Remembering Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen, in concert. France, 1970 (Photo by P. Ullman/Roger Viollet/Getty Images)News of Leonard Cohen's death on the heels of the Presidential election was a bruise upon a blow. He had been much on my mind lately, as I'd just listened to an audio interview he did at the Canadian Consulate in Los Angeles on the release of his new album "You Want It Darker," and read David Remnick's recent profile of him in the New Yorker. Although he was 82 and frail, Cohen was on a late career roll. It didn't seem as if the new album would be his last.
Like a lot of people, I discovered Leonard Cohen though Judy Collins' covers of his songs "Suzanne," "The Stranger Song" and "Sisters of Mercy." Later I came to prefer his own versions of those songs and others, finding nuance that the singers who covered them lacked. I don't know why I never saw him in concert, but I did encounter him on one of his recent tours, walking toward me through a Bay Area hotel lobby in a dapper suit and fedora. His handsome guitarist caught my eye first, and by the time I registered Cohen's surprising appearance he had almost passed by. Though we were all staying at the hotel I saw only the guitarist again, to my regret.
Earlier this year I wrote about a screening of Robert Altman's "McCabe and Mrs. Miller" that commemorated the cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond, who died on New Year's Day. One of the things I liked most about the film was its score: three perfect songs by Leonard Cohen, sung by him. Despite all the articles and obituaries that have been printed this week, "McCabe and Mrs. Miller" remains my favorite tribute to Cohen's work. Here's a link to the post, which includes a clip from the film: https://underthehollywoodsign.wordpress.com/2016/03/15/revisiting-mccabe-and-mrs-miller-robert-altman-and-vilmos-zsigmonds-western-masterpiece/