leonardcohenforum.com

Leonard Cohen listening session/press conference at Joe's Pub. Simply amazing

Leonard talking about living in the Chelsea Hotel next to Edie Sedgwick and his quest for popularity

NEW YORK
Listening session with Leonard Cohen
Marie-Joelle Parent
22-01-2012

NEW YORK - Leonard Cohen rarely gives interviews. When he decided to lend to the year, as journalists rush to the lesson of a great sage. This time, to talk about his new album, Old Ideas, the first in eight years. Interview in New York with Laughing Len.

The dark room of Joe's Pub in East Village is filled with a few American journalists, friends and industry people. The guidelines are strict: no photos, no recording, no video.

We eagerly awaiting the arrival of Cohen for a listening session in his presence. He finally enters, like a gentleman gangster, dressed all in black, holding his Fedora on his chest. He moves cautiously toward a table in the middle of all thin and frail, surrounded by a halo of light. The room gets up out of respect for the legend.

Cohen breaks the ice. He speaks very slowly and weighs his words. "Do not stop drinking for me, I will not be in the room while listening to the album, I've heard. Do not worry, I will not watch your reactions. "The discomfort of listening to the album in his presence to dissipate. "If you have any questions after we take a drink. Thank you, dear friends, for coming, "said the musician of 77 years.

For 41 minutes, is carried by Cohen and melodies mesmerized by that voice so deep. I ask him the question elsewhere on return. Your voice seems worse than ever, is this the case?

The remark made him smile. "My voice is worse because I quit smoking. I would love to start at age 80. Who knows, my voice may go up. This is one of the reasons that make me want to go back on tour: smoke on the road, "he joked.

It has been eight years since his last album, Dear Heather (2004). "It was a rare and unusual period in my life where the songs came to me quickly," he said about the process of creating this album, who mostly love, but also distress and old age. Banjo the song was inspired by the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.

"Usually it takes me a long time," said the genius of words. His favorite song is Show me the Place, a magnificent piece that recalls the style of Gilles Vigneault.

The opening song is called Going Home. I asked him what city he considered to be home. "I have two houses: Montreal and then Los Angeles." Cohen also spends much time in his villa in Greece.

In 2005, Cohen has lost his fortune after being cheated by his former manager. It was therefore forced to return on stage. He completed a tour staggering 250 concerts in 2010. In hindsight, he admits that his forced return was good.

"I never stopped writing, but over time had developed a certain distance between my work and me. Returning to the road, I found myself with musicians again, which heated parts of my heart that had cooled, "he said, eyes sparkling. Of these wise words, Cohen raised his hat before returning to the shadows behind the scenes.

The story of Leonard Cohen in New York

Leonard Cohen is closely associated with the legendary Chelsea Hotel, whose fate is still uncertain. He stayed there in the 1960s and 1970s. Chelsea Hotel # 2 (1974) has also been written in tribute to some Janis Joplin. Cohen told that delicious anecdote featuring late Edie Sedgwick, the muse of Andy Warhol.

"She was incredibly beautiful, his room was on the floor and still populated by magnificent creatures, a group that I belonged unfortunately. There was this magic shop on 7th Avenue, I was so desperate that I bought a book about the power of candles. One evening I was finally invited Edie to her room filled to capacity. There were candles everywhere. I found nothing to say except: "all this is very dangerous." In short, I did not stay long. The next day her room caught fire and took off my prestige. "

Old Ideas will be launched on 31 January on the Sony label. The disc was produced by Patrick Leonard, Anjani Thomas, Ed Sanders and Dino Soldo.

I was invited yesterday to an exclusive listening session of Leonard Cohen’s new album, “Old Ideas”, his first in nearly eight years. The 77-year-old music legend showed up as his usual self, dressed in a double-breasted black blazer and coiffed with his signature fedora. He slowly made his way to the stage like gentleman gangster. “Don’t suspend your alcohol interest, I won’t be in the room, he said with a smirk. I heard the album before. I won’t be monitoring your expressions. After, if questions don’t arise, we’ll share a drink, thank you friends”. Cohen set the tone.

