Details: Leonard Cohen (b. 1934): More Best Of. Sony, 1997.
As I steadily and slowly work my way through my CD collection, I realize that several of my albums rather defy categorization. Here is another one. And here is another album made by a very unique voice -- one of those that you recognize quickly once you've heard it before. Cohen is a brilliant Canadian songwriter whose voice isn't the purest but it fits his songs like a glove. He's a storyteller and a troubadour and a poet, more than a pure musician.
This album contains what will make up the few of his truly memorable songs:
* Everybody Knows, a midtempo number in which he quietly tends to a slow burn
* Anthem, which lives up to its title in every way possible
* Democracy, from the 1980s and still relevant today, which both celebrates and pleads for it to come to the USA
* Hallelujah -- which may become his singular contribution to songwriting, or maybe it has already. His version is the original by the original, of course, and along with Jeff Buckley's legendary interpretation of it (which I think is a bit better), there are no two better versions of this remarkable song despite countless renditions of it performed and recorded over the years by others.
When I put this album on or hear anything by Cohen, I feel like I'm being spoken to, and taught, by a wise man who pushes up against conformity. You don't want it to end or stop because the wisdom is so good to hear and be present to.
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