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45 of 45 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
After almost forty years, I still find myself under the spell of the stark beauty pervading this masterpiece , 14 April 2007
The enigmatic Leonard Cohen was a 34 years old well-known poet/writer when he released the first LP of his singer/songwriter career. Although taking some side roads along the way, he has maintained a successful recording and performing career for almost 40 years. It was high time that the dedicated fan could listen to these recordings in high quality digital form. Kudos here to the quality of the analogue tapes engineered by Neil Wilburn. The brand new remastering is outstanding!
The new Columbia/Legacy version of his sophomore album comes in a hardcover digipak and includes liner notes by Anthony DeCurtis, the well-known music critic.
Of course, Leonard Cohen never enjoyed massive commercial success. Actually, he only ever had two albums in the US pop charts. The record under review was his higher charting LP (# 63 in 1969) but the intrinsic quality and the power of his work made him a darling of a whole lot of other artists.
Judy Collins was the first artist to showcase his work by putting beautiful renditions of Cohen's "Suzanne" and "Dress Rehearsal Rag" on her own innovative "In My Life" LP (1966.) The other songwriters featured on this LP included Lennon/McCartney, Dylan, Richard Farina, Donovan, Randy Newman and Jacques Brel. Heavy company indeed. However, Cohen's material was strong enough to warrant a prime place on the LP.
Judy was only the first of an incredible string of important artists who, to this day, are drawn to his work. As a result, Cohen's status as a composer never ended to grow. Few artists among his 60's contemporaries command as much attention as him. In addition, his catalogue kept selling over the long haul.
What hindered Cohen to gain wider acceptance among the record buying public was primarily his voice. Despite its high sensibility, it is hard to deny that Cohen's often-weary voice is an acquired taste. At the beginning of his career, it took me quite a bit of time to appreciate it. The voice factor also played, commercially, against other talented songwriters both cultist (like David Ackles) and famous (like Randy Newman.)
Moreover, his compositions are often steeped in melancholy, if not downright depression. Rolling Stone's original review of the album includes the line "[...] Leonard Cohen's second try won't have them dancing in the streets [...]". Although the remark is off the point, the sentiment of melancholy pervading this sophomore album is actually heightened by Bob Johnston's spare, well-considered production.
Leonard Cohen main subjects on this album are his rejection of tyranny and violence, his search for freedom, his observations regarding various aspects of father and son relationship, his tales of sensual romance, his melancholy, his description of the inner and external conflicts than he has to encounter through life, his biblical allegory, his deep, implied tenderness and his total honesty.
It is impossible to stay unmoved when listening to the expression of his always-adroit lyrical sense and to the haunting appeal of most of his melodies.
Although, taken in the context of the time, some songs might be construed to refer to particular events (like, say, the Vietnam war), it is obvious that the lyrics are open to much more than any single interpretation.
On the strength of these qualities, compositions like "Bird on a Wire", "Lady Midnight", "You Know Who I Am" and "The Story of Isaac" would soon become genuine classics.
This remastered album includes two bonus tracks: "Like a Bird" and "Nothing to One". These are early takes of "Bird on a Wire" and "You Know Who I Am", respectively. Their recording took place in 1968 during aborted sessions produced by David Crosby (who also supplied harmonies on the latter track.) "Bird on a Wire" was actually first released by Judy Collins, in a splendid country-rock arrangement, on her 1969 LP "Who Knows Where the Time Goes". The same album also includes her version of "The Story of Isaac."
The two bonus tracks are interesting to have but, as is often the case with "expanded" CD's, I do not feel that they do belong to Cohen's essential work.
