier in '67. The black cover and a sombre-looking Cohen are an early sign of the morose image that Cohen would be unfairly saddled with throughout his life, but for those who listen to the lyrics there's a rich humanity and humour in his songs. That poetry this good could be successful in a pop music format is a testament to John Hammond's groundbreaking vision at Columbia. Although only a cult success in the US initially, the album became a huge hit in Europe and is the first in a run of three great studio albums. This is the music I fell in love to, and it remains just as moving and mysterious to listen to today; one of my great regrets in life is that I didn't dig deep enough to buy a ticket for his show in London in 2008, which by all accounts was magical.
Suzanne was the song that raised Cohen's profile more than any other; with its ghostly backing female chorus and lyrics that compare the intensity of religious and sexual feeling, Suzanne has a mesmerising effect and it remains one of the most profound and lyrically mature songs of the Sixties. It's also one of the most covered songs in pop history. Teachers is the only song on the album that I'm not fond of, while everything else is supreme, especially Winter Lady (used beautifully at the end of Altman's film, McCabe & Mrs Miller), So Long, Marianne and Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye. Songs of Leonard Cohen comfortably ranks as one of my favourite albums of all time. The music has an ancient, medieval quality, mixing harp, strings and bells with acoustic guitar, and this simplicity helps bring the songwriting to the fore. So it's probably best to end this blog with one of the many great poetic couplets on the album, this one from Sisters of Mercy:
"If your life is a leaf that the seasons tear off and condemn,
They will bind you with love that is graceful and green as a stem"
Artist: Leonard Cohen
Born: Montréal, Québec
Released: December 1967
Genre: Folk
Influenced: John Cale, Nick Cave, Tori Amos, Bill Callahan
Suzanne was the song that raised Cohen's profile more than any other; with its ghostly backing female chorus and lyrics that compare the intensity of religious and sexual feeling, Suzanne has a mesmerising effect and it remains one of the most profound and lyrically mature songs of the Sixties. It's also one of the most covered songs in pop history. Teachers is the only song on the album that I'm not fond of, while everything else is supreme, especially Winter Lady (used beautifully at the end of Altman's film, McCabe & Mrs Miller), So Long, Marianne and Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye. Songs of Leonard Cohen comfortably ranks as one of my favourite albums of all time. The music has an ancient, medieval quality, mixing harp, strings and bells with acoustic guitar, and this simplicity helps bring the songwriting to the fore. So it's probably best to end this blog with one of the many great poetic couplets on the album, this one from Sisters of Mercy:
"If your life is a leaf that the seasons tear off and condemn,
They will bind you with love that is graceful and green as a stem"
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