X-Factor - Leonard Cohen - Hallelujah - Nooooooooooooooo!!!!!

[Billys Boots]

Sorry Dec, the hilarity is about to continue.

http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=ADGmaJJgCy4&feature=related

[Declan]

Sorry Dec, the hilarity is about to continue.

As my daughter would text OMFG

[mick999]

This is from an Irish guy - Damian Leith, who won the Australian Idol last year

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=BiyNdgUbCjM

[Dinny Breen]

I see not only are the Tribube GAA writers getting their copy from the Board but now their arts writers as well 

Good article mind.....

http://www.tribune.ie/arts/article/2008/dec/14/it-goes-like-this-the-fourth-the-fifth-the-minor-f/

Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' has entered the canon via Dylan, Cale, Buckley – and has even ended up on 'X Factor'
Angelic: Katherine Jenkins

Of all the incarnations of Leonard Cohen's song 'Hallelujah', the X Factor winner's version will raise the most eyebrows. One of the greatest songs of all time, it has a long and varied history dating back to 1984.

It had a difficult beginning. The story goes that Cohen wrote at least 80 verses that were eventually distilled into the six that make up his original. He said: "I filled two notebooks and I remember being in the Royalton Hotel [New York], on the carpet in my underwear, banging my head on the floor and saying, 'I can't finish this song.'" Thankfully, he did. After Bob Dylan performed 'Hallelujah' in concert at the Montreal Forum in 1988, he asked Cohen how long it had taken him to write it. Cohen said two years, although it actually took slightly longer. "I lied because I was ashamed to tell him how long it really took," he said.

When Dylan first heard 1984's Various Positions, the album on which 'Hallelujah' first appeared, he commented that Cohen's songs were becoming more like prayers. The Canadian songwriter had started as a poet and novelist and his original ballad is half-spoken in his deep voice. Cohen released two versions of the song, the heavily spiritual first version onVarious Positions, and a second, more obviously erotic version, recorded at a live show in 1988 and appearing on 1994's Cohen Live.

The later version omitted the Old Testament references of the original, which began with King David's harp-playing to soothe King Saul and his later seduction by Bathsheba. The title itself is the Hebrew word meaning "glory to the Lord". In its six verses it wraps up all the themes pertinent to human existence: love, sex, desire, death, loneliness, weakness, religion, failure, forgiveness, redemption and mercy.

"The song explains that many kinds of hallelujahs do exist, and all the perfect and broken hallelujahs have an equal value," Cohen has said. "It's a desire to affirm my life, not in some formal religious way but with enthusiasm; with emotion."

But the song that became widely accepted as one of the best of all time did not become so via Cohen's understated original. It was a later version by John Cale, a former member of the Velvet Underground, that set the modern template. Cale had heard Cohen's new 'Hallelujah' in 1988 and asked him to send him all the verses. Cohen faxed over just 15.

Cale took Cohen's sparse gospel-tinged ballad, re-ordered the verses and arranged the song for piano. For years, Cale sang his version live before making a studio version for the 1991 tribute album I'm Your Fan, which then appeared on his live album Fragments of a Rainy Season a year later and would become Jeff Buckley's arrangement.

It was Buckley's version on his 1994 album Grace that took the song into the canon. Injecting the emotion of his trembling multi-octave vocals, the build-up to the line "Love is not a victory march/ It's a cold and it's a broken hallelujah" is devastating. His death by drowning at the age of 30 would immortalise a now wholly poignant song, and it was Buckley's 'Hallelujah' that was ranked as one of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, not Cohen's. Buckley omits two of Cohen's redemptive verses; he called his version an ode to "the hallelujah of an orgasm", even saying: "I hope Leonard doesn't hear it." He needn't have worried. Cohen has allegedly acknowledged it to be his favourite version.

'Hallelujah' has been covered by more than 100 artists including Rufus Wainwright, kd lang, Jon Bon Jovi, Kathryn Williams, Allison Crowe, Damien Rice, Katherine Jenkins, Willie Nelson and Bono. Cohen's publicist still gets sent new versions (the latest in Welsh and Afrikaans) by musicians hoping to see them passed on to Cohen for approval.

[scud]

Heard the X-factor version this morning, was ok until it went ape shit half way through, the production went glitzaramafied and Alexandra went on a Mariah Carey-esque warble-a-thon, you can just imagine the fireworks an shite goin off behind her. For me, totally not what the song's about.

