THE FLAME - Reviews

Everything about Leonard Cohen's new book
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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https://www.ledevoir.com/lire/542037/th ... nard-cohen
Le Devoir

«The Flame»: premier dernier testament de Leonard Cohen

Dominic Tardif
24 novembre 2018
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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https://www.ft.com/content/6e50d69c-eeb ... f212677a57
Financial Times

Best books of 2018: Poetry
Maria Crawford selects her must-read titles

November 23, 2018
Maria Crawford

The Flame, by Leonard Cohen, Canongate, RRP£20/ Farrar, Straus & Giroux, RRP$28 Cohen was a poet before he was a musician, and with this posthumous collection his career completes its circle. Encompassing poems and lyrics written in his last decade, as well as self-portraits and notebook extracts, the book is introduced by his son Adam Cohen, who writes that The Flame “was what he was staying alive to do, his sole breathing purpose at the end”.
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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https://www.cjnews.com/culture/books-an ... hers-house
Canadian Jewish News

SIX CHORDS IN THE PARK BEHIND LEONARD COHEN’S MOTHER’S HOUSE

Norman Ravvin

November 23, 2018
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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https://www.cbc.ca/books/the-cbc-books- ... -1.4914771

CBC
The CBC Books winter reading list: 15 Canadian books to read this season


November 23, 2018
Looking for a new book? We've rounded up some recent Canadian fiction and nonfiction to cozy up with as temperatures drop.
The Flame by Leonard Cohen
In the final days of his life, Leonard Cohen completed The Flame, a collection of previously unpublished poetry, selections from his notebooks and lyrics from his albums. Cohen curated the book's selections, which include his insights as an artist and thinker.
1988, 1993: Helsinki||2008: Manchester|Oslo|London O2|Berlin|Helsinki|London RAH|| 2009: New York Beacon|Berlin|Venice|Barcelona|Las Vegas|San José||2010: Salzburg|Helsinki|Gent|Bratislava|Las Vegas|| 2012: Gent|Helsinki|Verona|| 2013: New York|Pula|Oslo|||
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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1988, 1993: Helsinki||2008: Manchester|Oslo|London O2|Berlin|Helsinki|London RAH|| 2009: New York Beacon|Berlin|Venice|Barcelona|Las Vegas|San José||2010: Salzburg|Helsinki|Gent|Bratislava|Las Vegas|| 2012: Gent|Helsinki|Verona|| 2013: New York|Pula|Oslo|||
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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The Flame on another best of 2018 list.

https://www.cbc.ca/books/the-best-canad ... EJL0837S54

CBC
The best Canadian poetry of 2018
CBC Books
December 14, 2018

2018 was a great year for books. Here are CBC Books's top 12 Canadian works of poetry that came out this year...

The Flame by Leonard Cohen
In the final days of his life, Leonard Cohen completed The Flame, a collection of unpublished poetry, selections from his notebooks and lyrics from his albums. Cohen curated the book's selections, which include his insights as an artist and thinker.
1988, 1993: Helsinki||2008: Manchester|Oslo|London O2|Berlin|Helsinki|London RAH|| 2009: New York Beacon|Berlin|Venice|Barcelona|Las Vegas|San José||2010: Salzburg|Helsinki|Gent|Bratislava|Las Vegas|| 2012: Gent|Helsinki|Verona|| 2013: New York|Pula|Oslo|||
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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https://www.zendalibros.com/la-llama-de-leonard-cohen/
Zenda, Spain
La llama, de Leonard Cohen

Google translation provided by Marie:
The flame, by Leonard Cohen
Dec 18 2018
/
DANIEL J. RODRÍGUEZ

Before continuing, reader, you must understand that this review does not pretend to be objective. With Cohen, no. It is difficult to do it with the work of someone who does not consider it an exaggeration, it has saved my life; complex to do on the notes, poems and latest illustrations of someone who will accompany me in an unconditional way until the end of my days, inside me, as ink under the skin.

That subtle fire, that grotto flame reminiscent of the first men, intimate, almost non-existent, but that shimmers showing that it is there, that it survives, despite everything, feeding on everyone, feeding on everything. That smell of strange home, of incense of sepulcher, the taste of the sacred. It is what is extracted from La llama(Salamandra, 2018) , the literary testament of the old bard, by Leonard Cohen .


The posthumous book, with translation of his beloved friend Alberto Manzano, places the reader once again before the creative universe of the singer-songwriter of Montreal: religion, the body of women as sanctified territory, music, their love / hatred towards America, old age and death -in this occasion in an accentuated way- and the self-definition of a forger in this world that has uplifted him by his singing, despite the fact that the "alibi of his voice" should be deposed, are placed as a plot thread of this book.

