•
Rating: Damned, damned expectations! Always filling me with tension, always creating false hopes, always diluting the beautiful moments in a sea of apprehension. The expectations of others, then, frighten me and block me at pathological levels, locking me in my "deep and mysterious fortress" with triple locks. Damned!
Yet what happens when expectations are not only met but greatly exceeded and forgotten? Perhaps the answer lies in this concert, the last of Leonard Cohen’s European tour this year, titled “Old Ideas”.
The first expectation is shattered a few minutes before the concert, with a full Pavilhão Atlântico contrary to all predictions. At the time of closing online sales, in fact, the concert was far from sold out. However, the room is bustling with people chatting in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, and the audience is varied even in terms of age: to my left, for example, there is an Englishwoman who could be my mother, to my right a guy of an undefined nationality who might be the age of my grandfather, and me, a twenty-two-year-old, in the middle. And I wasn’t the only one, although I didn’t expect a great influx of young people, considering the age of the evening's protagonist.
The concert begins with the customary academic quarter of an hour: the now more than seasoned (and elegantly dressed) musicians who accompany Cohen take the stage. The band is almost identical to that of the 2008 and 2010 tours, except for the violinist Alexandru Bublitchi, who replaces Dino Soldo's sax, and the guitarist Mitch Watkins, who substitutes Bob Metzger. Even the lighting design that transforms the band into shadows between songs is practically identical to that used two years ago. And could it be a carbon copy concert of those already seen on the previous tour? Thinking about it, the risk isn’t so slight: Cohen is elderly, from 2010 to today he has seen the end of a world tour, the release of a new record, and the preparation of another tour. Was there enough time and energy to create something new? And then that title, “Old Ideas”, doesn't exactly inspire much hope…
The notes of “Dance Me To The End Of Love”, now traditionally the opening of every concert, seem to make that fear more tangible. But it takes little to realize that it’s really just a matter of the setlist. The “lazy bastard living in a suit” who takes the stage – accompanied by the night's first standing ovation – is indeed the same as two years ago, surely with a few more wrinkles, but his charm and ability to enchant the audience are directly proportional to his age.
In the setlist, songs written starting in 1967 (the year of the release of “Songs Of Leonard Cohen”) mix in a perfect blend up to 2012. The audience is eager, letting itself be enchanted and disoriented by the instrumental parts that introduce some of the songs, particularly those masterfully executed by Javier Mas on oud and bandurria. The splendid arrangements level the substantial musical differences between the various periods of Cohen's production, without diminishing or depriving the songs of their personality. On the contrary, sometimes they breathe new life into them, as in the case of many tracks from the ‘80s, often weighed down by electronics and superfluous effects. And perhaps this is what the last few years of touring have been for: redesigning, smoothing, chiseling, and cleaning until achieving perfect balance.
Of course, the great classics are not missing: “Suzanne”, “Hallelujah”, the very sensual “I'm Your Man”, “Tower Of Song”, “Bird On The Wire”, “The Partisan” (which, just to debunk a myth, is not by Cohen) presented in a remarkable version, songs that demonstrate how much the Canadian artist has entered the imagination of the present audience and beyond. Welcomed surprises of the evening are the intense “Night Goes On”, “The Guests” (absent from Cohen's concerts since 1985) and a splendid version of “Coming Back To You” gifted to the audience by the sublime Webb Sisters.
The hoarse and enviable “golden voice”, the old and knobby hands gripping the microphone, some human uncertainties, the smiles and bows directed at the audience, the immense humility and respect Cohen shows towards the musicians accompanying him are the indelible trademark of the evening, the humanity that strikes beyond the music itself.
The highlight of the evening is probably the first encore, “So Long, Marianne”, with an audience now standing under the stage, happy to sing the well-known chorus at the top of their lungs. I, of course, gladly contributed. The whole thing concludes almost four hours after the start with the very appropriate “I Tried To Leave You” and a cover of “Save The Last Dance For Me” by The Drifters, the thirty-second song of the night.
Cohen’s last words are a blessing for his audience, the audience he loves and respects, before whom he kneels and removes his hat several times during the evening. “May you be surrounded by friends and family, and if this is not your lot, may the blessings find you in your solitude”. Profoundly touched (almost moved, I admit), I hastily jot it down on a notepad before stepping out into the mild Lisbon night.
For once without a trace of disappointment.
Tracklist and Lyrics
02 Bird on the Wire (04:15)
like a bird on the wire
like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free
like a worm on the hook
like a knight from some old-fashioned book
I have saved all my ribbons for thee
and if I have been unkind
I hope that you will just let it go by
and if I have been untrue
I hope you know it was never to you
like a babe stillborn
like a beast with his horn
I have torn everyone who reached out for me
but I swear by this song
and by all that I have done wrong
I will make it all up to thee
I saw a beggar leaning on his wooden crutch
he said to me "you must not ask for so much"
and the pretty woman leaning in her darkened door
she cried to me "hey, why not ask for more?"
like a bird on the wire
like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free
04 So Long, Marianne (07:07)
Come over to the window, my little darling,
I'd like to try to read your palm.
I used to think I was some kind of Gypsy boy
before I let you take me home.
Now so long, Marianne, it's time that we began
to laugh and cry and cry and laugh about it all again.
Well you know that I love to live with you,
but you make me forget so very much.
I forget to pray for the angels
and then the angels forget to pray for us.
Now so long, Marianne, it's time that we began ...
We met when we were almost young
deep in the green lilac park.
You held on to me like I was a crucifix,
as we went kneeling through the dark.
Oh so long, Marianne, it's time that we began ...
