A Broken Hallelujah: Rock and Roll, Redemption, and the Life of Leonard Cohen

by Liel Leibovitz

4 T. S. Eliot, “Tradition and the Individual Talent,” in Frank Kermode, ed., Selected Prose of T. S. Eliot (New York: Mariner, 1975), 43.

  5 Lissauer interview.

  6 Quoted in Paul Zollo, Songwriters on Songwriting (New York: Da Capo Press, 2003), 344.

  7 Cited in Artur Jarosinski, “Warsaw 1985,” http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/warsaw-85-2.html (accessed July 18, 2013).

  8 Ibid.

  9 Quoted in Pearson, “Growing Old Disgracefully,” 78.

  10 Quoted in Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man, directed by Lian Lunson, Lionsgate Films, 2006.

  11 Walt Whitman, “Song of Myself,” in Leaves of Grass, collected in Whitman: Poetry and Prose (New York: Library of America, 1996), 42.

  12 Marcus, The Doors, 51.

  13 Pump Up the Volume, directed by Allan Moyle, New Line Cinema, 1990.

  14 Quoted in Lunson, Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man.

  15 Quoted in Joe Jackson, “Songs of Longing,” Irish Times, November 3, 1995.

  16 I’m indebted to Sarah Gallo for pointing out Bono’s complex relationship to “Hallelujah,” and for helping me see past my own irrational dislike of U2 in understanding the influence Cohen has had on the band.

  17 Cohen expressed his admiration for the writer in a 1995 telephone interview with journalist Joe Jackson, http://1heckofaguy.com/2012/06/24/hear-leonard-cohen-talk-about-james-joyces-influence-bonos-cover-of-hallelujah/ (accessed July 18, 2013). “Breathe,” a song Bono wrote for U2’s 2009 album No Line on the Horizon, takes place on June 16, Bloomsday.

  18 Quoted in Sheldon Teitelbaum, “Leonard Cohen, Pain Free,” Los Angeles Times, April 5, 1992. http://articles.latimes.com/1992-04-05/magazine/tm-1040_1_leonard-cohen (accessed July 18, 2013).

  19 Ibid.

  20 The event is recounted in Pearson, “Growing Old Disgracefully,” 77.

  21 Quoted in Zollo, Songwriters on Songwriting, 333.

  22 Ibid. Emphasis in original.

  23 Roch Parisien, “Tower of Song: The Songs of Leonard Cohen,” AllMusic, http://www.allmusic.com/album/tower-of-song-the-songs-of-leonard-cohen-mw0000179432.

  24 Quoted in an interview with Barbara Gowdy in Leanna Crouch, ed., One on One: The Imprint Interviews (Toronto: Somerville House Publishing, 1994), 17.

  25 Ted Ekering, “Naturally Born of Cohen,” 1997, http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/killers.html (accessed July 18, 2013).

  26 Quoted in Simmons, I’m Your Man, 404.

  27 Quoted in Armelle Brusq, Leonard Cohen: Portrait, Spring 96 (video documentary, produced by Armelle Brusq and Lieurac Productions, released in 1997).

  28 Ibid.

  29 Quoted in Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man.

  30 James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (New York: Penguin Classics, 1993), 233.

  31 Gilles Tordjman, Les Inrockuptibles magazine, March 15, 1995, quoted in Simmons, I’m Your Man, 407.

  32 Agreta Wirberg and Stina Dabrowski, Stina Möter Leonard Cohen, Swedish TV documentary, 1997, quoted in Simmons, I’m Your Man, 413.

  33 Leonard Cohen, “Early Morning at Mt. Baldy,” in Book of Longing (New York: Ecco, 2006), 21.

  34 Frank DiGiacomo, New York Observer, October 15, 2001, http://observer.com/2001/10/look-whos-back-at-67-gentle-leonard-cohen/ (accessed July 18, 2013).

  35 Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady (New York: Penguin Classics, 2003), 61.

  36 Robert Christgau, http://www.robertchristgau.com/get_artist.php?name=Leonard+Cohen (accessed July 18, 2013).

  37 Hailey Branson-Potts, “Leonard Cohen Testifies in Ex-Business Manager’s Harassment Trial,” Los Angeles Times, April 7, 2012, http://articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/07/local/la-me-cohen-20120407 (accessed July 18, 2013).

  38 Hailey Branson-Potts, “Leonard Cohen’s Former Business Manager Jailed for Harassment,” Los Angeles Times, April 18, 2012, http://articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/18/local/la-me-cohen-20120418 (accessed July 18, 2013).

  39 Ibid.

  40 David Frank, “He Was Fredericton’s Man,” Globe and Mail, May 13, 2008, http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/he-was-frederictonsman/article719715/ (accessed July 18, 2013).

