( Log Out /  However we don’t know how well the reader  will guess his mood. And who is there to complain to? The reader of the letter will have a completely different interpretation. Keep your "famous blue raincoat" and grow old! [Verse 2] Am F Ah, the last time we saw you, you looked so much older Dm7 Em7 Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder Am F You'd been to the station to meet every train Dm7 Em7 And you came home without Lili Marlene Am Bm Am Bm And you treated my woman to a flake of your life Am G Am G And when she came back, she was nobody's wife [Chorus 2] C C G G Well, I see … The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film. Though the rain has not reached him, he feels he will soon be at the mercy of the elements. ‘I’m writing’ is definite and factual. Even by Progressive Rock standards, they were one of the most intricate bands of the '70s. When "Turn On The Radio" topped the January 1, 2011 country chart, Reba McEntire became the first female solo act to have a #1 hit in four straight decades. Ron Cornelius told us about him: "Buckmaster is a wonderful string arranger, he did Elton John's records, he's just one of these guys who can make an orchestra talk. However it is difficult to do this without sounding somehow yielding. Leonard Cohen deliberately uses very sparse and evocative brushstrokes. In the first stanza the time is precise and specific and his voice speaks with a seriousness and authority. Then he makes it stronger – it is famous. Now there is a fault in his strength. From the beginning, we learn that the song is written in the form of a letter: "I'm writing you now just to see if you're better." It was the lack of explanation, which made the songs strong. It is like the masculine principle trying to invent a feminine way of being, because it has lost the femininity it once danced with. Somewhere in the world, possibly hanging unassumingly in a wardrobe, or bathetically stowed away, unrecognised, in a dank basement or dusty attic, a famous blue raincoat might be found. We played that song a lot before it ever went to tape. Words which could be of a more feminine nature – ‘like’ and ‘music’ are surrounded by words and ideas with a very strong masculine principle. When her baby was aborted it lost it’s protective shell. Some have suggested that the line ‘did you ever go clear?’ is a reference to Scientology - … There is a sadness in this. We don’t know if the reader will understand what he is trying to say. "Famous Blue Raincoat" is geschreven door Cohen en geproduceerd door Bob Johnston. 1986 studio album by Jennifer Warnes Famous Blue Raincoat Studio album by Jennifer Warnes ReleasedNovember 1986 Recorded1986 The Complex, Amigo Studios, Hollywood Sound, The Enterprise, Mama Jo's, Salty Dog Recording, The Record Plant GenreRock Length41:32 LabelCypress ProducerC. I think ‘Famous Blue Raincoat’ is in some ways a similar sort of song. The letter talks of … Then we went back in there, put the strings on and worked for a couple of weeks. Whether it was my own - of course, I always felt that there was an invisible male seducing the woman I was with, now whether this one was incarnate or merely imaginary I don't remember, I've always had the sense that either I've been that figure in relation to another couple or there'd been a figure like that in relation to my marriage. Many female artists have managed to flip the gender and make the song even more ambiguous. Radio gives him the opportunity to appear to be just chatting about the song. He wishes to communicate, and we know he is trying hard and is very sincere. SONG: Famous Blue Raincoat ARTIST: Leonard Cohen ALBUM: Songs of Love and Hate (1971) All credits go to Harlan L Thompson who tabbed it first; I just put the chords on all the lyrics. “Leonard’s” raincoat was famous, because it had … ... “go clear” meaning breaking the addiction perhaps, and so on. Well I see you there with the rose in your teeth One more thin gypsy thief Well I see Jane's awake. It is protective and practical, especially in a rainy city like New York. Leroy went AWOL, but got caught when he tried to pick up his paycheck. A raincoat is made of an unyielding fabric. ), wrote a legendary song in 1971 called “Famous Blue Raincoat,” an elegiac description of … There is a great tension between the ghostly nature of the music itself, and the physical production of the records. The lyrics to "Heartbreak Hotel" were written by a steel guitar player who was once a dishwasher repairman. I found it hard, it was hard to find To be able to do the songs on, Cohen's version is sung from the perspective of a man discussing with another man a woman they both had a relationship with. Find album reviews, stream songs, credits and award information for Famous Blue Raincoat: The Songs of Leonard Cohen - Jennifer Warnes on AllMusic - 1987 - Jennifer Warnes was familiar with Leonard Cohen… "Leonard is not known for his great melodies, but he actually is a great melody writer," she, Jennifer Warnes had mixed feelings ethically about the song's lyrical content, but admired Cohen's genius. If the recipient knows him very well, it is possible they will understand perfectly. It is an understated word with a double meaning, which suits the song well. It is yielding, soft and gentle like the flexible movement of a tree – and for this reason it has been omitted. As a listener to his internal thoughts as he writes the letter we are the only ones he communicates well with. He has made no effort to clarify if Jane is his wife, or if he is friends with the man/woman he writes to. Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder You'd been to the station to meet every train And you came home without Lili Marlene And you treated my woman to a flake of your life And when she came back she was nobody's wife. That is why he adopts this unusual writing style. This is one of Leonard Cohen’s most popular songs. He gets around it, by sort of saying ‘I am doing this, to achieve this’. A rip in the bottom lining of the coat would not matter so much – but this coat has a rip in the worse place. This is especially expressed in the phrase ‘Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder.’ Blue is a colour strongly associated with sadness. It is against his nature. I think he is in communication with a lost part of himself. Meaning Case Wide Open. Saying ‘How are you?’ would be just too yielding for him at this vulnerable time. When the couple broke up his protective shell was also lost, or rendered impractical. ", Cohen's songs inspired Canadian artist Elizabeth Laishley to create pieces called "Famous Blue Raincoat" and "Homage to Leonard Cohen." It makes the sentence a little less formal, but without being too yielding for him. People relate strongly to the song, but they don’t know why. Then their lead singer gave us Bon Jovi. A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs, In a 1994 BBC Radio Interview, Cohen remarked: "The problem with that song is that I've forgotten the actual triangle. The Famous Blue Raincoats Home Home. In 1987, Warnes released an entire album of Cohen's songs called, You might hear traces of this song in the 1977 Leo Sayer hit ", Jennifer Warnes singles this out as one of Cohen's best melodies. A raincoat is a protection against wet weather, against the storms of life. Het nummer vertelt over een driehoeksverhouding tussen de verteller, een vrouw genaamd Jane en een mannelijke aanbidder, die later wordt beschreven als "my brother, my killer" (mijn broer, mijn moordenaar). Geri from Nova Scotia, Canada Really, when you listen to the lyrics (or rather poems)of his songs, there is the obvious sexual tension to the words but more so than that his intelligence and philosophy touches you on a much deeper level than the fact that his appeal to women is incredibly irresistible. Typically gardens in Copenhagen, the Olympia Theater in Paris, the Vienna Opera House. A ghost of self who clutches at the many fragments as it tries to reform! Again he speaks in absolutes and specifics, and avoids vague questions of emotional well-being. It means something to a lot of people. On that album we cut basic tracks, and then let him live with them for a couple of months while he was writing the orchestrations. The blue raincoat is a central symbol in the poem. ( Log Out /  Tori Amos performing Leonard Cohen's Famous Blue Raincoat, Live during her Plugged '98 Tour (Santa Barbara CA, Sep 20th 1998). Poetry Analysis The poem under analysis is “Famous Blue Raincoat’ written by Leonard Cohen. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. Joan Baez, Tori Amos, Laurie MacAllister and Jennifer Warnes are some of the artists who have covered this song. ", With Bernie Taupin, Martin co-wrote the #1 hits "We Built This City" and "These Dreams." Famous Blue Raincoat Leonard Cohen It's four in the morning, the end of december I'm writing you now just to see if you're better New York is cold, but I like where I'm living There's music on Clinton Street all through the evening I hear that you're building your little house deep in the desert You're living for nothing now, I hope you're keeping some kind of record The lyrics themselves convey a rigid masculine principle –, ‘I’m writing you now just to see if you’re better.’. Common sense tells us that it's about being betrayed. Kurt Cobain broke this facade once saying the lyrics were –, ‘A big pile of contradictions. We knew it was going to be big. Bye baby! He sees the feminine in his house, and surroundings but is disconnected from it. He struggles to express things because he has lost the deeper connection with her/it. Cohen has avoided talking about the song. We can even say someone is feeling blue. Famous Blue Raincoat. He doesn’t want to be hurt. The raincoat allows him to keep his masculine strength. The tree is inflexible and the wind is strong, but neither break. He has had to end his romantic relationship with his wife, and feels that he can be broken easily. There is a dark sense of humour about living for nothing, and keeping a record. We could see what the crowd did - you play the Royal Albert Hall, the crowd goes crazy, and you're really saying something there. In his state it feels safer for him to talk about the music in it’s physical form. Here's what he told Songfacts about this track: "We performed that song a lot of places. The word ‘just’ makes it seem like its a small thing to write – which again suggests a masculine principle uncomfortable with reaching out, but feeling it is something necessary to do. They both exist separately. It was a song I've never been satisfied with. After writing the Pretty Woman song for Go West, he had his own hit with "In the House of Stone and Light.". We get a sense that he is not the kind of character who normally talks about his own pleasure. We want to help him convey his message, but are powerless to do so. Discover why When I Need You sounds like Famous Blue Raincoat. Kurt Cobain normally was similarly evasive saying he thought his lyrics were ‘unimportant’. Can you name Def Leppard's only #1 hit in America? However from the letter itself the depth of their connection is made deliberately unclear. The song explores this idea further by making sure everything is loosely pinned down with his observations. The reference to the famous blue raincoat shows that things change (and the damage occurs to something that once was perfect) over time, and things can never be the same as they were before. It is full of incidental detail, like the ‘famous’ blue raincoat that the brother was obviously known for wearing. ‘She sends her regards’  If Jane represents his own disconnected femininity then it is oddly formal. Blue is a colour strongly associated with sadness. And this theme of never been able to go back is repeated in the … Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder You'd been to the station to meet every train And you came home without lili marlene And you treated my woman to a flake of your life And when she came back she was nobody's wife. It was produced by C. Roscoe Beck and Jennifer Warnes. This is especially expressed in the phrase ‘Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder.’. After a complex love triangle spins outwards into the void, what are we all left with? The letter talks of an affair between the brother and the singer’s wife. Roscoe Beck, Jennifer Warnes Jennifer Warnes chronology Shot Through the Heart Famous Blue Raincoat The Hunter Famous Blue Raincoat: The Songs of Leonard Cohen is the sixth studio album reco… He was inspired by a newspaper story about a man who killed himself and left behind a note saying only, "I walk a lonely street. And you treated my woman to a flake of your life And when she came back she was nobody's wife. In this talk, she covers Roy Wood, the history of the band, and where all the money went in the '70s. I think this has humbling effect on his audience, especially when the song is performed live. The coat has a rip in it. Bruce Springsteen wrote "Blinded By The Light," which was a #1 hit for Manfred Mann's Earth Band. 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