Songs Of Leonard Cohen

The Good: The title of the album is pretty straightforward, no room for doubt! The Bad: One could have opted for the alternative title “snooze-fest after about 3 minutes” The Ugly: Keep your sharp objects far away and hidden, for if not… Mr Cohen is, undoubtedly, a great song-writer. One of the best of his generation, potentially of a century. I know some great stand-up artist who never should have starred in a movie… Till today, I had never had to sit through an entire album by Leonard Cohen, and I think that, after today, I am uncertain I will want to repeat the experience—haven’t checked to see if he has more albums on this list. I can understand that there are people who are great fans of his, but his voice is boring for me, and his guitar playing starts pounding my head like a bad hangover… So, All the Sisters of Mercy, They are Not Departed or Gone, They are Waiting for Me When I Thought That I just Can’t Go ON… 2*

Lyrically this is actually fantastic - i don't overly love the instrumentation. But his lyrics are absolutely incredible which really pumps the value up here. He doesn't get the love for Hallelujah(not on here) probably because of the Rufus Wainwright, and more importantly, Jeff Buckley renditions. But I think a Lenny Cohen, Neil Young collab could've been really cool(if that exists i might not be aware of it) Overall solid

Very sombre

The music made for a chilled listening session, but the vocals were underwhelming at times, and didn't captivate my attention. "So Long, Marianne" was the best song on the album. I feel like I could've got more out of the album had I paid more attention to the lyrics, but for a first listen, I'd say 2/5.

Oblique poetry accompanied by an acoustic guitar. I'm sure someone wrote a dissertation interpreting the lyrics. Not feeling it today.

Slow, simple, folk tunes like a man strumming a guitar by the creekside - Cohen has a great voice which is the standout element from the album - Quite monotonous as songs all generally sound the same, instrumentals are quite boring

This has been the best of the Leonard Cohen albums I’ve generated… doesn’t say too much though. After 4 songs or so, his voice becomes grating.

I liked this more than You Want it Darker

I have heard Leonard Cohens name throughout the years and I have heard Hallelujah sung by him but before this album that's about it. He has a nice voice and the slow tempo songs creates a mood in a great way. If I were in that particular mood I can see this album being the perfect thing to play in the background while reading for example. That being said its definitely not an every-day listening album for me.

2 out of 5. Leonard has a good voice voice, but this album isn't for me.

not my style

Never heard this before. There's a lot of Bob Dylan songs I don't like, and none of them are as bad as the songs on this album.

I like Leonard Cohen less and less with each album. He wears you down.

Nothing more to say here: still just off key, rambling, nothing catchy or engaging.

Can't figure out how to describe this, but would never willingly listen to it.

Not my favorite

i might just be really tired already but this album is genuinely putting me to sleep.

Boring

not bad, but not my thing at all...

I don't understand the fascination with Leonard Cohen. He's a poet who shouldn't sing, but does anyway, just like Bob Dylan, but somehow worse. I didn't hate this one, but I'm not entirely sure I can justify this with a 3/5 rating. It's not a 1/5, but there's a good chance it'll get the deuce.

not my cup of tea really can appreciate the poetry of it, but the slowness doesn’t do it for me 3/4 out of 10

I think these songs need someone to actually sing them, not just speak the lyrics. The precise pronunciation is off-putting, even the song titles are proper. It's, "One of Us Cannot Be Wrong," instead of using "Can't (and speaking of this song, the weird sing/yelling at the end seems very out of place on this album). I'm staring at this album cover and I can't decide if it looks like a headshot for Ray Romano or Dustin Hoffman, and that is confusing my brain because I can't reconcile his voice to this picture. Oh, I just heard a mouth harp, cool.

Loved Marianne, the rest is pretty meh. 2.5

Bob Dylan-esque but a little less annoying. Still pretty one dimensional though

The most enjoyable (for me) Leonard Cohen thus far. Probably 2.5

I just still don't get Leonard Cohen...

Sounds like a boring version of Bob Dylan: a poetry audiobook with background guitar.

2.4

I’m not even going try to get behind this. I don’t like it because it’s boring, and he can’t sing.

I'm sure some poets love this shit

Leonard Cohen tells a story here. A story that put me to sleep.

Another dramatic shift, this time from Van Halen and thoughtless rock to this poetry album. Again making me feel I need to be more appreciative of what I’m listening to that day. I’ve had Suzanne on the “liked” playlist for a while, and that song is very nice sounding and evokes some interesting thoughts. That said, the full album listen made me feel like I was completely ill-equipped to appreciate this. I’m missing two major prerequisites - I’ve never read the Bible/didn’t go to church and I don’t fundamentally understand poetry. Is good poetry like a puzzle with no clear answer? Highlight was Master Song - the accents from the horns and violin were very cool. Low rating but it’s not you, Leonard, it’s me.

Great lyrics, but all the songs sound the same.

A bit dull and bland. Not very interesting

I'm so sick of all these Leonard Cohen albums. It's like if Paul Simon wasn't radio-friendly. Leo is a talented musician but every track sounds identical to me and very 'set' in his style. The guitar playing is impressive and his voice is fine. Lyrics are sad but fail to have an impact. Fav Track: Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye

227/1001 😴 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑

Can't figure it out how to describe this, but would never willingly listen to it.

