CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

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sturgess66
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CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by sturgess66 »

The venue is Rexall Place - an indoor arena and home to the Edmonton Oilers (that's hockey eh?). It's old - it opened in 1974 - but there have been renovations. From Wikipedia (where there are a lot of details because it is a major hockey arena )- :lol: -
The arena underwent an extensive renovation in 1994 in which the seating capacity was reduced to make way for fifty-two luxury suites. Fifteen more suites were added in 2001. The arena can also be noisy, as noise levels have reached 119 dB during playoff games
The capacity for concerts is approx. 12,000.

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Keep Calm Edmonton
UHTC Soon Will Go On
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sturgess66
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by sturgess66 »

From Joey/Camp Cohen/Notes From The Road -

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Snowy in Edmonton

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Sound Check Edmonton
All is well in Rexall Place.



http://leonardcohen.tumblr.com/post/360 ... n-edmonton
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

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From Edmonton Journal -
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertai ... story.html
Leonard Cohen’s Edmonton Visit Will Include Art Exhibit

By Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal
September 17, 2012

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Leonard Cohen, who’s playing Rexall Place on Nov. 18,
also has an art show of limited edition prints hanging at Bugera Matheson Gallery Nov. 17.
Photograph by: Fish Griwkowsky , Edmonton Journal


EDMONTON - Among his faithful, everybody knows Leonard Cohen is coming to Edmonton Nov. 18 for a Rexall Place concert.

But the award-winning Order of Canada companion actually has dual purpose in Edmonton — his visual art will hang in one of our downtown exhibition spaces as well.

Opening Saturday, Nov. 17, a show of drawings by the name Leonard Cohen Artworks will adorn the walls of Bugera Matheson Gallery (12310 Jasper Ave., formerly Agnes Bugera Gallery). It will include limited-edition prints of Cohen’s work, usually in a run of 100, including a number of self-portraits and other artwork.

Cohen does a wide range of drawings, from watercolours to pastels, digital renderings and napkin doodles. They’re then printed in California by Graham Nash (of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young) on Arches watercolour paper, finished with a hand-deckled edge. Cohen then inspects, signs and seals each print with an old Chinese stamp saying “Jikan,” Cohen’s Zen Buddhist monk name, meaning ordinary silence.

Angie Bugera, who last week took over running the gallery following her mother’s retirement, is hopeful the 77-year-old Cohen will drop in to the opening. “I am going to do my best to make that happen,” she says cheerfully. “He’s kind of shy.”

Cohen was unavailable for comment.

The American Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee was born Sept. 21, 1934, in Westmount on the Island of Montreal. He began as a poet and novelist in the ’60s, moving into a successful musical career that has spanned decades, critics measuring his talent as a songwriter against Bob Dylan and Paul Simon. Cohen frequently explores themes of sex, music, love and lechery, openly admitting his desires and faults. Among the lyrics in his latest album he sings, “I love to speak with Leonard. He’s a sportsman and a shepherd. He’s a lazy bastard living in a suit.”

The show at Bugera Matheson Gallery will run until Dec. 1.

fgriwkowsky@fisheyefoto
© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by zwirnie »

setlist posted on setlist.fm by an attendee ... seems reasonably comprehensible

First Set
Dance Me to the End of Love
The Future 

Bird on the Wire
Everybody Knows
Who by Fire?
Darkness 

Ain't No Cure for Love
Amen 

Come Healing
In My Secret Life
A Thousand Kisses Deep (recitation)
Anthem 


Second Set
Tower of Song
Suzanne 

Sisters of Mercy
Waiting for the Miracle
Anyhow 

Heart with No Companion
Democracy 

If It Be Your Will (performed by the Webb Sisters)
Alexandra Leaving (performed by Sharon Robinson)
I'm Your Man
Hallelujah 

Take This Waltz

Encore:
So Long, Marianne
First We Take Manhattan
Encore 2:
Famous Blue Raincoat
Going Home 

Closing Time
Encore 3:
I Tried to Leave You
Save the Last Dance for Me (The Drifters cover)
2010: Wellington, 2012/13: Berlin
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by zwirnie »

2010: Wellington, 2012/13: Berlin
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

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From Edmonton Sun -
http://www.edmontonsun.com/2012/11/19/g ... ssful-doom
Godfather of Blissful Doom

By Mike Ross, Edmonton Sun

First posted: Sunday, November 18, 2012 10:29 PM MST |
Updated: Sunday, November 18, 2012 11:52 PM MST

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Just guessing there was a lot of middle-aged sex after the Leonard Cohen concert on Sunday night.

