Songs of Love and Hate
Encyclopedia
Songs of Love and Hate is Canadian
singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen
's third album. It was mainly recorded in Columbia Studio A, Nashville, from September 22 to 26, 1970. "Sing Another Song, Boys" was recorded at the Isle of Wight Festival on August 30, 1970. Further recording took place at Trident Studios
in London
. The album reached #145 on the Billboard
list, but was his most commercially successful album in many other parts of the world, reaching #4 in the UK
and #8 in Australia
.
The album title is descriptive, outlining its main themes. The songs contain emotive language and are frankly personal; "Famous Blue Raincoat
" ends with the line "Sincerely, L. Cohen". The back cover of the album bears the lines:
They locked up a man
Who wanted to rule the world
The fools
They locked up the wrong man
A remaster
ed CD
was released in 1995. Simply Vinyl issued a short-lived remastered edition on vinyl in 2002, making it the last Cohen album (aside from Ten New Songs
, which was pressed in limited quantities) to go out of print on vinyl.
In 2007 Columbia
/Legacy
released a newly remastered CD with a new book style packaging and a bonus track: a 1968 recording of Dress Rehearsal Rag.
In 2009 the album (including its bonus track) was included in the 8-CD box set Hallelujah - The Essential Leonard Cohen Album Collection, issued by Sony Music in the Netherlands.
It was ranked 74 on Pitchfork Media's list of the 100 best albums of the 1970s.
Judy Collins
recorded "Dress Rehearsal Rag" in 1966 on the album In My Life, years before it would appear on Songs of Love and Hate.
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds recorded a version of "Avalanche" for their 1984 album From Her to Eternity
.
"Famous Blue Raincoat
" has been covered numerous times, notably by Jennifer Warnes
, who once toured as a back-up singer for Cohen, on her 1987 tribute album to Cohen, Famous Blue Raincoat
. It has also been covered by Tori Amos
on the Leonard Cohen tribute album
Tower of Song
. Warnes also covered "Joan of Arc" on Famous Blue Raincoat
as a duet with Cohen.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
's third album. It was mainly recorded in Columbia Studio A, Nashville, from September 22 to 26, 1970. "Sing Another Song, Boys" was recorded at the Isle of Wight Festival on August 30, 1970. Further recording took place at Trident Studios
Trident Studios
Trident Studios was a British recording facility, originally located at 17 St. Anne's Court in London's Soho district. It was constructed in 1967 by Norman Sheffield a drummer of former 1960's group The Hunters and his Brother Barry....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The album reached #145 on the Billboard
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
list, but was his most commercially successful album in many other parts of the world, reaching #4 in the UK
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
and #8 in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
The album title is descriptive, outlining its main themes. The songs contain emotive language and are frankly personal; "Famous Blue Raincoat
Famous Blue Raincoat
"Famous Blue Raincoat" is a song by Leonard Cohen. It is the sixth track on his third album, Songs of Love and Hate, released in 1971.-Summary:...
" ends with the line "Sincerely, L. Cohen". The back cover of the album bears the lines:
They locked up a man
Who wanted to rule the world
The fools
They locked up the wrong man
A remaster
Remaster
Remaster is a word marketed mostly in the digital audio age, although the remastering process has existed since recording began...
ed CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
was released in 1995. Simply Vinyl issued a short-lived remastered edition on vinyl in 2002, making it the last Cohen album (aside from Ten New Songs
Ten New Songs
Ten New Songs is Leonard Cohen's tenth studio album, released in 2001. It was co-written and produced by Sharon Robinson. She played all the instruments except Bob Metzger's guitar on 'In My Secret Life'...
, which was pressed in limited quantities) to go out of print on vinyl.
In 2007 Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
/Legacy
Legacy Recordings
Legacy Recordings is Sony Music Entertainment's catalog division. It was founded in 1990 by CBS Records under the leadership of Jerry Shulman, Richard Bauer, Gary Pacheco and Amy Herot to handle reissues of recordings from the vast catalogues of Columbia Records, Epic Records and associated...
released a newly remastered CD with a new book style packaging and a bonus track: a 1968 recording of Dress Rehearsal Rag.
In 2009 the album (including its bonus track) was included in the 8-CD box set Hallelujah - The Essential Leonard Cohen Album Collection, issued by Sony Music in the Netherlands.
It was ranked 74 on Pitchfork Media's list of the 100 best albums of the 1970s.
Side one
- "AvalancheAvalanche (song)"Avalanche" is a song by Leonard Cohen. It appears on his third album, Songs of Love and Hate, released in 1971.The lyrics are based on a poem he had previously written...
" – 5:07 - "Last Year's Man" – 6:02
- "Dress Rehearsal Rag" – 6:12
- "Diamonds in the Mine" – 3:52
Side two
- "Love Calls You by Your Name" – 5:44
- "Famous Blue RaincoatFamous Blue Raincoat"Famous Blue Raincoat" is a song by Leonard Cohen. It is the sixth track on his third album, Songs of Love and Hate, released in 1971.-Summary:...
