I'm Your Man

There are lyrics-first listeners. There are music-first listeners. I think lyrics-first listeners are more rare, and I bet all of them love Leonard. We music-firsters won't give the lyrics the time of day unless the sound hits right. Leonard is a wonderful poet and this album sounds pretty bad. I dated a girl who thought I'm Your Man was one of the sexiest songs of all time. I can feel the message, but why deliver it over a Casio keyboard? My only guess comes from the banana - the hilarious banana Leonard is eating on the cover in a cool suit and shades. Maybe age taught him that there's a joke underneath everything serious and heavy. If you want to deliver heavy lyrics, maybe it makes more sense to drape them in a funny soundscape, complete with ironic-cheesy backing vocalists. Deep poetry, banana music. B

In my younger days I used to go to a pub called the Winchester, which was in Bournemouth, for what was an 'anything goes' night. Any band or artist could book a slot, irrespective of talent, which made it a great opportunity to see some oddballs. You mostly got youthful hipsters or anti-music noise bands (one act once cranked out guitar feedback for half an hour), but one time a middle-aged guy with a beer gut and receding hairline showed up with a Casio keyboard and played a set that sounded almost exactly like I'm Your Man (if played solely on a cheap keyboard). All the songs were about his divorce and how much he missed his kids. Four stars.

if anyone tells you this is their favorite cohen album run far away

It's as if Alan Partridge was asked to write the soundtrack to Scarface.

“I’m Your Man” by Leonard Cohen (1988) This album does not disappoint on any level. Leonard Cohen’s strong poetic lyrics on this record are, as always, deeply immersive. With scrappy and sometimes scattered allusions that successfully beg for the listener’s thoughtful reflection, his songs are always perfectly cadenced and well synthesized, each one tied together by unifying (and frequently quite dark) themes. From the understated horror of the pretense of normality in the midst of a plague (AIDS, in “Everybody Knows”) to the tortured feelings of a man who still loves a woman he knows he’ll never get back (“I’m Your Man”), to the insidious insertions of jazz riffs into pop fusion compositions (“Jazz Police”), Cohen is consistently intriguing. The musical settings all sustain interest (although “Take This Waltz” struggles in this department). And all are capably performed by Cohen, with his signature croaky baritone, and his excellent backing musicians. But the song that commands all the attention on this album is the opening track “First We Take Manhattan”. Cohen himself called it “a terrorist song”—a ballsy response to the (anti-Semitic/anti-Israel) terrorism that was growing in the 1980’s. From the 1970 Munich bus attack to the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre to the 1980 Munich Oktoberfest bombing to the 1982 bombing attack at Berlin’s Mifgash-Israel restaurant to the 1985 Frankfurt Airport bombing, Jews in the West had understandably had enough. In response to that physically violent terrorism (for which he had a qualified respect), Cohen offered this song as an act of retaliatory ‘psychic terrorism’: “First we take Manhattan, then we take Berlin”. In an interview, Cohen explained the song with an analogy to a poem by his friend and mentor Irving Layton (“Terrorists” in The Pole-Vaulter, Toronto, 1974) which he paraphrased: “Well, you guys blow up an occasional airline and kill a few children here and there, But our terrorists, Jesus, Freud, Marx, Einstein. The whole world is still quaking...”. The references to “you guys” and “our” should be obvious. The sentiment that Cohen inherits and alters (from Layton’s poem: “Jewish terrorists, ah: Maimonides, Spinoza, Freud, Marx”) is that while anti-Semitic terrorism kills the body, Jewish ‘terrorism’ changes the cultural soul (cf. Matthew 10:28). [Hat tip to Prof. Louis Schwartz of the University of Richmond for the Irving Layton poem connection]. Now whatever one thinks of this hyper-volitional notion of cultural “Jewish terrorism” Leonard Cohen delivers it both vocally and musically with shudderingly haunting power. Cosmic, apocalyptic, militaristic, and almost gleefully anticipatory of the moment of vengeance, Cohen’s lyric calls us to take stock of the world soul in the midst of this conflict. You don’t want to go there. But maybe you have no choice. This one track, “First We Take Manhattan”, is reason enough to listen to I’m Your Man, not just for entertainment, but for insight, no matter whose ‘side’ you’re on. 5/5

Sounds like a PSA for the dangerous of cocaine. Leonard re-establishes that he's a total creep. I hate this so much.

