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- Date Released: March 27, 2007
- Genre: Rock/Pop
- Style: Pop
- Label: Columbia/Legacy
- Copyright: Originally released 1967. All rights reserved by SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT (P) 2007 SONY BMG MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT
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We Say...
For those looking to dip a toe in Cohen’s waters, there’s no better place to start than at the beginning. Containing some of Cohen’s most enduring songs — “Suzanne,” “Sisters of Mercy” and “So Long Marianne” among them — Songs introduces his pet themes of lust, spirituality and the place where they overlap. “The Stranger Song,” used to immortal effect in Robert Altman’s hazy post-Western McCabe and Mrs. Miller, comes closest to Cohen’s original vision of the album, just his weary voice and a flurry of Spanish guitar echoing through space, a marked contrast to the sometimes overbearing orchestration of later years.
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They Say...
At a time when a growing number of pop songwriters were embracing a more explicitly poetic approach in their lyrics, the 1967 debut album from Leonard Cohen introduced a songwriter who, rather than being inspired by "serious" literature, took up music after establishing himself as a published author and poet. The ten songs on Songs of Leonard Cohen were certainly beautifully constructed, artful in a way few (if any) other lyricists would approach for some time, but what's most striking about these songs isn't Cohen's technique, superb as it is, so much as his portraits of a world dominated by love and lust, rage and need, compassion and betrayal. While the relationship between men and women was often the framework for Cohen's songs (he didn't earn the nickname "the master of erotic despair" for nothing), he didn't write about love; rather, Cohen used the never-ending thrust and parry between the sexes as a jumping off point for his obsessive investigation of humanity's occasional kindness and frequent atrocities (both emotional and physical). Cohen's world view would be heady stuff at nearly any time and place, but coming in a year when pop music was only just beginning to be taken seriously, Songs of Leonard Cohen was a truly audacious achievement, as bold a challenge to pop music conventions as the other great debut of the year, The Velvet Underground & Nico, and a nearly perfectly realized product of his creative imagination. Producer John Simon added a touch of polish to Cohen's songs with his arrangements (originally Cohen wanted no accompaniment other than his guitar), though the results don't detract from his dry but emotive vocals; instead, they complement his lyrics with a thoughtful beauty and give the songs even greater strength. And a number of Cohen's finest songs appeared here, including the luminous "Suzanne," the subtly venomous "Master Song" and "Sisters of Mercy," which would later be used to memorable effect in Robert Altman's film McCabe and Mrs. Miller. Many artists work their whole career to create a work as singular and accomplished as Songs of Leonard Cohen, and Cohen worked this alchemy the first time he entered a recording studio; few musicians have ever created a more remarkable or enduring debut. [Leonard Cohen's back catalog had long been in need of refurbishing when Sony/BMG released a remastered edition of Songs of Leonard Cohen in 2007. The new edition featured two bonus tracks recorded during the original sessions for the album, "Store Room" and "Blessed Is the Memory," and while neither is a major discovery, they're fine songs and worthy additions to the set. The album's audio is subtly but noticeably improved, and the beautifully designed package includes lyrics for the original album's ten songs as well as an essay from Anthony DeCurtis.]
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| 01. |  |
Suzanne |
3:47 |
|
| 02. | |
Master Song |
5:54 |
|
| 03. | |
Winter Lady |
2:14 |
|
| 04. | |
The Stranger Song |
4:59 |
|
| 05. | |
Sisters Of Mercy |
3:33 |
|
| 06. | |
So Long, Marianne |
5:37 |
|
| 07. | |
Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye |
2:54 |
|
| 08. | |
Stories Of The Street |
4:34 |
|
| 09. | |
Teachers |
2:59 |
|
| 10. | |
One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong |
4:26 |
|
| 11. | |
Store Room |
5:02 |
|
| 12. | |
Blessed Is The Memory |
3:04 |
|
12 Total Tracks, 49:03 Total Length
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Credits
- Leonard Cohen - Artwork // Leonard Cohen - Photography // Steven Berkowitz - A&R // Mark Wilder - Mastering // Anthony DeCurtis - Liner Notes // Howard Fritzson - Art Direction // David Gahr - Photography // Jeffrey Schulz - Design // Bob Cato - Photography // John F. Hammond - Producer
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