Never heard this before. There's a lot of Bob Dylan songs I don't like, and none of them are as bad a the songs on this album.

it was ok

major snoozefest

Surprised me in the end, not terrible

Πολυ μονοτονο αλλα respectable: smooth vocals, ωραιοι στιχοι αλλα οπως ειπε και ο φαδερ, πιο πολυ ποιητης παρα μουσικος Rating : C -

Here we are again, Leonard. It seems you’re sad. Again. Did you take your pills? Yes, from the bottle sitting on your bible. Or bibles. Why are there so many bookmarks sticking out of it? No, you’re not having another drink, let’s go get you some sunshine. Jesus, Leonard.

Strum strum strum, talk talk talk. The originator of the Coldplay school of music. Anyway, not too enjoyable but also not bad in small doses. Really good lyrics. But so goddamn boring for a whole album

Every song sounds the same and is equally monotonous and boring as the one before and one after it. Generous 2.

okay, kinda lowkey, not really the sound i look for a lot of the time

may be worth a relisten, just wasn't in a singer songwriter mood

Stick to wearing lame hats

Interesting, but not for me.

A little boring for me. Can get a 2 Will I listen to again: 0%

I despise the way that he stretches single syllables out for multiple syllables, makes it sound so jarring A lot of the instrumentals are nice though, and it's not all bad better than a certain velvety album

This music cured my insomnia. Leonard Cohen is a genius. 5 stars, bravo

Eh, it's alright. Better than the last Cohen album I heard. It just doesn't resonate with me the way it seems like all the critics seem to think it should. Not a fan of his vocal technique, it just sounds like lazy half-singing. There is a bit of inspired guitar playing which I was surprised to hear. He just sort of comes across as a haughty, elitist douchbag, whose girlfriends keep leaving him and he's all "It's not me, they're all the crazy ones!"

Leonard Cogen just does not click with me at this point in my life. I find his music boring. Most music that’s just a guy and a guitar I do not care for.

The chord progression really irked me in Stories Of The Street, especially the A - Am change. As someone who lives in Montreal and sees one of his murals from the office tower most days of the week, I should be more into the musical darling of this city, but I struggle to hear the appeal.

Musically good but, in my opinion, too boring, all the same songs that seem a single lament, is not really my genre

Not really my style, a little bit slow for my tastes. I could see myself falling asleep to this stuff though.

Jack off to lyrics by Leonard Cohen

pure valium.

Maybe has a place in its era. Probably bias, but not Leonard Cohen.. fan wasn’t my favorite.

boring sorry

Previously rated: Songs Of Love And Hate (2/5) ********************************** The guy is quite the lyricist, even though a lot of times it sounds like stream of consciousness stuff. I don't know if this is genius or just random nonsense: An Eskimo showed me a movie He'd recently taken of you The poor man could hardly stop shivering His lips and his fingers were blue I suppose that he froze when the wind took your clothes And I guess he just never got warm But you stand there so nice in your blizzard of ice Oh please, let me come into the storm Besides that, the man can't (or just doesn't) sing and the instrumentation is sparse. It's dull and tiring for the most part. I did like one song, "So Long, Marianne." It's got backup singing, some percussion, and it's actually a bit catchy.

OK.

It’s all the same thing over and over again

Guitar playing: 4/5 Singing: 2/5 Vibe: 1/5 Overall rating: 2/5 I didn't particularly like this album, but I can appreciate that some people might. It's very sentimental, but me + folk music don't get along very well.

Leonard, I know that you're rightfully a Canadian icon, but this album is dreadfully boring. I know for a fact that acoustic guitar was not the only instrument that existed in 1967. (Yes, there are other instruments on a couple of other songs but the majority of the album is heavily driven by acoustic guitar.) This is another album I'd put on if I was having trouble falling asleep.

Can’t lie I got bored listening. I can tell that it’s beautiful music but I can’t imagine myself listening again.

Canada's answer to Bob Dylan. Only less talented and more boring.

It's okay, but the last minute of the album is just god awful, so deducting a star for that. Is that fair? Probably not. However, it was the artist's choice to have me listen to whatever that ending was and that wasn't fair either.

Nothing I really enjoyed here. Was pretty laid back and chill but forgettable. Low 2.

Meh

bruh no one warned me I was gonna need ear plugs

A couple of standouts, but mostly it hasn't left an impression since I heard it on Friday.

Better than other Cohen we have listened to, but he just doesn't do it for me much. 2/5

Kind of boring tbh. If Bob Dylan could actually sing, he'd be Leonard Cohen. I guess a lot of the appeal lies in the poetry of the lyrics, but honestly I can't make heads or tails of most of it. I feel like this kind of thing just goes over my head

A little classic old school

Eher langweilig zu hören 2/5

Oof. This is my second LC album. It may have beauty, and poetry, but man does it drag. But I'm just 2 songs in. So let's see. Religious imagery, strike two. Ok, I finished. I'm sure some like this the easy I like Dylan's first album. Just not me.

kinda boring

I can appreciate his talent as a songwriter, but I really don't care for his music. Too dreary.