The flame includes some sixty poems, the lyrics of her last three albums and the songs she wrote for Anjani's Blue Alert , some of her latest emails , a wide selection of texts from her notebook and the speech with which she thanked the obtaining the Prince of Asturias Award on October 21, 2011: "The poetry comes from a place that no one dominates and nobody can conquer," Cohen improvised before the Spanish audience, although inside the Canadian must know that not only dominated the territory of others, but had walked between its routes with absolute alacrity, with the exact mastery of artisans who, even blind, could continue their meticulous labor until the end of their lives. It is impossible that he was not conscious. Or maybe it is that those who have touched that which is beyond excellence do not notice it. Who knows.

The feeling that the gift was not deserved by him is shown in some of the texts of La llama, as in this short poem of three verses entitled MY CAREER :
So little to say
So urgent to say it

Or in the beautiful tribute dedicated to the maestro Enrique Morente , in payment of a debt acquired with the Grenadian, who "translated" the Hallelujah language along with Lagartija Nick in 1996: "When I listen to Morente / My life becomes too superficial / (...) / I know that I have betrayed / The solemn promise / The solemn promise that justified / All my betrayals / When I listen to Morente / The alibi of my throat is rejected ".
The Spanish edition of the book is dotted with self-portraits by Leonard himself. The poet looks old and recognizes all the wrinkles on his face as an octogenarian monk. It is an opportunity to deepen in his pictorial facet, which he had previously seen in the scripts of some of his albums, and at the same time to continue investigating the questions that the Canadian was doing in a continuous way. And is that almost all the portraits published in La llama contain loose verses, reflections or questions that are almost confirmed as new poems: "We do not bless / transmit / blessings", writes in which occupies one of the first pages of the book.

For Leonard Cohen music and creation are undoubtedly a divine gift, something that is given to man, an undeserved gift and what is merely a transmitter. Maybe like a bird in the cable, that transmits a natural and spontaneous song that is born in some unknown place. Maybe as a RUISEÑOR :
I built a house next to the forest
To hear you sing
And it was good, it was sweet
Love had just started
Goodbye my nightingale
I found you long ago
But now all your beautiful songs fail
The forest surrounds you
The sun descends behind a veil
Now is when you would call me
Rest in peace my nightingale
Under your branch of holly
Goodbye my nightingale I
only lived to be with you No
matter how much you keep singing somewhere
I can no longer hear you.

Surprising to see how some of the compositions of the book meet, in 2018, more than 25 years. Cohen dates poems in 1993 and in other years of the nineties. Why, however, had he not given them to the printer until this last book, in which he worked the months before his death? For him, his son Adam recalls in the prologue of the book, "writing was his only consolation, his true purpose" and La llama contains the last efforts of his father as a poet. And that is why it is easy to imagine him working his verses for years, polishing each message, turning it into a psalm worthy of a new profane bible.

This book is - I already warned that it would not be objective - the last offering of the being closest to the sacred that the eyes of the XX and XXI century will see, a pattern of life, the column of the Gorgon that holds the cistern of Istanbul, the irreplaceable key that winds the heartbeat. This book is, without a doubt, the last gift of an exceptional being that is already eternal. Leonard Norman Cohen, thank you. Rest in peace.

THE HANGOVER
I went out one night
At low tide
There were signs in the sky
But I did not know
That I was going to be dragged
The hangover

To leave me on a beach
To which the sea detests to go
With a creature in the arms
And a chill in the soul
And my heart in shape
From saucer to alms

ON RARE OCCASIONS
On rare occasions
I was granted the power
to send waves of emotion
to the world.
They were impersonal events,
over which he had no control.
I went on the outdoor stage
while the sun was setting
behind the Tower of Toledo
and until midnight
the people did not let me go.
Everyone,
public and musicians,
dissolved in gratitude.
There was nothing more
a darkness strewn with stars,
the smell of freshly cut hay,
and the hand of a wind caressing
each of our fronts.
I do not even remember the music.
There was a unanimous whisper
that I did not know how to understand.
When I got off the stage
I asked the developer
what people said
He told me they were chanting:
to-re-ro, to-re-ro
A young woman took me back to the hotel,
the cream of the race.
All the windows were down.
It was a walk without error.
I did not feel the road
nor the attraction of our destiny.
We do not talk
and it was not even raised
the question of her entering the hall,
or go up to my room.
Recently
I remembered that past of yesteryear,
and since then,
I need to feel weightless
But I never get it.
-------------
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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Just in this morning – inclusion in NME’s "50 Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas under £50"
‘A gorgeous collection of the late, great Leonard Cohen's last poems and writings, it's an essential read for any fan.’

https://www.nme.com/blogs/nme-blogs/50- ... 75Kul7o.99
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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The Flame was discussed on BBC Radio 4 Open Book on Decembern 9, chosen by music journalist Laura Barton who took part in the Cohen celebration at Cheltenham Literature Festival in October.