A quinessential case of an exceptionally talented, middle-aged artist hitting 80s production styles in the same way a roast dinner hits the floor: you can salvage quite a tasty bit, but some will need to be thrown away, and you'll ultimately be left disappointed. The alum's strength is obvious: here are some of Leonard Cohen's best, sharpest lyrics, blades dipped in lemon juice. Oft wry, indeed comical, the whole album has a slightly sleazy overtone; one is much reminded of Serge Gainsbourg in its erotomanic cynicism, especially on Everybody Knows' bitter rationalization that everyone is in on life's big con. The album's end, Tower of Song, is Cohen's great apologia to the craft of songwriting, a monumental track that still holds the power to make listener shiver. However, the album has a critical flaw: the music (which seems rather an important flaw for an album to have). Cohen employs his synths and drum machines almost recklessly (and Jazz Police can be considered a fully reckless employment), and thus the album becomes stuck in such an archaic aesthetic that often the nod a top-notch couplet inspires is married to an involuntary wince at the Casio beat (and trust me, I'm not at all averse to synthpop). The best songs on this transcend that limitation, and maybe a more acceptive listener could relish the musical direction Cohen takes, but I found appreciating the greatness on this album required recognising a few caveats.

Sounds like a bootleg 80s synths Johnny Cash.

No you are not.

Some all-time great songs on this (First We Take Manhattan, Everybody Knows, I'm Your Man, Tower of Song). But, oof, that 80s production. The synths, the saxophone solos, the stacked backing vocals. His singing is not bad, probably amongst the best he has ever sounded. But is it a coincidence that I love many of these songs in cover versions? The production really distracts me. Five stars for the songs, one off for the sound. {Footnote: I love the cover photo. Leonard's looking pretty sharp in his double-breasted suit and shades, but holding a half-eaten banana. Hilarious!}

This was by far the worst album I’ve received on this list so far. I just don’t understand the hype for Leonard Cohen. Not only are his vocals terrible to listen to. His lyrics are nothing exciting. And the production was the most cheap 80s sound You could imagine. The only song with any redeeming production was “Take This Waltz.” “I’m your man is just a horny man lamenting about love over a cheap rip off of Pink Floyd’s synths from shine on you crazy Diamond. “Jazz Police” is right, because somebody needed to arrest this man for the music he was making. “Tower of Song” was actually alright as a closer, or maybe I was just happy that the album was over.” First we take manhattan - 2 Ain’t no cure for love - 1 Everybody Knows - 2 I’m your man - 1 Take this waltz - 3 Jazz police - 1 I can’t forget - 2 Tower of song - 2 Total 14/40 1.75/5

Last week I said 'you want it darker' was perhaps Cohen's best album but I had obviously forgotten about this masterpiece. Cohen's razor sharp lyricism is matched with a rocking synth based sound. Every song is a classic.

On one hand, the songwriting here is undeniably stellar, and his voice can absolutely put me in a trance. On the other, so much of the instrumentation and arrangement is just absolutely NOT for me. It really depends on the song to see which one wins out on this album.

This one was super weird. Love the imagery and turn of phrase in the songwriting; absolutely hate the backing vocals and the corny string arrangements. A baffling album. Best track: Tower of Song

Did Leonard Cohen find a Casio keyboard in a dumpster and decide to make this album with it? Not enjoyable or good.

Leonard Cohen plus 80s synths, drum machines and production--what could possibly go wrong? As ever, Leonard Cohen's poetry is pointed and lucid. The challenge for Cohen has always been to come up with music that hopefully enriches his lyrical content or at the very least, doesn't make you want to hurl. Not surprisingly, he fails miserably here. Having listened to two of Cohen's later albums beginning to end, it's apparent that his compositional style has remained remarkably consistent throughout the years. All that really changes are superficial styles and instrumentation. This hasn't hurt Leonard Cohen commercially or critically, which is a bit surprising. Why is everyone so eager to give Leonard Cohen a pass? I'm reminded of a quote from the movie Chinatown: "Course I'm respectable. I'm old. Politicians, ugly buildings, and whores all get respectable if they last long enough."

Ah yes the new wave, cocaine guy Cohen album. I dont hate it, as it reminds me of, say, Blixa Bargeld vocals (which on this record are WAY too loud in the mix) but I’ll give it a shot. The first track had me giggling like picturing him on a stage that’s set up like an Olan Mills photoshoot. Smoke and laser shit. The lyrics are ridiculously silly, as if he’s describing a drug fueled night where you think you’re captain America on copious amounts of speed. Track 2 starts off with a sexy sax solo which seems to take itself seriously, so of course it’s terrible. This sets off a horrible theme of longing but it’s gross, like the kind of slick weirdo in his older years trying to hook up with someone 30 years his junior: YUCKY. Track 3 sounds like how I sound when I’m drunk and trying to figure my life out, so I’m whispering to a stranger in a bar in a French accent for some reason. Reminds me of a Disney villain describing his devious plans. The lyrics get progressively worse so I kind of tuned out a bit for I’m Your Man, but god damn dude too much coke makes your bits n pieces inoperable! Cripes man! Jazz Police legit made me spit my coffee out. Absolute garbage track. How is this record on this list?? Jeez haha.