Parts I didn’t like: -boring songs -inscrutable songs -feeling like I needed an MFA in poetry to even begin to care about the songs -no melody to the songs -asking myself “is a pop album supposed to be fun or memorable?” roughly half a million times -wanting to kill myself both from the songs’ content and their existence themselves, as songs -that one song where he fingerpicks an arpeggio while he kinda talk-sings? You know the one Parts I did like: -only 41 minutes! -based on that cover photo, Leonard cohen can totally get it -feeling like a saucy medieval boy -feeling like if I write some total pompous bs and also strum my guitar a little bit, I too can be a celebrated troubadour -“hey, that’s no way to say goodbye” and also like a half point for “so long, Marianne”

was vibing at first, then every song sounded the same & i think this guy yaps too much. hallelujah or whatever he said

I’m never really been a big fan of Leonard Cohen, but found this album a bit more enjoyable than the other stuff I’ve heard from him . Kind of had to force myself to finish the album and don’t really remember much of it. I didn’t hate it and it’d be fine if I heard it the background, but not really going out of my way to listen to it and kind of just solidifies my idea that I don’t really care for Leonard Cohen’s music

Not his worst

4 Leonard Cohen albums in my first 270 picks. I don't know what I did in a past life to deserve this, but I am deeply deeply sorry.

Is this objectively great, as so many seem to think? Or is it maudlin garbage? Was Jack the Ripper a sixty foot sea serpent from Scotland? Did I take this job for a quick buck? We may never know the answers to these questions, every one of these songs sounds exactly the same, and they all make me want to drown myself in a pool. I'm only giving it a 2.5 because the poetry is pretty good.

unchanging songs that go on too long, the lyrics I think are what he’s known for, but to me it’s boring

This album feels like just one long hipster mansplain.

STANDOUTS: n/a OVERALL: 2/5; I certainly didn't ask for two Leonard Cohen albums in the span of two weeks

Never been a fan of Cohen. Some songs are ok but generally I've never benn able to connect to his music. This album is slow and for me not really interesting.

Ist mir etwas zu seicht.

This guy. The epitome of writing nice poetry and pretty tunes and then just slapping them together regardless of how they line up. It always bothers me how his vocal phrases don't at all fit with the melody he writes. And don't get me started on rhyming gone with alone.

Some beautiful compositions in the most monotone and boring album you could think of. Too bad, because the songs are objectively good.

Pleasant enough, but the lyrics are hardly 'Container Drivers', let's face it. Feels very self-indulgent, and I don't really find Leonard interesting enough to want to know that much about his love life.

Much prefer his later work.

Not quite as interesting as the other Leonard Cohen album I had. Some of the music is a little repetitive.

As a full time yearner who feels sick with nostalgia almost daily, I CANNOT listen to music like this. It's all "you were so sad, and your hair was so soft" cheers lad I'm crying now. I am happy to reduce my exposure to this music to hearing it on films during sad montages. Tracks I actually liked: - So Long, Marianne - Teachers

Va ganske kjedelig

algunas canciones como Suzanne son algo monótonas, pero es agradable de escuchar si estás en ese modo de paz, pero no es algo que escucharías con amigos. pero me gustaría destacar la canción stories of the street, que no irónicamente me gustó bastante

The listless talky singing and meandering incidental music overwhelmed the enjoyment of the occasional interesting lyrics.

I made it to sisters of mercy before running out of steam. Very dad rock.

meh 2/5

Flat, mundane, boring, uninspired. List goes on

"Songs of Leonard Cohen" is the debut album by Canadian folk singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. Considered contemporary folk, this album is dreary and generally uninteresting.

I know I'm supposed to like Leonard Cohen, but what a snooze fest

There seems to be a lot of depth in the lyricism but this is far too boring of a listen to try to grasp what's being said. Every song is Cohen whispering over some light guitar chords. Heavy amount of religious elements. Would be a better to read as a poem book.

Not a fan, the overall tone is very melancholy. While I have more of an appreciation for the lyrics, it’s not for me.

I can only assume his words, his poetry, is compelling. I don't have the time to focus on that.I don't mind and may even enjoy stripped down, acoustic music. But for God's sake, there's got to be a hook. His voice is thoroughly uninteresting. The melodies are unvaried. And what I did hear of the words was depressing or religious. ...and then, he started to whistle!....poorly. It felt like an achievement get through the whole thing. Actually, you know how in Spotify, when you listen to an album and its over, the stream plays 1 more song by the artist from another of their albums before going on to radio based on the album? That song, (not sure what it was) from a more recent album where his voice is deeper with no range, was better than any I heard on this album. Anyway I give it 2 stars only because of benefit of the doubt about his lyrics.

Holy shit this is boring

I appreciate Leonard Cohen and love many of his songs but this album doesn’t really do it for me.

✅ took the whispering into the mic thing from gilberto and wrote poetry in english. lacks the melodic appeal of joni mitchell, but charming in his own right.

A boring, long-winded album that has no place being on a top list. There were some ok throwback vibes but other than that not a good one. 2/5.

Takie se. Nie pociąga mnie ten spokojny balladowy śpiew.

This reminds me quite a lot of Bob Dylan. It's quite basic music often times, where it's the words and lyrics that are meant to carry the weight. As established, I am not much for lyrics or poetry though, it doesn't touch me nearly in the same way that the other musical parts can do. So just like the Bob Dylans records, it's quite boring and not very fun to be honest. The first few songs were quite a drag. Then it picked up around the middle, peaking with 'So Long, Marianne' which I thought was a really good song. Other than that I had a hard time finding songs that I liked, and it all sort of meld together. I'll give this a strong 2, simply because I dislike more things than I like. But some parts do have something that could be worth going through again in the future.

