Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

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astranger
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by astranger »

Cheshire gal wrote:hi astranger,

I can quite understand how you feel. :D I'm sure everybody is looking forward to a new album very much. However, Leonard did say he takes his time to get it 'perfect', so I suppose we will all be waiting a little while longer. I would love to hear about a tour to introduce it though. :D :D
I know, it will surely be worth the wait. I will do whatever I have to do to see him if he tours again!
Jake.........Durham, NC 11-3-09; Brooklyn, NY 12-20-12
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Maarten
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by Maarten »

Cheshire gal wrote:I'm sure everybody is looking forward to a new album very much. However, Leonard did say he takes his time to get it 'perfect', so I suppose we will all be waiting a little while longer. I would love to hear about a tour to introduce it though. :D :D
Hi,
My latest (more or less reliable) information is that their will most probably be a new tour. Mr Cohen's album is "progressing nicely" and might even come out before Anjani's, but still closer to the end of the year than to the summer :-).

Maarten
(eating bread, drinking water and saving money)

2008 Manchester | Bruges | Amsterdam | London | 2x Brussels | Rotterdam |2x London
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MaryB
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by MaryB »

Maarten wrote: My latest (more or less reliable) information is that their will most probably be a new tour.

Maarten
(eating bread, drinking water and saving money)
But, oh so worth it! Betcha that bread and water is tasting pretty good right now :lol:
1993 Detroit 2008 Kitchener June 2-Hamilton June 3 & 4-Vienna Sept 24 & 25-London RAH Nov 17 2009 NYC Feb 19-Grand Prairie Apr 3-Phoenix Apr 5-Columbia May 11-Red Rocks Jun 4-Barcelona Sept 21-Columbus Oct 27-Las Vegas Nov 12-San Jose Nov 13 2010 Sligo Jul 31 & Aug 1-LV Dec 10 & 11 2012 Paris Sept 30-London Dec 11-Boston Dec 16 2013 Louisville Mar 30-Amsterdam Sept 20
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B4real
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by B4real »

Maarten wrote:My latest (more or less reliable) information is that their will most probably be a new tour.
'My Oh My' Maarten,

My bags are already packed :D :D 8)

Bev
It doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to B4real ~ me
Attitude is a self-fulfilling prophecy ~ me ...... The magic of art is the truth of its lies ~ me ...... Only left-handers are in their right mind!
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musicmania
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by musicmania »

Maarten wrote:Maarten
(eating bread, drinking water and saving money)
:lol:

Currently eating almost solely out of Aldi myself except when I meet friends. They don't understand the concept of trying to save for a tour yet to be confirmed and seem to think I can afford to eat in restaurants all the time :!:
2009 Dublin 2010 Lissadell Katowice LV x2 2012 Ghent x2 Dublin x4 Montreal x2 Toronto x2 2013 New York x2 Brussels Dublin x2

Gwen's Leonard Cohen Journey: http://myleonardcohenjourney.wordpress.com/

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MaryB
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by MaryB »

Looks like we'll all be a lot thinner by the time the next tour starts :lol:
1993 Detroit 2008 Kitchener June 2-Hamilton June 3 & 4-Vienna Sept 24 & 25-London RAH Nov 17 2009 NYC Feb 19-Grand Prairie Apr 3-Phoenix Apr 5-Columbia May 11-Red Rocks Jun 4-Barcelona Sept 21-Columbus Oct 27-Las Vegas Nov 12-San Jose Nov 13 2010 Sligo Jul 31 & Aug 1-LV Dec 10 & 11 2012 Paris Sept 30-London Dec 11-Boston Dec 16 2013 Louisville Mar 30-Amsterdam Sept 20
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Cheshire gal
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by Cheshire gal »

Maarten,

I think you have made a lot of people happy with this news. Prayers are answered. :lol: :lol:
'...and here's a man still working for your little smile' -Leonard Cohen
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Maarten
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by Maarten »

Cheshire gal wrote:Maarten,

I think you have made a lot of people happy with this news. Prayers are answered. :lol: :lol:
Keep in mind I used words like "more or less reliable" and "probably"...
But it's looking good, I guess!

Maarten

2008 Manchester | Bruges | Amsterdam | London | 2x Brussels | Rotterdam |2x London
2009 New York | Cologne | Antwerp | Venice | Colmar | Barcelona | Las Vegas | San José
2010 Salzburg | 2x Sligo | Helsinki | 3x Ghent | Lille | 2x Las Vegas
2012 5x Ghent | 2x A'dam | Helsinki | Dublin | Verona | 3x Paris | Lisboa
2013 Paris | Antwerp | Oberhausen | Brussels | Pula | Rotterdam | Amsterdam | 2x Wellington | Auckland
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Maarten
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by Maarten »

Carlowmike in the Sligo For Newbies thread:
carlowmike wrote:Between ourselves, it appears that things are "firming up" for April 2012 ;-)
I guess "ourselves" means "our forum" ...

2008 Manchester | Bruges | Amsterdam | London | 2x Brussels | Rotterdam |2x London
2009 New York | Cologne | Antwerp | Venice | Colmar | Barcelona | Las Vegas | San José
2010 Salzburg | 2x Sligo | Helsinki | 3x Ghent | Lille | 2x Las Vegas
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2013 Paris | Antwerp | Oberhausen | Brussels | Pula | Rotterdam | Amsterdam | 2x Wellington | Auckland
holydove
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by holydove »

Keep in mind I used words like "more or less reliable" and "probably"...
But it's looking good, I guess!

