Leonard consults the Kaballah and departs

[goldstei]

This is some amazing you tube footage of LC canceling a concert in Jerusalem, 1972, because he just can't get into it. It must have been a huge disappointment to the fans (I was one of those washed out of Red Rocks, so I know the feeling!) but you have to admire his integrity and brutal honesty.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMhgQOdM ... re=related

[mutti]

Hi
This is off topic but did you know there is thread for those who missed the Red Rocks and couldn't stay?
Its called Wet Rocks..have a peek..all are welcome there..
Mutti

[MaryB]

Bob,

Even without any song on the video, the banter of LC on stage is so endearing. This may be why so many people miss it in this current tour.

Best regards,
Mary

I didn't know you were one of the wounded of Wet Rocks. I am so sorry about that! This is the thread Leslie was talking about. Hope to see you there and hear your Wet Rocks saga.
viewtopic.php?f=18&t=15910

[RainDog1980]

Wow.

That was some some interesting footage... particularly "So Long Marianne" and the backstage view afterward. I feel bad having seen it, only because it was such an intensely personal moment.

Does anybody have any idea as to what was going on that night, were there any reports or recollections from that time?

[sue7]

Raindog1980, there is a detailed report on that concert in Ira Nadel's book "Various Positions." Too late at night now for me to quote it, as it's quite lengthy... if you don't have access to it, I'll try to post it up tomorrow.
Sue

[Liamberney]

I remember seeing the full film 'bird on a were' in the early 70s and it was a real revelation. It disapeared after doing the rounds just once. I recall that LC was unhappy with the final product and only allowed the release due to contractual commitments.
It provided a unique insight into the man, both the angel and the wolf. I think he saw the Jerusulem concert as a significant and major event and he was clearly very nervious. I saw him for the first time in Manchester the same year, where the concert was staged in a circus arena (King's hall, Belle Vue) with a large percentage of the audience behind the stage. This clearly threw him. Although the show went on, he was, I think unsettled (one of his encores was a little ditty with the chorus ' 'it was'nt very good ,there's no reason why you should, remember me).
I spoke to Jarkko about the film when we met up in Venice. He told me 'they' were interested in re-releasing the film in some form, but could not track down a copy. Let's hope they succeed in tracking down the film. If anyone should know more about this, perhaps you could share it with us. This small clip has whetted my appetite! In the meantime, I look forward to the Isle of Wight release.

[jenrbr]

I agree with maryB - It IS a very endearing video.
How could one not be effected by watching such stirring emotion.
It just hits the heart.
By the way - good to see you maryB and all of you.
Stay well
kol tov
jenny

[sturgess66]

I remember seeing the full film 'bird on a were' in the early 70s and it was a real revelation. It disapeared after doing the rounds just once. I recall that LC was unhappy with the final product and only allowed the release due to contractual commitments.
It provided a unique insight into the man, both the angel and the wolf. I think he saw the Jerusulem concert as a significant and major event and he was clearly very nervious. I saw him for the first time in Manchester the same year, where the concert was staged in a circus arena (King's hall, Belle Vue) with a large percentage of the audience behind the stage. This clearly threw him. Although the show went on, he was, I think unsettled (one of his encores was a little ditty with the chorus ' 'it was'nt very good ,there's no reason why you should, remember me).
I spoke to Jarkko about the film when we met up in Venice. He told me 'they' were interested in re-releasing the film in some form, but could not track down a copy. Let's hope they succeed in tracking down the film. If anyone should know more about this, perhaps you could share it with us. This small clip has whetted my appetite! In the meantime, I look forward to the Isle of Wight release.

I had posted a couple of these videos in the past but I just went and gathered all I could find at YouTube and put them all together in a thread - here -

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=17933

[RainDog1980]

I remember a while back when FCC came out in 2001, Sony had some video clips of live performances. They were in black and white from what I remember, and I only saw two, Bird on a Wire and Lover, Lover, Lover. Does anybody have some insight into those? Were they from the actual London concerts, or just the tour of '79?