- boringgggggg - sick of Leonard Cohen tbh - I could put it on in the background so I won’t give it a 1 but it’s close

- decent singer/songwriter - a little less spoken word - still not something I enjoy

This is ok, this singer-songwriter stuff is not necessarily my jam. 2* Too dull. I fail to see how this is different from the female songwriter stuff (Nico) I got a week or so ago. I enjoyed So long, Marianne because we actually had other voices than just LC+guitar.

Didn’t click with me at all. Boring. 2.4

Dit is totaal niet mijn smaak. Dus eigenlijk moet ik hier gewoon niet over oordelen. Doe ik lekker toch. Dit album moet het hebben van het overbrengen van gevoel. Ben je daar gevoelig voor, zal het een prima schijf voor je zijn. Mij raakt het niet en dan is het vooral saai. Een uitzondering voor Suzanne. Zelf ik kan dat nummer waarderen. En dan kan ik het dus opbrengen om naar dat nummer nog wat beter te luisteren. Het is gewoon een uitstekend artiest merk ik dan. Maar ja. Dat is nummer 1 en daarna verveel ik me 9 nummers lang.

jeg kan ikke

Two timeless classics Marianne & Suzanne, but the rest is hard to listen to.

Great songwriting-5 stars; musicality-1-2 stars at most

Story time. I need to listen to it again. So far...2/5

Nicht meine Richtung

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Honestly, there's only real music on once track here. The rest is just noodling around in guitar in a way that is not clear.

The only song I could really tolerate on this album was the Marianne song. It didn't seem to fit within the rest of the context of the album... That was a good thing for me. The rest of it didn't seem to have much depth or meaning for me.... But it felt like it was supposed to be some serious emotional album.... That never really reached the audience and fell short of its ambition. After two Leonard Cohen albums I figured out that I'm not a fan ✌🏽💩. Does anyone besides pixie really read these things?

There seems to be a theme of religious despair, depression, and mortality in Cohen’s work. This is a heavy album that reads like a mental health journal gone awry.

I wanted to like this more. I was into the first couple songs and as it went on I got less and less interested. Lyrically I really loved it but the delivery and music started to blur together.

Sleepytime Bob Dylan. Similar to Simon & Garfunkel. Not unbearable but not particularly enjoyable. One Of Us Cannot Be Wrong is actually pretty good. Adding this to my list "1001 albums you must hear before you die if you want to die of boredom"

2.5 Too much Leonard cohen on this list forreal

etwas zu ruhig, plätschert so dahin

I liked "Suzanne", but outside of that song everything else was too slow and droning.

A bit of a snooze, slightly preferable to Dylan.

Feels like a spoken word album.

Can I appreciate this? Yes. Does it really qualify as music? Probably not.

There is literally no range in his voice throughout. I understand it's all about the lyrics telling a story, the way it is you might as well recite the lyrics lol

No disrespect to Leonard Cohen who is an excellent songwriter and lyricist and all that, but this kind of low energy folk just never did it for me.

He's just not a singer? He creates amazing stories, but I was quite literally falling asleep listening to this.

Not really my cup of tea

Dull

Painful, how did he get not one, two, but four albums in this list. There are plenty of other better albums than his.

Words:Cohen=concept:air

I'm just not a fan of his voice. appreciate some of the lyrics telling a story, others just seem like rambles.

Phenomenal songwriter, but this was boring.

I’ve always heard what a great songwriter Cohen is….not seeing it. Too much the same within the songs. Too much the same from song to song. Suzanne and Hey, That’s No Way To Say Goodbye musically just seemed like theme and variations. His guitar playing style was also always the same…monotonous. Not as bad as Dylan, but similar with his too long of a song with too many words and not enough musical variety.

This monotone and creepy album did not make my ears happy.

Depressing

Not terrible, maybe a couple of songs that I liked. Probably wouldn't listen to it again, it's just not my type of music.

Пердед за пердедом. Ну окей, слушаем дальше звуки старины... Опять гитара. Опять под гитару поёт слегка грустный но всё равно сильный мужчина. Что я должен думать про эту музыку? конечно же её основная сила в текстах, но я не native english speaker, это не мой first language, потому я могу выхватывать некоторые слова и общее настроение. Леонарт Коэн поёт про любовь и надежду. Ну... хорошо? честно сказать, если Ник Дрейк мне нравился голосом и настроением, то к Леонарду Коэну у меня не особо много чувств возникает )

I understand who he is, and what he is to the music world. But I can't stand his monotone droning for a 4minute song let alone 41minutes.

This just isn't for me. Did his family own the record company back then?

Not a big fan of 196”’s folk music.

Slow

Leonard Cohen is a fantastic storyteller but damn do these tracks just sound so ... boring? Lifeless? Just feels like his not really doing them justice.

nah, that was mid at best

I feel like I would have fucked with this if I was alive in the 60s but it's just kinda boring to me now.

