Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

General discussion about Leonard Cohen's songs and albums
mtencza
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Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by mtencza »

Hello all!

As a new member to this list I maybe asking a question that has already been answered, but my searches (possibly incorrect) have not revealed the answer.

So - I am asking where may I find the "Complete Lyrics" to Leonard's song Hallelujah?

I understand that most of the covers incorporate only a condensed version, yet when I viewed the Leonard version on "You Tube" His version had several verses that were too powerful and poetic to ignore, and I would really like to know what all of his lyrics were for this song.

I believe that this is a man that allows God to speak through him which is displayed in all of his talents.

Something that we should all allow to make the world a better place!

Any help would be greatly appreciated!


Best wishes to all,

Mark
John Etherington
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by John Etherington »

Hi mentencza,

Rumour has it that this site does not have enough giga-bytes to contain them!

Cheers, John E
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secretchord
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by secretchord »

these are the lyrics as they are on Various Positions

Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this
The fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Your faith was strong, but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you
To a kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

You say I took the Name in vain
I don't even know the Name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though
It all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah...


these are the additional lyrics as per Cohen Live (and Jeff Buckley et al); there are rumoured to be many more verses but these are the ones also that appear in Stranger Music so if there are any more available I don't know where they are

baby I've been here before
I know this room, I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
love is not a victory march
it's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

There was a time you let me know
What's really going on below
but now you never show it to me, do you?
And remember when I moved in you
the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Maybe there's a God above
but all I ever learned from love
Was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you
It's no complaint you hear tonight
It's not some pilgrim who's seen the light
it's a cold and it's a lonely(/broken )Hallelujah
...that David played and it pleased the Lord...


http://www.myspace.com/morrinmusic
John Etherington
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by John Etherington »

You're right secretchord. My mistake...I was thinking of "Anthem" with its eighty verses. I shouldn't post here when I'm still waking up!

All the best, John E
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Davido
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by Davido »

mtencza, the verses posted above are the all that are known (it has been discussed before). It's rumoured that LC wrote more, but they have never been made known.
Dave
"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies"~ Groucho Marx
Auld Reekie
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by Auld Reekie »

In an interview in the magazine "The Word" (July 07) Leonard was asked what had been the longest gestation period for one of his songs.
"Hallelujah was at least five years. I have about 80 verses for it."
And later.
"I just took the six verses out of the many that establish some kind of coherence for the song. But there are many. The trouble is that I have to finish the verse before I can discard it."
I wonder if there is any chance these discarded verses will ever see the light of day? I'd love to read them.
paddieu
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by paddieu »

Well we did our best at the Big Chill yesterday with those lyrics. But that wasnt what he
sang ! As at Glasto the first verses were the same, and then we again couldnt make head not tail of what happened for the next 3-4. The very last one was the 'didnt come all the way to {X} to fool ya'. Can anyone shed any light on all this ? Thanks.
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margaret
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by margaret »

paddieu,

This what happens when Leonard performs live, he often varies the lines a bit or adds different verses 8)
It's not unusual at all!
paddieu
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by paddieu »

thanks !

yes thats why i was trying to get the verses from on here... the ones he sang
didnt seem to be any of the ones in the second half of whats below...

mind you i was relying on my friend with more hearing than me... :?
debbiejoy
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by debbiejoy »

I am a new Leonard Cohen fan. I was listening to KD Lang sing Hallelujah on Youtube Wednesday. I saw Leonard Cohen's name, so I watched the video of him singing it. I was hooked the first time I heard it! I have listened to it over and over. He is brilliant! He seems so kind and sensitive. And oh my God, was he HOT!
xfoxxyx
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by xfoxxyx »

I presume his songs vary with every live performance however the link bellow provides the lyrics from the most known live performance I think your looking for :)

http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/songind.html
John Etherington
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by John Etherington »

Hi debbiejoy,

It's wonderful to see your enthusiasm for the great man. Leonard is definitely the real thing, on all levels. Seize any opportunity and spare no expense to see him live while you can, as there can be no certainty that he will tour after 2009.

All good things, John E

P.S. I became a life-long devotee when I heard "Sisters of Mercy" forty years ago.
John Etherington
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by John Etherington »

Hi xfoxxyx,

Most of Leonard's live performances stay fairly faithful to the original recordings, compared to someone like Dylan who distorts his own work beyond recognition. "Hallelujah" is the song that has had the greatest evolution, though if my memory serves me well, the later verses were first performed live, quite soon after the original recording on "Various Positions". "Bird on a Wire" is the other main song that has gone through a noticeable process of eveolution. Otherwise, it is usually only a word or phrase that is changed. Leonard's early songs of course sound different with his older voice and the band treatment, but the songs are enhanced rather than being diminished in in any way.

All good things, John E
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hydriot
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by hydriot »

It's interesting that every cover I have heard deletes the crucial 'at' from "Is how to shoot at someone who outdrew you", changing the meaning completely. Leonard never suggested you can actually hit someone who has outdrawn you! For me, to shoot futilely in the general direction of someone you know has already outdrawn you is a powerful metaphor for the desperate tiny hope that survives even the most absolute rejection of your love. Nothing of that sense comes through in the covers. In their versions, this line is totally incomprehensible.
“If you do have love it's a kind of wound, and if you don't have it it's worse.” - Leonard, July 1988
lennywatson
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Re: Complete Hallelujah Lyrics

Post by lennywatson »

There is something powerful in the image of the futile shot fired at someone who outdrew you. But there is a different power in learning (from love) how to shoot somebody who outdrew you. To me this line is not about rejection of love, but about the end of love. About after years of being together, learning the terrible talent of hurting someone who has already destroyed you.
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