This is my favorite of all Leonard Cohen lyrics because it has us look through the eyes of someone innocent albeit mad, and see the optimisim in the worst of life. He tells us that love is the ultimate yearning and he touches our souls

Now so long, Marianne, it’s time that we began
to laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again.

Well you know that I love to live with you,
but you make me forget so very much.
I forget to pray for the angels
and then the angels forget to pray for us.”

So Long Marianne is just so heartbreaking but also has this sense of lightheartedness to it with his playful wordings. Such an amazing chorus too – simple, universal and catchy. Cohen is the man.

I know you really loved me
But you see, my hands were tied
I know it must have hurt you
It must have hurt your pride
To have to stand beneath my window
With your bugle and your drum
And me, I’m up there waiting for the miracle,
For the miracle to come
……….

Baby, let’s get married
We’ve been alone too long
Let’s be alone together,
Let’s see if we’re that strong
Yeah let’s do something crazy,
Something absolutely wrong
While we are waiting for the miracle,
For the miracle to come
………

This is just one of the countless examples I could have selected from Leonard Cohen’s work.

There is simply no other artist who moves your mind, heart and soul ALL at the same time.

Cohen is a genius lyricist. His imagery and mysterious metaphors are unparalleled. He must have the kind of eyes that could cut right through you. Beyond the lyrics is the beautiful production on his earlier recordings. There’s something quite timeless about the simple chord structures. I find the lyrics to have something of a fractal quality. Like Dylan’s more surrealistic words, but with a clarity of purpose that Dylan was never able to capture.

Everybody knows – my first wife cheated
Everybody knows – I buckle under strain
so I try to live the moment
weed and whiskey help manage pain

The mutated seed sprouting in the cracks of western society is all glitter and lacks nourishment for the soul.

Leonard knows this; delving into life of gory glory. Thanks for giving us truth.

Graham

The surreal climax of one of the few “perfect” songs in existence.

I’m not a religious man, by any means. But even I could be fooled when listening to some Leonard Cohen songs. This song takes the listener on a holy journey; it truly puts you in a transcendent state of mind. I saw Leonard for the first time last year in Montreal and when those words boomed out of his depths, I was moved to tears (something that doesn’t often happen to me). In those moments I realized that I need to see this man whenever I get the chance. You provide the chance, and I thank you for it.

(ryantheduke@gmail.com) **re-posting this here as i wasn’t sure you’d see it on the AOL site.

I’m Your Man

This song gives me goosebumps, enough said – the older he gets, the better he sings it.

As the mist leaves no scar
On the dark green hill
So my body leaves no scar
On you and never will

I think it’s a little perverted that you’re making people get all English studenty here, especially since it’s a random draw, but I also find it funny as hell.
I’ve always been drawn to this opening stanza from “True Love Leaves No Traces.” It’s a deceptively simple, memorable turn of phrase that works on a number of levels. The use of the word scar, for instance, indicates violence, yet the idea of mist would suggest a mere touching or curtaining of bodies. Unlike some of his better known works, the language is as spare as it gets for Cohen. There’s little description, lots of space. Beautiful.

The first Leonard Cohen song I heard was “Dance Me to the End of Love,” and while I liked it immediately, those lyrics cemented my love for Cohen. There’s such a tenderness in the lines, almost a sense of growing desperation. The speaker of the song craves their lover’s touch so much, wants them so badly, that even the graze of a glove will do. The implication in even the smallest part of these lyrics is brilliant. For example, by choosing to use the word “naked” instead of “bare,” Cohen seems to hint that the speaker wants more than just their lover’s hand to be naked. Any other word wouldn’t have the same power. It’s this kind of minute detail that makes Cohen’s lines so poetic.

abcdefghijklmno_987 AT hotmail DOT com

I am going for the schmaltzy, remembrance angle. It was Christmas, and I was a teenager. My older brother handed me a gift that was obviously a record (this is the original vinyl era). I peeled off the paper and saw huge white print on black saying SONGS OF LOVE AND HATE (who named their album that?). Next I saw LEONARD COHEN. I had heard the name but that was about it. I thanked my brother, probably with confusion in my voice, and he assured me I would love the album, it was a classic. I took his word for it. He was my older brother and had hooked me up with some pretty sweet tunes. Later when I slipped it on the turntable I didn’t know what to make of it but kept listening. The odd voice delivering talk/sing poetry and the sparse arrangements were a bit of a shock in the prog rock era. I played it and played it and almost 30 years later am still playing it. I have bought it again and again in different formats but still have the original vinyl version (it is one of my favourite album covers). Song of Love and Hate made strange, beautiful music a part of my life.