dpjohansen's Full Review: I'm Your Man by Leonard Cohen
My best friend, Alexis, used to refer to Leonard Cohen as a Sardonic Musical Genius, and for the most part, he was right. He said that whilst Mr Cohen appeared on the surface to wallow in the depths of depressed reflection, his stories and fables were laced to their very cores with dark comic undertones. He'd often wax poetic about Mr Cohen, and I, being the best friend, absorbed his often detailed thoughts on the matter. I eventually took it upon myself to wallow in Cohen's shadowy depths to judge for myself exactly how he came to his Cohen Philosophy. Ever was Alexis true to his word, and he wasn't wrong about Leonard Cohen, either. So in Alexis' memory, here's a Leonard Cohen review...
Leonard Cohen is a true poet, in every sense of the word. Not concerning himself with poetic tradition, instead, inventing his own collection of lucid poems, prose and narratives cleverly disguised as Popular Music. Born into a middle class Jewish family in Montreal, Canada, he was quite the intellectual. He could play the guitar by age 13, and often performed songs in local cafes. An exceptional student, he graduated from McGill University with a degree in English. He earned a decent living from his published works, he'd had 3 books of poetry published that had been relatively successful. Those earlier years were spent womanising and having the odd LSD trip (it was legal then), having said that, this frivolity in early adulthood became the basis of many of the songs he would later write. By 1966 he'd also had 2 novels published, "The Favorite Game (1963) and "Beautiful Losers" (1967). It was after this that his songs began attracting attention, labelled as primarily "folk", his song "Suzanne" was released by folk artist Judy Collins in the mid 60's, and then again by Noel Harrison in 1967.
Around the same time, Cohen himself made his debut, performing at the Newport Folk Festival. After performing at a couple of sold out concerts in NYC, and appearing on television reciting his works, Cohen was signed to Columbia and released his first album, "The Songs of Leonard Cohen" in 1968. The album was an instant success amongst folk fans and college students. 7 albums later and we reach 1988, the year in which this album, "I'm Your Man", was released. Cohen's popularity had grown, and spread not only through those that follow folk, but it had transcended any musical boundaries on it's own merit. You can't label Leonard Cohen's music anymore, it's in a class of it's own.
"I'm Your Man" (Columbia 1988)
Produced by;
Leonard Cohen (with assistance from Roscoe Beck, Michael Robidoux, Jean-Michel Reusser)
Why have I chosen this album? The answer is quite simple. Although Cohen had always mixed humour with his tales of woe and poetic laments, this was the first time it was more obvious, darker, poignant, funnier. Besides which, it was Alexis' favourite, and even in death, you don't want to upset a Russian by enthusing about the wrong Leonard Cohen album. You really don't. The opening song is a phenomenal piece of art.
And the first song is.. "First We Take Manhattan", possibly one of Cohen's most famous songs. The opening bars literally send a chill down my spine, and when he starts singing, even still, in those unmistakable deep, wry, gravelley tones, I'm filled with an overwhelming sense of awe. "First We Take Manhattan", whilst being quintessentially Cohen, doesn't neglect the era in which it dwells, the 80's. It could easily be an 80's pop song by someone like the Pet Shop Boys, musically, but Cohen's voice is what makes it stand out from anything typical of that era, and his lyrics are what make it absolutely unique. A song that dwells on the fantasies and headiness of success, with it's cryptic reference to a life spent in boredom and anonymity, yet it's protagonist is confident of his own success to come;
They sentenced me to 20 years of boredom,
for trying to change the system from within,
I'm coming now, I'm coming to reward them,
First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin..
It sarcastically mocks;
You loved me as a loser,
but now you're worried that I just might win,
you know the way to stop me,
but you don't have the discipline.
The moment where the song becomes absolutely perfect, leaving me cold;
Did I thank you for those items that you sent me,
haaahaaahaaaa,
The monkey and the plywood violin.
It's the laugh, that chilling, mocking laugh. Coupled with the envy I feel at the pure surrealism of the monkey and the plywood violin.
The song that follows is a world away from it's neighbour, "Ain't No Cure For Love". Opening with a jazz saxophone, then settling into, again, a better example of thoughtful 80's music. Relying heavily on keyboards and programmed drums, complete with a choir of female backing singers, but again, it's the voice. Noone could compete with that. A deadpan, occasional spoken delivery of some typical lyrics about love, but with cleverly untypical undertones. "Everybody Knows" is like the album's opener, it's deep and intellectual. A rhythmic yet slow, almost classical backdrop looped to form an amazing piece of music Beethoven would have been proud of, even with it's processing via modern musical technology (as it was then). An epic insight into the possible outcome of the frivolities and carelessness of a depraved and deprived 1980's society. Casual sex, war, religion, corrupt politics and ominous lifestyles, drugs, racism, homophobia, to name a few things alluded to. Basically it's an anthem to mind corruption through the media, yet quietly it's mocking the stupidity of the narrow and weak minded. A thought provoking song, if you care to analyse it that deeply, it even references AIDS, which, in 1988, was a prominent topic of discussion;
Everybody knows that the plague is coming,
Everybody knows that it's moving fast,
Everybody knows that the naked man and woman,
Are just a shining artefact of the past.
