Jeff Buckley singing Leonard Cohen:
I'm in tears now.
Tom.
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eggbod
- http://wordworld.blog.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:28:24
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SeasideMan
Pro - 2008-07-12 @ 23:32:56
Robert Plant's version is OK, but I think his rock voice lacks the soul to sing this that Tim Buckley and Liz Fraser's voices both have. It's a very hard song to do - I can't do it at all. I've tried, and the result was abysmal.
I've never heard of Joan Wasser.
Tom.-
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eggbod
- http://wordworld.blog.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:35:58
Joan Wasser was involved with Jeff Buckley at the time of his untimely death. She also recorded with Anthony and the Johnsons. Who I had the pleasure of seeing at the Albert Hall.
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:49:59
Ah, thankyou. I have two Antony and the Johnsons albums and love both of them. I honestly hadn't heard of her before and her association with the amazing Antony Hegarty is most interesting.
Thanks again.
Tom.-
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eggbod
- http://wordworld.blog.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:00:09
By-the-by.................
Have you heard River Man by Nick Drake?-
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:26:03
I am quite familiar with Nick Drake, thanks. For a short while a couple of years ago, I thought I actually was him.
I know, bad.
Tom.-
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eggbod
- http://wordworld.blog.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:39:38
Scott Matthews?
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:44:51
Why do you mention Scott Matthews?
Tom. -
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jenray
Pro - http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:33:41
It's a very nice version...and he's got a lovely voice like his Dad, but, sorry, Tom, it's Leonard Cohen for me singing this song...it's not often I like somebody else's version of a song sung by a singer I love to listen to so I suspected this wouldn't affect me in the same way it does you...but it's still a very lovely rendition of it...the video goes well with it too...great big hugs...XX
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:43:14
I knew you'd say that :-)
The power of the original in everything is hard to beat. But in this case, Cohen fan though I am (and have been for over 30 years) Buckley gets my vote. His version just has bucketloads of genuine emotion, unlike Cohen's deliberately cold delivery.
As a musician myself, I love the fact that Jeff Buckley just sat in the studio and played and sung that at the same time: what you hear is just him, with no overdubs and no studio trickery at all. He literally just sat on a stool, played the guitar and sung. Even Cohen didn't do that on his original.
Jeff Buckley's sad early death means we'll never know how he would have developed as an artist and as a writer, and to me that adds extra poignancy to the song.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:48:04
Predictable aren't I...LOL...you really think Cohen's delivery was cold!! I find nothing cold in Cohen's songs...his tonal quality can't deliver coldness...some of the songs are plaintive and heart rending but cold...no, never cold...and how sad that Jeff Buckley is dead as well...his father overdosed and now the son is dead by drowning...hmmm...both so talented too...very sad...
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:50:48
Forgot to add that Leonard Cohen used to be classified as the suicide's singer but I never found that to be so...strange how some people find a singer depressing while I found him uplifting...Phil Ochs was the closest other singer that could be said to be a depressing song writer, but again I found his songs marvellous and evocative...and unforgettable too...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:13:56
I can see what people mean about Cohen, even though I don't agree. His deep voice and accurate dynamics mean that he comes across to many people as cold and, as you say, suicidal. Personally, I don't find him so, just as you don't. I too find him uplifting, but I think we are the minority.
For whatever reason, deep male voices are associated with dark subject matter, and I suspect that is never going to change: Cohen will never be as popular as Johnny Cash was.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:43:59
Well, I don't think we can be a minority because he would have sank like a stone at Glastonbury if the people there found him depressing...and Johnny Cash I found to be boring...not really into country and western singers on the whole more folk like Woodie Guthrie and in small doses...hmmm..forgotten his darned name...HLOL...oh, well, that's age for you...Pete Seegar...got it after googling it..in Wikepedia there's a list of folk singers and there's many amongst them that I loved...Joan Baez being one of my favourites and Janis Joplin was classed as folk too...loved her as well...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:51:23
He wasn't that popular at Glastonbury, actually. The crowd for him was quite small for the timeslot and stage he had. I have this from 3 people who were actually in the crowd watching him.
I think I probably prefer Country to Folk, and if I had to classify Janis Joplin, I'd put her as Jazz/Blues.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:55:57
It's a list worth checking out just to see who is classified by the contributor as folk...I'd put Janis as Rock/Blues rather than Jazz...don't agree with all of them and most I've never heard of...LOL...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 13:08:36
Joplin's first musical love was Blues, and she expanded in different directions from there, encompassing country, rock, psychedelia, folk and jazz along the way. I suppose she could be shoehorned into any of those labels.
I would say the majority of music is optimistic, because it's designed to make people dance and have a good time. This is true of jazz, folk, rock, blues, country, reggae, techno, ...
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 13:15:31
Okay...I agree there's a lot of music that makes your feet tap and want to dance and the sentiments of some songs make you feel good...
Not sure though I'd classify them as optimistic about the future...they're more for the moment I would have thought...I'm wanting songs that paint a bright future for us...still haven't named any...-
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 13:26:41
Here is a list:
http://www.movideo.com/moodtracks/20/optimistic
:-)
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 15:23:47
Not heard almost any...HLOL...and they're mostly modern I think...so that accounts for it...never listen to modern music...just find it bland or boring....
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 16:32:02
If you never listen to modern music, you might just be missing someone you might love. The next generation's Leonard Cohen is out there somewhere...