Leonard Cohen rarely speaks to the media. No pictures, no tape recording and no video taping were allowed, so I frenetically scribbled on my notepad (so 2008) every word coming out of this old soul. It’s a short album, 41 minutes total. I am in no way qualified to critic this album, and will relay the laborious task to music specialists, but I will say this: I was taken away by the intricate yet simple melodies and hypnotized by his voice. Here are snippets of what “Laughing Len” had to say:

The opening line of the first song on the album is “I love to speak with Leonard, he’s a sportsman and a shepherd, he’s a lazy bastard living in a suit”. Where were you when you wrote that? “In trouble!” This song was only an experiment and Pat Leonard (producer on the album) convinced him to record it.

Since he chose this title to open the album, I asked him where he considered home to be at this moment in his life. “I have two homes, Montreal and Los Angeles”. A fellow reporter asked him if he had reached with age some sort of epiphany and had become more joyful. He quoted one of his mentors, Canadian poet Irving Layton who died in 2006: “Leonard’s mind has never been contaminated by a single idea”.

Sunday, January 22, 2012
Alice Carbone

First We Take Manhattan: My day with Leonard Cohen (+ EXCLUSIVE review of Old Ideas)


Me & Leonard in New York at Joe's Pub

It's 2:00 PM in Manhattan - January 20th 2012.
Unfortunately I'm not staying at the Chelsea Hotel, but at the Holiday Inn on W 57th St - Midtown West.
I am no Janis, and I am no Edie, I was born too late, but who knows, maybe he never had an Alice in his life - and there ain't no cure for love...
If you are confused, let me unfold the story...
Thanks to my writing, to this blog, and to my humble perseverance (without any support from big magazines or press in my home country I must say) I flew from LA to meet the man that, somehow, with his art, changed my life.
I am wearing a white Chanel-like coat - because I want him to see me among the audience - and my lips are deep red.
I know it's still early, but I can't wait any longer. I decide to have a smoke and walk a couple of blocks to release the tension - I will get a taxi along the way.
I am wearing N° 5 for the occasion - I didn't have any money, this unexpected trip cost me quite a lot, but Sephora had a great deal on Madison Avenue, and with ten Dollars I managed to get a small dose of it.
Nothing makes me feel so feminine like Chanel does. Just what I need.
When I get to Joe's Pub, in NoHo - East Village, where the listening party organized by Columbia Records will take place in about an hour, I realize I am the first one to arrive, and I take the time to admire the beautiful Public Theater the pub is part of. I don't really care about it in that moment, but I need to give my brain and heart some rest - I don't remember the last time I was so nervous...
I take a slow deep breath - it's time to tell myself this is not a dream - I am really meeting Leonard Cohen.
I wish I could write forever, because I am scared I am not going to remember the emotion and the irresistibly sweet tone of his voice; my fear and my heartbeat, the exact words and the look in his eyes, sinful and innocent at the same time. But I am afraid you will be bored before I actually get to the 'music part' - so I'll do my best to entertain you - while inking this day forever on my skin.
With my surprise the audience is exceptionally small - it's a private and exclusive event, and I am the youngest one - which makes me very proud.
I finally take my seat, in the candlelight darkness of the intimate velvet room; I go for the small round table in the front, not even thinking about who's sitting next to me (later I will found out HE is).

The waiter offers me some wine - I politely decline and ask for a Pellegrino with a straw instead (my lipstick should last up to 8 hrs - but you never know).
We are about to listen, for the first time, to Old Ideas - the new Leonard Cohen's album that will be released on January 31st.
The Man himself will introduce the album, and then a chat with him will follow.
You're the lucky one - the host Rita Houston next to me whispers in my ear- Leonard will be sitting right here to answer questions.
Minutes that seem hours pass, when HE finally enters the room.
My heart stops beating.
He is more handsome than I thought.
We all stand up. He takes his hat off: Thank you my friends - he looks fragile and shy - thank you for being here.
And before I even realize it, something happens.
He sees me right in front of him - he looks at me and smiles. Yes, he sees me. I sweetly smile back acknowledging the mutual click. Magic just happened.