Who gives the ok for people to cover the song?

[Dinny Breen]

Cohen's publicist still gets sent new versions (the latest in Welsh and Afrikaans) by musicians hoping to see them passed on to Cohen for approval.

As above, Cohen approves them, but as Jim pointed out it looks like Cohen needs the money, have still avoided the x-factor version so can't comment on it....

[full back]

I just got this email sent to me in work
WTF, I mean who really gives a fcuk who is number one?




Hiyas

Some of you may have heard recently that some gimmicky tv show is trying for the christmas number one by murdering the classic song 'Hallelujah', originally recorded by the sublime Leonard Cohen.

The most popular version is by Jeff Buckley, and there's a movement to get this version to number one instead of that plasticy crap one developed by Simon Cowell's marketing people.

Currently, its at number three in the mid-week charts.  I'd urge any of you who would claim to actually liking music to consider blowing 70 pence and thus make a statement that we like to listen to artists and not the efforts of televisual marketing.  And maybe point out we can still tell the difference.

We'll probably not beat the tv show to number one, but it's very likely we'll manage number two.

I've already got the album Grace - I've bought it twice over the years - but am buying the mp3 again to help make a point.

Here's a link to the facebook group, which has info on where to get the song cheaply and ensure it counts towards the end of week chart.

By all means, spam this mail to anyone who might help.

Do the right thing people,

B

[The Real Laoislad]

Pity she didn't win......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GC2jFym4eg&feature=related

[Square Ball]

Pity she didn't win......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GC2jFym4eg&feature=related

that is terrible

[Gnevin]

Jasus the Cohen version is f**king shite . The JB version is great.

[Square Ball]

So Hallelujah in in the top 40 3 times

Newly-crowned X Factor queen Alexandra Burke has topped the Christmas singles chart with Hallelujah.

Burke won the battle for Christmas number one ahead of the late Jeff Buckley, whose version of the same song was in second place.

It is 51 years since the same song sat at numbers one and two, and the first time ever at Christmas.

Burke's Hallelujah became the fastest-selling single by a female solo artist, with 576,000 copies sold.

The cover of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah by Buckley, who died in a drowning accident in Memphis in May 1997 aged 30, finished at number two on download sales only.

  It's ironic that it's taken the X Factor to get a lot more of us to appreciate the music of Leonard Cohen

Gennaro Castaldo, HMV 

The Official Charts Company said the only other time the scenario occurred was in January 1957 when Tommy Steele and Guy Mitchell held the top two places with Singin' The Blues.

Cohen - who wrote the hit more than 20 years ago - made it a triple Hallelujah in the top 40 with a new entry at number 36.

Official Charts Company managing director Martin Talbot said: "It is a particularly amazing week for Alexandra Burke who has broken a string of records to announce her arrival in spectacular style.

"And, chart placings at 1, 2 and 36 are remarkable for a 25-year-old song which has never previously reached the top 40."

HMV's Gennaro Castaldo said: "It was pretty much a given that Alexandra Burke's cover of Hallelujah would dominate the race for this year's Christmas number one, but it's been such a strange year that we thought the charts would throw up some kind of a surprise, and the twist came in the form of the Jeff Buckley cover.


Buckley's Hallelujah is widely regarded as the definitive version

"It's ironic that it's taken the X Factor to get a lot more of us to appreciate the music of Leonard Cohen and the talent of Jeff Buckley."

Burke's victory pushed 2006 X Factor winner Leona Lewis off the top after two weeks. She is at number three with her cover of Snow Patrol's Run.

The reality TV theme continued in the chart charts after comedian Peter Kay's spoof reality TV singer Geraldine entered the top 10 at number five with Once Upon A Christmas Song.

[bcarrier]

i like jack l 's version ( got a free copy of indo with it about 2 years ago).

[Declan]

Only heard Alexandra's version for the first time lat the weekend - Horrific

[Rois]

Just heard that Simon Cowell owns the rights to the song.  He's laughing his legs off at everyone who fought to keep the X Factor version off the number one spot.

Leona Lewis is at number 3 - what a merry christmas for him, eh?

[Dinny Breen]

Jayus Rois, you're right, all makes sense now......250K a day 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1097666/Cowellelujah-Simon-rides-waves-earns--250-000-day-doing---thanks-Hallelujah-rights.html