Leonard Cohen

[Ella999]

Leonard Cohen is not known for being prolific. In a recording career of more than 40 years, this master of romantic despair has released only 11 studio albums.

By design and by luck, however, there has been a flurry of Cohen-related activity beginning in 2006. In addition to his production of Anjani Thomas's album, ''Blue Alert" (Columbia, 2006), there was ''A Book of Longing,'' a collection of new poems and drawings published by HarperCollins. The documentary ''I'm Your Man,'' featuring artists like Rufus Wainwright and Nick Cave performing Cohen compositions (and U2 backing up the songwriting legend on one song), was released in 2006.

Behind the burst of creativity lurked a motivation. In 2005 Mr. Cohen, who was born in 1934, filed a lawsuit alleging that his former manager Kelley Lynch had defrauded him of millions of dollars he had set aside for his retirement. Mr. Cohen, who spent five years in a Zen monastery outside Los Angeles in the '90s, realized he needed to accelerate his work schedule. (The following year Mr. Cohen won a $9.5 million court judgment against Ms. Lynch although it's unclear if he will see any of the money.)

In February 2009 Mr. Cohen performed his first concert in the United States in more than 16 years. The rigors of performing have reinvigorated Mr. Cohen and his signature gravelly near-monotone. His show in New York lasted just over three hours (with an intermission) and featured more than two dozen songs. The evening doubled as a preview, coming with the eagerly anticipated announcement of a North American tour in the spring. Mr. Cohen began his return to the road the previous year, with a slew of dates in Europe and his native Canada; one of them yielded "Live in London," an album and DVD due out March 2009.

In January 2010, Mr. Cohen received a Grammy Award on Jan. 31 for lifetime achievement.