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Throughout Leonard Cohen's career his poems have ended up as songs, often altered to a greater or lesser extent. Most such poems were already lyrical in nature (rhyme, metre), but there is also the bulkier Queen Victoria with acoustic accompaniment on Live Songs.

A lot of poetry has been joined with musical instruments for the Dear Heather recording. For instance, the Undertow lyric is a new version of a long-existent LC poem. I believe very few of the lyrics on Dear Heather were written with the direct purpose of putting them to music. (I'm not counting Tennessee Waltz.)

Dear Heather is not only rich in poetry-turned-songtext, written by LC or others, it is also prominent on spoken lyrics. Notably, LC beautifully recites the Villanelle for Our Time by Frank Scott, and there is the long (prose) poem To a Teacher. I happened to be into recorded recitations of poetry when Dear Heather came out. I'm thoroughly enjoying LC's new contributions in this field. I also know there exist old recordings of some of LC's poems. It has me thinking...

...wouldn't it be wonderful to have recordings by Leonard Cohen himself of more of his poems which we know so well and love so much? For instance Prayer for Messiah, Isaiah, A Cross Didn't Fall on Me, French and English, Slowly I Married Her, Israel, When I Have Not Rage, When Even The, A Deep Happiness, Seisen is Dancing. (I could give more examples, but I only have the volume Stranger Music at hand!)

These are classics, and fans would be tantalised to hear recordings of texts that they have cherished for so long on yellowed pages. It could be really powerful with some tones of characteristic LC music and instruments added. The lyrics are there... now for his master's voice...

Courtois
Pays-Bas


P.S. I know mine is not at all a new suggestion, but I'm adding my voice to the chorus of those who think that Leonard Cohen reciting more of his poetry is a very good idea indeed.

P.P.S. Great to hear back typical instruments like the oud and Jew's harp on Dear Heather, and old collaborators (like Raffi Hakopian) whose contributions harken back to such records as Recent Songs.

I agree as many percents as there are available, Courtois. This "Dear Heather" album is pure class. It burrows in quickly and deeply. It is a listening experience beyond measure. Leonard's speaking voice and correct inflections, pauses, emphases, pace, registers, and timbre bring his words and those of others to life in the way that he hears them in his head, and intended them. I haven't found the correct words yet for how his speaking his own poetry and that of others, with the light instrumentation supporting, impacts me, but this album is precious beyond belief because of it.

I wholly support the idea of more albums of Leonard reading Leonard.

Last, but not least, Welcome to the Forum, Courtois .

~ Elizabeth

Courtois wrote: For instance, the Undertow lyric is a new version of a long-existent LC poem.

Can you identify that poem?

tom.

Thanks all. I hope it's no copyright problem giving the alternate words to Undertow here. I learned them by heart from an issue of Intensity, the fan magazine that has been discontinued. I'm not entirely sure, but I don't think this poem has appeared in a volume of poetry.

I set out for love but I did not know
I'd be caught in the grip of an undertow
To be washed to a shore where the sea needs to go
With a child in my arms and a chill in my soul
And my heart the size of a begging bowl.

To be honest, I prefer this version: 'a shore where the sea needs [rather than 'hates'] to go' expresses inevitability and has richer rhyme; and 'my heart the size [rather than 'shape'] of a begging bowl' always sounded poignant for the image of a heart expanded with sorrow and experience, but ending up empty, like an unfortunate beggar's bowl. (This image collapses, of course, if you have a tiny begging bowl in mind, in which case you could think of a shrivelled, shrunken heart.)

Courtois

Well. it seems Leonard has been rummaging through all his filing boxes to resurrect this gem and set it to music for us.

I hope he listens to our appeals for more poetry recordings. ( I really love Teacher as well. )

I can understand your preference for "size" of a begging bowl. I like the alternate of "shape" because of the implication that it no longer even looks like a heart, per se, due to all the distortions its had to undergo, just to survive; and now, not only has it a new shape, but its accompanying purpose, as well.

Where "the sea needs to go" will need some contemplation, for what all "hates" could be meant to convey in this context. "Needs" is certainly gentler. Need is a theme here, as well. "Hates" is a bit startling, yet could be intended to convey resistance to inevitability; as well as a resistance to need. Wouldn't we prefer to "want" someone, rather than "need" them? The "hates" could be a railing against the 'need.' I just don't know yet, on all that.

I was certainly one of these voices Courtois - as BlueNote in the pitch black ancient cavernous like forum of this site that does not exist anymore. So my wish is like the light of a star still voyaging while the source went dark long time ago (or the switch was put to off in other words).

I am so grateful and satisfied that this wish came true, you do not have idea.

May he do another one just like you said. Please-please-pleeeease.

I like Undertow very much and I like very much the version of Udertow you came with.

My heart the size of...

It is again, for me, another shot of the same subject, like he did often. And this is great to see the subject under many lights like this.

The Dear Heather version is more dark.

I don't usually post just to say 'me too', but I simply have to add my voice to those pleading for an album (or more) of Leonard reading his own poems (or anyone else's) with music or without. The ones on Dear Heather are sublime.

Leonard's deep love of poetry is made manifest, in his speaking of his own and others', on this album.

I cannot say it enough, in different enough ways. The message remains the same ~ please record more spoken poetry.

Intensity - I hear only good things about it, and it seems that there was really all kind of materials:)
Maybe someone have spare copies for me? I was thinking to publish some stuff on my site from it (if they weren't already publishe dsomewhere.). There's at least one person from this forum which contributed to Intensity with his story about Leonard I have that person's promise for sending me a copy for my site

Thanks Courtois.

Hello Tom,

maybe you could approach the people who were behind Intensity (Bea de Koning and Yvonne Hakze of the Netherlands) to see if they have copies left, or can make copies, and to discuss Internet publication. (However, much of the magazine, at least in its final years when I received it, was clippings of Cohen-related articles from various sources, which of course are copyrighted in themselves.)

One of the albums, I think More Best Of, has contact details for the fan club, although these may well be no longer valid, since Intensity no longer exists. Jarkko Arjatsalo or some visitors of this forum may have current details.

Courtois