Which book about Leonard Cohen should I read?
June 7, 2017 12:57 PM Subscribe
Many books have been published about Leonard Cohen. Some of them are probably good. Which one(s) would best suit my taste? Details inside.
To give an idea of what I'm looking for, my two favourite books about non-classical music are Revolution in the Head by Ian MacDonald, and Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism by Thomas Brothers. What I like about these are:
1. They're written with real musical knowledge. The authors don't just tell you a record is great, they explain why and how it's great: how it achieves the effect it does, what makes it different from other records of the same period, which influences can be heard in it, and which aspects of it are original.
2. They place their subjects within a wider social context. Brothers's book, in particular, should be read by anyone interested in the history of race in America, whether they like jazz or not.
Since Cohen was a poet as well as a songwriter, a book by someone with a sound knowledge of poetry would be a plus. But I wouldn't want to read a book that focused on his lyrics to the exclusion of the music.
I'm not so interested in who Cohen slept with, what drugs he took, etc., except insofar as it influenced his work. But I certainly don't object to reading a traditional biography, as long as it includes the elements above.
Which of the many books on the market best meet these criteria? If none meets them exactly, are there any that come close?
Thank you!
To give an idea of what I'm looking for, my two favourite books about non-classical music are Revolution in the Head by Ian MacDonald, and Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism by Thomas Brothers. What I like about these are:
1. They're written with real musical knowledge. The authors don't just tell you a record is great, they explain why and how it's great: how it achieves the effect it does, what makes it different from other records of the same period, which influences can be heard in it, and which aspects of it are original.
2. They place their subjects within a wider social context. Brothers's book, in particular, should be read by anyone interested in the history of race in America, whether they like jazz or not.
Since Cohen was a poet as well as a songwriter, a book by someone with a sound knowledge of poetry would be a plus. But I wouldn't want to read a book that focused on his lyrics to the exclusion of the music.
I'm not so interested in who Cohen slept with, what drugs he took, etc., except insofar as it influenced his work. But I certainly don't object to reading a traditional biography, as long as it includes the elements above.
Which of the many books on the market best meet these criteria? If none meets them exactly, are there any that come close?
Thank you!
Not a biography, not a book, but if you are into Leonard Cohen, this 1965 NFB documentary might be of interest. Although it goes back to before he was known as a performer, there's certainly plenty of context.
posted by bluefrog at 2:04 PM on June 7, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by bluefrog at 2:04 PM on June 7, 2017 [4 favorites]
Best answer: I think The Holy or the Broken might be something you'd like. It's not a biography, nor is it just about Leonard, but it is about what's now his most famous song and how it got that way. The book tells the story of the writing of Hallelujah and its rather unlikely rise to fame. I found it just fascinating for the reasons you touch on in (1): the author really tries to unpack why certain versions and verses work, and why others don't, and why the song took such a circuitous route to fame. It's made covers of Hallelujah -- even the execrable ones -- fun to listen to, as I unpack the choices people make when they choose to sing that song.
posted by jacobian at 4:13 PM on June 7, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by jacobian at 4:13 PM on June 7, 2017 [1 favorite]
Leonard Cohen's music is idiosyncratic and his personal fickle style was learned from a vagabond, according to his version of the legend.
"who Cohen slept with" is actually deeply woven into his ethos, as the carnal nature of the soul is a significant element of his artistry.
Apologies for not answering the question here, we want something deeper and more technical than a cheap pop bio, but maybe if a popular biography that mentions these worldly things is worth looking at, then Sylvie Simmons 'I'm You're Man' is good. It goes into the context of his world-view and shifting philosophies.
posted by ovvl at 6:50 PM on June 7, 2017
"who Cohen slept with" is actually deeply woven into his ethos, as the carnal nature of the soul is a significant element of his artistry.
Apologies for not answering the question here, we want something deeper and more technical than a cheap pop bio, but maybe if a popular biography that mentions these worldly things is worth looking at, then Sylvie Simmons 'I'm You're Man' is good. It goes into the context of his world-view and shifting philosophies.
posted by ovvl at 6:50 PM on June 7, 2017
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Ira Nadel has a couple which are worthwhile, but he likes to insert himself into the proceedings. A Life in Art is pretty good. Nadel reworked that to become Various Positions, which although more substantive, I was less impressed with.
Harry Rasky has written well of Leonard, based on the film Rasky made of him. It's intimate, but Rasky manages to keep some objectivity about it.
Obviously limited in scope, but Dylan and Cohen: Poets of Rock and Roll is a fairly serious contextual work, and may be the closest to what you're after.
Honestly, a proper biography of Leonard has yet to be written. The ones out there all suffer from some serious flaws -- being too gushy, making the bio about the writer themselves, and so on. There was a rush to pump bios out around the early 90s and again with his more recent wave of popularity, and I have yet to find one that does a proper job.
posted by Capt. Renault at 1:42 PM on June 7, 2017 [4 favorites]