  EPILOGUE: “A MANUAL FOR LIVING WITH DEFEAT”

  1 Simon Sweetman, “Gig Review: Leonard Cohen in Wellington,” Dominion Post, January 21, 2009, http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/music/gig-reviews/804015/Gig-review-i-Leonard-Cohen-in-Wellington-i (accessed July 18, 2013).

  2 The Bhagavad-Gita (Fremont, CA: American Gita Society, 1995), 30.

  3 Ruth 1:16 (KJV).

  4 Gautam Malkani, “Bow Down Before the Sage from Mt Baldy,” Financial Times, January 27, 2012, http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/b9bbf310-47ca-11e1-b646-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2b1tbUaE9 (accessed July 18, 2013).

  5 Ibid.

  6 The phrase is from Jon Pareles, “Final Reckonings, a Tuneful Fedora and Forgiveness,” New York Times, January 29, 2012, AR22.

  Acknowledgments

  * * *

  I had never intended to write a book about Leonard Cohen. My admiration for him, I thought, was as private as it was immense, a kind of big and shy beast that wouldn’t last a moment if dragged out into the light. My first debt of gratitude, then, goes to Jonathan Rosen, who, wisely, knew better, and without whose encouragement and efforts I would never have embarked on this journey.

  Once I’d committed myself to think and write about my man, I was blessed, as ever, to have the angels by my side: At W. W. Norton, my editor, Amy Cherry, was brilliant and tough, skillfully and joyfully helping my wildest inclinations settle down and take shape. Her assistant, Anna Mageras, patiently helped shepherd me through the thickets of the production process, for which I am thankful. And Anne Edelstein, my inimitable agent and dear friend, lent me her wisdom and her grace, without which I doubt much would have come of this endeavor.

  Kezban Ozcan, whom I only just met but whom I feel I’ve known and cherished for decades, had shown me more extraordinary kindness than this brief acknowledgment can detail, not the least of which entailed facilitating my access to Cohen’s personal papers in the University of Toronto’s Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. There Jennifer Toews, Albert Masters, Natalya Rattan, and the rest of the staff proved to be invaluable sources, making the daunting task of archival research much more manageable. Further thanks are also due the helpful staff of the Jewish Public Library in Montreal; to Sydney Warshaw, who diligently assisted me with archival research; to Zev Moses, tireless custodian of Montreal’s Jewish heritage, for guiding me around town and educating me about its rich and intricate past; and to Robert Kory, who kindly helped me navigate the necessary permissions required for this book.

  Any attempt at writing is, to a large extent, an exercise in standing on the shoulders of others, and the shelves dedicated to Leonard Cohen, though not nearly as populated as they ought to be, feature a host of talented and astute writers. I am grateful to Ira Nadel, Cohen’s pioneering biographer; to Sylvie Simmons, whose meticulous research and exquisite spirit delighted and informed me on the page and on the stage I was fortunate to share with her one evening in Manhattan; and to Allan Showalter, known to us Cohen fanatics as the proprietor of the unsurpassable Web site www.1heckofaguy.com, who took the time to read my manuscript and share with me his encyclopedic knowledge of and uncommon insight into all things Cohen.

  More insight yet arrived courtesy of those whose lives intersected with Cohen’s and who were generous enough to share their recollections with me. Morton Rosengarten told me stories of a Montreal youth; Ruth Wisse gave a portrait of the artist as a young poet; Murray Lerner shared his recollections and his footage from the Isle of Wight festival; and John Lissauer and John Simon talked of the challenges and pleasures of making Cohen’s records. I am indebted to them all.

  And as writing this book meant, for long stretches of time, occupying Cohen’s life far more fully than I did my own, I am deeply grateful to my friends for their advice, their patience, and their support. Todd Gitlin and Laurel Cook have graciously tolerated more than a few
progress reports conveyed a touch too enthusiastically over dinner, and Todd took the time to read several early drafts of the manuscript and scrutinize it with all of his rabbinic might; I am grateful to him for his friendship and his wisdom. Tamar Hermesh deserves my gratitude as well, as do Shira Elhanani and Ori Licht, whose love was kindled by Cohen’s words. Alana Newhouse and David Samuels brought their incomparable editorial sensibilities, their brilliance, and their humor to a project often in need of all three; their support, and the support of my friends and colleagues at Tablet Magazine, means the world to me. I can think of no other publication that would have indulged my obsession with Leonard Cohen as lovingly as Tablet, and am very proud to be of it.

  Finally, to Lily and Lisa, my hallelujahs, may I be forever worthy of your love.

  Index

  * * *

  Entries correspond to the print edition of this book. You can use your device’s search function to locate particular terms in the text.

