It all started with "Bird on a Wire." My husband had a co-worker that was a music lover. He had all sorts of cd compilations to listen to at the end of the day, during clean up, with various artists and songs. When his co-worker left, he left several of the compilations behind and told my husband to just keep them. One day, my husband with listening to one of the homemade cds; just scanning through songs to see if one peaked his interest, and one did. He came home and told me that he had found the song he wanted played at his funeral. "Bird on a Wire"touched my husband in a way that I do not believe any other song ever has. I asked him after listening, "who is that?" He told me the artist was Leonard Cohen. "He is the man who wrote 'Hallelujah,'" my husband told me, but at the time, that is all we really knew. Around this time, in the store in which my husband works, Mr. Cohen's newest cd Old Ideas came out and it was on the store's instore play list, along with a Best of Leonard Cohen compilation. My husband bought them both and a lifelong obsession began. We purchased the whole box set of Leonard Cohen's music. I listed to Mr. Cohen morning, noon and night. I told my husband one day in the car, "If I only ever listen to Leonard Cohen for the rest of my life, I don't feel that I will have wasted my time or missed anything." I love the way that each song has a way of touching me heart and soul. I love how, though I have heard each song numerous times, there are still times that I hear a song "for the first time." My husband's favorite song has continued to be "Bird on a Wire," I have multiple favorites and find it hard to try to pinpoint that one "favorite." If I had to say that one particular song is without a doubt, my favorite, I think it would be "Famous Blue Raincoat" for the sheer emotion that the song contains. Although, I cannot help but smile every time I hear "Closing Time" on Songs From the Road, I cannot help but smile when I hear him say, "Let's do it friends." I have to say, I love Leonard Cohen. Every song. I feel that my day is better just for listening. Thank you Mr. Cohen.
Jessica