Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Hallellujah

The concert lasted a full four hours, and Leonard Cohen often sang from bended knee.  I feel like I spent the evening in the company of an old friend.

In the huge Air Canada Centre last night, surrounded by the massive crowd that came to see him perform, he spoke directly to a thousand individuals, not just a single crowd.

He couldn't perform his entire songbook, but so many of my personal favourites were there...

Tower of Song (I ache in the places where I used to play)
Anthem (Forget your perfect offering, there is a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in)
Suzanne (She feeds you tea and oranges that come all the way from China)
Marianne (I forget to pray for the angels, and then the angels forget to pray for us)
Dance Me (Dance me to the end of love)
A Thousand Kisses Deep (The quiet is the thought of you, the file on you complete, Except what we forgot to do, a thousand kisses deep)
Hallellujah (Hallellujah Hallellujah Hallellujah)

Rob introduced me to LC, o so many years ago.  We played his 'Best of' album often, and I especially remember Sunday mornings, soft light coming in through the windows, listening to Suzanne, and thinking about how you know that she's half crazy, but that's why you want to be there.  Of course, that 'Best of' album was only up to the late 70's and there would be decades more of amazing songs and poetry.

Over the years I return again and again to the music and poetry.  Such profound and profane thoughts, co-existing perfectly.




No comments: