Famous Blue Raincoat

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Taylor, Tom (November 7, 2021). "Leonard Cohen's 10 greatest songs of all time". Far Out . Retrieved April 27, 2023. Something old is something new in the music world. Here with a review, musician and DAY TO DAY contributor David Was. The original recording starts in the key of A minor, but switches to C major during the choruses. Cohen said, "That's nice. I guess I got that from Spanish music, which has that." [5] Reception [ edit ] Geri from Nova Scotia, CanadaReally, when you listen to the lyrics (or rather poems)of his songs, there is the obvious sexual tension to the words but more so than that his intelligence and philosophy touches you on a much deeper level than the fact that his appeal to women is incredibly irresistible. A firend of mine remembers him from his early days in Montreal and recalls his almost hypnotic charm on the female of the species, he had woman following him everywhere.

In the ensuing years, the ever-charming host would invite me over to his pad, ply me with tequila and cranberry juice, a drink of his own invention he called the Red Needle, and played me his new songs. He even sang a cameo vocal on one of my albums, doing his best Barry White impression on a song called "Elvis' Rolls Royce." Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrateded.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p.333. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. WAS: Since those days, appreciating Leonard Cohen has become a bit of a cottage industry, with artists like Elton John and Don Henley lining up to sing his poetic musings on various tribute albums. But Jennifer Warnes deserves credit for being there first, before Leonard became venerable and certifiably cool; they make a lovely musical couple. The supercharged opener here, "First We Take Manhattan", with stinging Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lines, is from the then unreleased I'm Your Man album as was "There Ain't No Cure For Love".

Notes

a b "Readers' Poll: The 10 Best Leonard Cohen Songs". Rolling Stone. 26 November 2014 . Retrieved 11 November 2016. Famous Blue Raincoat" has also been recorded by numerous other artists, including Tori Amos, Joan Baez, Jonathan Coulton, Nathaniel Rateliff, and Eivør and Jared Louche. [8] [9] It provided the title to Jennifer Warnes' album of cover versions of Cohen's songs. Damien Rice performed the song at the 2017 Tower of Song: A Memorial Tribute to Leonard Cohen concert. [10] First Aid Kit included it in their Who By Fire memorial tribute [11] sung by Maja Francis. [12] "When I Need You" comparison [ edit ]

Originally released in 1987 on Cypress and later reissued by Private Music and then Classic Records, this IMPEX reissue is the album's fourth and best-sounding version. When Cohen later released his equally splashy I'm Your Man album the new audience was primed, the older one supportive and Cohen's career took off, reaching heretofore unscaled heights of popularity and iconic cultural acceptance. Now in his '80s, Leonard Cohen has never been more popular, nor has his audience demographic been so young. He's the hippest oldster on the scene—even more so than Dylan.

Credits (31)

Christgau, Robert (March 31, 1987). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York . Retrieved April 28, 2013. Cohen's version is sung from the perspective of a man discussing with another man a woman they both had a relationship with. Many female artists have managed to flip the gender and make the song even more ambiguous. Joan Baez, Tori Amos, Laurie MacAllister and Jennifer Warnes are some of the artists who have covered this song. In 1987, Warnes released an entire album of Cohen's songs called Famous Blue Raincoat before contributing to the hit " (I've Had) The Time of My Life" later that year. Canadian album certifications – Jennifer Warnes – Famous Blue Raincoat". Music Canada . Retrieved August 19, 2022. In a 1994 BBC Radio Interview, Cohen remarked: "The problem with that song is that I've forgotten the actual triangle. Whether it was my own - of course, I always felt that there was an invisible male seducing the woman I was with, now whether this one was incarnate or merely imaginary I don't remember, I've always had the sense that either I've been that figure in relation to another couple or there'd been a figure like that in relation to my marriage. I don't quite remember but I did have this feeling that there was always a third party, sometimes me, sometimes another man, sometimes another woman. It was a song I've never been satisfied with. It's not that I've resisted an impressionistic approach to songwriting, but I've never felt that this one, that I really nailed the lyric. I'm ready to concede something to the mystery, but secretly I've always felt that there was something about the song that was unclear. So I've been very happy with some of the imagery, but a lot of the imagery."

Dale from Augusta, GaActually had this happen to me with my first wife. Except that she didn't stay with me. So this song, if you'll pardon the pun, stikes a real chord with me. Cohen is incredible. He's not a singer, he's a poet who sings. Adams, James (11 February 2006). "Legal battles? Cohen's Zen with that". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008 . Retrieved 8 April 2020. Dan from Sydney, AustraliaI agree with Joanie about the "flake of your life" line. Absolutely brilliant and the devastation of it is literally soul crushing. The fact that a mere "flake" of the other man was enough to make Cohen's woman happier than he could ever hope to make her himself. Just put yourself in those shoes with a relationship you may be in and consider how it would feel... Where other singers tended to geld Cohen's often disturbingly revealing poetry, Warnes, working with the composer himself and introducing a couple of great new songs ("First We Take Manhattan" and "Song of Bernadette," which she co-wrote), matched his own versions. The high point may have been the Warnes-Cohen duet on "Joan of Arc," but the album was consistently impressive... For Warnes, the album meant her first taste of real critical success: suddenly a singer who had seemed like a second-rate Linda Ronstadt now appeared to be a first-class interpretive artist. [3] I had a good raincoat then, a Burberry I got in London in 1959. Elizabeth thought I looked like a spider in it. That was probably why she wouldn't go to Greece with me. It hung more heroically when I took out the lining, and achieved glory when the frayed sleeves were repaired with a little leather. Things were clear. I knew how to dress in those days. It was stolen from Marianne's loft in New York City sometime during the early seventies. I wasn't wearing it very much toward the end.

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Yes some of the late '80s synth sounds are now dated but the greatness of Cohen's songs endure and given the state of today's singing—which is often just a lot of hysterical shouting (and now I sound like my parents!)—Warnes' tastefully restrained yet intense performances here, become more rare, more precious, more beautiful and more valuable. WAS: Jennifer Warnes' take on Leonard Cohen's music is anything but dismal. In fact, it's sometimes jarring to hear his songs given the high-gloss Los Angeles production treatment. British album certifications – Jennifer Warnes – Famous Blue Raincoat". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved August 19, 2022.