Favourite song - Master song

Sorry but cannot sing for shit tbh; appreciate the unique poetic lyricism tho

As someone who admittedly doesn't listen to a lot of lyrics, these songs aren't for me for that reason. They are very lyric dependent with some light music going on in the background. The lyrics might very well be good (although they seemed corny at times) and reminded me of Bob Dylan/Paul Simon in places. Just not an album for me. Also- album cover looks like Al Pacino...is Leonard actually Al Pacino? 5/10 (2.5/5)

Was all of the place on this one. Starting thinking "well, I can see why people thought he had promise" then some songs in the middle I was pretty blah on, the a couple towards the end turned me back around. Sounds like a 2.5 to me

I can see why people like Leonard Cohen but I, unfortunately, do not. I can appreciate the poetic lyrics from an intellectual standpoint but the music doesn't groove, it just kind of plods along behind the lyrics. It feels more like I'm listening to spoken word poetry over a guitar backtrack on loop than listening to a song. It makes it so every time a new instrument joins the fray, or backup singers, I'm so excited to hear them I stop paying attention to the lyrics, and then I tune back in to the lyrics and I don't know what the hell Leonard is singing about.

Simon and Garfunkel in sleeping pills

One song, I could cope with. Suzanne or So Long, Marianne in particular. A whole album? No thanks. Five whole albums? Hell no. I get people think Cohen's a genius and I understand why one or two albums might be on the list, but I might skip the next four because I really don't like this enough to bother with. So Long, Marianne saved this from 1 star. Just.

#126. God damn, but that was boring. The whole thing. Every song. Just sheer boredom. And why does the album cover look like a movie poster of a biopic where Adam Sandler is playing Al Pacino? 2/5: yawn

I’m just not a fan of cohen, the half sung half spoken lyrics are not it. The writing is there but it’s just so mellow and boring

I like the accompaniment and I appreciate Cohen's place in folk, but I have a hard time getting with this. Very little to latch onto. Probably better in the day, esp. for Canadians. Not something I'd return to. 2.9

It's like Bob Dylan but with an adequate singer. I'm not much of a lyric man, so singer-songwriters don't draw me in unless the music is compelling. Apart from 'So Long Marianne' there wasn't much that made me want to sing along, and I prefer the version by The Straitjacket Fits anyway. It's mostly just Leonard strumming a guitar and crooning and I forgot it was playing most of the time. But bugger me, the last 20 seconds of this album would scare sleeping babies.

Folksy in that Bob Dillon style of folk. Interesting songs, solid music, all sung in a similar cadence and tone though. Nothing really struck me on this one, aside from being good vibe music for an early morning on a rainy day. 2/5 sad guitars.

More like Leonard NOhen

Cohen’s songwriting skills are overshadowed by how boring and forgettable all thr songs are.

Not really my thing ...

Not really my kind of music, but I can understand why someone likes stuff like this

I hate Leonard Cohen, boring AF

I was hopeful. I don't really know Leonard Cohen's music, but I've looked what I've heard. This was not that good. Too much sounded strangely like the same song.

A gothic adventure to the inner working of cohen's mind

Not my thing...

Tää levy kuulosti siltä että sama biisi ois soinut vähän eri lyriikoilla. No ei ihan mutta melkein. Sinänsä pidin joistain, mutta kuulostaa Cohenin harjoittelulta tulevaa varten. Siinä mielessä siis merkityksellinen ja kokonaisuutena ihan onnistunut levy, mutta aika tylsä (ja dylanmainen). Melkein 3 mutta inan vajaa.

Ihan ok biisejä. Sääli että niitä on noin kolme. Sanojen kielikuvallinen absurdius ei jaksa kiinnostaa.

Did not like at all

Blind album and artist. Snore. Is it just me or does he look like he could be a younger Epstein? Look at the akbum cover for Various Positions. Maybe I need to get off the internet for a while.

Even though he’s never been my favorite artist, I certainly get the appeal of Leonard Cohen. This was a decent album.

Not a fan of the genre, songs felt too similar

Pleasant voice, sometimes interesting lyrics, but so, oh so boring. Endless droning with generic sad guitar background. So Long, Marianne is a refreshing break.

Sammlung entspannter Gitarrenmusik, gut aber wenig Abwechslung.

Respect the writing on this and the hauntingly gentle guitar but this album is just too slow and melancholy for me. Definitely a hell of a songwriter lyrically but this is just a bit on the boring side for me. Really impressive album for the time that it came out at though.

Eh. Whatever.

Not my cup of tea lol

Drab and dreary. Two decent songs: Suzanne So Long, Marianne

Just not my thing

I don’t like Leonard Cohen at all but at least I made it all the way through this one. That’s about all that can say.

Fine but too slow

Clearly a well crafted set of songs - but you'd really have to be in the mood for some serious reflection to enjoy....

I understand what's good about it, but I was not in the mood. I very rarely am. Doesn't help that it's very samey.

Could not get into it. The lyrics are probably super -interesting if I listen close enough. But it did not grab me. Others have done the stripped down guitar-singer-songwriter thing better, but he was one of the first? I prefer Dylan or Springsteen.

Okay. Sad folk that doesn't do it for me. Lyrics are corny. Would be more into it if he leaned into the bluegrass feel of So Long, Marianne more. The screaming at the end of One of Us Cannot Be Wrong pretty much sums up how I feel about this album.

Great album if you want to fall asleep or take your life. ;) But great guitarplaying.

This dude creepy as hell

It’s not for me. So long, Marianna was kind of nice, but no. Too dull. 2/5

Nope

Not my thing particularly.

Never got sucked in. 2/5

not this guy again. i am just not a fan

Nothing really hit me. It was fine, but not exciting or particularly interesting to me, personally.

