Leonard Cohen – Songs of Leonard Cohen

Songs of Leonard Cohen is the debut album of Leonard Cohen, who was already an established poet (Let Us Compare Mythologies, The Spice-Box of Earth, Flowers for Hitler, and Parasites of Heaven) and upcoming novelist (The Favourite Game and Beautiful Losers). The album, which included songs like "Suzanne" and "So Long Marianne" that became classics, helped launch Cohen's career as a singer-songwriter and left his more literary promise largely unfulfilled.

Although never a big seller, reaching #13 in the U.S. and #83 in the U.K., Songs of Leonard Cohen was and is loved by the critics and list makers:

• AllMusic gave it a perfect 5 stars
• CBC Radio ranked it ninth in its list of the 100 Greatest Canadian Albums
• Chart magazine placed it 45th in its 1996 Great Canadian Music poll, 32nd in 2000 and 42nd in 2005
• Robert Christgau gave it an astonishing 4.5 stars upon reissue
• Mar*Star placed it sixth in its 1992 poll of great Canadian albums and 18th in 2011
• Bob Mersereau ranked it 11th in his The Top 100 Canadian Albums book
• New Musical Express called it the fourth best folk album of all time and 232nd best album of all time
• Paste named in the 27th best album of the 1960s
• Pitchfork rated it a 9.6 out of 10 upon reissue
• Rolling Stone Album Guide gave it 4.5 stars (up from the New Rolling Stone Record Guide's 4)
• Spin named it the 19th greatest album of all time

"Suzanne," "So Long, Marianne" and "Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye" were all released on singles, while "Stranger Song," "Sisters of Mercy" and "Winter Lady" were included in Robert Altman's McCabe & Mrs. Miller film soundtrack.

I remember writing an essay about Leonard Cohen, when I was in high school, and going to the library at Algoma College, in Shingwauk Hall, a former residential school, to do research – looking back, I find this incongruous, since I put very little effort into my high school studies, but I obviously cared enough about Leonard Cohen to do so on this one project.

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Track Listing

1. "Suzanne" (Leonard Cohen) – 3:47
2. "Master Song" (Leonard Cohen) – 5:54
3. "Winter Lady" (Leonard Cohen) – 2:14
4. "The Stranger Song" (Leonard Cohen) – 5:05
5. "Sisters of Mercy" (Leonard Cohen) – 3:33
6. "So Long, Marianne" (Leonard Cohen) – 5:37
7. "Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye" (Leonard Cohen) – 2:54
8. "Stories of the Street" (Leonard Cohen) – 4:34
9. "Teachers" (Leonard Cohen) – 2:59
10. "One of Us Cannot Be Wrong" (Leonard Cohen) – 4:26

Personnel

• Leonard Cohen – I'm Your Man (album)
• Leonard Cohen – The Future (album)
• Leonard Cohen – Various Positions (album)
• Leonard Cohen – Suzanne (song)
• Leonard Cohen – Hallelujah (song)
• Leonard Cohen – Bird on the Wire (song)
• Leonard Cohen – Famous Blue Raincoat (song)