With his deep voice, his songs seemed like prayers, he spoke about his fears and sang about his sorrows. His fans and peers called him a “Renaissance man.” He was indeed, one of a kind. Earlier this week, the world lost yet another jewel - Leonard Cohen.
Often referred to as one of the most important songwriters of the 1960, along with the likes of Bob Dylan and Paul Simons, Cohen was known was Canada's golden boy when he started out as a writer. He was even featured in a documentary called Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Leonard Cohen, before he was signed by record labels. Born to Polish immigrants in Canada, with Jewish roots, he lost his father at a young age. But his inheritance, helped him pursue his relatively less than lucrative literary career. Within his early 20s, he was an established writer. But had problems making ends meet.
As Cohen entered his 30's, he decided to pursue a career in music. He often claimed that poems are like songs. At the age of 33, he was in an odd situation as he was too old to start a serious music career. But after he signed a record deal with Columbia Records, he released his first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. The album was well received by critics. From then on, his name became a household one, but he had hard time writing songs. He was anything but prolific and on the top of that- he suffered from depression for years. His works often depict his sorrows, in fact one of his album, his "Greatest Hits" collection was voted as the most depressing album ever, according to a survey by a British magazine.
During his dry spell during the 80s and the 90s, Cohen explored different religions and mythologies. Meanwhile, his younger peers in showbiz kept covering his songs. His song Halleluja, had been covered over 300 times, according to his biographer Sylvie Simmons. He was awarded the O.C. (Officer of the Order of Canada) on April 19, 1991 and the C.C. (Companion of the Order of Canada) on October 10, 2002 for his services to music. And his name was kept alive by the praises sung by his contemporaries.
In 2012, at the age of 80, Cohen made a huge comeback, with his critically acclaimed album, Popular Problems. And three weeks before his death, he released yet another one called, You Want It Darker, which is being universally praised.
On November 7, 2016, Leonard Cohen, peacefully passed away at the age of 82, in his house in L.A. His son Adam stated, "My father passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles with the knowledge that he had completed what he felt was one of his greatest records (You Want It Darker). He was writing up until his last moments with his unique brand of humour."