In other words, you discard - I'm in this situation where I can't discard anything unless I finish it. He spoke with Fresh Air's Terry Gross in 2006 about how he developed his distinctive voice - '500 tons of whiskey and, you know, a million cigarettes' - and the hard work of songwriting: 'But Cohen's most famous song, 'Hallelujah,' in which he invoked the biblical King David and drew parallels between physical love and a desire for spiritual connection, has been covered hundreds of times since he released it in 1984.'Ĭohen was himself a singer, although, as Billboard notes, his songs that became radio hits were more likely to have been recorded by other artists, such as 'Suzanne' by Judy Collins. 'Although he influenced many musicians and won many honors, including induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Order of Canada, Cohen rarely made the pop music charts with his sometimes moody folk-rock. He was born in Canada and moved to New York to break into the music business in 1966, according to Reuters. 'He was writing up until his last moments with his unique brand of humor.' 'My father passed away peacefully at his home in Los Angeles with the knowledge that he had completed what he felt was one of his greatest records,' Adam Cohen said Thursday night. The family requests privacy during their time of grief.'Ĭohen's latest album came out less than a month ago reviewer Tom Moon wrote that You Want It Darker was a solemn album of elegies that 'unfold with a slow, stately, church-ritual order when you're moving toward this thick dark, every step is measured.' The album was produced by Cohen's son, Adam, in a process that included recording the congregation of the family's old synagogue in Montreal. 'A memorial will take place in Los Angeles at a later date. We have lost one of music's most revered and prolific visionaries. 'It is with profound sorrow we report that legendary poet, songwriter and artist, Leonard Cohen has passed away. record label.Ĭohen died Monday, but news of his death came out late Thursday.

Influential singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen has died at the age of 82, according to a publicist for his U.S.

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