"There is a religious hallelujah, but there are many other ones," Leonard Cohen once said. "When one looks at the world, there's only one thing to say and it's hallelujah. That's the way it is."

 

Well, that was a fascinatingly dry read.

 

I've been on a huge Jeff Buckley kick lately. I just cannot get enough of Grace. It's amazing and Hallelujah is really the shining point on that album. So, when I came across this book, I decided to check it out. It's really fascinating to read about all of the various incarnations that one song has taken on. Much to my dismay, however, the author ensured that he told us about pretty much every single one. After a while, it became a little tedious to wade through everything, which made it hard to really hammer home the importance that this song has had for people over the years. I also wish that I could have actually read more about Cohen and Buckley themselves, since they are in the title of the book. I take that back, Cohen was a big focus but it seemed that it was taking more of his opinion on everyone else's version instead of his own.

 

Anyway. The idea behind this was interesting. This is an important song in pop culture. It's also one of the most over played, so I guess seeing it picked apart repeatedly in this books kind of fits. It doesn't make for super interesting reads though. On the plus side for this book, I'm definitely want to hunt down quality biographies on both Cohen and Buckley now. Guess that is something.

It's hard to sustain an entire book based on an analysis of one song, but if there's a song to write a book on (other than perhaps one by Dylan), it'd be Hallelujah. Although Cohen sanctioned the writing of this, he did not participate in it - and his voice is notably missing. Then again, something might be lost if Mr. Cohen himself commented in any kind of a definitive way: as part of his thesis, Light repeatedly comes back to the idea that Hallelujah has enjoyed the slow build to popularity - many would say oversaturation - because it is so rife with multiple, layered meaning and therefore can be interpreted in so many ways to fit so many occasions by so many different artists.

Light gives almost every one of the major artists who've covered the tune (and even some of the minor ones) their due, but is clearly a fan of Buckley's. A surprise (for me) was Bon Jovi - whose version has been appreciated by Leonard Cohen himself as one of the stronger interpretations. While I'm not a fan of JBJ's rendition, I did appreciate his obvious depth of understanding of the lyric, the irony and the tension between the religious and secular meanings of the verses. (That said, Richie Sambora trying to put "Livin' on a Prayer" in the same category with Hallelujah kind of made me howl.)

For any of us who've listened, analyzed, compared and/or witnessed the performance of the song in any of the contexts that Light describes, there's not much new here (although I did finally get how the various verses, from the 80 that Cohen started with to the five included in Buckley's version, have been combined and recombined to different effect over the years). At the macro level, though, there is much to ponder in the journey of a song by a relatively obscure poet-songwriter becoming an iconic piece of popular culture.

A fascinating "biography" of a gorgeous, iconic song.

It's hard for me to tease out my feelings for the book, when the book is an exercise in conjuring the song. Like nearly everyone else, I adore the song. I have a favorite version, maybe three. I've sat in concert halls and listened to Cohen sing it, tears running down my face, exactly twice. So far. Well written, well-researched, this book is fascinating to read if you are at all interested in the long strange trip this song has taken, and what many of the singers think about it. It's a special song, and it's fun to hear what so many singers have to say about it. Recommended.

Not a complete waste of time since I can now differentiate one Beastie from another but pretty lightweight.