Hey Len. I've got good news and better news. Let's go with the good first. The record company love your new songs. And the better? They feel inside the Laughing Len persona (so passe) there's a modern MTV star just waiting to be unleashed. They do. They do so much they've put it in your new contract. You do want a new record contract don't you? I guess so. Excellent. So sign here for gated drums. Here for over-assertive backing singers. Here for casio tone synths. Here for fretless bass. And here - very exciting this - for what they're calling 'Paul Hardcastle style' for Jazz Police. What's that I hear? It's the sound of MTV Heavy Rotation Baby. You know the wierdest part of the whole thing? Cohen produced the album himself. Listen to Jazz Police and wonder if the whole thing isn't a satire on the 80s music industry. Four stars for the songs, 0 for the production.

I LOL'd. Then I tried to give myself a chance to "get" it and never did. When Jazz Police came on, I LOL'd again. The backing tracks are certainly stylized but they are interesting in the way Ween's tracks are interesting. I don't find the lyrics particularly poetic or deep, however. I must be missing something but I won't be back to find it.

I can see why some people would like this album, interesting lyrics, but not for me.

Now I don't like Leonard Cohen. But I can appreciate the man is a talented poet. And whoever decided it was a good idea to butcher his words with an 80s synth album doesn't deserve to work in the music industry. Good god this is an insulting album to everyone involved.

Great 80s LC album, even though I usually skip 1-2 songs. The last two songs are very strong have been greatly improved by covers of the Pixies and Nick Cave, respectively. And the same holds for the opening song (by REM)

One of my favourite albums

I had heard some of Leonard Cohen's music before, but always as stand-alone songs, and even though I was always so drawn in and intrigued by his music, I don't know why but I never really listened to whole albums or watched concert videos or anything like that. Now, after having listened to this album all the way through, I most certainly will. What a fascinating artist. A wonderful dark yet somehow quite light meandering, layers and textures, lyrically poetic, so many things evoked. LOVE his voice; reminds me of espresso. Wish I had seen him perform live. I need to learn more. PS -- not sure if the nod to The Police's 'Every Breath You Take' in 'Ain't No Cure For Love' via the arpeggiating guitar underneath the verses (my ear isn't good enough to tell you if the chord progression is the same, but it sounds similar) is intentional, but it's cool (not being snarky...so many songs sound like each other that I don't too hung up on requiring artists to be "original" -- heck, no doubt if we really want to we could probably find a bunch of older songs that sound like 'Every Breath You Take' and then a bunch of even older songs that sound like those, etc.

This morning we have Leonard Cohen and his album "I'm Your Man." I've loved Leonard Cohen for as long as I can remember. Tower of Song and Everybody Knows? Five stars no doubt. The other songs are great and I'm Your Man also a highlight. The synthesizers and 80s style music doesn't sound dated like so much of the music of the period. As mentioned in some reviews, his voice sounds engaged and lively, and this was exactly the music I needed on this cold February morning. It's like taking a trip with an old friend. Living in Leonard's world is always a welcome respite. Leonard and Johnny Cash are who I would always turn to in very difficult times. After 9/11 I listened to nothing but Cash for weeks on end. On the morning after election 2016, I was in shock and feeling very lost - Leonard came through to help me feel whole. Everybody Knows! In it's original context! The pandemic has been fucking brutal lately, thanks Leonard for helping to help me feel sane and okay again.