People love Leonard Cohen. I respect that but this was just not my thing, and I love classic folk music. His lyrics are beautiful but I found this album fairly dull and uninteresting, musically.

Just voice & guitar, love it. Texts are a bit melodramatic. not my style

I see why some might like it but was not my favorite.

The lyrics were the only thing holding this album up. Overall it felt like a man unenthusiastically reading stories.

A collection of very good songs no doubt, but thankfully albums after this starting telling more coherent sonic stories.

Meh a little too moody for me

Het deed me bitter weinig.

Clearly amazing songwriter, but not really my style of performing

I have literally no idea what to expect listening to this. Nice enough vocals but to me this is kind of boring

A story teller first, this wasn't my cup of tea

The Songs of Leonard Cohen are one of life's most important works of art. The first time I listened to this record was the first time I ever felt love. It nurtured me and made me feel safe and happy. I've never questioned why. It's just something organic. Thank you Leonard. I'll do a little wank to the thought of you this evening.

Not really my cup o’ tea. The spoken word aspect was mostly what I’m not into. If Mr Cohen’s tunes came up in a shuffle with the rest of my library, I wouldn’t skip it but I didn’t really enjoy the whole album in a sitting.

The opening track of this album almost lulled me to sleep. The strings and organs on Master Song hint at a more engaging sound but then just fade back away. So many of these songs feel like lullabies. The Stranger Song has such gentle guitar picking and Leo's soft voice barely getting above a whisper. Aside from the accompanying instruments and the occasional guest voice, these songs kind of blend together. The lyrics are poetic and emotionally complex, but Leonard's voice is taking me out of the beauty.

Soft religious metaphors for days.

This might be one of the most boring albums I've ever heard in my life. Leonard Cohen just drones on while he plays minimalistic nothing on his guitar which the mix burries in the background to the point you can barely hear it. A couple songs kind of up the tempo but even they do who cares? This album is a snoozer.

Mellow, chill singer / songwriter guitar music. Nothing I recognized. 2.5 stars

Not particularly my cup of tea

Not really my style, old-fashioned slow music

When Suzanne started, all I could think was I hope this picks up because Mr. Cohen is going to put me to sleep. From the gentle guitar strumming to Leonard’s monotone voice, this is very mellow music. And that’s pretty much the entire album. It feels like I went to a poetry reading that was accompanied by someone playing acoustic guitar. So Long Marianne gave us some background vocals to contrast with Leonard’s monotone, so that was a somewhat upbeat break. In all, not bad if you want something mellow to listen to. I often enjoy mellow music. However, these songs start sounding very similar. Some of the guitar strumming is quicker on some of the tracks, but for the most part, this entire album is Mr. Cohen speak-singing poetic stories over quiet, peaceful guitar.

boringggggg

Far too melancholy for my liking. Songs well written and composed, but not feeling the mood with this album.

Liked the instrumentation, but I just don't like his voice, I put him in the same basket as Bob Dylan, more droning than the US Military. Didn't save any for a playlist.

Nice to see that Leonard Cohen's style didn't change throughout the years. Once a contemporary artist, always a contemporary artist. Is debut album definitely set the tone for his entire career, however with this album I can see why people may have liked this album. His voice is markedly different as well, it hasn't yet taken on that gravelly tone that he became well known for, which to be honest I think I prefer the voice on this album. Best: Suzanne Worst: One of Us Cannot Be Wrong

Just too boring for me to appreciate any kind of musical genius that might be happening here. 2.5 stars

Apart from the legendary track "Suzanne", this is an album for fans of Leonard Cohen. I never understood why he was so popular because he sounded so depressing - it must have been a 1960's thing.

I still don't really know what to make of the near monotone quality to Cohen's voice. There's something fitting about it, like it's the final piece of the puzzle that comprises this album of slow, pared down instrumentals, and lyricism that's sometimes dour and referential to religious text. It is fucking hypnotic and I genuinely don't know *why*. But hypnotic isn't exactly synonymous with pleasurable, and fascination isn't the same as love. Suzanne is a stellar opener, but Master Song drags and drags. Moving on to Winter Lady and, yeah, I really do think his voice is the problem that's holding me back. It's like, I'm hearing what you're laying down, but am I listening? I dunno, I just keep thinking that this would be better off as a poetry collection than a musical album! It's something I can't shake the feeling of, even halfway through. A lot of these songs have moments I like, but the full picture is quite lacking. In the latter half of the album, So Long, Marianne is the only real standout. The length of the album is the main thing keeping this score from going any lower tbh. It comes close to dragging at times, but not so close that it is impossible for me to say "well, this wasn't for me, but at least it was something different!"

Not a fan. A bit depressing

Strange music. Don’t know if I like it or not. Storytelling/lyrics is good, but just weird to listen to. Probably wouldn’t choose this to listen to.

