Leonard Cohen
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Here are some interesting facts about Leonard Cohen, a Jewish Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, a novelist and a painter:
= Leonard Cohen was born on September 21, 1934, to a Jewish family of Polish and Lithuanian origin, in Westmount, Quebec, Canada. His full name was Leonard Norman Cohen, and his Jewish name was Eliezer Ben Nisan HaCohen.
= His Lithuanian Jewish mother, Marsha ("Masha") Klonitsky emigrated to Canada in 1927 and was the daughter of Talmudic writer and rabbi Solomon Klonitsky-Kline.
= His father, Natan, was an engineer tailor and owner of a clothing store, and died when Leonard was 9 years old, and his maternal grandfather, Rabbi Shlomo Zalman Klonitsky, was entrusted with his upbringing.
= Cohen's grandfather helped found many institutions that shaped Jewish life in Canada.
= Cohen completed grades seven through nine at "Herzliah High School", where his literary mentor Irving Layton taught.
= During high school he taught himself to play the acoustic guitar and formed a country–folk group that he called the "Buckskin Boys".
= In 1951, Cohen attended McGill University, where he became president of the McGill Debating Union.
= He published his first poetry collection, "Let Us Compare Mythologies", in 1956.
= In 1961, Cohen released his second poetry book, "The Spice-Box of Earth", gaining critical recognition.
= Cohen moved to Hydra, Greece, in 1960, where he lived on less than a thousand dollars a year and wrote "The Favourite Game", his first novel released in 1963.
= In 1964 he published a songbook named "Flowers for Hitler".
= In 1966, he published his second novel, "Beautiful Losers".
= In 1967 Cohen moved to the US and transitioned into music, releasing his debut album, "Songs of Leonard Cohen" the same year.
= His song "Suzanne" from the debut album became one of his most famous tracks.
= In 1969, Cohen released his second album, "Songs from a Room", featuring the hit "Bird on the Wire."
= Cohen's "Songs of Love and Hate" album was released in 1971, further cementing his musical reputation.
= He contributed to the soundtrack of the 1971 film "McCabe & Mrs. Miller" with several songs.
= He spent almost two years living in a cabin in Tennessee, formerly the home of Boudleaux Bryant, author of “Bye Bye Love.”
= In 1971 Cohen released the album "Songs of Love and Hate", from which the song "Famous Blue Raincoat" became famous.
= In 1972 Cohen went on a European tour. The last performance of this tour was held in Jerusalem. The performance as well as the audience's participation caused great excitement among Cohen and his band.
= In 1973 during the "Yom Kippur War", Cohen spent few months in Israel appearing before soldiers at the outposts in the Sinai Peninsula with the "trio of twins", Mati Caspi and Ilana Rubina.
= In 1974, Cohen released "New Skin for the Old Ceremony" which was influenced by his experiences during and after the "Yom Kippur War". This influence can be seen in the songs "Who by Fire", which is based on a section from "Venatna Tokef", one of the poems of Yom Kippur, as well as in the songs "There Is a War" and "Lover Lover Lover" which was written during his shows with Mati Caspi at the front.
= One of the most famous songs on "New Skin for the Old Ceremony" - "Chelsea Hotel #2" was written following the death of the singer Janis Joplin. In the song, Cohen describes a meeting with Joplin at the Chelsea Hotel, a well-known meeting place for artists at the time.
= Leonard Cohen invented a cocktail called "Red Needle" in Needles, California,
in Summer of 1975.
= He released "Death of a Ladies' Man" in 1977, a collaboration with producer Phil Spector. The production was grandiose and did not match Cohen's minimalist style, and immediately became the target of harsh criticism.
= In 1979, he released "Recent Songs", returning to a more acoustic sound and using various musical instruments like the oud, mandolin and gypsy violin.
= Cohen went to Cuba just before the Bay of Pigs invasion as a self-proclaimed “foot soldier.”
= He named his daughter Lorca after the Spanish poet Federico García Lorca.
= In 1984, Cohen released "Various Positions", which included his signature song "Hallelujah." Columbia Records deemed the album not good enough for U.S. release. "Hallelujah" has been performed by almost 200 artists in various languages, including John Cale and Jeff Buckley.
= A tribute album called "Famous Blue Raincoat", released in 1987 by singer Jennifer Warrens (who had served as background vocals for Cohen on previous tours), resulted in an immediate rise in Cohen's popularity.
= He released "I'm Your Man" in 1988. The album marked a shift toward synth-based arrangements and became one of Cohen's most successful albums, featuring the hit "First We Take Manhattan".
= The song "Everybody Knows" from this album, was included in the movie "Pump Up the Volume" and brought exposure to a younger audience.
= In 1992, Cohen released "The Future", exploring dark political and social themes. Three songs from the album were played in the successful movie "Natural Born Killers".
= Cohen entered a Zen Buddhist monastery in 1994, spending 5 years in seclusion.
= In 2001, Cohen returned with the album "Ten New Songs", reflecting his spiritual journey. It is considered the most melancholic of his albums.
= His 2004 album "Dear Heather" was released for his 70th birthday and featured a mix of spoken word and singing. In this album, Cohen collaborated with the jazz singer Anjani Thomas. In 2006, Thomas released an album co-written with Cohen.
= In October 2005, Cohen sued his previous music manager, Kelly Lynch, and claimed that she was embezzling his money in an amount of over 5 million dollars. In March 2006, Cohen won the lawsuit and it was determined that Lynch should compensate him with 9 million dollars.
= In 2006 Cohen published a book of poetry and paintings called "Book of Longing", which immediately became a bestseller in Canada upon its publication.
= The same year, a film was released in Cohen's collaboration called "I'm Your Man" featuring many artists such as "U2", Nick Cave and more, who perform Cohen's songs. The Film soundtrack was a huge success and exposed Cohen to a wider audience.
= In 2008, Cohen began touring again, embarking on a highly successful world tour.
= He released "Old Ideas" in 2012, which became his highest-charting album at the time.
= His album "Popular Problems" was released in 2014, receiving critical acclaim for its lyrical depth.
= In 2016, Cohen released his final album, "You Want It Darker", shortly before his death. In the title song Cohen face his creator and sings in Hebrew "Hinneni" (I'm here) as if he is ready to face his death.
= Leonard Cohen died on November 7, 2016, in Los Angeles, California.
= He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
= Leonard Cohen was invested as a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honour. In 2011, he received one of the Prince of Asturias Awards for literature and the ninth Glenn Gould Prize.