Maarten[/quote][/quote]

I hear you, Maarten - & let me just say, upon seeing your posts, I am "more or less" - "probably" - becoming WILD with EXCITEMENT!! Thank you so much for sharing this (potentially) happy information!!
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LisaLCFan
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by LisaLCFan »

These rumours are so exciting!! :D I await further news in breathless anticipation!

Maybe somebody could start a "Rumours about an upcoming tour" thread, rather than hiding these wonderful little tidbits in obscure places (although unexpectedly stumbling across them is certainly a thrill!). 8)
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mydoglorca
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by mydoglorca »

When shall we start 'The UK is calling' thread ;-) :D
1976 Bristol 1979 Birmingham 1988 RAH x 2, 1993 RAH x 2 & Madrid, 2008 Edinburgh, London O2, Cardiff, Bournemouth, RAH 17 Nov, Birmingham, Manchester 30 Nov, 2009 Weybridge, Liverpool, Dublin 19 & 20th,2010 September -Marseille, Tours, Lille, 2012 12 & 14 Aug Ghent,Wembley x22013 O2, Antwerp, Bournemouth, Manchester
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Heike
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by Heike »

Maarten, you brightened my day :D .
And having a look at the words you used in your announcement, I must say that you are rivalling Jarkko when it comes to creating suspense 8)
Maybe it was a good idea to save up some holidays for the autumn/winter season...
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A.Sukitu
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by A.Sukitu »

Maarten - thank you for sunshine in the rain.
mydoglorca - let's start now! the present is all that there is ...
(a poor skinnying) Annie
"You let me sing, you lifted me up, you gave my soul a beam to travel on. ... You gave the injury a tongue to heal itself."
Leonard Cohen in Book of Mercy (1984) Ch. 19.
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tomsakic
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Re: Leonard Cohen Talks About First New Album of the Decade

Post by tomsakic »

To repost a part:
tomsakic wrote:2. Born in Chains - WORLD PREMIERE in Salzburg July 27, 2010: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv6aZ945StQ
Sung by Leonard, Sharon, Hattie and Charlie; the album version will be by Leonard.

Earlier known as "Taken Out Of Egypt", it started as the original version of "I Can't Forget" and was discarded in 1987-88. Also titled at one point as "Born in Chains".

"[...] that song started off as a song about the exodus of the Hebrew people from Egypt. As a metaphor for the journey of the soul from bondage into freedom. It started out, I was born in chains but I was taken out of Egypt / I was bound to a burden but the burden it was raised / Lord I can no longer keep this secret / Blessed is the name, the name be praised. It went on like that for a long, long time, and I went into the studio and tried to sing this song about how "I was born in chains and I was taken..." But I wasn't born in chains and I wasn't taken out of Egypt, and not only that, but I was on the edge of what was going to become a very serious nervous breakdown. So I hadn't had the burden lifted and the whole thing was a lie! It was wishful thinking. And this song, "Taken Out of Egypt," took months and months to write. Nobody believes me when I say these things but I have the notebooks and I don't fill them in an evening. And there were many of them. So it wasn't as if I had an endless supply of songs: I had to start over. And I was saying to myself, "What is my life?" and that's when I started writing that lyric: I stumble out of bed / I got ready for the struggle / I smoked a cigarette / And I tightened up my gut / I said this can't be me / Must be my double / And I can't forget / I can't forget / But I don't remember what. That was really true." (Leonard Cohen, interviewed by Mark Rowland, "Leonard Cohen's Nervous Breakthrough", Musician, July 1988

Leonard can be heard mumbling these lines "I was born in chains" etc. to the unknown melody in Lian Lunson's 2005 documentary Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man. That's when I got the clue that he works on this old song again. Out of the blue, he premièred it on the sound check in Zagreb, July 25, and in public show two days later in Salzburg, July 27. Since then the song is included in every show of the European Summer tour of 2010. I am still honoured that I was only person in the audience in the empty Zagreb Arena on July 25 afternoon soundcheck.

Versions from Sligo July 31, with recitation of the lyrics: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8f37lh9LqRs, Malmo August 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDBOhN0V-Ew, Goteborg August 12 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0fT0SH57EA, Odense August 14: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AfMWBuWl7U, Berlin August 18 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31fRbKyq1is, Gent August 22: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkndB4KcXtM
Artur J and Gerhard have traced a song from one early 1985 sound check (Muenster), which was thought to be "I Can't Forget - early 1985 version". Artur checked the recording - the lyrics are 100% positively Born In Chains. Melody more similar to I Can't Forget. Quoting Artur's email to me:
Artur wrote:I have played the "unknown" song from Muenster 85 soundcheck and it IS Born in Chains. Chord progression same as I Can't Forget, but out of the mumbled words you can make our "I was bound down to a burden" and "written in my heart in burning letters".
Soundcheck in Münster was on the day of the show, February 1, 1985, and it was only second concert in the 1985 word tour (in 3 legs). It was recorded by Gerhard Schinzel.

From the February 1, 1985 soundcheck to July 27, 2010 premiere on stage - long writing process indeed!
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