'A Singer Must Die'

I was greatly saddened today to wake up to the news of Leonard Cohen's death.

His music has been a big part of my life since my teens, when I spent many an angst-ridden hour holed up in my bedroom listening to 'Songs From a Room' or 'Songs of Love and Hate' and fancying myself far more worldly-wise and sophisticated than I could ever actually hope to be! Later on, I devoured his more recent albums with similar admiration. He never 'lost it' for a minute.

I've always loved his way with words, his voice, his insight and his humanity. He was always far more humorous than he was given credit for too, and that was never underlined more clearly for me than on the one occasion when I got to see him play live. He was in his 70s by then, skipping on and off stage and smiling delightedly at the reception he was given by the gathered throng of rapturous fans, his eyes twinkling like the mischievous zen master that he was. It was one of the happiest experiences of my life and one which I'll never forget.

There are so many songs of his that fit this moment perfectly, 'Anthem' being amongst them, of course. But the one that's been going around my head in response to the US election result is 'Democracy'. This clip of him performing it live in London was recorded during the same tour on which I saw him and it brings back some wonderful memories for me www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHI9BTpGkp8 - I've included the lyrics below.

Let's hold onto the thought that the USA, UK, and much of the rest of the world, may be taking all sorts of wrong turns at the moment but we can do better - and we must!

The first thing that popped into my mind when thinking about a Cohen tribute Blip was to pay homage to the famous banana-eating photo of him on the cover of the 'I'm Your Man' album... And this was the best I could do!

(You can find the original picture here http://thequietus.com/articles/11812-leonard-cohen-i-m-your-man-anniversary )

Incidentally, if you haven't got the Cohen tribute album 'I'm Your Fan' then I can't recommend it highly enough. Some absolutely cracking cover versions by the likes of R.E.M., Pixies, Nick Cave, Lloyd Cole, James etc. Plus, John Cale performing the best ever version of 'Hallelujah'!


Democracy

It's coming through a hole in the air
From those nights in Tiananmen Square
It's coming from the feel
That this ain't exactly real
Or it's real, but it ain't exactly there
From the wars against disorder
From the sirens night and day
From the fires of the homeless
From the ashes of the gay
Democracy is coming to the USA

It's coming through a crack in the wall
On a visionary flood of alcohol
From the staggering account
Of the Sermon on the Mount
Which I don't pretend to understand at all
It's coming from the silence
On the dock of the bay
From the brave, the bold, the battered
Heart of Chevrolet
Democracy is coming to the USA

It's coming from the sorrow in the street
The holy places where the races meet
From the homicidal bitchin'
That goes down in every kitchen
To determine who will serve and who will eat
From the wells of disappointment
Where the women kneel to pray
For the grace of God in the desert here
And the desert far away
Democracy is coming to the USA

Sail on sail on
Oh mighty Ship of State
To the shores of need
Past the reefs of greed
Through the squalls of hate
Sail on, sail on, sail on, sail on

It's coming to America first
The cradle of the best and of the worst
It's here they got the range
And the machinery for change
And it's here they got the spiritual thirst
It's here the family's broken
And it's here the lonely say
That the heart has got to open
In a fundamental way
Democracy is coming to the USA

It's coming from the women and the men
Oh darling we'll be making love again
We'll be going down so deep
The river's going to weep
And the mountain's going to shout "Amen!"
It's coming like the tidal flood
Beneath the lunar sway
Imperial, mysterious
In amorous array
Democracy is coming to the USA

I'm sentimental, if you know what I mean
I love the country but I can't stand the scene
And I'm neither left or right
I'm just staying home tonight
Getting lost in that hopeless little screen
But I'm stubborn as those garbage bags
That time cannot decay
I'm junk but I'm still holding up this little wild bouquet
Democracy is coming to the USA