Leonard Cohen - Live In London
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Free Music Notes for Live In London
Free Music Review: We're Honored to Play For You Tonight
Hit: 5 Stars
So says the master minstrel and bard, humble and clearly enjoying himself at age 73 as he stands before a crowd of thousands at the O2 arena in London.
What follows demonstrates that these are not idle words - the ensuing three hours of exquisite music, poetry, and song achieves a level of excellence that evidences a deep and abiding respect for the audience.
Superlatives can't begin to do it justice.
Scintillating. Outstanding. Remarkable. Unbelievable. Amazing. Stupendous. Utterly, totally, fabulous. Unprecedented. Beyond all expectations...
I guess you're getting the idea that I highly recommend this CD.
Cohen's work needs no introduction. His range as represented in the songs of this concert is remarkable. Alternately his is the voice of the prophet, the muse, the lecher, the lover, the poet, the madman and the priest. For this show he chose an eclectic retrospective including master performances of some outstanding but less well-known works such as Who by Fire, The Gypsy's Wife, and If It Be Your Will. These stand alongside the more familiar pantheon including Suzanne, Halleluiah, So Long Marianne, The Future, and I'm Your Man.
To help deliver this rarified material, Cohen has assembled an amazing band. The level of musicianship is beyond any I have ever experienced in a concert of popular music. In every way it exceeds expectations.
How the show comes to a conclusion provides a glimpse of what I'm talking about.
After apparently getting ready to leave with a raunchy rendition of "Closing Time" the band breaks into "I Tried to Leave You". It takes over eight minutes of trying (to leave) with each band member doing a remarkable solo and being introduced for the umpteenth time by Cohen.
Bob Metzger starts it off, coaxing a medley of mellifluous notes from his maple wood Telecaster.
Dino Soldo follows, putting down the mouth harp (just how many instruments does this guy play?) and lighting into a dusky moan of deep desire on the sax.
Then comes Neil Larson commanding the Hammond B3 with an authority akin to that of E. Power Biggs at the pedals of the pipe organ in some gigantic gothic cathedral.
Next is Sharon Robinson singing with a voice so sultry as to appear to tremble with an uncontrolled and not to be satisfied longing.
Then the fingers of Javier Mas attack the strings of the archilaud with an abandon reminiscent of Zorba the Greek losing himself in dance.
And then the sublime Webb sisters (as Cohen constantly refers to them) warble and pant together in an almost ravenous and hungry harmony.
They are followed by musical director (if he directed this music he is an absolute genius) Roscoe Beck as he hits all the highest registers on the bass guitar, eliciting a series of sounds like nothing you've ever heard produced by this instrument before.
To top it all off, Rafael Bernardo Gayol unleashes a drum solo of tightly coiled and precisely controlled fury.
And Cohen sings "Good night my darling, I hope you're satisfied. The bed is kind of narrow, but my arms are opened wide. Yes and here's a man he's still working for your smile".
The crowd goes berserk.
So again, I guess no one will be surprised that I highly recommend this CD.
Free Music Review: The Fall and Rise of Leonard Cohen
Hit: 5 Stars
Rejoice! The troubadour par excellence of the late twentieth century has risen from the crypt in which he had untimely entombed himself, and put to flight the rumors anticipating his final demise. In this performance, Leonard Cohen is effusively grateful to his audience, and the audience reciprocates with unrestrained enthusiasm. During his brief opening words to the audience, he observes that he hasn't been in London in fourteen years, and that on that occasion, he was "Sixty years old -- just a kid with a crazy dream." The audience responds with hearty, affectionate laughter. After the intermission, he cracks another joke about his age, and thanks the audience for "keeping my songs alive."
He begins most of his songs with a brief recitation of the most memorable lyrics in his soft, rasping voice. Then he swings into the tune with familiar ease, as each member of his ensemble takes up their part with passionate discipline, warmth, and sincerity. Almost all of the songs are drawn from his familiar, well-loved repertoire, starting with "Dance Me To The End of Love," continuing through such stalwarts as "Bird On A Wire," "Tower of Song," and "Suzanne."