Идеально на фон. Настолько, что вообще нечего выделить :(

Please no more Leonard cohen

My God this is a boring record. 40 minutes felt like 4 hours. I think it's because of Leonard Cohen's delivery of "spoken word" music. I feel if you are going to be a vocalist, you should do two things: 1) be excited to perform, and 2) fucking SING!! Cohen sounds almost bored to be performing, which leads to a super boring album. Cohen sounds like a Dollarama brand of Bob Dylan, and (on the album cover) looks like an unimpressed Adam Sandler. Even in his photo shoots, Leonard looks bored and unimpressed. The musical accompaniment is super minimal (almost non-existent), which doesn't help the nature of this record. Overall, not great. Lyrics made no sense, and Leonard sounded like he didn't want to be there. This music would be the type of irritating drivel enjoyed by hipsters in artsy coffee shops. Certainly not my type of music at all. I like folk, but I also like it to be delivered in a way that is less boring. This was 40 minutes of waiting for something to happen, and nothing did. Favourite songs: Suzanne, I guess? Not great, but less annoying than the rest of the record. Least favourite songs: One of Us Cannot Be Wrong (what's with the random moaning at the end of the song? Sounds like someone inhaled a kazoo and is trying to free it from their windpipe), "Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye" and others... I was so bored, I zoned out several times, so I don't know their names, and I'm not relistening to find out. 2/5

Not for me

I've been stuck on this one a while, time to finally bite the bullet and review it so I can un-pause! I understand why people like Leonard Coen, but this album does very little for me. The first song is a strong start, but after that it just becomes a dull slog; so many repetitive and dreary melodies. "So Long, Marianne" has to be one of my least favourite, the halting melody in the chorus makes me grimace, even though it is quite catchy. His singing really leaves a lot to be desired too. Although there are some nice guitar parts in places. I know he is supposed to be renowned for his lyrics primarily, but I find it hard to sit down and unwrap them from such a boring package. I'd much rather read them in a poetry book than listen to this album again. I do like Bob Dylan, which makes me feel a bit hypocritical, but at least Dylan has a bit of variation throughout his albums, and is a quite good songwriter musically to boot. In addition to being a great lyricist!

2/5 Best: Suzanne Worst: Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye

Disappointing. Not as good as I'm Your Man

Like a poor man's Bob Dylan. More spoken word poetry over a guitar than anything else.

Don’t listen to this album if you are drowsy, or before a strong cup of coffee. His voice is like a bedtime story. 2.8/5

Divisive genius performs the occasional pearl. Suzanne is a five star song, but Stories of the Street is not.

I appreciate the poetry, and I like the vocals. I’m into the dark vibes. But usually I need it paired with upbeat Production. Or at least more production than this. Very subdued/minimal which is fine, just need to be in the mood for it.

Not my style, kinda all sounds the same throughout but meaningful work.

Sobre tones, influenced by Spanish guitar.

Ok but very simple and kinda draggy.

I didn’t care for this but I see why people like it. I didn’t listen too closely to the lyrics but he sounds like a good poet. Dylan definitely influenced him

Please no more of him.

I didn’t particularly like this one. To me Leonard Cohen always just devolves more into a poetry reading rather than music. The backing music can often be completely forgettable. I was most intrigued by Suzanne, but more because I had heard Tales of Brave Ulysses by Cream previously and that song rips the music from Suzanne and some of the themes. Otherwise I don’t really like it.

My first reaction was fuck no, not you again Leonard. And by the end of it I thought thank fuck. Sorry Leonard you just do not do it for me

It's not bad, but the songs on this album all sound mostly the same and they have a bit of an easy-listening / adult contemporary sound. You may love Leonard, but what I just said isn't wrong.

One thing I'm learning about myself doing this project. The Singer-Songwriter genre is not my thing.

A poor man’s Paul Simon.

I enjoyed maybe 3 out of 10 songs. I'm just not into the droning storyteller vibe. If this was a book of poetry it'd be fine, but no, he had to pick up a guitar.

Pretty enjoyable, I like Leonard Cohen. I like his older sounding voice better than the younger version, but let's face it it's still Leonard Cohen.

Love the songs. Not so much the performance.

To me most of the songs feel like they are poems with random music behind them. The music seems disassociated from the lyrics. I liked the first and last songs though.

2.5 - some amazing lyrics here, probably a friday night album with wine...

Enjoyed some of the guitar playing, but overall not really my style so hard to judge. Not worth really keeping any

If you're a fan of Dylan and appreciate folksy music accented with heart-felt songwriting and imagery you'll also love this. Thing is though, I hate Dylan and I also don't like Cohen. He's another of those polarizing artists, you either love him or hate him. Someone here also wrote that if you find Dylan too exciting, then Cohen is for you... which I found hilarious. His lyrics may be good, but he's the Dark Prince of Gloom and his maudlin, gloomy voice throughout just makes me want to slice open my veins now.

No strong feelings.

I don't think this is really my thing, but I might try it again down the road and we'll see.

Overall too ...monotonous for me. It's got a lot of fast paced finger picking with really mellow singing that feels a little exhausting. The lyrics are all written in what feels like a fantasy setting which can be fun, but can make things hard to follow/comprehend. For example, there's a line from "So Long, Marianne" that goes, "We met when we were almost young". Does that mean they were, infants? Toddlers? Does it have some deeper definition that actually means they were just AFTER being young? (just turned 18 or something along those lines) It's not until the middle of the record with songs like "So Long, Marianne" and "Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye" that we get into stuff that has more of an arrangement to it. The album then goes back to fewer instrumental landscapes. The album rounds out with a whistle solo accompanied by a vocal tracks that feel like their wandering around due to the panning. They also become more and more, intense before the song finally closes. Feels like something Bob Dylan would have made if he was obsessed with The Hobbit. Ultimately not my jam.

Suicide music on a grey Monday morning. Just what I need.

If you’re happy and you know it go elsewhere.

you can really hear the beard

Not for me

Meh...not my bag. Good lyricist, but the music doesn't do it for me.