I am ready for his music now. I'll think about the rest later.

The album starts playing, and as I lose myself into the fire of the burning candles in front of me, I finally relax and let the music in.
Cohen's voice is deeper and lower than ever - even though he quit cigarettes - and in between a rhythm from an old blues and a sweet melody that seems to come all the way from cold Eastern Europe, he tells a new story of Isaac; but this time the gypsy boy seems to have found some kind of peace - or acceptance at least - I was blessed to have two special friends by my side - he tells me, quoting his teacher, the Za-Zen master Old Roshi, who is 25 years his senior - and I must thank them if this unstable life of mine has found some brightness; that's how a bit of light got in.
Show me The Place - which is very special in Cohen's heart - is still my favorite song of this album, but Amen blew me away with his religious name and some kind of respectfully profane erotic poetry that carries a deeper and universal message; a warm Sharon Robinson in the chorus stands up, together with a gloomy yet sensual instrument of wind - a beautiful trumphet with a gypsy violin by its side.
Coming Home gets under your skin - and it really makes you want to sleep with that lazy bastard in a suit.
Not that I really care about age in a man, especially when we're talking Cohen, but at 77 he still knows how to speak to a woman, and in Anyhow he whispers in your ear and arouses your brain with simple lines that shoot the bullet - Dreamed about you baby, you were wearing half your dress, I know you have to hate me, but could you hate me less?
Crazy to Love You is a step back into Leonard's folk tradition but with a twist; a classic love ballad in the form of a moyen-age song.

Bottom line is: Leonard is back and he will not disappoint you.
Do yourself a favor and buy this album. Pure art is rare, and so is Cohen's soul.

Do you want anything to drink? He asks me later in his dressing room - I have some nuts, and some fruit...
How old are you darling?

Wait...I should be the one asking questions....no, I was never a real journalist....

Will you give me that book or are you going to hold it in your hands darling?

How the dream ended?

Some stories you just want to keep it to yourself; safe in your heart, because such memories will never fade away.
I can tell you that I spent some precious time with him, gave him my novel with a special dedication - because Leonard has been my crack that allowed some light in during some of the darkest times of my life.
With his charm, elegance and grace he touched my heart and gave me a life lesson that I will never forget.

Thank you Leonard for being exactly how I thought you would be, the most charming, gentle, handsome, sexy and humble man I have ever met. And thank you Robert for making this dream come true. I owe you - this blog is dedicated to you.


Joe's Pub - New York - Listening Party for Leonard Cohen's Old Ideas - The Stage


Leonard Cohen


Leonard at Joe's Pub & me right in front of him with my white coat

If poetry is like an orgasm, an academic can be likened to someone who studies the passion-stains on the bedsheets. (Irving Layton)

First Listen on NPR Music: CLICK HERE and enjoy some magic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... CtoVoE5Mm4
!

Me photo bombing @RitaHoustonWFUV and Leonard Cohen before we got all chummy about 'Old Ideas.'

The Crack In Everything Lets The Light In: Leonard Cohen In New York

06:00 pm
January 25, 2012
by Rita Houston


Leonard Cohen at Joe's Pub in New York City. Performing live after years away from the stage
"warmed some part of my heart that had taken on a chill," he says.
Photo - Mike Coppola

I love to speak with Leonard
He's a sportsman and a shepherd
He's a lazy bastard
Living in a suit

Those are the words that open the new Leonard Cohen album, Old Ideas, out January 31. The the first studio recording of new songs by Cohen since 2004's Dear Heather, it comes on heels of a massively celebrated tour that marked his return to the stage after more than a decade away. Last Friday, members of the press got a chance to listen to Old Ideas in Cohen's presence. He appeared at Joe's Pub in New York City for a listening party that was followed by a Q&A session moderated by WFUV's Rita Houston. The album doesn't come out until next week, but you can listen to the album now; to complete the experience, we thought we'd ask Rita to fill us in on her conversation with Cohen.


