Leonard was deeply appreciative during the last months of his life of the many people who assisted him during his remarkable late-career renaissance. He thanked his band and crew every night during his iconic world tour, and he would want me to thank each of you again by name. Leonard also deeply appreciated the work of all the webmasters who supported his work around the world; they were among the very few who had the privilege to visit backstage. He certainly gained a new appreciation of Sony Music over the last eight years of his career, and would want me to thank all the managing directors who gave generous attention to his last three albums. He would want me to give special mention to Rob Stringer, Shane Carter, Greg Linn, Caryn Hanlon, and JoAnn Kaeding.
In each of his last three albums, Leonard expressed his appreciation for his creative collaborators. He would want me to mention, and thank again, his son, Adam, who produced You Want It Darker, producer and co-writer Patrick Leonard for work on Old Ideas and Popular Problems, and co-writer Sharon Robinson.
He would insist that I give special thanks to Michelle Rice, his lawyer since 2005, who rescued him from the attack and malfeasance of his prior manager. He would be particularly grateful for Michelle’s swift and effective intervention to stop his former manager’s renewed harassment in the summer of 2016, just when Leonard most needed peace to complete this manuscript.
Finally, he would express his deep love and appreciation to his daughter, Lorca, his son, Adam, and Adam’s partner, Jessica, for their care and understanding, which enabled him to have the solitude required to complete the book, and the joy they brought him with visits from his grandchildren, Viva, Cassius, and Lyon. He would also offer a special thanks to Anjani.
—Robert Kory
Trustee, Leonard Cohen Family Trust
June 2018
INDEX OF TITLES / DRAWINGS, FIRST LINES
The index that appeared in the print version of this title does not match the pages in your eBook. Please use the search function on your eReading device to search for terms of interest. For your reference, the terms that appear in the print index are listed below.
Acceptance Address for the Prince of Asturias Award
All He Knows
Almost Like the Blues
almost like the blues grey hat
Amen
and yet there was a certain light
Antique Song
Anyhow
Apparent Turbulence, The
background at last, a
background singers
Banjo
beautiful are the nights in canaan
Blue Alert
bodhidharma brought zen to the west
Born in Chains
boy can’t breathe, the
burning bush
broken tablets
careless is the way to go
Come and See
Come Healing
copenhagen
Crazy to Love You (Blue Alert)
Crazy to Love You (Old Ideas)
Creature, The
Darkness
dazed middle self, the
dear steve
Deprived
Did I Ever Love You
Different Sides
Dimensions of Love
Doesn’t Matter
door
Drank a Lot
dreadful night, a
easy chair, the
eight candles
elegy for kenneth koch
Elevator Mirrors
end of the day-guitar-hat-chair, the
everything will come back in the wrong light
failed portrait
Flowers Hate Us, The
Flying Over Iceland
formal man
Full Employment
full moon
G-d Wants His Song
getting there at last
Going Home
gold halo woman
Golden Gate, The
goodbye that night
Grateful
grim days, the
Half the Perfect World
hands on unified heart
Happens to the Heart
he has found his way
he refused to ask a single question
He Says He Wants to Kill Us
Homage to Morente
Homage to Rosengarten
hopeless trees
how the pearls are made
how to get out of what
i am a living statue
I Can’t Break the Code
I Can’t Take It Anymore
I Didn’t Know
I Do
I Hear the Traffic
i must go down to the sea again
I Pray for Courage
i spoke to you yesterday
I Think I’ll Blame
i think we’re going to see some action here
if i catch you making fun of me
If I Didn’t Have Your Love
If I Took a Pill
if only she hadn’t
If There Were No Paintings
if there were no paintings bianca
if, this morning, you even dare to speak
Ikkyu
I’m Always Thinking of a Song
I’m Looking at the Flag
importance of a previous existence as a fish, the
indian embroider girl
Indian Girl, The
Innermost Door
It Seemed the Better Way
it will be worse than war
Jan 15, 2007 Sicily Café
just because we can’t see straight
Kanye West Is Not Picasso
Lambchops
Leaving the Table
Leonard and Peter
let us be a little merciful
like david bent down
Listen to the Hummingbird
listening carefully
look down look down that lonesome road
looking for a good time, sailor?
