hallelujah. [props. 11.14.06]

I've decided that I am going to try to create a personal trend. I am going to use my entry every Tuesday to sing the praises of some random thing, place, idea, movie, whatever. I will point out things that bring me joy, make me laugh, give me hope, or that I just find amusingly random. My reasons for doing this are 1. I feel like it, 2. Perhaps someone will read a particular entry and find something new that they can enjoy, 3. Hopefully, by forcing me to practice, it will help me to better notice all the good things in life, since I will be blogging about it every Tuesday. My intentions are good, but as I said in my last post I'm not exactly very good at 'sticking to it,' so this might die very soon, however, there is good news... being that hardly anyone actually reads my blog, there is no one to notice outside of Waldo, Dubois, and a few random VOXers. I'm sure my wife would notice too, but only because I told her I didn't feel like doing it anymore.

With that said, my first submission for 'Props Tuesday,' (for lack of a desire to come up with a better name) will be the song 'Hallelujah,' originally written and recorded by Leonard Cohen. The song, quite simply, is one of the greatest songs ever written. Granted, that is only my opinion, but the number of times the song has been covered is a testimony to the fact that I'm in very good company. The song uses Biblical imagery and spiritual metaphors with remarkable depth, the meaning of which is hard to pin down (this being one of Cohen's trademarks). Originally the song wasn't released in the States due to Cohen's waning popularity at the time, however Leonard's status in his native Canada as their version of a folk.rock.god, along with his iconic status among other musicians, assured that the song wouldn't be lost to anonymity.

I think people love the song because it means something to them, it connects with them; the amazing thing being that this meaning is vastly different depending on who you ask. If you asked ten people who love 'Hallelujah' what the song meant, you would probably get ten very different answers, as is the case with the vast majority of the great artistic expressions in human history. I think this reality is best illustrated by how many talented people have created their own interpretation of the song by covering it, so today I'll share with you my favorite versions of the song. Rather than including the Leonard Cohen version I'll just link you to the iTunes download, because if anyone deserves record sales (rather than vicarious royalty checks) for Hallelujah, it is Leonard Cohen.

The song has been covered by the likes of Willie Nelson, K.D. Lang, Chris Botti, and Bono. Damien Rice is among many who have a live version floating around, and I've read rumors that David Bazan has one but haven't been able to locate it yet. (Any help in that regard would be GREATLY appreciated)
Below are three of my favorites.

10 Hallelujah

1 comment

I'm a bit embarassed to admit that, in my horribly late arrival to the Jeff Buckley party (and the Leonard Cohen party), this was actually the first version of Hallelujah that I heard, I fell in love with it right away and still hold it in the highest esteem.

09 - Imogen Heap - Hallelujah

2 comments

This is the newest version of the song I've discovered and I like it quite a bit, although it seems everyone is in love with Imogen Heap's musical stylings these days.

06 Hallelujah

Jeff Buckley's cover is beautiful, and is a phenomenon unto itself. In spite of Leonard Cohen's exalted place in the eyes of so many musicians, it is actually Jeff Buckley's version of 'Hallelujah' that has become the definitive version of the song. While technically any version of 'Hallelujah' is a cover of the Cohen song, if you listen to most covers it isn't difficult to realize that vocally they are actually a cover of the Buckley version. Just another facet in the beautiful mystery of one of the most important songs of the 20th Century.

So there you have it, 'Props Tuesday #1.' Enjoy.