My mother owned this on cassette—probably still does—and it was a staple of car rides throughout my childhood. Because of that, until I really started exploring music in my late teens, I naively assumed Leonard Cohen was an ‘80s artist. The deep, deadpan voice, the sleek synths, the pulsing drum machines—wasn’t this just what he did? I was, of course, completely oblivious to his stark and poetic folk albums from the ‘60s and ‘70s, but maybe that says something. For many, I'm Your Man wasn’t just a reinvention but rather an entry point or a reminder. Cohen’s shift to this sleek, synthetic sound was a calculated move. By the mid-‘80s, his commercial standing had waned, but the 1987 tribute album Famous Blue Raincoat (featuring covers by Jennifer Warnes) had renewed interest in his work. Seeing an opportunity, Cohen fully embraced contemporary production, using drum machines, glossy keyboards, and a more theatrical vocal delivery to reinvent himself for a new audience. And it worked. The album opens with First We Take Manhattan, a politically tinged track that blends apocalyptic paranoia with a strangely danceable groove. Its pulsating synths and foreboding guitar licks feel like the perfect backdrop for Cohen’s cryptic warnings. Then there’s Everybody Knows, possibly the album’s definitive statement. The song’s skeletal beat, brooding bass, and eerily chipper backing vocals make it sound like a prophecy delivered with a smirk. That blend of cynicism and humour runs through much of the album, particularly in I’m Your Man, a playful yet devastating ode to devotion where Cohen practically leans into the microphone with a knowing wink. Take This Waltz (adapted from a Federico García Lorca poem) and Tower of Song provide a reflective counterweight—one romantic and wistful, the other self-deprecating and profound. Lyrically, Cohen was at his most sardonic and prophetic. Everybody Knows is practically a manifesto of disillusionment: “Everybody knows that the dice are loaded / Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed.” The song’s fatalistic humour made it a cult favourite, frequently used in film and television. Even Tower of Song, with its seemingly lighthearted refrain about being "born with the gift of a golden voice," reads like a career-spanning reflection, equal parts self-deprecating joke and poetic resignation. Not everything quite sticks. Jazz Police is the album’s oddest detour, a frenetic, borderline-satirical piece that plays like an inside joke that doesn’t quite land. I Can’t Forget, meanwhile, feels like Cohen-by-numbers—solid but lacking the weight of the album’s best moments. The production, too, leans heavily into late-’80s aesthetics, and while that mostly works in Cohen’s favour, certain tracks (Ain’t No Cure for Love) carry a sheen that hasn’t aged as well. Some saw Cohen’s pivot to synth-driven pop as opportunistic or at odds with his poetic roots but time has been kind to it. The album has since been recognized as a landmark moment in his career that allowed him to step into a new artistic phase with renewed energy. It also became one of his most covered and sampled works, with Everybody Knows and First We Take Manhattan frequently reinterpreted by other artists. In hindsight, I'm Your Man was the bridge to the Cohen we now recognize as one of music’s great elder statesmen. Without it, there might not have been The Future (1992), which expanded on its dark, apocalyptic themes, or even You Want It Darker (2016), which distilled his late-career wisdom into a haunting farewell. This was a career resurgence that set the stage for the next three decades. I'm Your Man is Leonard Cohen at his sharpest, funniest, and most effortlessly cool. A masterclass in reinvention, it took the sound of the late ‘80s and made it Cohen’s own.

There is a real 80's vibe to this that would usually put me off, but its a bit like ypur grumpy uncle in a shell suit and him actually puling it off. Some really good tunes here and im now a certified Leonard Cohen fan

Cohen’s letting us in on the joke in this one, and it’s a joy; his humour emerges clearer with the synth, drum machine, and the generously excessive backing vocals. First LC record I’ve found fun rather than duty, and “First We Take Manhattan” is a song I’m filing away for later.

“Wah wah 80’s production … wah wah background singers … wah wah Casio keyboard”. Man, why don’t you shove a Casio keyboard up your ass and shut the fuck up. This is where Leonard Cohen was at in 1988 and wherever Leonard Cohen happened to find himself at any particular moment in time is more interesting than anywhere your favorite artist has ever been in his sad misbegotten worthless life. What you need to understand is that Leonard Cohen was born like this, he had no choice. He was born with the gift of a golden voice.

How strange that this album is Leonard Cohen’s most commercially successful. The 80s production qualities are quite jarring, especially on tracks like “Jazz Police,” which is something I never need to hear again. But his genius and incredible voice shine through on other tracks, like “Take This Waltz.”

Mr Cohen’s voice:📉📉📉 My pp:📈📈📈 Too much?