Discussion starts at 00.08.55, with the main review of The Flame at approx.. 00.11.00 https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0001h22

Thanks to Becca Nice for the info
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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Here's a review of The Flame in a popular music magazine in Italy, TomTom Rock.
http://www.tomtomrock.it/journal/rock-e ... the-flame/
TomTom Rock
Leonard Cohen: The Flame, indispensable collection of posthumous writings.

BY MARCO ZOPPAS · DEC 19, 2018

In the preface his son Adam defines Leonard Cohen essentially a poet and tells us how his father used to leave notes full of notes scattered everywhere. Now, thanks to the posthumous release of the collection of writings The Flame , many of his poems of the last decades are available to everyone
...
.
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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Here is a review from New Zealand:
https://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/b ... nard-cohen
Stuff (New Zealand)
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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Here's a review from The Straits Times of Singapore:
https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/ ... -ones-skin

Their site is subscription only but Marie found the text of the review in Press Reader at https://www.pressreader.com/singapore/t ... 4235117019

The Straits Times (Singapore)
DEC 31, 2018
BY Yeow Kai Chai

Book Review: The Flame is an ode to the power of words to get under one's skin
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Re: THE FLAME, William Logan's NYT Review

Post by Greg Ross »

In light of Logan's NYT review of The Flame, people should be aware that biting, vicious criticism is Logan's standard fare. He revels in taking aim at high profile poets and authors, indeed, he has been awarded a prize from a critics association for his critiques.

His knowledge of topic is impressive and genuine, but he often displays an academic inability to understand culture. He once attacked the Australian poet Les Murray, showing a lack of knowledge of how Aussies think and live.

If I can illustrate what I mean about Logan, with two small points:

There is an Australian composer, Peter Sculthorpe, I find his work impossibly discordant and would rather have my teeth pulled without anaesthetic than listen to his music. However, his works are multi awarded, revered and praised by critics and high - end classical music devotees. Me, I'm happy to sit stunned listening to Beethoven, Mozart, Vaughn Williams and Chopin.

Or, if like me, cars are your bag, the latest V8 Ford Mustang chews through gas like a lawyer through fees and it only rates two stars in safety (the 2019 model apparently addresses that), yet to me, it is a stunning looking piece of automotive art, and in Bullet colours, stunningly evocative of the Pony car days, of Steve McQueen and that incredible movie. I love that car, but some will criticise it for its flaws, regardless of the reality that the flaws add to its essence and attraction.

Returning to The Flame, Logan completely misses the point of the publication, that the reader wants to see, read and understand Leonard's state of mind and circumstance, that we understand there are unfinished fragments and scraps scattered amongst lyrics and poems that will stand the test of time. We know Cohen was not perfect, either as a poet, singer, or human, it was his ability to express his feelings about circumstance, mistake and fate that resonated with so many of us.

Finally, it's telling that Cohen's popularity, both on record and in concert mystifies, even angers him, there is a pervading air of professional jealousy in his criticism that reminds me of Donovan's oft repeated anguish that nobody seems to regard him in the same vein as Cohen and Dylan.

Happy New Year.
All Good Things
Greg

http://www.gregross.com.au/
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

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Here is a link to Logan's text:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/02/book ... flame.html
He doesn't hate just Leonard Cohen but us, Leonard's fans, too, just read the last paragraph of his "review":
It’s hard to understand the cult of Leonard Cohen, the thousands who flocked to concert after concert, leaving with a feeling of illumination or exaltation, the sort of things for which people usually receive get-well cards. There are artists we don’t understand whom we are happy for others to love, and artists who attract an adoration that seems such a colossal mistake we can only shake our heads in bewilderment. Those who love Cohen may find in this gallimaufry the answer to their prayers. For everyone else, the only proper reaction is to shutter the windows and wait for the fever to pass.
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Re: THE FLAME - Reviews

Post by ScottM »

The reviewer certainly doesn't hold back with his critique of this publication.... He is as entitled to his opinion as anyone, and, as a widely published poet himself, is probably more qualified to assess the work of others than I. However, reviewing the history of Mr Logan, he strikes me as someone who glories in his reputation for the controversial; he has "fiercely criticised other poets(sic)" and only occasionally praised a few. I cant take this review seriously. It is so lacking in balance as to be almost comical. I am not even mildly annoyed by it but actually found myself laughing out loud. This review is not about the "The Flame" or even a commentary on the life and work of Leonard Cohen or those who admire him. This is a narcissistic attempt to provoke a reaction, not worthy of further comment..so I wont. :)
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