" – 5:15 - "Sing Another Song, Boys" (liveConcertA concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
at the Isle of Wight FestivalIsle of Wight Festival 1970The 1970 Isle of Wight Festival was held between 26 and 31 August 1970 at East Afton Farm an area on the western side of the Isle of Wight. It was the last of three consecutive music festivals to take place on the island between 1968 and 1970 and widely acknowledged as the largest musical event of...
31 August 1970) – 6:17 - "Joan of ArcJoan of Arc (Leonard Cohen song)"Joan of Arc" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. It was released as a single in March 1971 from his third album, Songs of Love and Hate...
" – 6:29
Bonus track on 2007 remastered edition
- "Dress Rehearsal Rag" (bonus track, early version, an outtakeOuttakeAn outtake is a portion of a work that is removed in the editing process and not included in the work's final, publicly released version. In the digital era, significant outtakes have been appended to CD and DVD reissues of many albums and films as bonus tracks or features, in film often, but not...
recorded during the Songs From a RoomSongs from a RoomSongs from a Room is the second album of Canadian musician Leonard Cohen, released in 1969. It reached #63 on the Billboard list and #2 at UK charts....
sessions in 1968) – 5:37
Songs
With the exception of "Last Year's Man", Cohen has performed every song live. Because of its depressing content, Cohen has played "Dress Rehearsal Rag" in concert only on two occasions, two years before Songs of Love and Hate.Judy Collins
Judy Collins
Judith Marjorie "Judy" Collins is an American singer and songwriter, known for her eclectic tastes in the material she records ; and for her social activism. She is an alumna of the University of Colorado.-Musical career:Collins was born and raised in Seattle, Washington...
recorded "Dress Rehearsal Rag" in 1966 on the album In My Life, years before it would appear on Songs of Love and Hate.
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds recorded a version of "Avalanche" for their 1984 album From Her to Eternity
From Her to Eternity
From Her to Eternity is the debut album released by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in 1984. The title is a pun on the book/movie From Here to Eternity.-Background and production:...
.
"Famous Blue Raincoat
Famous Blue Raincoat
"Famous Blue Raincoat" is a song by Leonard Cohen. It is the sixth track on his third album, Songs of Love and Hate, released in 1971.-Summary:...
" has been covered numerous times, notably by Jennifer Warnes
Jennifer Warnes
Jennifer Jean Warnes is an American singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer. She is known for her interpretations of compositions written by herself and many others, as well as an extensive playlist as a vocalist on movie soundtracks.Between 1979 and 1987 Warnes surpassed Frank Sinatra as...
, who once toured as a back-up singer for Cohen, on her 1987 tribute album to Cohen, Famous Blue Raincoat
Famous Blue Raincoat (album)
Famous Blue Raincoat is the sixth album by Jennifer Warnes. It debuted on the Billboard 200 on February 14, 1987 and peaked at No. 72. Originally released by Cypress Records, it was reissued by Private Music after Cypress went out of business....
. It has also been covered by Tori Amos
Tori Amos
Tori Amos is an American pianist, singer-songwriter and composer. She was at the forefront of a number of female singer-songwriters in the early 1990s and was noteworthy early in her career as one of the few alternative rock performers to use a piano as her primary instrument...
on the Leonard Cohen tribute album
Tribute album
A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
Tower of Song
Tower of Song
Tower of Song: The Songs of Leonard Cohen is a tribute album to Leonard Cohen, released in 1995 on A&M Records. It takes its name of a song by Cohen, that has been covered by Marianne Faithfull, Robert Forster, Peter Gabriel, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Martha Wainwright...
. Warnes also covered "Joan of Arc" on Famous Blue Raincoat
Famous Blue Raincoat (album)
Famous Blue Raincoat is the sixth album by Jennifer Warnes. It debuted on the Billboard 200 on February 14, 1987 and peaked at No. 72. Originally released by Cypress Records, it was reissued by Private Music after Cypress went out of business....
as a duet with Cohen.
Personnel
- Leonard Cohen – acoustic guitar, vocals
- Ron Cornelius – acoustic and electric guitars
- Charlie DanielsCharlie DanielsCharles Edward "Charlie" Daniels is an American musician known for his contributions to country and southern rock music. He is known primarily for his number one country hit "The Devil Went Down to Georgia", and multiple other songs he has performed and written. Daniels has been active as a singer...
– acoustic guitar, bass, fiddle - Elkin "Bubba" Fowler – acoustic guitar, banjo, bass
- Bob JohnstonBob JohnstonDonald William Robert 'Bob' Johnston is a noted American record producer, best known for his work with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen, Willie Nelson and many Nashville recording artists, as well as Simon and Garfunkel.-Early days:Johnston was born into a professional musical family...
– piano, production - Corlynn Hanney – vocals
- Susan Mussmano – vocals
- The Corona Academy, London – children's voices
- Michael Sahl – strings on 3rd verse of "Last Year's Man"
- Paul BuckmasterPaul BuckmasterPaul John Buckmaster is a Grammy Award-winning English artist, arranger and composer.He began learning the cello at the age of 4 and graduated from the Royal College of Music at age 16....
– string and horn arrangements, conductor
External links
- Album lyrics, from The Leonard Cohen Files