Sorry you had to read that, kids, but the man sure knows how to kindle the fires of the cockles of the heart, or maybe somewhere lower.

There’s just something about that deep, whispery voice, those sad yet intensely romantic songs, his good manners, his natty black fedora, or maybe it was lines like this: “You came to me this morning and you handled me like meat. You’d have to be a man to know how good that feels, how sweet.”

OK then!

It’s hard to know what his secret is. Len is a Man of Mystery. People say that if the Grim Reaper had a voice, it would sound something like this, but there sure were a lot of happy couples who turned up at Rexall Place to hang on his every word. The fans created one of the quietest crowds for one of the quietest shows ever witnessed in this building, all in rapt, reverent attention as the 78-year-old Godfather of Blissful Doom performed like he had nothing to lose. First song in, he’s on his knees, begging her please, to “dance me to the end of love.”

The theme would surface again several times in a show that stretched two sets over three hours.

Rendered with elegant precision by a fine band and angelic back-up vocals, the show was perfect combination of fatalism and romance, heaven and hell, sex and death, sometimes all of the above all at the same.

Cohen wore a smile the entire time, was a gracious host and a perfect gentleman. Funny, too.

He said at early at one point he wanted to “start smoking when I’m 80 … try a little acid when I’m 90 and sex when I’m 100.”

Hey, if Len can last this long and still be randy, his fans certainly ought to be up to it. Along with the sweetly rendered songs about death, heartbreak and the end of the world as we know it came his famous love songs: Bird on a Wire or Ain’t No Cure for Love.

Before the intermission came Amen, again down on his knees begging her please to “tell me that you love me again.”

There was a bluesy number called Who By Fire that seems to be about love and death at the same time. During the recitation of his poem “A Thousand Kisses Deep” – see meat line, above - you could hear a pin drop, or a potato chip crunch, anyway.

The first set ended with Anthem, cheers rising when he sang, “There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.”

The second set went back in time quite a bit more than the first, and was loaded with romantic goodness, opening with a doo-wop treatment of Tower of Song, as he made light of his own skills on the Bontempi organ, before moving into the slow and sweet Suzanne – released long ago when most of the observers at the concert were just coming of age.

Cheers also came in Waiting for the Miracle: “I dreamed about you, baby, it was just the other night, most of you was naked, but some of you was light.”

In curious contrast, Len also delivered some of the most depressing songs ever written.

Songs like Everybody Knows especially amounted to one pronouncement of doom after another – the dice are loaded, the fight was fixed, the boat is leaking, the deal is rotten, the scene is dead, it’s all coming apart - and just in time for the Mayan Apocalypse, too!

He’s got a way of sealing off all the lights at the end of the tunnel with lines like “I thought the past would last me, but the darkness too that, too.”

Old people are forever complaining that the world is going to hell, that things are sliding in all directions, that the future, in short, is murder, baby, and that’s mainly because old people assume the world is falling apart in time with their own bodies, but Len may be onto something here:

We’re all doomed in the end — there’s no arguing with evidence — so we might as well make love.

Click on link to see slideshow of 15 pictures -
http://www.edmontonsun.com/2012/11/18/l ... n-edmonton
Leonard Cohen's Old Ideas World Tour Stops at Rexall Place in Edmonton

Leonard Cohen performs with his band at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta on November 18, 2012. The singer and poet is on a cross Canada tour in support of his 2012 album Old Ideas. IAN KUCERAK/EDMONTON SUN/QMI AGENCY

Last edited by sturgess66 on Mon Nov 19, 2012 3:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

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Edmonton Journal -
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertai ... story.html
Cohen Constructs a Tower of Song in Edmonton

By Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal November 18, 2012

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Leonard Cohen performs at Rexall Place in Edmonton November 16, 2012.
Photograph by: JASON FRANSON


EDMONTON - Repeatedly on his knees like some practising prince, Leonard Cohen revisited us with his army of metaphors that have made him one of the most revered Canadians.