The fourth song on this collection of 8, is "I'm Your Man". A swaggering piece of perfection, that could have easily been sung in an elite blues lounge, by a quietly sophisticated blues and jazz singer, who isn't particularly attractive, but the voice alone would bring anyone to their knees. It's slow and ridiculously sexy, musically, and lyrically. "Take This Waltz", is drenched with Johann Strauss undertones, not least with it's reference to Vienna, but in it's completeness, it's overall feel is typically Austrian, musically. It really is quite beautiful, even Cohen with his often abstract lyrics, manages to make it a piece of music to marvel at the splendour of. Ever the dark comedian though he is;
But who is it climbs to your picture,
with a garland of freshly cut tears,
Take this Waltz, it's been dying for years.
For "The Jazz Police", the mood shifts from Austrian composers, to something verging on Orwellian "1984" style allegory. The unwanted intrusion of the Jazz Police in one's life. Only Leonard Cohen could write and get away with something that obscure. "Jazz Police are looking through my folders, Jazz Police are talking to my niece". The music is haphazzard, almost like a series of notes thrown together in one take, loose and freestyle (much like jazz, which would make sense), though this is jazz of for the 80's, complete with an occasional angelic chorus from several sopranos, and some nifty piano playing. The most perfect line of the song being;
Guys like me are mad for turtle meat.
That is pure Cohen.
The 7th song, "I Can't Forget", is a flowing sequence of airy synthesised notes, poetically put together to form a bright and airy backdrop to Cohen's ever dry reminiscing and tales of woe (with pain staking attention to detail of routine daily rituals; "I stumbled out of bed, I got ready for the struggle, I smoked a cigarette, I tightened up my gut"). The eternal question throughout is what exactly he can't forget, but as he says in his own words.. "I can't forget, but I don't remember what".
The album's 8th and final song is absolutely superb. As soon as "Tower of Song" begins, you just know it's going to be an exercise in Cohen's infamous taking of a relatively simple concept, and tearing it to pieces in his own unique style, lacing it with darkly comic lines, and spewing it forth into something indescribably perfect. A shadowy song, with a quiet and smooth pace. Cohen's voice is absolutely perfect, to the fore and sarcastically intimate. His Tower of Song is metaphorically and allegorically the place he dwells, a tower of musical song (apparently Hank Williams lives 100 floors above him). A clever song on the whole, if you listen closely, it's quite apparent Cohen is mocking the snobbery and cold hearted flakiness of the music business, but he's not listening to them;
You see you hear these funny voices,
in the tower of song.
Remember me, I used to live for music
For only 8 songs, totalling 40.41 minutes in length, this really is an album that's quite spectacular from it's opening note to it's final echoes. It's dark wit and devilishly fork-tongued outlook on various aspects of life is what makes it special. It's political without being boring, it's sexy without being cheesy, it's pure sophisticated, thoughtful, introspective genius, and it's completely down to Leonard Cohen's unparalleled song writing abilities, and that voice. Not only is it all those things, but each of the 8 songs is completely different. What follows one song, will be unexpected, it's a journey down a road of surprises. Welcome ones. Wallowing in the murky deep blue musical sea of Leonard Cohen is a lesson in real introspection.
Leonard Cohen is one of those people much respected throughout the music industry, to serious musicians and song writers at any rate. Testament to that is the 2 tribute albums that have been released, with various artists covering his songs. "I'm Your Fan" featured the likes of REM and The Pixies, whilst "Tower of Song" branched out to the likes of Peter Gabriel, Elton John and Tori Amos. His last studio release was 2001's "Ten New Songs".
I couldn't possibly give this album less than a 5 star rating, my music morals and utter respect for a man as unique as Leonard Cohen wouldn't allow me to. Besides, this album earns them on it's own merit anyway, it's perfect.
Cheers.
Tracks: First We Take Manhattan / Ain't No Cure For Love / Everybody Knows / I'm Your Man / Take This Song / Jazz Police / I Can't Forget / Tower of Song
Overall: 5 stars
Similar Artists: Tim Buckley, Nick Drake, Lou Reed, Patti Smith
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