First Listen: Leonard Cohen, 'Old Ideas'
http://www.npr.org/2012/01/22/145340430 ... -old-ideas
Leonard Cohen's new album, Old Ideas, comes out Jan. 31.

The last time Leonard Cohen came to town, it was for a show at the Beacon Theatre, his first U.S. concert in 15 years. The subsequent tour was a huge success. Did it influence this new album?

"It couldn't not have," Cohen answered. "I was living a kind of hermit's life, for about 10 or 15 years, I didn't know if I'd ever go back on the road, and a certain distance grew ... I think the writing I did took a certain theological or philosophical bent, it became somehow distant from the beating pulse. For financial reasons I was forced to go back on the road, to repair the fortunes of my family and myself, and this was a most fortunate happenstance. I was able to connect with living musicians, and then with living audiences, and yes it did have a great affect, it warmed some part of my heart that had taken on a chill."


Cohen was a published writer and poet before he was 20, and began writing songs after that. The early earnings made him a traveller, a man of the world. The length of his creative run has rivaled the best of them, from those early days through to his late '70s.

Asked whether he's reached any epiphanies now that he's in his later years, Cohen quotes his friend and literary mentor, poet Irving Layton: "Leonard's mind has not been contaminated by a single idea."

His speaking voice is amazing to listen to, and like any good storyteller, he knows how to use it. His off-the-cuff anecdotes come out structured, with story arcs, colorful vocabulary and punchy endings.


Rita Houston in conversation with Leonard Cohen at Joe's Pub in New York City.
Photo - Mike Coppola

Were we imagining it, or is his voice lower than ever? "Yes, my voice is getting lower and lower, because I gave up smoking. I expected it to rise, but it's gone the other way," he says.

"I'd like to take up smoking again when I'm 80. One of the things that makes me want to tour again is smoking on the road." He hopes to rehearse a band and tour with these new songs soon.

When he is out on tour, he's accompanied by the women who sing through, around and behind him on his songs, creating his signature sound. Old Ideas is no different. Cohen credits Jennifer Warnes, Sharon Robinson, and Dana Glover with all the vocal arrangements, and says that when they talk, he listens. He brought them the songs and they took it from there.

He's reluctant to say too much about where his inspiration comes from, but reveals that "Banjo" came from Hurricane Katrina. "After Katrina ... I saw that culture dismantled, and I think that the image of a broken banjo floating in the dark came out of that deep discomfort that had been imposed on all our psyches."

Some of Old Ideas is quite new, some quite old, and some a mix. "Going Home," for one, has long-ago lyrics, while their transformation into a song is new.

Which of the new songs is the most meaningful? "I don't like to annoy or anger any of the other songs by stating a preference," he quips, "but 'Show Me the Way' came together with astonishing speed."

It's too tempting, sitting in the East Village, not to ask for any memories of his time living here. He thought a minute, coming up with one he could share, and pulled this from the time he lived in the Chelsea Hotel in the mid-1960s:

"Edie Sedgwick was living a few doors down. Through her door came all the most attractive men and women of the period, I was not among them, but I longed to be among them. There was, on the corner of 7th Avenue and 24th Street, there was a Mexican magic store, with potions, candles and powders, which could be used to draw influences into your life — to secure love affairs, or to guarantee successes. My situation was such at the time that I believed in them, so I bought a couple of candles, and a book about candles — I just read that, and the I Ching, though I couldn't follow anything from one paragraph to another. At a certain point, through some graceful accident, I was invited into Edie Sedgwick's room. It was filled with very beautiful young people. It was dark, and illuminated by candles, 30 to 40 candles, burning everywhere, on plates, on the stove ... I had no credentials at the time, there was nothing I could say. I walked into the room of her glittering crew, and I said, 'this display of candles is extremely dangerous.'

"So, I presented myself as ... an Expert in The Candle. And this did not go over well. So I left at an appropriate time. The next day, her apartment burned down, and my prestige soared."