I’m Your Man I’ve listened to this 4 times today and I can’t work out if I like it or not. Lyrically I know I like it, there are some superb lines, couplets or whole songs, like Everybody Knows (a song I was previously aware of from its use in Palm Springs) or First We Take Manhattan. And vocally he sounds great, that older more gravelly tone with a nice hint of creepy sleaziness is excellent. But musically I just don’t know what's going on. Kudos to him for trying something different to update his sound, but in the way that Graceland sounds of its time but timeless, this sounds of its time but very dated. On some listens the hyper 80s keyboards and stacked backing vocals sound great against his voice, a nice, pleasingly odd contrast. And then on the next listen the whole thing sounds cheesy as all balls. I suppose it really comes down to whether the songs that work outweigh the ones that don’t. First We Take Manhattan, I think this is just about on the right side of the line. I like the Pet Shop Boys feel of it and keyboards, despite being a bit cliche, I like alot. The melody and vocal is great, very Nick Cave, but the backing vocals are pretty cheesy and rather obtrusive. I’m not entirely sure about Ain’t No Cure for Love. It has that egregious sax in the intro and a structure lifted almost completely from Every Breath You Take, but I do like the chorus and the lyric. Could go either way, this one. Everybody Knows, I think is great though, excellent lyric and melody and nice pulsing rhythm and keyboard and string riff. The oud is great and the backing vocals work well with the song. I’m Your Man is pretty successful too, despite the keyboard solo. Take this Waltz I don’t think is great. He does some waltz time stuff on his first album and its nice, but this doesn’t sound good. But its not as bad as Jazz Police, an almost Partridgean level exercise in terribleness, with its pitch shifted keyboards and awful backing vocals. I like I Can’t Forget, the pedal steel giving it a nice touch of human warmth and country edge working well with the chorus and backing vocals. Tower of Song is great, the more restrained instrumentation and nicely arranged backing vocals give it an excellently off kilter atmosphere, again with a great vocal and lyric. So overall it’s a bit of a curate’s egg. When it works well like on Everybody Knows and Tower of Song its excellent, but when it’s bad, as with Jazz Police, it’s pretty awful. But, despite that, I still found it fascinating and I certainly didn’t get bored of listening to it. Therefore it’s a bit tricky to rate, it’s inconsistency would make it a 3, but it is weirdly intriguing and I admire him jumping wholeheartedly into a new sound. And the lyrics and vocals are great, and there are a couple of very good songs. I’ll just tip it into a 4 on that basis. 🍌🍌🍌🍌 Playlist submission: Everybody Knows

Wow what a voice, what an experience. I love the baritone and sultry vibes of this record. I love how his voice is buttressed by the soft backing vocals. -1 star for the synth use. Don't care for that sound, even if it was edgy for the times.

Was tossing up between 3 or 4 out of 5. I love Leonard Cohen's music and poetry but this 80s style electronic sound made it just a little hard to get into, I feel it will get better after more listens but it's normally not my thing. Lyrically this album is great. What made it a 4 outta 5 was 'take this waltz' - what a fucking tune.

че-то я угарнул, конечно, когда вместо акустики начался синтвейв какой-то. но внимательно послушал несколько раз. конечно, уже не совсем то, чем были «Songs of...», чувствуется более коммерческая жилка, Манхэттен — настоящий хит (кстати, у Джо Кокера неплохой кавер на неё был). Ну и лирика меня прямо калила в некоторых местах, какой-то куколдизм проклёвывался время от времени. с таким голосом разве о бабах нужно страдать... ну не суть, дед всё равно малаца, за First We Take, Jazz Police и Everydoby Knows можно четверочку въебать. Вернее я теперь решил ставить оценки по 10-баллке для большего размаха, поэтому пусть будет 7

Feel like some of these could grow on me but didn’t love

This was an interesting listen. Some really good songs ("First We Take Manhattan", "I Can't Forget"") some really meh songs ("Ain't No Cure for Love", "Take This Waltz", "Everybody Knows") and maybe the best/worst song I've ever heard ("Jazz Police"). All and all more good then bad I think. 2.8/5 -> 3/5

Cheer up, dude.

Haha they love Leonard Cohen, huh? This is better than the other one we reviewed, but it's not my thing. He sounds like an off-brand Roger Waters. Best songs are the first couple. I have to say I like Concrete Blonde's Everybody knows much more. Still glad I was exposed to this since he is everywhere now that I know who he is.

not without any merit, but so often the synth use here sounds like a casio preset in a way that's just bad, and it's late enough that someone should have done something better. apparently the casio-preset quality to some of this stuff might be ironic? but if so that doesn't make it any better and maybe makes me respect it less. I'd be much more down for a sound like this if it were an up-and-coming artist using prosumer grade gear because that's what they could get and making this earnestly than very established well known and connected musician doing this out of irony

that was a struggle, despite the first track

No. 199/1001 First We Take Manhattan 2/5 Aint No Cure For Love 3/5 Everybody Knows 2/5 I'm Your Man 2/5 Take This Waltz 3/5 Jazz Police 2/5 I Can't Forget 3/5 Tower of Song 2/5 Average: 2,38 My least favorite Leonard Cohen so far. Didn't really like the musical arrangements here.

