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Sometimes live performances create a drive and a momentum that far surpass anything you can ever do in a studio - especially if true artists are performing.

Leonard Cohen has had his share of these moments, what are the ones that stand out in your minds?

(It needn't be at a concert, it can be from one of the live albums and bootlegs of live perfomances, hence why I post it in this forum.)

Personally I feel that the live recording of "Everybody Knows" from his 1994 album is incredible and far better than the studio version. LC sings it perfect and the band is really happenening! I'm sure there are others but this is the first one that comes to mind.

I agree that live versions often surpass the original studio versions. I particularly like 'Waiting for the Miracle' from the Zurich 1993 concert, which I believe was broadcast on Swiss radio. It builds through an incredibly atmospheric intro into a much fuller textured performance than the original recording. I have always found the original backing on that one slightly quirky and distracting. It is for that reason that, with no disrespect to Sharon Robinson, I would very much like to hear Leonard to live versions of the songs from TNS, with a live band.

Oh, and can I also nominate every live version of 'Bird on the Wire' I have ever come across? That song just gets better and better.

The best version of "Waiting For The Miracle" is certainly from Copenhagen 93 concert (also radio broadcasted), with a very deep Cohen's voice (from the caverns of the heart) and a haunting musical background-underground.

I also like "Nancy" from Live Songs, which is better than the studio version.

So we need more live CDs by Leonard. Please give us more!

I agree with Linda......................the Zurich version of this is superb, much better than the studio version
Georges

linmag wrote: Oh, and can I also nominate every live version of 'Bird on the Wire' I have ever come across? That song just gets better and better.

Absolutely, I don't think I've heard a live version of it that wasn't better than the studio version either.

But there's one song I feel can almost never be better live than the studio version; "Closing time". I have heard several live recordings of "Closing time" and none of them are as good as the studio version. Some come close, but I think he really nailed it in the studio...

I remember the first time I heard Closing Time. I was listening in the car, and had arrived at my destination after a gruelling night-time journey home, but I couldn't switch off in the middle of the song. The beat was so persistent, and the words and images just kept coming at me just as relentlessly. It's hardly a cheerful song, yet I left the car chuckling over those wonderful lines "I lift my glass to the awful truth" etc.....

The only live version I have of that song is the Zurich one, and I think it is at least as good as the studio version, with Leonard rumbling along in the depths of the chorus, and with the added bonus that it doesn't fade away at the end.

It really is a great song. Live in Zurich you say? I've never heard that one! Where did you find it?

It's on a bootleg I got last year. I'll send you a private message about the supplier.