Leonard Cohen

Composer

Leonard Cohen

Born September 21, 1934 in Montreal, Quebec, CanadaDied November 7, 201616 films

Leonard Norman Cohen, CC GOQ (September 21, 1934 – November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer, songwriter, poet, novelist, and painter. His work mostly explored religion, politics, isolation, sexuality, and personal relationships.[2] Cohen was inducted into both the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame as well as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He was a Companion of the Order of Canada, the nation's highest civilian honor. In 2011, Cohen received one of the Prince of Asturias Awards for literature and the ninth Glenn Gould Prize.

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Cohen pursued a career as a poet and novelist during the 1950s and early 1960s, and did not launch a music career until 1967, at the age of 33. His first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), was followed by three more albums of folk music: Songs from a Room (1969), Songs of Love and Hate (1971) and New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974). His 1977 record Death of a Ladies' Man was co-written and produced by Phil Spector, which was a move away from Cohen's previous minimalist sound. In 1979 Cohen returned with the more traditional Recent Songs, which blended his acoustic style with jazz and Oriental and Mediterranean influences. "Hallelujah" was first released on Cohen's studio album Various Positions in 1984. I'm Your Man in 1988 marked Cohen's turn to synthesized productions and remains his most popular album. In 1992 Cohen released its follow-up, The Future, which had dark lyrics and references to political and social unrest.

Cohen returned to music in 2001 with the release of Ten New Songs, which was a major hit in Canada and Europe. His eleventh album, Dear Heather, followed in 2004. After a successful string of tours between 2008 and 2010, Cohen released three albums in the final four years of his life: Old Ideas (2012), Popular Problems (2014) and You Want It Darker (2016), the last of which was released three weeks before his death.

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The best way into Leonard Cohen's work
McCabe & Mrs. Miller posterFirst watchMcCabe & Mrs. Miller19717.2Their most acclaimed film, and an easy way in.A gambler and a prostitute become thriving business partners in a remote Old West mining town until a large corporation arrives on the scene.View film

Essential films

Ranked by acclaim and reach
The Last Trapper poster6.9The Last Trapper2004Fata Morgana poster6.5Fata Morgana1972

Filmography

16 films
  1. 2025Stjepan Hauser plays Bach and Morricone @ Château de Neuschwanstein 2025Music
  2. 2025Sheku Kanneh-Mason - My PlaylistMusic
  3. 2011First We Take MilánMusic
  4. 2006Leonard Cohen: I'm Your ManMusic
  5. 2004The Last TrapperOriginal Music Composer
  6. 2000Homage to Hung TungMusic
  7. 1996I'm Your ManMusic
  8. 1988The Power of SpeechMusic
  9. 1988On s'est tous défiléMusic
  10. 1986Rise and Fall of a Small Film CompanyMusic
  11. 1985Night MagicOriginal Music Composer
  12. 1980Cœur bleuSongs
  13. 1975Like a Bird on a WireSongs
  14. 1972Fata MorganaMusic
  15. 1971McCabe & Mrs. MillerOriginal Music Composer
  16. 1968The Ernie GameMusic