The wiki notes for I'm Your Man say "the album marked Cohen's further move to a more modern sound, with many songs having a synthesizer-oriented production" and, while that's true, God it's cheesy. It's awfully 80s for late 80s, it's like a kid discovering all the possibilities and throwing them into all the songs, and it's only really his voice and some other small details that make this slightly listenable, like most of the songs do hold a tune and keep your attention. It's not good though, it's a 2.

Not sure why this is on the list really, feels like Cohen trying to ride a wave that he really doesn't belong on. First We Take Manhattan is quite a fun song, but really doesn't suit his voice, the rest is at best okay with a few wanderings into dreadful (Jazz Police in particular). 2/5.

Is he an amazing poet? The lyrics on this made me chuckle in a couple of places, but generally this sounds like an old guy who is being indulged in order to make a bit of cash. The backing music is just ridiculous. This album deserves a 1 just for the gratuitous use of corny plastic sounding slap bass. Not quite though, it's unique and charming enough for a 2. Just.

A few decent songs but Jesus Christ

And I thought I liked Leonard Cohen... It genuinely sounds like a parody of 80s production, like I'm stuck inside a cruise ship bar for lonely middle-aged men on karaoke night. The loneliest and oldest man, whose wife disappeared in mysterious circumstances, now earns a living mumbling words while demoing the worlds first MIDI keyboard. Up until 'Jazz Police' I would have argued it's just extremely dated production. But I now insist this entire album was an elaborate troll and somehow 80s audiences unironically ate it up. It's the only logical explanation. The literal opposite of polishing a turd.

I'm Your Meh

Oh Leonard. You were better than this. This album is SO disjointed. Waltzes, and synth and crazy high background singers... I'm gonna start making people listen to Jazz Police when the say they like Leonard Cohen but can only name one song. (And you know what song I mean)

The synths are so out of place here it is really strange

The 80’s really did ruin everything uh? Wtf is going on with those choruses and keyboards?

I prefer the folky Leonard Cohen to this by far. This sounds like a satire of late 80s production values. Almost painful hearing him trying to reinvent himself. I don't think it's the songs themselves that are bad necessarily, it's the arrangements (and how they were recorded). I take that back, "Jazz Police" is just plain bad all around. Is it intentionally ironically bad? "Guys like me are mad for turtle meat?" WTF? It's like something from Tim and Eric's Awesome Show... If I want to listen to some deep voiced 60s/70s icon reinventing themselves in the 80s, I'd much rather listen to Scott Walker's "Climate of Hunter."

p586. 1988. 2 stars. This has not aged well - it sounds like every bad drum machine, synth and mid-80s cocktail bar musical cringeworthy cliche you can imagine. In particular the female backing vocalists and whoever did their arrangements need to be taken outside and shot. Twice. Shame, as there are some cracking tunes here, and lyrically he is still light years of the game.

Hard to believe this is the same artist who put together ‘Songs.’ Arrangements are one-note, instrumentals are cheesy, and the overall product is just disappointing

Fucking abysmal. If the late 80’s production and synthetics aren’t enough to convince you of that, there is a song on this album called…”Jazz Police”. It is precisely as shitty as you would think a song called “Jazz Police” would be. This is the worst record on the list.

I know people love this guy, but this just sounds like bad karaoke to me. Cheesy ass keyboard music …

This fucking sucked.

This dude does not like singing. Imma be real the first song pissed me off so much

Gear: DCA ÆON 2 Noire Artwork: 🍌😎🤵🏻 Mix (2013 Remaster): 🎧😐🆗 Musik: 😮‍💨🥱😒 Wertung: 🍌(🍌)/5

Imma be real, I hated this. Sounded very 80s (derogatory)

I can't think of a world where I would find this album remotely enjoyable. 80's casio keyboard music and spoken word vocals that overwhelm everything else on every track is just god awful. A dumpster filled with diarrhea and cat piss would be too good of a trash receptacle to throw this away into.

It's... like some dude started songwriting when he was HORNY then by the time came to record he was hopped up on barbiturates

This is what I signed up for, some tunes that really mean something. I have never listened to Leonard Cohan before, heard the name, so this intro has got me wanting more. Not like some of the shite offerings that make its way on here.

One of my all time favourite albums

I remember my dad having this on tape in the 80s. I hated it and always complained about Cohen being so depressing and moany. But now his wit and mastery shines through. It's such a weird combination of Cohen's world-weary vocals and (then) state-of-the-art electronic compositions, but somehow it works brilliantly. Sorry, Dad!

holy synth

Could not Stream it.