  Abraham, 106

  Aegean Sea, 79, 90, 170

  Aeneid (Virgil), 57–58

  Aix-en-Provence music festival, 158–61, 172

  Alessandrini, Paul, 160

  Algonquian Mohawks, 108

  “All There Is to Know About Adolph Eichmann” (Cohen), 92–93, 99

  All Things Must Pass (Harrison), 195

  “Alone Again” (O’Sullivan), 172

  Altamont music festival, 22, 158

  Altman, Robert, 227

  Amidah prayer, 147

  Amnesty International, 241–42

  Anderson, Jon, 172

  “Anthem” (Cohen), 227

  anti-Semitism, 43, 46, 80, 81

  Apology (Plato), 103

  “Aquarius” (5th Dimension), 172

  Arendt, Hannah, 93–95

  banality of evil theory of, 93–94

  Aristotle, 48

  Army (band), 31–33, 36–37, 157–63, 165, 168, 176–81

  Arnon, Pupik, 184

  Ars Longa Vita Brevis (Nice), 173–74

  Athens, 90, 91, 101, 185

  Attali, Jacques, 119–20

  Atwood, Margaret, 55–56

  Augustine, Saint, 124–25

  “Avalanche” (Cohen), 165–66

  Babitz, Eve, 149–50

  Baez, Joan, 33, 35–36, 144

  Balfour Declaration, 48

  “Ballad of Hollis Brown, The” (Dylan), 136

  Ballet of Lepers (Cohen), 68–69, 104

  Band, 32, 144

  Bard, David, 121

  Bard, Stanley, 121

  Barrett, Syd, 15

  “Bartleby, the Scrivener” (Melville), 68

  Batista, Fulgencio, 96

  Beach Boys, 123, 128, 172, 222

  Beatles, 121–24, 126, 128, 135, 154, 172, 189–90, 210

  Beats, 61, 108

  Beautiful Losers (Cohen), 108–9

  Beauty at Close Quarters (Cohen), 104–5

  Beethoven, Ludwig van, 151

  Berlin, 31, 168–69, 239

  Berry, Chuck, 122, 153

  Berton, Pierre, 71–72

  Bible, 67, 85, 218–19

  Book of Exodus in, 116

  Book of Psalms in, 118

  Book of Ruth in, 243–44

  Paul’s Epistle to the Romans in, 125, 150

  Billboard, 158

  Billboard top ten charts, 132, 172, 245

  Birdland, 69

  “Bird on the Wire” (Cohen), 147–48, 161, 163, 211, 213

  Blake, William, 42, 61, 89

  “Blind Willie McTell” (Dylan), 211

  Blondie, 194

  blues, 138, 144, 154, 193

  Bono, 222–23, 240

  Book of Longing (Cohen), 102

  Book of Mercy (Cohen), 102, 203

  Boston Globe, 109

  Bowie, David, 15, 144, 194, 210

  Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 (Bach), 173

  Brébeuf and His Brethren (Pratt), 56

  Brel, Jacques, 138

  Bronfman, Samuel, 80, 84, 85

  Buckley, Jeff, 214

  Buckskin Boys, 117, 132

  Buddha, 205

  Buñuel, Luis, 55

  Byron, George Gordon, Lord, 42, 89

  Cactus, 25

  California, University of, at Los Angeles (UCLA), 149

  Cameron, Kenneth N., 108

  Canada, 56–87, 202–3

  Jews in, 39–44, 47–51, 57–87

  literature of, 55–73, 75–87, 114

  proposed U.S. acquisition of, 77, 86

  Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), 13, 109

  Canadian Engineers Fourth Field Company, 39

  Canadian Jewish Chronicle, 85

  Canadian Jewish Congress, 47–48

  Canadian Music Hall of Fame, 223–24

  “Canadien Errant, Un” (Cohen), 202, 233

  capitalism, 61, 120

  Cash, Johnny, 31, 162

  Caspi, Mati, 184

  Castro, Fidel, 98–99

  Catholics, 41, 79, 81, 108

  censorship, 99, 110

  Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), 97

  Charles, Ray, 14, 138

  Cheap Trick, 194

  “Chelsea Hotel No. 1” (Cohen), 134–35, 189

  “Chelsea Hotel No. 2” (Cohen), 134

  Chicago (band), 22

  Chopin, Frédéric, 69

  Christgau, Robert, 153, 233–34

  Christianity, 124, 126, 204

  Clarkson, Adrienne, 109–11, 114

  Clarkson, Lana, 235

  Cleave, Maureen, 124

  Clément, Claude, 159–60

  “Closing Time” (Cohen), 224–25

  Coachella music festival, 240

  Cohen, Adam (son), 185, 188, 193, 201

  Cohen, Esther (sister), 39, 51, 77, 99–100

  Cohen, Hirsch (great-uncle), 75–76

  Cohen, Lazarus (great-grandfather), 43, 47

  Cohen, Leonard Norman:

  on artists as priests or prophets, 83–86, 100, 203

  audience response to, 33–37, 70–71, 86–87, 130–31, 163, 175–81, 185–86, 236, 240–41

