Songs from a Room

Occupation

• Leonard Cohen: lyrics, vocals, guitar and mouth harp
• Ron Cornelius: Guitar
• Charlie Daniels: bass, violin, guitar
• Elkin Fowler: Bass, Banjo, Guitar
• Bob Johnston: Keyboard

Production

• Bob Johnston

Songs from a Room is the second album released in April 1969, the Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. It contains with Bird on the Wire a famous Cohen's pieces and is considered the most typical work of his early period.

Formation

After the dispute with John Simon in the production of Songs of Leonard Cohen Cohen chose for his next album Bob Johnston. This also played the keyboard in the background band, came to various other musicians, especially strings, and vocalists.

As Suzanne has also been published Bird on the Wire before Cohen's own version 1967 by Judy Collins. Another piece, Priests, was planned for the album, however, was never published by Cohen himself; Versions exist of Collins (1967) and Richie Havens (1969).

Style and content

The album is stylistically similar to its predecessor, the background music is even more likely to become even more spartan and Cohen begins, deep singing. The Jew's harp first appeared on an instrument that is often regarded as a typical feature of Cohen's.

In Story of Isaac the religious theme is taken up again, she tells critically the biblical story of the near- sacrifice of Isaac.

Also noteworthy is The Partisan, with the Cohen brought out a non -written song for the first time by himself. It dates from the year 1943 by Anna Marly (music) and the French Resistance fighters Emmanuel d' Astier (text) and was later supplemented by an English text by Hy Zaret. Here you recognize Cohen's roots in francophone Quebec, as well as in the later album The lost Canadian Recent Songs. In the French text passages, however, the female companion is in the foreground, Cohen is significantly weaker to hear.

The other pieces treated partially as the previous album in a poetic way feelings and ways of life, but partly also dive socially critical tones (A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes, The old Revolution).

Success and aftermath

The album sold just after the publication better than its predecessor, it reached number 63 in the U.S. Billboard charts and number 2 in the UK chart. The review assessed the album generally at a high level. Some were there think that it compared to the acclaimed debut work was a slight disappointment, others found the musical realization even more successful. Cohen himself was that the only instrumentation on this album was really just his pieces.

With Bird on the Wire Cohen later opened all his concerts. Cover versions there are, among others, Johnny Cash, Joe Cocker, Willie Nelson, Jennifer Warnes and Suzanne Vega. Kris Kristofferson will, according to his own statement the opening lines Like a bird on the wire, like a drunk in a midnight choir, I have tried in my way to be free. be written on his grave stone.

Title list

A- side ( 16:59 )

B- side ( 17:52 )