I would love to see those released.

[sue7]

Wow.

That was some some interesting footage... particularly "So Long Marianne" and the backstage view afterward. I feel bad having seen it, only because it was such an intensely personal moment.

Does anybody have any idea as to what was going on that night, were there any reports or recollections from that time?

Raindog 1980, here is the quote from Nadel's book which describes the events (or some of them) at that concert:

“In Jerusalem, at the Yad Eliahu Sports Palace, there was pandemonium when Cohen stopped mid-performance and left the stage, agitated and in tears, saying that he could not go on and that the money should be refunded to the audience. Drugs and the pressure of performing the final concert of the tour in the holy city of Jerusalem had contributed to his state. In the dressing room, a distraught Cohen rejected the pleas of his musicians and manager to return to the stage. Several Israeli promoters, overhearing the conversation, walked out to the crowd and conveyed the news: Cohen would not be performing and they would receive their money back. The young audience responded by singing the Hebrew song “Zim Shalom” (“We Bring You Peace”). Backstage, Cohen suddenly decided he needed a shave: rummaging in his guitar case for his razor, he spied an envelope with some acid from years ago. He turned to his band and inquired: “Should we not try some?” “Why not?” they answered. And “like the Eucharist,” Cohen has said, “I ripped open the envelope and handed out small portions to each band member.” A quick shave, a cigarette, and then out to the stage to receive a tumultuous welcome. The LSD took effect as he started to play and he saw the crowd unite into the grand image of “the Ancient of Days” who had witnessed all history, asked him, “Is this All, performing on the stage?” Deliver or go home was the admonition. At that moment, Cohen had been singing “So Long, Marianne” intensely and a vision of Marianne appeared to him. He began to cry and, to hide his tears, turned to the band – only to discover that they, too, were in tears.
The high emotions soon brought the concert to an end but before they boarded the bus, Cohen and Ron Cornelius, his guitar player, walked to a wooded hillside nearby. When they turned back to look at the concert hall, a visionary light from the night sky illuminated its roof. “
From Ira Nadel “Various Positions: A Life of Leonard Cohen,” page 186.

[Liamberney]

Thanks Sue, this is brilliant. I have the book, read it twice, and missed this (tho' the shave thing rings a bell!). Probably my age....

[tomsakic]

RainDog1980, Sony's website had the clips from Harry Rasky's movie The Song of Leonard Cohen, what's logical as it's the film about the Field Commander Cohen tour.

I recall they were announcing the DVD release tied to the FCC CD, but obviously due to the copyrights, they never released it. Nevertheless, Harry Rasky did publish the book about the movie and the 1979 tour, the same year when FCC album came out, in 2001.

For years I was thinking that I dreamt about his DVD release and clips on the website, but recently I found the article with announcement so I didn't dream it:) I'm glad now that somebody else also recalls those clips from the website - I recall Lover Lover Lover had different lyrics than the FCC version, and later I recognised it as the part of Rasky's film. But my memory says they were in colour (as Rasky's movie).

[sturgess66]

RainDog1980, Sony's website had the clips from Harry Rasky's movie The Song of Leonard Cohen, what's logical as it's the film about the Field Commander Cohen tour.

I recall they were announcing the DVD release tied to the FCC CD, but obviously due to the copyrights, they never released it. Nevertheless, Harry Rasky did publish the book about the movie and the 1979 tour, the same year when FCC album came out, in 2001.

For years I was thinking that I dreamt about his DVD release and clips on the website, but recently I found the article with announcement so I didn't dream it:) I'm glad now that somebody else also recalls those clips from the website - I recall Lover Lover Lover had different lyrics than the FCC version, and later I recognised it as the part of Rasky's film. But my memory says they were in colour (as Rasky's movie).

Tom - Is this it? ("Lover, Lover, Lover"). I posted this in a couple of different threads recently - it is apparently from "Song of Leonard Cohen?"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCe1S1m-Dqo