The poet-turned-singer rearranged his eldest songs, casting giant shadows during Suzanne and just briefly awakening the wide-eyed cry of his youth during a deeply beautiful Bird on a Wire.

“Thank you for your warm and gracious – what was it, anyhow? – welcome! I don't know that we'll be here again,” the Order of Canada Companion noted matter-of-factly, vowing to start smoking again when he turns 80, do other drugs at 85, “Do acid when I'm 90, sex when I'm 100.”

On that subject, he brought Sisters of Mercy “home to the shores of the North Saskatchewan,” which he dedicated to his mysterious Edmonton muses Barbara and Lorraine, who kept him warm on a snowy night back in 1966 and led to the international hit. Leaning into his middle albums during a set lasting over three hours, an Ambassador Spock-looking Cohen in a bolo tie and often tipped fedora had the support of his longtime and incredible band, adding a frantic twist to Everybody Knows by singing off tempo. As always, his lyrical collaborator Sharon Robinson and the Webb sisters, Charley and Hattie, smoothed the borders of a voice that without the wit and vulnerability behind them would have never made it to the end of the '60s.

Proof of this was perhaps the most emotionally resonating moment of the night, a repeat reading of A Thousand Kisses Deep, the desperately sad poem he gave us last time through as well. Gorgeous.

I agree wholeheartedly with the Calgary Herald's Mike Bell in that a sports cavern is not the perfect place to watch Leonard Cohen - though taking this to its ultimate conclusion the best venue for the man would probably be in a candlelit bathtub during a Montreal snowstorm. Maybe a bar of soap in your mouth for good measure.

Having said this, the sound at the allegedly NHL rink was some of the best ever heard here, thanks to a team of “crack Canadians,” as Cohen himself put it. Javier Mas on 12-string guitar and especially Neil Larsen on the moaning Hammond B3 organ deserve a special mention, too.

Who by Fire was riveting, and after he sang The Darkness he laughed, “Cohen, when are you going to lighten up? When are you going to recover from the news you learned 50 years ago that there ain't no cure for love?” Cue that song.

“This is a song I wrote for the Americans, but maybe it has some application here as well,” Cohen said before dropping a corned-up country take of Democracy.

It's been interesting week in Edmonton, Alice Cooper and Fran Lebowitz passing through with scripted stand-up acts, Cohen's banter and poetry similarly polished to frictionlessness. But the 78-year-old is a more serious character, which is to say that though an absolute contortionist of self-deprecation, he's clearly beyond intelligent enough to understand his humility functions as a temple, especially in a city like Edmonton where standing ovations are often given before a performer even opens his mouth.

We were here for familiar sermons and Hallelujahs and when we leave his presence I can absolutely guarantee a gentlemanly calm blossoms briefly, more doors held open for others and such. Cohen drips with charm.The 9000 or so who dropped over $100 were treated to a calm, patient, witty and soulful show.

Last time he was here I kept worrying that one would be that last, but from his springy entrance on a jog to many limber drops to his knees, it feels like the man just may be smoking, dropping acid and making love in our midst as the next few decades push in.

Let's knock on wood for that one, no pun intended; it's meant respectfully and sincerely, L. Cohen.

fgriwkowsky@edmontonjournal.com

Twitter/Instagram: @fisheyefoto
© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertai ... story.html
Photos: Leonard Cohen performs in Edmonton

Take a look at some photos of Leonard Cohen performing at Rexall Place in Edmonton on November 16, 2012.

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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by LisaLCFan »

Leonard Cohen was all smiles last night as he thrilled 10,000+ in Edmonton! His voice was in magnificent form, hitting so many of those deep, low notes, each time sending rumbles through the whole arena. Leonard and the band crackled with energy and enthusiasm, and every song seemed fresh and new. Bird on the Wire was incredible, it was one of the best (if not the best) performances of it that I have ever heard, it was stunning.