  awards and honors of, 13, 14, 62, 156, 223–24

  birth and early life of, 13, 33–34, 39–42, 44, 49–51, 53–55, 75, 84

  children of, 156, 185, 188, 193, 201

  on composing process, 225–26

  contradictory personality of, 12, 32, 37, 51, 131

  drug and alcohol use of, 15, 35, 128, 157, 160–61, 163, 218, 228, 245

  education of, 50–51, 55, 59, 62, 68, 79–80

  European popularity of, 149, 156

  fame of, 13, 16–17, 35, 171, 188, 223–24, 245

  fans of, 135, 137, 141, 162, 166, 171–72, 176–81, 184–85, 189, 198, 215, 225–27, 232, 239–41

  frequently covered songs of, 15, 126, 130, 214, 217–18, 226, 240

  girlfriends and love affairs of, 13, 15, 51, 91–92, 134–35, 156, 163, 224, 228, 233, 234

  guitar and keyboard playing of, 113, 115, 117–18, 129–30, 133–34, 189, 211, 236

  hypnosis interest of, 50, 51, 105

  Jewish heritage of, 16, 40–51, 83–86, 116, 176, 178, 191–92, 205–7, 227, 232, 243–45

  journal of, 66–68

  as “Laughing Len,” 168, 188

  letters and notebooks of, 14, 54, 77, 82, 90, 98–101, 103, 106–7, 110

  lifelong wandering of, 51, 53, 66–68, 202

  loneliness and depression of, 14, 15, 127, 156, 202–3, 218, 229, 231, 245

  musical influences on, 138, 146

  music videos of, 14, 224–25

  mythological interests of, 75, 79

  poetry and fiction of, 13, 15–16, 32, 34–36, 53–55, 59–66, 68–69, 71–73, 75, 79–80, 82, 89, 92–96, 98–99, 101–10, 113–14, 128–29, 149, 156, 203, 209, 226, 229, 231, 233

  poetry readings of, 69, 97, 131, 233

  public speaking of, 82–87, 100, 203, 215–17

  reviews of, 106–10, 133, 140, 158, 233–34

  sartorial taste and signa
ture fedora of, 78, 91, 96, 98, 225, 236, 241, 244

  sexual expression of, 108–9, 190–201

  song lyrics of, 61, 102–3, 128, 132, 134–36, 139–40, 148–49, 165–68, 186, 189–91, 193, 209–11, 213–14, 218–19, 226–27, 245–46

  spirituality of, 16–17, 44, 50, 60, 86, 118–19, 128, 134, 213–15, 223, 232

  stage fright of, 70, 130–31, 157

  studio albums of, 15, 102, 103, 130–35, 138–40, 147–49, 165–68, 175, 188–93, 195–202, 226–28, 232–34, 244–25

  suicidal talk of, 140–41

  themes explored by, 16–17, 79, 135, 148

  touring of, 31, 156–63, 165, 168–72, 175–81, 215–17, 228, 236–45

  transition from poet to singer-songwriter by, 82–83, 94, 110–11, 113–15, 117–21, 126, 131, 141

  vocal quality of, 113, 140, 158, 165, 166–67, 218, 234, 237

  youthful jobs of, 42, 50

  Cohen, Lorca (daughter), 201, 234

  Cohen, Lyon (grandfather), 43–44, 47–48

  Cohen, Masha Klinitsky-Klein (mother), 44, 50, 138

  death of, 201

  relationship of LC and, 51, 66, 97

  Cohen, Nathan (father), 33, 44, 50–51, 95, 109

  character of, 41–42

  death of, 39–42, 50–51, 66

  military service of, 39, 41

  Cohen, Victor (brother-in-law), 99–101, 103, 110, 187

  Cold War, 99

  Collins, Judy, 32, 33, 126, 130–31, 237

  Columbia Records, 15, 129–31, 156–57, 168

  Columbia University, 68

  communism, 81, 98

  Confessions (Augustine), 124–25

  Cooper, Alice, 194

  Cornelius, Ron, 179–80

  country-and-western music, 117, 138, 224

  country music, 14, 28

  Cuba, 96–100, 110, 187

  Bay of Pigs invasion on, 97–98

  Cuban missile crisis of 1962, 99

  Cyrkle, 132

  Daily Telegraph (London), 106

  Dalai Lama, 123

  Dalí, Salvador, 55

  “Dance Me to the End of Love” (Cohen), 209, 236

  Daniel Deronda (Eliot), 46

  Dante Alighieri, 36

  Dassin, Jules, 90–91

  Davis, Miles, 27

  “Day in the Life, A” (Beatles), 126

  Dear Heather (Cohen), 233–34, 236, 245

  Death of a Ladies’ Man (album) (Cohen), 195–201, 209