If there are weak points in the concert, it is when he sings a couple of songs -- "Boogie Street" and "My Secret Life," authored by his "collaborator," Sharon Robinson. Although they go down well, the lyrics are distinctly less complex. The feel-good moment of the concert is supposed to be Leonard's performance of a new political song, "Democracy," and while the song is heartening, its literalism contrasts awkwardly with the lyricism of Leonard's other works. Put simply, Leonard Cohen isn't Bruce Cockburn.
The closeout of the concert is an exquisitely long affair with one song about endings segueing into the next. "Take This Waltz" is the nominal last song. Then they return for "So Long Marianne," swing into "First We Take Manhattan," and wind down again with "Sisters of Mercy." After this second ending, Leonard reads the lyrics to a new song, "If It Be Thy Will," in which he alludes to the "obstacles" that brought him to the brink of despair and led him to surrender his fate, leaving it to the Almighty whether he should ever sing again. After his two backup singers render the song in a touching duet, he rolls into "Closing Time," "I Tried to Leave You," and "Whither Thou Goest." By the time Leonard says his last goodbyes, the audience has been filled to overflowing, and it feels as if the Universe has been enriched by an exchange of great affection and warmth.
I am sure that many people, like myself, had concluded that Leonard's dismal mumblings on "Ten New Songs" spelled the end of his creative time on this Earth. Fortunately, he was gifted with the "obstacles" to which he alluded, and the travail roused him from the tomb. As some of us know, the obstacles included having $5 Million stolen from him by his longtime assistant Kelly Lynch, a Buddhist of the Vajra Vampyre sect. No doubt this was a terrible experience for him, but the results have been good for all of us. Leonard has lost a modest fortune, but regained his immense creative power. In this performance, he stands before his audience in humble gratitude for helping him to reclaim this gift.
Free Music Review: A joyous, triumphant return of Leonard Cohen to live performance
Hit: 5 Stars
Many people are aware that this album was made as part of the attempt to repair Leonard Cohen's seriously damaged finances. After living in a Buddhist monastery for several years Cohen discovered that his business manager had embezzled most of his money. Cohen reluctantly went back on the road over a decade after he imagined that he had left his musical career behind him. One might therefore not be surprised if there were some signs of reluctance or regret hanging about this performance. There is not. In fact, this is one of the most delightful live performances I've heard in a while. Perhaps it is the result of his time in the monastery, but Cohen seems genuinely at ease and happy performing. Maybe it is like the old saying that if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. From beginning to end Cohen gives the impression that there is nowhere he would rather be than before these friends in London and that performing for them is one of the greatest honors that has come his way. So far from despair or regret, the concert radiates a sense of joy.
Cohen's sense of humor and deep graciousness permeates every number. The spoken intros to his songs and the verbal asides are among the highlights of the album. Not that the music isn't exceptionally fine. Although 73 at the time of the performance, Cohen is in very fine voice. His voice has deepened greatly over the years. If you listen to THE SONGS OF LEONARD COHEN, released in 1968, and then to this recording, the change in his voice is almost shocking. He is backed by a large and crack group of players. As always he has a talented group of women backing him, in this case his sometimes writing partner Sharon Robinson and the Webb Sisters.
The paradox with Leonard Cohen is that while he has not been a very prolific songwriter, he has produced as many as truly great songs over the past forty years as anyone this side of Bob Dylan. I usually recommend to friend interested in Cohen getting his first album, THE SONGS OF LEONARD COHEN, and the flawed but still excellent THE ESSENTIAL LEONARD COHEN (flawed because too much emphasis is placed on Cohen's later career, to the neglect of his early songs). And most of his albums, even the very good ones, have several weak songs. This live album is actually an excellent place for someone coming to Cohen for the first time to experience his music, though like with THE ESSENTIAL, his earlier songs are neglected for his later.
Any live concert is going to leave aside some of any Cohen fan's favorites, and I'm no exception. I regretted the absence of "The Stranger Song" and the extraordinary "Famous Blue Raincoat," not to mention some personal favorites like "Joan of Arc." But unfortunately there is no single album that collects all of Cohen's best songs. We very much need a three-CD box set that does this (there was a foreign box set that came close, but it is no longer available).
All in all, this is one of the most delightful albums that I have listened to in a long time and I enthusiastically recommend it to both longtime fans of Leonard Cohen as well as newcomers who would like to get to know better the music of one of the finest songwriters of our time.
