Cohen pursued a career as a poet and novelist during the 1950s and early 1960s; he did not launch a music career until 1967, at the age of 33. His first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), was followed by three more albums of folk music: Songs from a Room (1969), Songs of Love and Hate (1971) and New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974). His 1977 record Death of a Ladies' Man, co-written and produced by Phil Spector, was a move away from Cohen's previous minimalist sound. In 1979, Cohen returned with the more traditional Recent Songs, which blended his acoustic style with jazz, Oriental, and Mediterranean influences. Perhaps Cohen's most famous song, "Hallelujah", was first released on his studio album Various Positions in 1984. I'm Your Man in 1988 marked Cohen's turn to synthesized productions and remains his most popular album. In 1992, Cohen released its follow-up, The Future, which had dark lyrics and references to political and social unrest.
Cohen returned to music in 2001 with the release of Ten New Songs, which was a major hit in Canada and Europe. His 11th album, Dear Heather, followed in 2004. Following a successful string of tours between 2008 and 2013, Cohen released three albums in the final four years of his life: Old Ideas (2012), Popular Problems (2014) and You Want It Darker (2016), the last of which was released three weeks before his death.
Leonard Cohen was born into a middle-class Jewish family in Westmount, Quebec, on September 21, 1934. His Lithuanian mother, Marsha Klonitsky ("Masha"; 1905–1978), was the daughter of a Talmudic writer, Rabbi Solomon Klonitsky-Kline, and emigrated to Canada in 1927. His paternal grandfather, whose family had moved from Poland to Canada, was Lyon Cohen, the founding president of the Canadian Jewish Congress. His father, Nathan Bernard Cohen (1891–1943), who owned a substantial clothing store, died when Cohen was nine years old. The family observed Orthodox Judaism, and belonged to Congregation Shaar Hashomayim, to which Cohen retained connections for the rest of his life. On the topic of being a Kohen, Cohen told Richard Goldstein in 1967, "I had a very Messianic childhood. I was told I was a descendant of Aaron, the high priest."
Cohen attended Roslyn Elementary School and completed grades seven through nine at Herzliah High School, where his literary mentor Irving Layton taught, then transferred in 1948 to Westmount High School, where he studied music and poetry. He became especially interested in the poetry of Federico García Lorca. Cohen involved himself actively beyond Westmount's curriculum, in photography, on the yearbook staff, as a cheerleader, in the arts and current events clubs, and even served in the position of president of the Students' Council while "heavily involved in the school's theater program". During that time, Cohen taught himself to play the acoustic guitar, and formed a country–folk group that he called the Buckskin Boys. After a young Spanish guitar player taught him "a few chords and some flamenco", Cohen switched to a classical guitar. He has attributed his love of music to his mother, who sang songs around the house: "I know that those changes, those melodies, touched me very much. She would sing with us when I took my guitar to a restaurant with some friends; my mother would come, and we'd often sing all night.
Cohen frequented Saint Laurent Boulevard for fun and ate at such places as the Main Deli Steak House. According to journalist David Sax, Cohen and one of his cousins would go to the Main Deli to "watch the gangsters, pimps, and wrestlers dance around the night". Cohen enjoyed the formerly raucous bars of Old Montreal as well as Saint Joseph's Oratory, which had the restaurant nearest to Westmount, for him and his friend Mort Rosengarten to share coffee and cigarettes. When Cohen left Westmount, he purchased a place on Saint-Laurent Boulevard, in the previously working-class neighbourhood of Little Portugal. He would read his poetry at assorted nearby clubs. In that period and that place, Cohen wrote the lyrics to some of his most famous songs.
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Leonard Cohen Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'll do anything you ask me to
And if you want another kind of love
I'll wear a mask for you
If you want a partner, take my hand, or
If you want to strike me down in anger
Here I stand
I'm your man
If you want a boxer
I will step into the ring for you
And if you want a doctor
I'll examine every inch of you
If you want a driver, climb inside
Or if you want to take me for a ride
You know you can
I'm your man
Ah, the moon's too bright
The chain's too tight
The beast won't go to sleep
I've been running through these promises to you
That I made and I could not keep
Ah, but a man never got a woman back
Not by begging on his knees
Or I'd crawl to you baby and I'd fall at your feet
And I'd howl at your beauty like a dog in heat
And I'd claw at your heart, and I'd tear at your sheet
I'd say please (please)
I'm your man
And if you've got to sleep a moment on the road
I will steer for you
And if you want to work the street alone
I'll disappear for you
If you want a father for your child
Or only want to walk with me a while across the sand
I'm your man
If you want a lover
I'll do anything you ask me to
And if you want another kind of love
I'll wear a mask for you
The lyrics of this song are open to interpretation. Some believe that the song is about a man who keeps trying to leave a woman but always finds himself coming back to her. The first verse suggests that the man has tried to end the relationship many times but has never been successful. He has closed the book on their relationship multiple times, but he always wakes up next to her the next morning, suggesting that he still loves her in some sense.