Your letters they all say that you're beside me now.
Then why do I feel alone?
I'm standing on a ledge and your fine spider web
is fastening my ankle to a stone.
Now so long, Marianne, it's time that we began ...
For now I need your hidden love.
I'm cold as a new razor blade.
You left when I told you I was curious,
I never said that I was brave.
Oh so long, Marianne, it's time that we began ...
Oh, you are really such a pretty one.
I see you've gone and changed your name again.
And just when I climbed this whole mountainside,
to wash my eyelids in the rain!
Oh so long, Marianne, it's time that we began ...
13 Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye (03:34)
I loved you in the morning
Our kisses deep and warm
Your hair upon the pillow
Like a sleepy golden storm.
Yes, many loved before us
I know that we are not new,
In city and in forest
They smiled like me and you,
But now it's come to distances
And both of us must try,
Your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I'm not looking for another
As I wander in my time,
Walk me to the corner
Our steps will always rhyme,
You know my love goes with you
As your love stays with me,
It's just the way it changes
Like the shoreline and the sea,
But let's not talk of love or chains
And things we can't untie,
Your eyes are soft with sorrow,
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
I loved you in the morning
Our kisses deep and warm,
Your hair upon the pillow
Like a sleepy golden storm.
Yes, many loved before us
I know that we are not new,
In city and in forest
They smiled like me and you
But let's not talk of love or chains
And things we can't untie,
Your eyes are soft with sorrow
Hey, that's no way to say goodbye.
15 Suzanne (04:26)
Suzanne takes you down to her place near the river.
You can hear the boats go by,
You can spend the night beside her.
And you know she's half crazy,
But that's why you want to be there.
And she feeds you tea and oranges that come all the way from China.
And just when you mean to tell her that you have no love to give her,
Then she gets you on her wavelength
And she lets the river answer
That you've always been her lover.
And you want to travel with her,
And you want to travel blind,
And you know she will trust you,
For you've touched her perfect body with your mind.
And Jesus was a sailor, when he walked upon the water
And he spent a long time watching from his lonely wooden tower.
And when he knew for certain, only drowning men could see him,
He said: "All men will be sailors then, until the sea shall free them."
But he himself was broken
Long before the sky would open,
Foresaken, almost human,
He sank beneath your wisdom, like a stone
And you want to travel with him
And you want to travel blind
And you think maybe you'll trust him
For he's touched your perfect body with his mind.
Now Suzanne takes your hand and she leads you to the river.
She's wearing rags and feathers from Salvation Army counters.
And the sun pours down like honey on our Lady of the Harbor.
And she shows you where to look, among the garbage and the flowers.
There are heros in the seaweed,
There are children in the morning,
They are leaning out for love,
They will lean that way forever,
While Suzanne holds the mirror.
And you want to travel with her,
And you want to travel blind,
And you know you can trust her
For she's touched your perfect body with her mind.
17 The Partisan (05:13)
When they poured across the border
I was cautioned to surrender,
this I could not do;
I took my gun and vanished.
I have changed my name so often,
I have lost my wife and children
but I have many friends,
and some of them are with me.
An old woman gave us shelter,
kept us hidden in the garret,
then the soldiers came;
she died without a whisper.
There were three of us this morning
I'm the only one this evening
but I must go on;
the frontiers are my prison.
Oh, the wind, the wind is blowing,
through the graves the wind is blowing,
freedom soon will come;
then we'll come from the shadows.
Les Allemands étaient chez moi, (The Germans were at my home)
ils me dirent, "Signe toi," (They said, "Sign yourself,")
mais je n'ai pas peur; (But I am not afraid)
j'ai repris mon arme. (I have retaken my weapon.)
J'ai changé cent fois de nom, (I have changed names a hundred times)
j'ai perdu femme et enfants (I have lost wife and children)
mais j'ai tant d'amis; (But I have so many friends)
j'ai la France entière. (I have all of France)
Un vieil homme dans un grenier (An old man, in an attic)
pour la nuit nous a caché, (Hid us for the night)
les Allemands l'ont pris; (The Germans captured him)
il est mort sans surprise. (He died without surprise.)
Oh, the wind, the wind is blowing,
through the graves the wind is blowing,
freedom soon will come;
then we'll come from the shadows.
18 Famous Blue Raincoat (06:15)
It's four in the morning, the end of December
I'm writing you now just to see if you're better
New York is cold, but I like where I'm living
There's music on Clinton Street all through the evening.
I hear that you're building your little house deep in the desert
You're living for nothing now, I hope you're keeping some kind of record.
Yes, and Jane came by with a lock of your hair
She said that you gave it to her
That night that you planned to go clear
Did you ever go clear?
Ah, the last time we saw you you looked so much older
Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder
You'd been to the station to meet every train
And you came home without Lili Marlene
And you treated my woman to a flake of your life
And when she came back she was nobody's wife.
Well I see you there with the rose in your teeth
One more thin gypsy thief
Well I see Jane's awake --
She sends her regards.
And what can I tell you my brother, my killer
What can I possibly say?
I guess that I miss you, I guess I forgive you
I'm glad you stood in my way.
If you ever come by here, for Jane or for me
Your enemy is sleeping, and his woman is free.
Yes, and thanks, for the trouble you took from her eyes
I thought it was there for good so I never tried.
And Jane came by with a lock of your hair
She said that you gave it to her
That night that you planned to go clear
Sincerely L. Cohen
Loading comments slowly
Other reviews
By Seb
When talking about artists like Leonard Cohen, one cannot help but feel ashamed of one’s own uselessness.
It is a little gem to be enjoyed in all its completeness.
