RIP Leonard Cohen

Died today at age 82.

Damm, he was a unique soul.

RIP Leonard. Hope you're getting head on the unmade bed.

It's the Canadian version of 42 virgins...and (I imagine) so much better.

One of my favorite singers/writers especially with Jennifer Warnes. Google "The Hunter" His songs her singing. She use to sing on Smothers Brothers. They had a strong relationship at one time. Never had a huge following in USA and I never figured that out. Very original human being.

Z

Wow! Another Legend gone. He'll be missed.

RIP, Leonard

Checked into the Chelsea Hotel one time many years ago (sadly, it is now converted to condos) and I asked the clerk if I could request a particular room. He said: "Sid and Nancy's?" (I guess it gets requested a lot.) And I said: "No, the room where Janis Joplin gave head to Leonard Cohen."

I don't know if I ended up with what really was the room, but it was pretty shabby. Just about perfect.

Axixic wrote:Checked into the Chelsea Hotel one time many years ago (sadly, it is now converted to condos) and I asked the clerk if I could request a particular room. He said: "Sid and Nancy's?" (I guess it gets requested a lot.) And I said: "No, the room where Janis Joplin gave head to Leonard Cohen."

I don't know if I ended up with what really was the room, but it was pretty shabby. Just about perfect.

The forum needs a "like" button.

It sure does! Ajijic, did they know immediately what room you were talking about?

Trailrunner wrote:It sure does! Ajijic, did they know immediately what room you were talking about?

Yup, the song was pretty famous and has their name right in the title.

A google search tells me it should have been #424 but I really don't remember if that was the room number that I got. It's easy to imagine they just gave me whatever room they had available (I seem to recall that it was on the 3rd floor, but I am not even sure of that.)

The Chelsea was different, no question. So much history in that building.

(And while I am reminiscing, I actually saw Cohen perform live at Massey Hall in Toronto in 1975. The tickets were a birthday present from what would later become my first wife.)

http://patch.com/new-york/new-york-city/leonard-cohen-memorial-grows-chelsea-hotel

There's also a good video at the end with another version of The Chelsea Hotel...It's the one that I remember with the lines "I need you, I don't need you, I need you, I don't need you and all of that jiving around".

ferret wrote:There's also a good video at the end with another version of The Chelsea Hotel...It's the one that I remember with the lines "I need you, I don't need you, I need you, I don't need you and all of that jiving around".

"Chelsea Hotel No. 2"
I wasn't sure which one to post.

Both are excellent.

quote, "drank a lot of booze, fucked a lot of guys" janice joplin

lolol
Thanks for that! Drank a lot of booze for sure. Great quote.

He was a beautiful soul and a beloved Canadian. On Saturday both the Globe and Star devoted many pages to him.

Also a great loss to Canada's literary community as well. Producing poetry of crystalline beauty, often a celebration of life, love and death. A great body of work produced on the Greek Island of Hydra, often with his friend and mentor Irving Layton, and a lot of those wandering Europe the time. These poems split the literary world wide open, spilling its visceral guts. In Canada, and around the world. Yes, much of it was gloomy, but there was enough "happy" words about to offset this.

I came across this article, a great writer and poet who attempted to follow the tradition of Cohen and Layton, only to discover that world is gone. Interesting, and the same time, much of this reminds me of Mexico, why I like to live here, and why it seems to attract so many interesting people from far off lands.
https://thewalrus.ca/something-to-write-home-about/

CanuckBob wrote:And I rest my case.......

Great closing argument for your "case", by the defendant....like you needed help....jajaja

I did not know about this, his second and last novel "Beautiful Losers" is set around a Saint, recognised in 2015, Catherine Tekakwitha. The Lily of the Mohawks. One of his critics called this novel "the most disgusting book ever written in Canada" - quite possibly because it does cover a holy virgin, losing her virginity. The book also makes a number of snipes to the Catholic church, but also writes that cracks in human soul allow the light of God to come in and heal them.

I don't know if Cohen could claim personal responsibilty to put this path to Sainthood in motion, but there is certainly a large and substantial following our Saint Catherine Tekawitha. Much like the Virgen de Guadalupe in Mexico, who is the patron saint of Mexico, but I don't believe she was ever elevated to Sainthood by the Catholic church.

In that link to thewalrus.ca there is an extremely rare interview with him, in 1969. So many of his observations at that are remarkably prophetic. In unspeakable internet etiquette, combining religion and politics in one post, At one point he says that he does not care to see America "becoming great again" (not his exact words) but he would to see America become noble again. The day after this interview he moved full time to Nashville.

CanuckBob wrote:And I rest my case.......

Haha that's why defense lawyers try to keep their clients off the stand.