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Various Positions: A Life of Leonard Cohen
From reviews of the hardcover edition: " Various Positions is] more a literary than a rock bio--quiet of tone, serious without being worshipful. Drawing on Cohen's own archives, Nadel plots aspects of Cohen's life--Zen, love affairs, drug use--against the evolution of his writing. He fashions a biography that is revealing but also mindful of its subject at his best."...more
Paperback, 336 pages
Published
October 1st 2007
by University of Texas Press
(first published December 31st 1969)
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I've been a fan of Leonard Cohen ever since I bought his first album as "an experiment."
I've even enjoyed his poetry and prose, though to a lesser extent. So it was quite a surprise to read Nadel's biography and find how Leonard differs so radically from his public profile. Can't say as I'm all that fond of Leonard's lifestyle, but after all, it is *his* lifestyle. And it won't affect my respect and appreciation of his craft in the least.
Nadel's writing style was a h...more
I've even enjoyed his poetry and prose, though to a lesser extent. So it was quite a surprise to read Nadel's biography and find how Leonard differs so radically from his public profile. Can't say as I'm all that fond of Leonard's lifestyle, but after all, it is *his* lifestyle. And it won't affect my respect and appreciation of his craft in the least.
Nadel's writing style was a h...more
There is little to reproach to the book of Ira Nadel. It is well-written, chronologically clear, and its style is quite affordable for any kind of reader - a riveting read in sum. Nadel's insistence on limiting the book to its strictly biographical content and depriving it from various interpretations of Cohen's life and opus, as well as from the usual tabloid-style trivia, is obviously very welcome and commendable.
Still: in some parts of the book Nadel tries to deduce Cohen's artistic...more
Still: in some parts of the book Nadel tries to deduce Cohen's artistic...more
This book is a bit of a wasted opportunity. While not an official biography, Nadel had access to tons of people close to Cohen, and the book was “benignly tolerated” by Cohen himself. But the author apparently chose to ignore Cohen’s advice not to let “the facts get in the way of the truth.”
Nadel, a professor of English at the University of British Columbia, is clearly a fan, but he seems reluctant to own the material or to impose any kind of overarching interpretation on Cohen’s li...more
Nadel, a professor of English at the University of British Columbia, is clearly a fan, but he seems reluctant to own the material or to impose any kind of overarching interpretation on Cohen’s li...more
Guinevere Johansson
rated it
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review of another edition
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
lovers of Cohen, 60's, lyrical poetry, Hydra, Nico
"In Provence they encountered a massive traffic jam en route to the concert. Bob Johnston told Billy Daniels, the road manager, to get some horses, since most of the musicians were from Texas or Tennessee. There were horses at the stable attached to the country inn where they were staying, so they mounted up and headed through the countryside to their destination. To their astonishment, along the way they found a French steakhouse done up as a "Texas bar." Ten cowboys and one ...more
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After some debate with myself, I've decided I've already read this, borrowed from the library then, not remembering, re-bought a couple of years ago in a used bookstore. A good account of Cohen's life. Particularly interesting in terms of the influence of women in his work. For many years Cohen lived on a Greek island called Hydra. Included in the photos is a picture of him on his birthday, and behind him, on a bed, is a beautiful, topless woman. I'd always thought the woman was Greek. Giv...more
Everything concerning this great and legendary poet has my interest but at the end I'm not fully convinced that this biografy redeems the potential of its subject matter.
I am such a big fan of Leonard Cohen that I'm afraid I could never honestly or objectively review his bio. What I feared would happen (and didn't) was that the book would be full of references to what inspired this song or that poem and it would spoil his work for me from then on. Leonard Cohen's work is so sublime that no such thing could interfere with my enjoyment of it. That said, someday a great biography may be written on this great artist, but this wasn't it. Not a bad try, and I enjoyed ...more
Love this man--his music, his candidness, his sense of humor...loved the book, as well.
Jenn's pick
The book fills in a lot of gaps in my knowledge of early and late "folk" music and Cohen's poetry. Never quite knew what "Suzanne" (so how many times did I listen to Judy Collin's version on my small phonograph on the porch of my house in Dembi Dolo, Ethiopia)was about. Now I have a better sense and yet there's so much ambiguity in his work. Have about 30 of his songs on my ipod. But sometimes you just wanna say, "Hey, Leonard, lighten up."
I have always like Leonard Cohen, but after watching the recent documentary "I'm your man", I was eager to find out more about this disciplined, intriguing, sexy but dark human being. Learnt a lot about Leonard Cohen and his life but found the book a little disjointed and difficult to follow and was still yearning for more info about the man at the end.
I am only about 60 pages into the book, but I love it! This "benignly tolerated" biography confirms what I have always suspected... that much of Leonard Cohen's fiction is heavily influenced by his own life. I confess that I am a little bit obsessed with Mr. Cohen.
The original ladies man. I love how he was a poet and then realized he could get more girls if he played guitar and sang his poetry. I looooove L.C.
not huge on biograpies, but had to learn about one of the greatest poets of our time.
This is more than a book; it's a pleasure.
Leonard Cohen -- sex and God.
This dude is intense.
I want to marry this man....
My love 14
My love 10
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