Ah Cohen, he might be my favourite songwriter. His lyrics are always great and that’s where this album really shines. This album kicks off with a real banger. “First we take Manhattan” is where both Cohen’s great lyrics work in conjunction with the music to be just a killer of a track. The rest of the album has a such a weird sound. Some simple presets from a synthesiser and some very good backing singers. It really shouldn’t work as it sounds more like a karaoke than anything else. I think it really does work for some reason. Sure, it helps that Cohen’s songwriting and voice is just great. “Ain’t no Cure for Love” is a little cheesy but also something about it is so raw. “Everybody knows” is ominous track that also just works. Honestly I could list all the tracks as great ones (maybe not Jazz Police and I Can’t Forget). Even the Tower of Song’s “solo” which sounds like some kids first attempt at jazz, works for some reason. I understand if you don’t like this but I really do. 5 star.

Fantastic. Ultimate classic of the legendary poet.

Pfffffff die stem man. Leonard Cohen is misschien één van de artiesten waar de stem nooit slecht is geworden. Dit is toch wel één van z'n beste, zo niet z'n allerbeste album. 5.0

Another long-time favorite. Almost loses a point for "Jazz Police" but the rest is so good I can't be mean. Incredible that so many cheesy elements work so well together. The Cohen album I listen to the most

Excellent. Take this Walz, First we takes New York, I'm your man

Obra maestra. Sorprendentemente es solo su octavo disco, debido al retiro musical que rompió con el anterior Various Positions (el de Hallelujah y Dance me to the end of love) donde ya incluía sonidos sintetizados que en este disco cobran protagonismo desde un arrolador inicio. First we take Manhattan es una joya, musical y líricamente. Además de unos coros que realzan la canción y unos sintetizadores que le van como un guante. No se queda ahí, Take this waltz es una maravilla a partir de Lorca, Tower of song, Can´t forget ... 8 canciones, apenas 40 minutos y ahí queda este monolito atemporal. 5/5

Haha, oh yeah this, this is quite an album. Yet another artist I came to via REM (how many times have I said that on this journey?) although I was at least aware of him beforehand. But, First We Take Manhattan was an REM cover version on an Automatic-era single, I think it was Drive, and I loved it. It was very much done in REMs style, but notably with some of the humour and the sardonic delivery removed. So hearing this version with all the synths and strings, the cackling and the heavy use of female vocals I thought what the holy fuck is this? It sounded like it was by the Pet Shop Boys. But come on, it is brilliant. Let's skip past the schlocky sax intro to Ain't No Cure. There's a great song here. Everybody knows Everybody Knows, it's a classic. Everybody knows the war is over, everybody knows the good guys lost. There were so many people you just had to meet. Without your clothes... I'm Your Man is bloody fantastic. I'm just going to skate past Jazz Police. Tower of Song is bloody fantastic. I was born with the gift of a golden voice 😂 Overall the album has obviously massively dated sonically, yet somehow retains it's enormous charm, and that is absolutely testament to Cohen's genius. I'm torn between 4 and 5 because of a couple of songs, but there's so many absolute classics that I might have to go top end. I absolutely love the top review - banana music!! 😂 Incredible.

My 2nd Cohen album in 10 days. I like this one just as much as the other one. Leonard has really grown on me. He's really a great song writer.

80s production style almost killed this for me out of the gate, but Cohen talent kept me listening. In the end, he wins. His writing won me over!

Love his voice with the bvs, Stand out tracks - I'm your man and Tower of song Jazz Police not so much

These are all absolute classics. Cohen is one of the greatest songwriter/storytellers of any generation. His entire discography should be taught to all those who aspire to write.

It isn’t often that the songs of this project make me tear up, and it could just be the emotional place I’m in with a baby on the way next week, but I teared up a few times, most especially with Take This Waltz. Loved it.

Bit too 80s sounding at times but overall a fantastic album. Recognized most of the songs, but didn't know they were all from one album.

No words needed.

very new york jazz-esque, can definitely see it as an evening playlist

Leonard Cohen is so cool in a way that almost no one else is. He really reminds me a lot of Anthony Bourdain and his no-nonsense, yet sensitive attitude seems to really match Bourdain too. I love his voice and his poetry is really excellent. The musicians and singers he employs on this album (and others) are truly top-notch, but sometimes his performances are a little more well-tuned to poetry than music (see the keyboard solo at the end of Tower of Song). Still, I loved this album and listened to it twice. Five stars.