This was just so....boring

You just had to finish off with the whistling and yelling, didn't you

Ihan kaunista, mutta levyllisenä kovin pitkäveteistä vaikka kuuntelin kahdessa osassa. Varmasti aika ja paikka tällekin muttei nyt lähtenyt lentoon.

Ei iskeny. Jaaritteluna jäi mieleen

That's 3 Leonard Cohen albums I've listened to thanks to this list. Hopefully that's enough... 1 extra star for "So Long, Marianne" - when he's not being so bloody morose, he's not a bad vocalist...

Everything except for So Long, Marianne was pretty dreadful

A little Simon and Garfunkel, a little bit of The Bee-Gees, too. I bet Elliott Smith was really into this record. The music is OK and the vocal performance is a lot better than I was expecting. I don't take too much away from the lyrics at all. In summary, I regard this record in the way I take that one cottage-core Taylor Swift album.

Not my cup of tea. Some of it got better though

Oh gawd, not an album to listen to if you’ve got the January blues.

This is not for me. All the same tunes for the most part and endless verses. Positives: I did Suzzane and Marianne. The production value is really good.

Album important pour l'artiste. Personnellement, je suis plus musique que textes dans un album, donc côté musique, c'est correct, mais sans plus. Donc pas un album auquel je reviendrais, mais je ne passerais pas dans une playlist.

A little bit monotonous

Wow I can’t believe how different his voice sounds from the other record. I like You Want it Darker better. The lyrics are somewhat interesting but I wasn’t really excited about anything else on this record.

I didn’t like this nearly as much as You Want It Darker. Kinda had a bob Dylan vibe for different parts.

Álbum debut de Leonard Cohen, el cuál debutaba en el mundo de la música viniendo desde la literatura. Habiendo publicado dos novelas y cuatro libros de poemas cuando salió este álbum, se nota claramente el sello literario en cada una de sus canciones. Contando historias, y centrando la mayoría de la producción en su voz y el relato de las letras. La instrumentación, centrada en el folk, da más que nada un ambiente para el relato. Y cumple con su objetivo, que al no ser un objetivo muy ambicioso, podría haber sumado algo más a la mezcla sin la necesidad de opacar el centro, que es sin dudas, lo gran letrista que es Cohen. Suena medio vacío por momentos, y si no se le centra su total atención al contenido lírico, termina siendo algo aburrido y lento.

it’s just not for me

Could do without the religious imagery

Lyrically intereting although uses the word lover too much and his scanning was weird. His singing was like listening to gravel in a washing machine and the music was like just awful.

While the lyrics are poignant, I can’t get into the music. Great storyteller, but not a musician I can appreciate

Nije nešto što mi se pretjerano sviđa, uredu je, tekstovi nekih pjesama mi se sviđaju, neki manje,a neki su mi jako čudni i nisu moj ukus. Lijepa melodija ali nije nešto što bi inače slušala i malo me dosađuje...inače volim ovaku glazbu ali ovo ne jednostavno......cant get into it

Who doesn't know Leonard Cohen and hundreds of covers of his most famous song - Hallelujah. Beautiful, deep voice and such a melancholic and momentous melody. But I've never done any deeper dig into the discography of Cohen. For me he was an artist of two songs (Dance Till the End of Love being the other). This was my first opportunity to listen to his debut album "Songs Of Leonard Cohen". My first impression was that I couldn't even recognise his voice. At the time the album was released he was 33 years old, he got most famous at 50 and the difference in voice is very noticeable. In my opinion he sounds much more mature, with a more prominent hoarseness and in general his voice transmits more emotions. Leonard in his thirties sounds more like a Canadian version of Bob Dylan, but not as interesting. The musical layer is also very thin - usually there is only few notes of acoustic guitar for accompaniment. There are certain songs, with more instruments and small choirs, where Cohen sounds much better, and the listening is more pleasant. For example "Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye". Unfortunately, that is not enough to convince me of this album greatness. I prefer the older Cohen and probably won't come back to this album.

Songs of Leonard Cohen is simple, fairly elegant and understated, and accomplished. A bit dull, sure, and that limits it to 2/5, but it's respectable for sure.

Didn't dislike it, but a bit too monotone and downbeat for me to choose it

Never heard of him until now, no prior conceived opinions, although I wasn't surprised to find it being a folk album. As a first folk album, it was entertaining. I really enjoyed the lyrical content (wikipedia says Cohen was known as a poet before ever thinking of music). The music itself was entertaining, there were a couple that stand out more than others. Good mix of slower and up-tempo songs. For my first folk album, I liked it pretty well, but I don't think I'll be listening to it again.

One good song, but the rest did not age well and is very repetitive.

More average music that's not my thing

okay. don't ever see myself reaching for this album again.

Wasn't a fan of this until the very last 30 seconds of the very last song. He really went all out there.

I liked it less and less with each song as they all sounded the same. If I was more into poetry and just viewed it as a version of that, perhaps would like it more. Really negatively effected my mood for the day with its energy.

Look, he's a great songwriter and I know he was a perfectionist. But dammit I cannot get into an entire album of Cohen performing his stuff. I felt like I had taken an entire bottle of barbiturates and I started slipping into the void. Nope.

Welp, that was depressing... and I kinda liked it... sometimes?

Boring Lenny album