Other notable highlights were breathtaking versions of Suzanne and Sisters of Mercy, the latter of which Leonard introduced by saying, "I'd like to bring this song home to where it was written, in a hotel on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, for Barbara and Lorraine, " and what followed was an absolutely beautiful rendition of the song, with Alex's violin adding the perfect touches. (Incidentally, I absolutely love Alex's violin!)

Sharon's solo of Alexandra Leaving was absolutely amazing. Javier seemed to be in particularly excellent form, and Mitch Watkins' guitar work was wonderful, displaying such a range of sounds and styles, I was extremely impressed, really enjoying his contributions, and happy that he is back! Everybody was on their game, clearly enjoying the warm reception that we gave them, and just as Leonard promised, they gave us everything they had, and then some!

Early in the concert, Leonard joked with crowd that he would take up smoking again at 80, try some other drug at 85, do acid at 90, and sex at 100, which pretty much ensured that we were in the palm of his hand for the rest of the night, as he joked and danced and smiled (I did mention his smiles: they were constant and exuberant!).

As is often the case, the first set was a beautiful and slightly more laid-back affair, while the second set was on fire. It started with Leonard's always delightful Tower of Song, with Leonard getting huge cheers for the "I was born with the gift of a golden voice" line, and after the audience responded cheerfully to his keyboard solo, Leonard said, "You ain't heard nothing yet!" He wasn't kidding! The excitement and enthusiasm just kept building as the evening went on: Leonard's voice seemed to get even better (it was phenomenal), his dance moves became more demonstrative, his smiles even brighter (Leonard appeared to be having the time of his life!), and the entire band and audience were enjoying every moment of it along with him. It was an absolutely fantastic concert!

The Edmonton crowd was on their feet after every encore song, and Leonard and the band responded with exuberance, playing until 11:45 pm, although I am sure that most of us would have been happy if they had continued long into the night. The thunderous response to Leonard's "I hope you're satisfied" statement in I Tried To Leave left no doubt in anyone's mind that Leonard Cohen and his magnificent band delivered a memorable and exciting concert that we will never forget.

Thank you so much, Leonard and everyone, for coming back Edmonton. You are always welcome here!
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by Cheshire gal »

What a great review Lisa. It made me feel like I was actually there. :D
'...and here's a man still working for your little smile' -Leonard Cohen
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by LisaLCFan »

Thanks, Marie! I had a great time!

I was just looking at the concert reports from Calgary (which was two nights before Edmonton), and while I was not there and cannot comment on it, I will add the following to what I said above:

Leonard Cohen's concert in Edmonton delivered all the magic and excitement that one could ever expect from The Man and his magnificent band. Having been to a few Cohen concerts in the last few years (including one in the U.S. very recently), I have to say that the concert in Edmonton last night ranked up there with the very best. Leonard and the band exceeded even my highest expectations, giving us a thrilling, fun, and at times incredibly moving concert, as the myriad of human emotions were explored and expressed as only Leonard can do. It was quite possibly the most exhilarating of Leonard's concerts that I have been to, and by the expressions on the faces of my fellow concert-goers (and the giddy conversations that I overheard afterwards), this sentiment was shared by all who were fortunate enough to have been there. Bravo, Leonard and the band!!


[edited for spelling :oops: ]
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by sturgess66 »

Cheshire gal wrote:What a great review Lisa. It made me feel like I was actually there. :D
Ditto to what Cheshire gal says, Lisa - I was thinking that "lucky you" would be at this show.

Regarding Calgary and that review, I suspect that it may have been Mr. Bell who has having the "off night." From the few videos we have - everything looks A-OKAY - and more - to me. :D
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by B4real »

Thank you so much Lisa, for your very descriptive words! For a few minutes I too was transported there. Sounds like a wonderful concert :D
LisaLCFan wrote:(Incidentally, I absolutely love Alex's violin!)
..... and you know that goes for me too ;-)
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by st theresa1 »