Perfect

Een heel ander geluid dan de debuutplaat van zoveel albums terug. Als een kameleon blijft ook Leonard zich aanpassen aan de muzikale mogelijkheden en ontwikkelingen. En aan z'n steeds dieper wordende zuchtstem. Briljant titelnummer, een aantal andere kende ik van een latere liveplaat. Die uitvoeringen vond ik eigenlijk beter, af en toe gaat het iets te veel los met de jarentachtigelectronica, en ik kan niet zoveel met wijsneuzigheden als 'I can't forget but I don't remember what'. Maar dat zijn pietluttigheden, want het zindert, dreigt en vleit. Ik geniet hier al met al heel erg van, dus we zijn maar weer eens royaal.

Sure, the 80s production is cheesy, but it perfectly contrasts the dark, razor sharp and occasionally sexy lyrics and vocals. A big surprise for me.

Definitely not my favourite Cohen I've heard but he's one of those songwriters where there's always something to get out of the words even if they don't quite speak to you, so very much still a positive experience

Apart from the cheesy 80s synth, a classic. Great songs...

I think Leonard Cohen pulled this experiment off pretty well. Overall, it’s an 80s synthpop album, but you can hear elements of darkwave, artpop, and sophistipop mixed in. Cohen’s deep, gravelly voice is still front and center, along with his introspective lyrics and witty, half sung, half spoken delivery. The production gives the album a dark, melancholic atmosphere throughout. I’m sure he had people advising him to try something new since his career was dipping at this point, but this was a big departure from his earlier work, and he and his team did a solid job of pulling it off to revitalize his career.

One of my all time favorites. Many popular 60s artists felt they had to pander in the 80s, or produce ultra critical music to let everyone know they weren’t chill with the materialistic vibe. But Cohen creates a new sound and is true to his dark vision lyrically, and arguably this is the best thing he’s ever done.

Cohens absolut bästa album.

Superb

Still one of the best writers. What a great album

This album is a masterpiece.... Then there's Jazz Police.

One of my favorite Leonard Cohen albums. All the songs on here are great, even the less liked ones like Jazz police I still manage to enjoy. Does suffer from some very 1980's music tropes but it doesn't distract from the quality too much.

Apart from the penultimate track "I Can't Forget", each song in this album is instantly likeable and memorable. Sure, the instrumentation is often marked by a maximalist, synth-enhanced approach typical of the eighties--a 180-degree turn compared to Cohen's early classic LPs, and one that feels borderline "cheesy" in the opener "First We Take Manhattan". But here is the very rare case where such "commercial" approach actually brings something relevent to the table. Indeed, willingly or not, such hackneyed arrangements thus add to the sarcastic overtones of the Canadian singer-songwriter's oeuvre. Or they aptly underline his musings about love / personal validation / selfish drives / empathy and how everyone plays some sort of "game" to have all of those things. The end result is *both* heartfelt and disillusioned, oddly enough. Listen to the admirable trilogy of songs "Ain't No Cure For Love" / "Everybody Knows" / "I'm Your Man" to find stellar examples of how Cohen is both tender and wry when he addresses those themes. In the second of those three songs, you also have a sort of "comedy of manners" that sums up everything that's great in Cohen's songwriting:  Everybody knows that you love me baby Everybody knows that you really do Everybody knows that you've been faithful Ah, give or take a night or two Everybody knows you've been discreet But there were so many people you just had to meet Without your clothes And everybody knows The oud played not long after those lines is a gorgeous thing, bringing pure emotion to those descriptions of flaws typical of the quote-unquote "human condition". Side two then broadens the scope to include topics related to "romantic" decadence ("Take This Waltz"), partly ironical dystopian concerns ("Jazz Police") and even a mystical meditation about the "Babel-like" act of artistic creation in closer "Tower Of Song". Bright, brooding, witty, moving, rich and layered, *I'm Your Man* is everything you want an "essential" album to be. Number of albums left to review: less than 200, approximately - I've temporarily lost count here. Number of albums I'll include in my own list: half so far, approximately (including this one) Number of albums I *might*  include: a quarter, approximately Number of albums I'll never include: another quarter, or just a little more (many other albums are more important to me)

good dstuff

The worst music on any of his albums I’ve gotten so far, but consistently good lyrics all around. ‘Jazz Police’ is the biggest exception to that, but it’s musically engaging enough to not be a slog. Songs like ‘First We Take Manhattan’, ‘Everybody Knows’, and the title track are really good in the departments of both lyrics and their general vibes. This is the end of the review. I didn’t have a good way of doing it.

ACAB includes Jazz Cops. Sorry, I don’t make the rules.

Well, my friends are gone and my hair is grey I ache in the places where I used to play