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 20:02:50
There probably is, but I haven't the patience to plough through the masses of crap there is now to find him or her...Music doesn't actually play a big part in my life now...I loved the Classic Jazz channel and they shut it down...I had that on all day, and just haven't replaced it...I think a lot...LOL...don't really need music to do that...great big hugs...XX-
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 20:11:13
Fair enough. I just can't stop seeking music I might like.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 20:17:03
Yes, I can see that...figuratively speaking...LOL...Ray chases his jazz music in the same way, and loves finding something new...I used to listen to music a lot, but it sorted of faded into the background with Ray listening to his so much...our son is the same, he's a listener to music and keeps telling me I should do the same because it can trigger the imagination...unfortunately, I find it triggers my emotions, which does rather hamper me when I can't see to type through crying over some sad or beautiful piece of music or song...HLOL...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 22:13:57
You know yourself best. If silence aids your thinking, that's the best choice for you. I ditched my MP3 player when I moved to the seaside. I love the sound of the waves and seagulls and it seemed wrong to drown it out with music.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 22:24:38
Well our seaside is usually the sound of people talking as they walk along the promenade, and the seagulls sit on the beach sunbathing alongside the terns....LOL...heard some hilarious conversations as we've walked...and the sea hasn't been rough enough yet to hear waves...generally choose nice calm days to go there...in high season, you get the occasional car parked with a lot of people around listening to music coming from the speakers in the car...doesn't bother me...I like being around the people along the beach walks...even if crowded...nobody's being aggressive or hurried so it's a nice feeling....I can think with noise around me...I can cut everything out when I'm thinking...practice after living in a small house with loads of youngsters around...LOL...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 22:42:52
Gosh, your seaside sounds very different to the one here. It sounds nice, but different.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 23:04:19
Bournemouth is a busy beach...LOL...off to bed now...got to be up at 6.45 for the tile layer at 8...
Night night...GBHs -
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 15:41:50
That's a good start...says only available for Australian listeners to the first two...HLOL...didn't bother with the rest...and where's the rosy future amongst these? Mood music isn't rosy future, just nice moments...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:55:41
I do, I think Cohen often deliberately cultivated a cold delivery to contrast with his lyrics. I have friends who refuse to listen to him because of the coldness and bleakness of his music. When you get a lyric like:
"Give me crack and anal sex
Take the only tree that's left
and shove it up the hole in your culture"
it's hard to see how any delivery other than a cold and unemotional one could work. I think that's why he so often employs female backing singers too: they add warmth and balance the coldness of his own voice.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:08:14
I think it depends on your interpretation of cold...his lyrics are very hard hitting often which is why I like him so much...I like song writers who say something....you've selected a particularly harsh example there but it's illustrating what he wanted to get across...I guess I respond to his music because there's an element of bleakness in me about this world and where it's going...but it would never make me feel suicidal...just a kindred spirit expressing some of things I feel and think about...he went down brilliantly at Glastonbury, which really pleased me...that's a young generation who appreciates him and didn't find him depressing at all...LOL...a bit of hope in an otherwise dark place...they also loved Tony Bennett, two years ago, which also pleased me as he's a great singer of a completely different ilk...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:22:00
Absolutely, he appeals to those of us with bleak views of the way the world is headed. And that is also why he doesn't appeal to people with more optimistic outlooks. If to you the future looks black and someone describes it in dark grey, you will be drawn to them. If someone sees the future in rosy hues, a black depiction of it won't go down at all well.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:45:54
Then there must be quite a few people with a bleak view because his tour here was sold out almost as soon as the tickets came on sale...he does speak to a lot of people...do you know any singers that regard the world through rose tinted glasses? LOL...I don't...
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:54:28
Indeed there are.
There are lots of optimistic singers and songwriters out there. I would say the overwhelming majority fit that description.
Tom.-
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jenray
Pro
- http://www.jenniferhunter.co.uk
- 2008-07-13 @ 12:56:30
Name some...LOL...
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GilraenH
Pro - http://www.gilraen.blog.co.uk
- 2008-07-12 @ 23:45:25
Me too.
That is a great song. Brilliant and not a little soul searching. Video all too thought-provoking, eh? Have a great night. Gil x.-
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 00:00:06
I'm glad it's not just me. I first heard this at a low point in my life and it quite literally laid me to waste. Terrible emotions, laid bare.
Tom. -
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frankofyle
- 2008-07-13 @ 02:34:22
I feel the need to say something here, but I don't know what. Buckley, Drake, Cohen, - I love 'em all.
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-13 @ 09:34:01
Me too :-)
Tom. -
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deana24
- 2008-07-18 @ 19:56:32
It'll always be Leonard for me. I quite like the kd lang version though.
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SeasideMan
Pro
- 2008-07-18 @ 23:45:22
K D Lang does a good job of it, I agree. But somehow Jeff Buckley's voice suited it perfectly. Leonard's original is good, of course it is, but for me it's one of those times when the songwriting idea exceeded the ability of the writer to perform it (something that happened to Bob Dylan and Lennon and McCartney hundreds of times each).
But I know we all have different views on this, and that's a sign of a great song.
Tom.-
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deana24
- 2008-07-19 @ 09:36:50
I saw Leonard sing it live last month. Maybe its the man, but he's the one for me.
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Did you know that Jeff Buckley (son of Tim) was in a relationship with songstress "Joan as policewoman" Wasser? She has just brought out her second album.
And Robert Plant recorded Tim's song "Song to the Siren".