I would have enjoyed hearing Cohen's own version of "Priests", which is a song that I like very much. It was, interestingly, included in the sheet music for "Songs from a Room." Judy Collins, again, recorded a cover version of this on her 1967 LP "Wildflowers" (along with two other Cohen tracks that would appear on his debut album). Richie Havens did cover the song on his remarkable 1969 2-LP set "Richard P. Havens, 1983." The song has not been added to either Columbia/Legacy reissue of Cohen's first two albums. It is not sure, however, that Cohen has ever recorded a releasable version of this song.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Cohen's Most Cohesive Album, 16 Jun 2007
This, Cohen's second album, found him on more comfortable territory. The success of his first record seems to have encouraged Colubmia to allow him a little more freedom from the commercial arrangements imposed on him by his first producer, John Simon. 'Songs From A Room' presents Lennie in characteristic, spare mode, backed only by a 'hearbeat' bass, Jew's harp, and (very) occasional flourishes from strings, guitar, harmonium,percussion and only one appearance by a female choir!
All of which has the effect of making this a more cohesive album, the product of a consistent production philospophy. Dylan producer Bob Johnston does for Cohen just what he did for his previous boss: records the voice perfectly, so that Cohen is 'centre-stage' and never obscured by the backing musicians (who - disappointingly - aren't credited).
As to the songs - well, a lot of them are Cohen standards: 'Bird On The Wire' needs no introduction; 'Story of Isaac' is a subtle Vietname commentary (though it applies equally well to any armed conflict); 'Seems So Long Ago, Nancy' is a harrowing personal tale and 'Tonight Will Be Fine' encapsulates Lennie's approach to life and loving into three and half minutes of perfect folk-pop! There's also a beautiful version of the Resistance anthem 'The Partisan', which most people now know through Cohen's version (in which the female choir makes its one, very telling, appearance). Those are the standout tracks....but I don't think anything else on the album quite reaches those heights, enjoyable as songs like 'The Old Revolution' and 'You Know Who I Am'are - hence the four stars, as opposed to five. In all honesty, I probably enjoy 'Songs Of...' and 'Songs Of Love And Hate' more, even though they are less cohesive albums in terms of production and style.
The bonus tracks - early versions of 'Bird...' and 'You Know Who I Am', produced by David Crosby (who I never realised had had any connection with Cohen) actually match up to the album versions in terms of quality. And the hard-covered packaging, with interesting liner notes by Anthony deCurtis, is attractive.
In short, if you like 'Songs Of...', you'll almost certainly like this. So, add it to your basket!
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Masterpiece enhanced, 6 Jul 2007
Leonard Cohen followed up his debut album with another masterpiece, this collection of magnificent songs of solitude, despair and resignation. Besides The Partisan, a song about the French resistance with its beautiful French verses and female vocals, all compositions are by Cohen.
The most popular number here is Bird On A Wire that has been covered by artists as diverse as Johnny Cash, Joe Cocker, Judy Collins, Rita Coolidge, Tim Hardin, The Neville Brothers and Jennifer Warnes.
For some reason, the opening lines of Bunch Of Lonesome Heroes make me think of Frodo's journey to Mordor in Lord Of The Rings: "A bunch of lonesome and very quarrelsome heroes/Were smoking out upon the open road." Other highlights include The Story Of Isaac and The Old Revolution, in both of which Cohen's characteristic Biblical imagery surfaces, and the somber Lady Midnight with its many layers of meaning.
Seems So Long Ago is a wistful confessional dirge whilst You Know Who I Am is a delicate love poem with esoteric undertones: "I am the one who loves changing from nothing to one". The mood lightens up on the former closing track Tonight Will Be Fine with its catchy melody, driving rhythm and erotic lyric, although even here the sadness is just a sigh away.
This reissue booklet includes liner notes by Anthony DeCurtis, one full-color and four black & white photographs plus a full-color painting of a chair. Both extra tracks were originally produced by David Crosby and for reissue by Bruce Dickinson. The first, Like A Bird, is an earlier version of Bird On The Wire. This version is less flowing, more halting than the familiar one. Nothing To One is the earlier version of You Know Who I Am.
Cohen's sublime music has a transcendent, spiritual quality. These haunting songs "from a room" have lost none of their poetic impact after 4 decades; their grace, elegance and beauty shine on.
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