Leonard Cohen - Dear HeatherWhile there are some familiar elements present, much of DEAR HEATHER is
a stark contrast to virtually all of Leonard Cohen's previous recorded
work. Where the Canadian troubadour's previous albums all sounded like
carefully constructed towers of song, built piece by painstaking piece
(and Cohen has confirmed this as his working process), DEAR HEATHER
seems to be an entirely more spontaneous offering. One might speculate
that longtime Buddhist Cohen has taken the precepts of Zen to heart in
presenting a batch of compositions unmarred by the effects of obvious
labor.
Lyrically and melodically, these songs are more sparse and
pared-down than anything else in Cohen's catalog. Some are whittled
down to only a simple recitation repeated numerous times over a
skeletal chord progression. By simplifying his approach to such an
extreme degree, it seems as though Cohen is trying to get as close as
possible to the heart of his work, without the literary trappings of
his past accomplishments. Nevertheless, one link with his previous work
is the bonus live cut tacked on to the end of the disc. In the
tradition of past quirky Cohen covers like Irving Berlin's "Always" and
Richard Blakeslee's "Passing Thru," the gravel-voiced singer tackles
the country classic "Tennessee Waltz" with trademark aplomb that also
reminds the listener of Cohen's ever-present sense of humor.
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