2008 is shaping up as a fine (and strange) time to be Leonard Cohen. Most obviously, he's about to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. We'll be taking bets as to whether or not the notorious roue makes a pass at fellow inductee Madonna before the night is over (Hey, he used to date the 25-years-his-junior Rebecca DeMornay...). He also wound up, at least tangentially, in the winner's circle at the Grammys this year, as one of the vocalists on Herbie Hancock's Album of the Year-winning Joni Mitchell tribute River: The Joni Letters, and that's the first time in his 40-plus-year recording career he's come within spitting distance of that particular distinction. Hell, he's even getting major props on American Idol! Contestant Jason Castro snared enough ears with his version of (Jeff Buckley's version of) the Cohen classic "Hallelujah" that the instantly-made-available download of the performance shot to the top of the iTunes charts the next day. Amid all this attention, the 73-year-old songpoet himself is getting set to embark on his first tour in eons this spring, and is said to have a new album in the can for release later this year.
As if all this wasn't enough--what's the proof that we went to the wrong night of Jonathan Richman's two-night stint at the Music Hall of Williamsburg this week? How about the fact that we missed Richman's version of "Here It Is," from Cohen's 2001 album 10 New Songs? Damn the cruel fates that kept us from hearing everyone's favorite man-child, author of "Abominable Snowman in the Market" and "Chewing Gum Wrapper," merrily crooning "here is your cart, your cardboard and piss," and "here is your sickness, your bed and your pan" from the ol' Gloomy Gus's songbook. Not only that, it turns out the tune will be on Richman's new album, out on Vapor Records next month. With such an unusual amount of attention on Cohen's plate lately, can a Hannah Montana guest shot be far behind? As previously noted, he does have a way with younger women...
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