Leonard Cohen Plays First U.S. Show in 15 Years

Posted on Feb 20th 2009 11:00AM by David Chiu
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At one point during his sold out show at New York's Beacon Theater Thursday night, Leonard Cohen jokingly referenced his 15-year plus absence between performances in the States. "Fifteen years ago, I was 60 years old," he says. "Since then I've taken a lot of Prozac, Paxil ... [and] Tylenol."

Accompanied by a six-piece band and three backup singers, the Canadian singer and poet, who is now 74, played his best-known songs for three hours spanning his 42-year-recording career. The Beacon Theater show was a preview of Cohen's recently announced North American tour, which begins on April 2 and ends on June 2. (Also included in those string of dates for him will be an appearance at Coachella on April 17). The news of the tour coincides with his upcoming 'Live in London' two-disc CD and DVD, which was taken from last year's London O2 show.

Wearing a dark suit and a fedora, Cohen kicked off Thursday night's set with the waltz-like 'Dance Me to the End of Love.' He carried on with favorites such as 'Bird on the Wire,' 'Suzanne,' 'Tower of Song' and 'Famous Blue Raincoat,' before concluding with 'Wither Thou Goest.'

A highlight of the show was when he delivered a very stirring performance of 'Hallelujah.' In addition, his backup singers took a turn on lead vocals: Sharon Robinson sang 'Boogie Nights,' and Hattie and Charley Webb performed 'If It Be Your Will.'

As for his performance, Cohen was very spry in his moves. When he donned his fedora and sang with knees slightly bent, and hands cradling the microphone, Cohen personified cool. His distinctive and ominous vocals evoked both romantic longing and soul, from his spoke word reading of 'A Thousand Kisses Deep' to 'So Long, Marianne.'

The singer concluded his successful concert with these words to an excited audience: "May you be surrounded by friends and families. If you have none of these, may the blessings find your solitude."

Set list

1. 'Dance Me to the End of Love'
2. 'The Future'
3. 'Ain't No Cure For Love'
4. 'Bird on the Wire'
5. 'Everybody Knows'
6. 'In My Secret Life'
7. 'Who By Fire'
8. 'Chelsea Hotel #2'
9. 'Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye'
10. 'Sisters of Mercy'
11. 'Anthem'
12. 'Tower of Song'
13. 'Suzanne'
14. 'The Gypsy's Wife'
15. 'The Partisan'
16. 'Boogie Street' (sung by Sharon Robinson)
17. 'Hallelujah'
18. 'I'm Your Man'
19. 'A Thousand Kisses Deep'
20. 'Take This Waltz'

Encore:
1. 'So Long, Marianne'
2. 'First We Take Manhattan'
3. 'Famous Blue Raincoat'
4. 'If It Be Your Will' (sung by the Webb Sisters)
5. 'Democracy'
6. 'I Tried to Leave You'
7. 'Wither Thou Goest'