Description
Leonard Cohen aimed high: he wanted to be all the biblical heroes at once. Like Jacob, he wrestled with angels. Like David, he sang psalms and seduced women. Like Abraham, he moved from place to place, remaining a stranger everywhere. In an attempt to immortalize his ideas, his reflections, his philosophy, for twenty years Christophe Lebold retraced Leonard Cohen’s steps in search of his traces: Montreal, where he was born, then New York, where he moved and met the young musicians who were revolutionizing the musical, artistic, and cultural landscape, then the island of Hydra in Greece, where he wrote some of the most beautiful pages of his work. And finally, shortly before Leonard’s death, Lebold met him in person and they became friends, collaborating with him on the final draft of this book. After searching for Cohen in his novels, in his poetry, in the lyrics of his songs, after listening to his incessant dialogue with God and with hotel rooms in the places of his wandering life, with grace and dedication Lebold wove this immense body of material into a passionate biography that merges with an infinitely erudite critical essay. A precious book that manages to capture the essence of the artist – his doubts, his immense sweetness, his determination to face avalanches, break our hearts, and awaken them – from whose pages shines brightly what has been the mission of Leonard Cohen’s entire existence: to teach us to play with gravity, and to surrender to love.
