Celebrity Tributes To Leonard Cohen
The music legend “born with the golden voice” died this morning, aged 82
The Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has led tributes to Leonard Cohen this morning, following the artist’s death, aged 82.
“Leonard Cohen is as relevant today as he was in the 1960s,” said Trudeau in a statement. “His ability to conjure the vast array of human emotion made him one of the most influential and enduring musicians ever. His style transcended the vagaries of fashion.”
Trudeau said that he will be remembered for his “gruff vocals, his self-deprecating humour and the haunting lyrics that made his songs the perennial favourite of so many generations”.
Other stars to pay homage to the legendary musician and poet include Justin Timberlake, Russell Crowe, Mia Farrow, JK Rowling, Lily Allen and Bette Midler.
Oh no!!! Best of the best This is awful https://t.co/3hDeuxwUQK
— mia farrow (@MiaFarrow) November 11, 2016
“There is a crack in everything,
That's how the light gets in.”RIP Leonard Cohen.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) November 11, 2016
Dear Leonard Cohen, thanks for the quiet nights, the reflection, the perspective, the wry smiles and the truth #towerofsong
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) November 11, 2016
A spirit and soul beyond compare.
— Justin Timberlake (@jtimberlake) November 11, 2016
As of the week could get any worse. Thank you Leonard Cohen, for all the things. Rest In Peace
— lily allen (@lilyallen) November 11, 2016
Known as a poet, an artist, a song-writer, a novelist born with, as his lyrics say, “a golden voice”, Cohen had the ability to make the biggest venues seem like intimate spaces – such was his stage presence and humble nature. He was beautifully old-fashioned, rarely seen without his suit, shirt, tie and hat – the latter of which he would always remove when a member of his band played solo as a simple act of humility and appreciation.
His voice was incomparable, with a raspy quality enhanced by whisky and cigarettes, that could send any adult or child to sleep – and that’s not to understate its greatness. He sang lullabies for adults.
The lyrics themselves were artfully considered – no word, no sentence was superfluous. He sang to make sense of the world, whether politics and history or love and loss. Cohen was a poet, with a reverence for prose that will long endure. The Pixies, Nick Cave and REM are just a few of the bands to have been inspired by him.
Via Harper’s Bazaar UK