Free Music Review: We Haven't Had Many Great Poet/Songwriters Until..
Hit: 5 Stars
There's a moment during this lovely recording at which Cohen admits that 14 years had elapsed since he'd visited the UK at age 60. Back then, he says, "I was just a crazy kid with a dream." In part, this admission reveals some of the charm and immediacy of this important recording.
Those who've savored Leonard Cohen's recordings since the early seventies know that he was always prime when he was live. He has always had resonance with his audience as a poet and musician. Here, he reaches the apex though, with an imaginative set list, natural sonics and back-up musicians who sound more loose and adaptive than those on Cohen's other live recordings.
"If It be Your Will," both the recitation and song, are superb. The version of "Hallelujah" here corrects for all time the sense that this song is purely sacred (the melody might convince you it was) as much as an undissoluble mix of sacred and profane which so defines the way way we live and experience life.
The version of "So Long, Marianne" is the most rousing moment in this 2 hour, 25-minute recording, which demonstrates how profound much of the pop music which poured from the sixties and seventies was."There is a crack in everything," the poet says. "That's how the light gets in." I guess so!
There are very few singer-songwriters who have managed to capture in music, lyrics and performance, as many of the universal experiences and emotions as Leonard Cohen does here. Dylan did. Joni Mitchell did. Randy Newman did and so did a handful of others.
But aside from a couple of over-orchestrated cuts, this wonderfully serene concert recording reminds us why we're here bust also why love has vanished from so many domains in life in which it once held steady, through eg.:
* Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye
* Sisters of Mercy
* I'm Your Man
* Suzanne...
...and so much more. Cohen reinterprets these iconic songs with quiet sincerity and pathos. Those who linger on the timbre of Cohen's voice had best search elsewhere. As for me, I love it.
My principal gripe -- as it always is with Sony/BMG -- is the utterly cheap and insensitive package design, which reflects the distributor's mandate to limit returns, but ignores the consumer's needs. Handle these discs carefully as you slide them in and out, because the package design makes them prone to deep scratches. Let's hope Cohen acquires the rights to his recordings and distributes them himself.
This concert says suggets we must remember who we are, but also to be mindful of the needs of others. It suggests that pop and rock needn't be virulent or ugly or destructive, but quietly, simply beautiful.
There are two other mass-produced CBS recordings which reflect some of Cohen's live panache, but none which do so as beautifully as this one. What a wonderful, wonderful recording!
If you love gorgeous, resonant lyrics and utter sincerity in delivery -- AND if you love live recordings in which the audience and performer merge -- go for it without reservation.
Free Music Review: A wonderful concert presentation with excellent sound quality
Hit: 5 Stars
Leonard Cohen is still a magnificent performer, even at 73-years old, and this concert captures that fact wonderfully. This two-disc cd set was recorded live at the concert in London at the O2 Arena on July 17th, 2008. Sony has done a marvelous job in putting this package together. Both cds are filled to maximum capacity and Amazon's tracklisting above is correct. There are several nice photographs of the event in the included booklet with liner notes by John Aizlewood.
The performance is spectacular on this set and very typical of the level of quality the current world tour has been regularly achieving at various venues. The backing singers and band members are all in top form and Leonard himself sounds in good voice. Sharon Robinson and the Webb sisters provide background vocals, while Roscoe Beck, Neil Larsen, Javier Mas, Bob Metzger, Dino Soldo, and Rafael Bernando Gayol comprise the band. Leonard throws out some light banter at times and probably is too gracious in the regular and profuse compliments he gives out to his supporting players.
On a technical level the recording is very good and sounds better than most live cds. The cds are mastered by Bob Ludwig, a well-known and respected mastering engineer. He did a fine job here as the music shows no signs of overcompression or clipping. The audience is well-behaved and generally can not be heard during the songs, though vigorous applause greets each song and Leonard's sly jokes.
The set captures the live magic of Leonard Cohen's current tour with many fine performances. While not every song on here is the definitive live version, many are great like "Tower Of Song" and "Who By Fire". Anyone with a marginal interest in the music of Leonard Cohen needs to pick up this cd set. It is essential in my estimation as a document of Leonard Cohen's current live performances. Hopefully more dates from this tour will be officially released.