Sigh--another concert over--All the accolades were true of course--The musicians, in top form, responded in kind to the warm Edmonton welcome. I was so glad I had decided to overcome my aversion to hockey rinks as it was quite powerful to witness the silence in that huge arena, as the audience experienced the magic of the performance. I had been worried about that after reports from Los Angeles about the noise from the audience. My 22 year old son did have to ask one audience member to turn down the brightness of her iphone, after which she respectfully covered it up when shooting. I was glad to see the very positive reviews from both the Sun and the Journal. It is kind of amusing to listen to young(er) reviewers try to understand what draws baby boomers to his performances--Middle aged sex? Roflmao. Well maybe for a few . I have my own opinions about what draws us, but I wouldn't attempt to communicate them to that generation. Sorry kids you have to be 55+ to get it. And for the most part, it is beyond words and/or sex. :!: :) er not that there's anything wrong with either of those of course...
Last edited by st theresa1 on Tue Nov 20, 2012 3:20 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by antwerp guy »

Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal wrote: An Ambassador Spock-looking Cohen
:lol:
Beam us up, Lenny!
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Re: CONCERT REPORT: Edmonton, Alberta - November 18, 2012

Post by st theresa1 »

http://www.gigcity.ca/2012/11/19/concer ... l-the-way/

I like this review--a classy review


In the Internet age, when success is so often determined by slick branding and youthful imagery, it’s telling that Leonard Cohen’s cheekily titled 2012 album “Old Ideas” is far and away his highest-charting record, in a career spanning 12 studio albums dating back to 1967.

Cohen stepped out onto the Rexall Place stage Sunday night in front of a crowd of about 9,000 with his hat brim drawn low, dressed in a a slick suit and backed by a nine-piece band that was a perfect picture of class. The visuals were almost nonexistent, save for warm splashes of purple, red and yellow lighting on the curtains behind the stage.

It worked like a charm. When Cohen started putting music to his acclaimed poems he wrote in his 30s, he carved himself a unique niche – a place where flash, bombast and gimmickry are irrelevant. Cohen’s Sunday night performance was proof.

From opener Dance Me to the End of Love, Cohen’s genuine passion set the stage alight. The 78-year-old Montrealer grooved and kneeled on stage through his baritone classics The Future, Bird on a Wire, Everybody Knows, In My Secret Life and more, while the crowd of mostly baby-boomer couples was quiet, attentive and appreciative, at times, entranced.

If Cohen is on the road for financial reasons, it doesn’t show.

In some spots, Cohen let his international band of phenomenal musicians take centre stage, like a blistering 12-string flamenco guitar intro to Who By Fire by Javier Mas that preceded Cohen picking up his own guitar for the first time that night, casting a 50-foot shadow on the orange-lit curtain behind him.

And then there were tracks sung entirely by the back-up vocalists Charley and Hattie Webb and long-time collaborator Sharon Robinson.

Cohen watched his musicians with reverence, introduced them multiple times, as well as his sound and lighting crew by name. Talk about class.

Other times, Cohen’s masterful wordplay took centre stage as he conjured hopeless romanticism, political upheaval and the darkest corners of the human mind, while simultaneously tapping into the secret fantasies of every man and woman in the building.

Among it all, Cohen showed a wicked sense of humor, at one point asking himself, “When are you going to lighten up?” before There Ain’t No Cure for Love.

Even during his heart-wrenching poetic reading of A Thousand Kisses Deep, he drew roaring laughter to lines like, “You came to me this morning and you handled me like meat – you have to be a man to know how good that feels.”

After a brief intermission, Cohen returned behind the keys for Tower of Song, before revisiting his debut album for Suzanne and Sisters of Mercy – a song he recalled writing 50 years ago in a hotel near the North Saskatchewan River.

The second set, which brought the entire show to an impressive three-and-a-half-hour length, continued with new tracks from Old Ideas and necessities including I’m Your Man, Hallelujah and So Long, Marianne.

While his songs still seem like they would fit better in a small, smoky bar, he managed to reach every corner of Rexall as Edmonton fans hung on his every sad, remorseful, seductive and hopeful word until he closed for good with Save the Last Dance for Me.

It could not have been done better by someone 50 years his junior.

“I’ll try another drug when I’m 85,” Cohen quipped at one point. “I’ll try a little acid when I’m 90.”

Here’s hoping he keeps that passion burning for years to come.
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