Sincerely, L. Cohen Vol. 2: No Way to Say Goodbye

Ever since the horrible events of November 7 and 8, I have been wanting to put together a second tribute to Leonard Cohen, a songwriter who has meant more to me than any other who hasn't won a Nobel Prize. I am glad I waited, as each week has seemed to bring a new gem by an artist shaken as deeply as this humble fan by the great man's passing. Emmy the Great's bracingly optimistic "Anthem," which she turned into a sing-along by passing out lyric sheets to the entire audience, was the first to reach me, and moved me to start looking for more. Norah Jones's sultry "Everybody Knows"; The Tedeschi Trucks Band's soulful "Bird on the Wire"; Robyn Hitchcock's somber, heartfelt "Suzanne"; Laura Marling's icy, intense "Avalanche"; and Glen Hansard's elegiaic, off-mic "So Long Marianne"--each was recorded after Leonard's death, and each confirms the enormity of his influence and his genius. Finally, Rufus Wainwright's death-haunted "Who By Fire" is somehow the perfect choice for the man who teamed with his childhood friend Lorca Cohen to father Leonard's granddaughter Viva.

As for the other artists represented here, whose recordings were made while Leonard was still around to enjoy the gesture, they are a veritable who's who of modern musical royalty: Warren Zevon, Jackson Browne, Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, Tori Amos, The Decembrists, and Marianne Faithfull will all be in one hall of fame or another some day if they're not already. Then there's Nobel Prize-winner and Cohen-verified Mt. Everest of Songwriters Bob Dylan, who may have been the first artist to cover the ubiquitous "Hallelujah," years before John Cale and Jeff Buckley got around to making it the most unlikely standard ever sung... and sung... and sung...

If this isn't enough Cohen for you, and you didn't download Vol. 1 when I put it up here almost eight years ago, it is, amazingly, still on the tracker, at http://www.dimeadozen.org/torrents-details.php?id=237098. As I type this, it is sitting at exactly 500 downloads. Also, if anyone out there has any Cohen tribute concerts (performed before or after his death), please share them here!

As always, a big thanks to the tapers, the original uploaders, the nice folks who've sent me recordings, and especially the performers and composer. I hope someone out there will create some artwork for this--thanks in advance!--it clocks in at 79:27 and will fit conveniently on a compact disc (if anyone other than I still use CDs). Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit).

Now, let's all join virtual hands for a secular prayer that the next four years will not fulfill our worst fears. As a wise man once said, "Get ready for the future, it is murder."

Sincerely, Jeff S.

01 Everybody Knows - Norah Jones (Nov 21, 2016, Olympia Theatre, Paris, France)
02 Bird on the Wire - Tedeschi Trucks Band (Nov 11, 2016, Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis, MN)
03 First We Take Manhattan - Warren Zevon (Feb 11, 1992, Parker's Casino, Seattle, WA)
04 A Thousand Kisses Deep - Jackson Browne (Nov 11, 2011, Fox Theater, Hanford, CA)
05 Suzanne - Robyn Hitchcock (Nov 17, 2016, City Winery, Chicago, IL)
06 Avalanche - Laura Marling and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (Jan 17, 2017, Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, Scotland)
07 Who By Fire - Rufus Wainwright (Jan 11, 2017, Tivoli Vredenburg, Utrecht, NL)
08 Famous Blue Raincoat - Tori Amos (May 28, 2014, Cirque Royal, Brussels, Belgium)
09 Tower of Song - Marianne Faithfull (Jun 30, 1999, Modernes, Bremen, Germany)
10 In My Secret Life - Laurie Anderson (Oct 4, 2006, Point Theatre, Dublin, Ireland)
11 Stranger Song - Lou Reed (Oct 4, 2006, Point Theatre, Dublin, Ireland)
12 Hallelujah - Bob Dylan (Aug 4, 1988, Greek Theatre, Los Angeles, CA)
13 Hey That's No Way to Say Goodbye - The Decembrists (Aug 6, 2011, Ryman Auditorium, Nashville TN)
14 Anthem - Emmy the Great (Dec 6, 2016, Village Underground, London, UK)
15 So Long Marianne - Glen Hansard (Nov 22, 2016, Carr�, Amsterdam, NL)