 | |
List Price: $11.98 | | Label: Columbia Europe
Salesrank: 47893
Released: October 8, 2001 |
| Our Price: $5.98 |
| Used Price: $5.75 |
|
| Media: Audio CD |
|
Live Songs Track Listing:
1. Minute Prologue
2. Passing Through
3. You Know Who I Am
4. Bird on a Wire
5. Nancy
6. Improvisation
7. Story of Isaac
8. Please Don't Pass Me by (A Disgrace)
9. Tonight Will Be Fine
10. Queen Victoria
Editorial Review:
By the time Leonard Cohen began his recording career in 1967, the iconoclastic Canadian troubadour was already well established as a poet and author. He quickly emerged as one of the era's most original and influential singer-songwriters, building a large and legendary body of work that continues to inspire artists and listeners alike.
Much of Cohen's reputation and mystique was established by his early work for Columbia Records, particularly the five albums he recorded between 1967 and 1974. Now, these five classic albums, unavailable on vinyl for two decades, have been lovingly restored to their original LP format.
For their new Sundazed editions, all five albums have been meticulously remastered and have been sourced from the original Columbia Records stereo masters in order to preserve the sound of the original albums. In keeping with the exacting standards for which Sundazed has become known, each album will be pressed on high-definition vinyl, with complete original cover art.
Cohen's intimate, emotion-charged live performances yielded the 1973 release Live Songs, which mixes a handful of previously recorded favorites with several new songs, including "Passing Thru," "Tonight Will Be Fine" and the harrowing, rarely-performed 13-minute epic "Please Don't Pass Me By (A Disgrace)."
Live Songs Reviews:
Best & Worst of... 
2008-10-04 - I call this Leonard Cohen CD "Best & Worst Of" because that's exactly what it is.
The introduction song "Minute Prologue" is lovely in its' lyrical simplicity:
"I've been listening to all the dissension/I've been listening to all the pain/And it seems no matter what I do/It all comes back again/But I'm a fool because I think I can heal it/I'm a fool because I think I can heal it/Yes, I'm a fool because I think I can heal it with this song."
Unfortunately the singer follows up the Prologue with "Passing Through", a sort of Salvation Army like, Jesus-clapping call to arms. The background singers & instrumentals are very good, but unfortunately the performer teeters close to a parody in this live selection.
Song 3, "You Know Who I am" is very nice--and, again, the background vocals & instrumentals are particularly good.
Everybody's probably heard #4 "Bird on a Wire" somewhere or other. It's never been one of my personal favorites, but nonetheless has been a popular mega hit. It has been performed by countless singers & quoted in many dramatic productions.
The next selection "Nancy" LC definitely IS one of my favorites. I always think of Marilyn Monroe when I listen to this tune. It's about a woman who was in the foreground of the sexual liberation scene, but who eventually dies alone. This doesn't sound like a "live" song.
"Improvisation" is an instrumental live performance and is only marred slightly by Cohen's' unnecessary verbal interjections.
Tune #7 "Story of Isaac" is classic Cohen at his best. It is about "one generation sacrificing another."
#8 "Please Don't Pass Me By" is live & dreadful. It causes one to wonder if LC would have been happier joining the Salvation Army. His voice is strident to screaming & the lyrics rather lame.
"Tonight Will Be fine" is a hoh-hum.
The concluding composition "Queen Victoria" is stripped down to a single guitar stroking backing up Cohen's singing. It's a surreal song dripping with repressed sexuality (a hallmark of the Victorian Age)& personal "incomparable sense of loss." This song never received airtime, but it is oddly engaging. It is one of my personal favorites--and again, it does not sound live & probably was a studio recording.
Essential Leonard Cohen
Songs of Leonard Cohen
Judy Collins Sings Leonard Cohen: Democracy
Leonard Cohen Live Songs 
2008-05-05 - I have been a Leonard Cohen fan for many years, but my collection was limited to I'm your man, The Future and the compilation album So long Marianne. Only recently did I fully explore So long Marianne and the earlier songs grew so much on me that I started acquiring all the original albums.
Live Songs is my first "live" album. The sound quality and musical refinement is of course not comparable to the studio recorded albums, but that is not really the point. To me the recording presents the familiar songs (previously released) in entirely new ways. Instrumentation is more bare, with lyrics mostly true to the original. Where it is different, it is different in interesting ways - really adding to the effect of the song and the emotional experience.
The familiar songs that I particularly like is Bird on the wire and Nancy - both to me almost beautiful beyond description.
Songs I like and did not know from other original albums include Passing through which I would have loved as a studio recorded song as well.
I am not very fond of Please don't pass me by (too long and sentimental for my tastes), but I imagine that the song at the live event itself may have been special.
All in all I would recommend the album as it forms part of the overall Leonard Cohen collection, presents well-known songs in interesting new ways and includes enough previously unreleased material (?). I am of the opinion therefore that the album has a place of its own.
His First Live Album
2007-09-27 - The performance is classic. His voice is still young; his deep voiced talking style of singing was still in front of him, for the most part. And -- best of all for fans -- there are songs here that never surfaced on his studio records. I'd buy it again.
His other live CDs are even greater. 
2006-09-11 - This is a great Cd, but not as great as is other live CDs. So if you can't afford to buy them all, I wouldn't start with this one.
Great Early 1970's Live Cohen...
2005-12-05 - There are 3 Live Cd's in Cohen's catalogue...each with it's own strengths (I don't find weakness in Cohen, he is an unfinished project)
This is the 1st one, an import (bought mine in London) showcases Cohen touring about his Songs From A Room album...on 2 separate occasions in 1970 and in 1972..a couple of unreleased poems and the traditional country Passing Through are found besides such classics as The Story of Isaac, Bird On The Wire with laid back minor accompaniment coming from the likes of Charlie Daniels on fiddle and bass..