As the years go by, the man loses his pride. He becomes trapped in the relationship and feels like he can't leave because of the baby they have together. The woman is consumed with taking care of the baby and her work, and the man feels like he's been left behind. Despite this, the man is still working to make the woman happy. He tells her goodnight and hopes that she is satisfied with their relationship.
Overall, the song is a poignant exploration of the struggles that come with long-term relationships. It shows the push and pull that many couples feel, and the difficulties that come with balancing love, work, and family.
Line by Line Meaning
I tried to leave you, I don't deny
I attempted to leave you, I'm not going to deny it.
I closed the book on us, at least a hundred times.
I have given up on our relationship numerous times.
I'd wake up every morning by your side.
I used to wake up next to you every single morning.
The years go by, you lose your pride.
As time passes, people tend to lose their confidence.
The baby's crying, so you do not go outside,
You stay inside because the baby is crying.
And all your work it's right before your eyes.
All of your accomplishments are right in front of you.
Goodnight, my darling, I hope you're satisfied,
I hope you're happy tonight, my love.
The bed is kind of narrow, but my arms are open wide.
Our bed may not be spacious, but there's enough room for my embrace.
And here's a man still working for your smile.
I'm still trying to make you happy, even after everything that's happened.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Leonard Cohen
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
g s
0:00 Everybody Know
6:17 Hallelujah
10:58 Dance me to the end of love
16:09 Suzanne
20:12 Famous Blue Raincoat
25:25 the stranger songs
30:10 The Future
36:51 So Long Marlanne
43:07 Diamonds in the mine
48:28 Hey that is no way to say goodbye
52:54 Avalanche
57:40 Sisters of Mercy
1:00:30 Chelsea Hotel No
1:05:39 Take this waltz
1:11:11 Waiting for the miracle
1:19:00 going home 2013
1:30:26 coming back to you
Богдан Гордасевич
0:00 Everybody Knows
6:17 Hallelujah
10:58 Dance me to the end of love
16:09 Suzanne
20:12 Famous Blue Raincoat
25:25 the stranger songs
30:10 The Future
36:51 So Long Marlanne
43:07 Diamonds in the mine
48:28 Hey that is no way to say goodbye
52:54 Avalanche
57:40 Sisters of Mercy
1:00:30 Chelsea Hotel No
1:05:39 Take this waltz
1:11:11 Waiting for the miracle
1:19:00 going home 2013
1:30:26 coming back to you
g s
0:00 Everybody Know
6:17 Hallelujah
10:58 Dance me to the end of love
16:09 Suzanne
20:12 Famous Blue Raincoat
25:25 the stranger songs
30:10 The Future
36:51 So Long Marlanne
43:07 Diamonds in the mine
48:28 Hey that is no way to say goodbye
52:54 Avalanche
57:40 Sisters of Mercy
1:00:30 Chelsea Hotel No
1:05:39 Take this waltz
1:11:11 Waiting for the miracle
1:19:00 going home 2013
1:30:26 coming back to you
Cow~EL
Thank you for this
legato1016
Thanks!!👍🏻👍🏻
Esther Cohen
ק11¹1¹¹¹
vacatio
Danke! Very kind!
aebalc
And thank you for spelling correctly. Hallelijah and Watting for the Miracle on the the video drove me nuts.
Julie Gonzaga
Thank you for sharing...love LC his music his poems his voice 1:00:54 ❤️ 💕 💜
nadine pierce
He was and always will be one of the most talented men of all time. His music is timeless... with love and affection 💕
Bonnie Johnson
He was a genius. Uniquely able to combine the light with the dark, the deep sensuality with the broken heart, the sacred with the mundane. The voice of a prophet.
Daniel Appleton
@Bonnie Johnson That gravelly voice sounds like he's addressing the listener directly. It's spiritual which is somewhat overused, but it serves