While we're looking back, is there any advice he would give the young Leonard Cohen? He answers this question with another quote from Irving Layton. "We were close friends, and he'd ask me what my plans were, what I was doing, and I'd tell him, and he'd shake his head, and say, "Are you sure you're doing the wrong thing?"

Right or wrong, Leonard Cohen is back with a set of songs that bring some hints of optimism into the usually dark musical world he lives in. Asked about the sense of peace and acceptance you can hear in the new songs, and where that source of light is from in his life, he replies, "It's probably not a good idea to do an autopsy on a living thing."

sturgess66 wrote:Which of the new songs is the most meaningful? "I don't like to annoy or anger any of the other songs by stating a preference," he quips, "but 'Show Me the Way' came together with astonishing speed."

Leonard Cohen's new take on "Old Ideas"

By John McCrank
NEW YORK | Thu Jan 26, 2012 2:22pm EST


Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen takes his hat off at the end of
one of his songs at the Coachella Music Festival in Indio, California April 17, 2009.
REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

(Reuters) - Sitting in a dimly lit New York City bar wearing a trilby hat and a dark suit, no tie, singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen pauses before responding to a question about how his ideas have changed over his lengthy career.

He smiles and recalls something his close friend, the late Canadian poet Irving Layton, once said.

"'Leonard's mind has not been contaminated by a single idea,'" the 77-year-old Cohen quipped dryly, eliciting laughter from an audience gathered for a preview of his first studio album of new material in eight years, 'Old Ideas.'

The album, which sees its release on January 31, touches on themes the Montreal-born poet has spent a lifetime exploring -- love, sex, faith, mortality and others. But there is a lightness to the work, and Cohen refuses to take himself too seriously.

'I love to speak with Leonard/He's a sportsman and a shepherd/He's a lazy bastard/Living in a suit,' he croons in his

gravelly baritone on the opening track, 'Going Home.'

The 10 new songs are minimalist in construction, recalling some of Cohen's earlier and most well-known works, like 'Suzanne,' 'Bird on a Wire,' and the often-covered 'Hallelujah.'

Long-time Cohen collaborators, Jennifer Warne, Sharon Robinson, and Anjali Thomas also lend their voices to the album, which is lightly peppered with guitar, keyboards, horns and strings.

Cohen said the album came together more quickly than many of his previous 11 studio recordings, but it is still a struggle to try to manifest one's self in song.

"You are trying to do one of the few things you barely know how to do," he told Reuters following the listening session. "You are dealing with an almost unbreakable silence, and you're grateful if anything comes through."

Cohen also has released several live and best-of albums, and published 10 books of poetry and two novels.

'OLD IDEAS'; NEW COHEN?

In New York, many of the critics at the preview -- there were dozens -- sat through around 40 minutes of music, listening with eyes closed, heads tilted back, and smiling slightly as though basking in the sunshine of his melodies. Others bobbed their heads gently. Some closely read the lyrics as he sang.

Cohen later entered the room to generous applause and then took questions, offering a glimpse into his reclusive life: His crush on Edie Sedgwick, the beautiful New York socialite, in the mid-1960s; his feelings of deep loss and discomfort after Hurricane Katrina; the honor of sharing a drink from the golden bowl of his 104-year-old Zen Buddhist teacher.

The poet and singer-songwriter, who divides his time between Montreal and Los Angeles, battled depression for much of his life, but in recent years has been in a better mental space.

He said his two-year world tour "warmed some part of my heart that had taken on a chill," and that he would like to go out on the road again in the near future.

The tour, which concluded in 2010, was Cohen's first in 15 years and was born of necessity after his former manager stole the bulk of his savings while Cohen was on a five-year Buddhist retreat in California, forcing the singer to go on the road to rebuild his bank account.

Now, Cohen said he is looking forward to getting back on stage and that it might be a good time to polish another half-dozen songs that he has been working on, but which were not ready for the release of 'Old Ideas.'

"The words are written," he told Reuters. "It's a matter of finding the voice, the right voice, so that it's true, and not just a slogan."

(Reporting By John McCrank, Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)