looking into the possibility
looking over my shoulder at you gaining ground
Los Angeles Times, The
losing sight of the plan but not letting on
Lucky Night!!!!!, The
Lullaby
madonna variation
many hummers
Mary Full of Grace
mirror in my room, the
Mist, The
montreal kitchen
montreux jazz
Moving On
muse of science
My Career
my grandfather appeared
My Guitar Stood Up Today
My Lawyer
my plan forgotten
Never Gave Nobody Trouble
Never Got to Love You
Never Mind
night i left bombay, the
Nightingale
no gifts this morning
no longer inclined to speak the truth
No One After You
No Time to Change
now we need more time
Old Friends
On Rare Occasions
On the Level
Ordinary Guy with Problems
our suntans are not enough
Roshi Said
Roshi’s Poem
Samson in New Orleans
saturday morning
School Days
seas of blood
Selections from the Notebooks
she was protected by rays of light
Show Me the Place
sleep
Slow
so good to wake up with you, beloved
some call it the sap
somewhat reluctant to get involved
Steer Your Way
Street, A, (lyrics)
Street, A, (poem)
sunlight woman
tango couple
temptation of the halos resisted, the
Thanks for the Dance (Blue Alert)
Thanks for the Dance (poem)
the
n let our own symbols speak for us
this is no joke
this is the end of it
this isn’t working anymore
this way is really the best way
Traveling Light
Treaty
troubles followed me, the
true nature is what you got
truth feels good, the
Unbiblical
Undertow
waiting for his orders
war, the
Was I Alone
Watching the Nature Channel
we are beginning to get the idea
we are going home
we do not bless we convey the blessings
What I Do
what is coming
What Is Coming 2.16.03
When Desire Rests
when she is not calling you
When You Wake Up
will he act?
Winter on Mount Baldy
with a great sense of relief
yes always somewhat off balance
you can’t emerge
you gave me a lily but now it’s a field
You Got Me Singing
You Want It Darker
You Want to Strike Back and You Can’t
Also by Leonard Cohen
POETRY
Let Us Compare Mythologies
The Spice-Box of Earth
Flowers for Hitler
Parasites of Heaven
Selected Poems: 1956–1968
The Energy of Slaves
Death of a Lady’s Man
Book of Mercy
Stranger Music: Selected Poems and Songs
Book of Longing
FICTION
The Favourite Game
Beautiful Losers
A NOTE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Leonard Cohen was born in Montreal in 1934. Soon after graduating from McGill University, he published his first collection of poems, Let Us Compare Mythologies, in 1956. He would go on to publish a dozen more volumes of poetry, including Book of Longing, and two novels, The Favourite Game and Beautiful Losers. A hugely influential and critically acclaimed singer and songwriter, Cohen released fourteen studio albums between 1967 and 2016, the last being You Want It Darker, for the title track of which he posthumously won the Grammy for Best Rock Performance. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008 and the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2010, and was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2010 Grammys. He won both the Prince of Asturias Award for Literature and the Glenn Gould Prize in 2011, and the first PEN New England Song Lyrics of Literary Excellence Award in 2012. Cohen died in Los Angeles on November 7, 2016. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Foreword
Editorial Note
Poems
Lyrics
Blue Alert
Old Ideas
Popular Problems
You Want It Darker
Leonard and Peter
Selections from the Notebooks
Acceptance Address for the Prince of Asturias Award
Acknowledgements
Index
Also by Leonard Cohen
A Note About the Author
Copyright
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
175 Varick Street, New York 10014
Copyright © 2018 by Old Ideas, LLC
All rights reserved
Published simultaneously in Canada by McClelland & Stewart, a division of Penguin Random House Canada, and in Great Britain by Canongate Books Ltd.
Published in the United States by Farrar, Straus and Giroux
First American edition, 2018
E-book ISBN: 978-0-374-71870-1
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