UFRGS FIS LIT ING ESP 2017

[1] In Leonard Cohen Makes it Darker, in the

October 17, 2016 edition of The New Yorker,

David Remnick provides a succinct historyby-

anecdote of the Canadian singersongwriter

[5] ´s impending album, You Want It

Darker, an intriguing section devoted to Bob

Dylan’s take on Cohen, and a witty

perspective on the old icon.

Remnick suggests that there are deep

[10] connections between the two old bards when

he quotes Dylan: ―When people talk about

Leonard, they fail to mention his melodies,

which to me, along with his lyrics, are his

greatest genius. […] Even the counterpoint

[15] lines—they give a celestial character and

melodic lift to every one of his songs. As far

as I know, no one else comes close to this in

modern music. [..] His gift or genius is in

connection to the music of the spheres. In

[20] Sisters of Mercy, for instance, the verses are

four elemental lines which change and move

at predictable intervals . . . but the tune is

anything but predictable. The song just

comes in and states a fact. And after that

[25] anything can happen and it does, and

Leonard allows it to happen. His tone is far

from condescending or mocking. He is a

tough-minded lover who doesn’t recognize

the brush-off. Leonard’s always above it all.

[30] Sisters of Mercy is in perfect meter, with no

chorus, quivering with drama. This is an

example of a deceptively unusual musical

theme, with or without lyrics. But it’s so

subtle a listener doesn’t realize he’s been

[35] taken on a musical journey and dropped off

somewhere, with or without lyrics.‖

And it is Cohen who says that ―Dylan has

lines, hundreds of great lines, that have the

feel of unhewn stone. But they really fit in

[40] there. But they’re not smoothed out. They’re

inspired but not polished. That is not to say

he doesn’t have lyrics of great polish. That

kind of genius can manifest all the forms and

all the styles.‖

[45] For some odd reason, Cohen also says: ―I

have all my marbles, so far. I have many

resources, some cultivated on a personal

level, but circumstantial, too: my children

and grandchildren live nearby. So I am

[50] extremely blessed. At a certain point, if you

still have your marbles and are not faced

with serious financial challenges, you have a

chance to put your house in order. It’s a

cliché, but it’s underestimated as an

[55] analgesic on all levels. Putting your house in

order, if you can do it, is one of the most

comforting activities and the benefits of it are

incalculable.‖

When asked about the devotional tones of

[60] his verses Cohen declares: ―I start with

artistic dedication. I know that if the spirit is

on you, it will touch on to the other human

receptors. But I dare not begin from the

other side. It’s like pronouncing the holy

[65] name—you don’t do it. But if you are lucky,

and you are graced, and the audience is in a

particular salutary condition, then these

deeper responses will be produced.‖

REMNICK, D. Leonard Cohen makes it Darker. Available at: www.TAGARCHIVES: Leonard Cohen – Bob Dylan Interface. Accessed on Nov. 9th, 2016. 

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