I want to take over the unconditional leadership of the world, I want to lead the world to a new sensibility . . .
These much-quoted lines by Leonard Cohen were orignally published in "Leonard Cohen Wants the Unconditional Leadership of the World" by Susan Lumsden (Weekend Magazine Sept 12, 1970), the first page of which is shown below.
Photo #2 is the cover of that edition of Weekend Magazine.
I think if anybody hangs in there long enough at whatever they're doing--whether it's fishing or journalism or cabinet making--it represents a kind of heroic attention, because almost everything in the world conspires to whisper in your ear, at increasing volume, "Sit down and shut up." So, anybody who continues to show up at whatever they're doing deserves a certain kind of applause.
Leonard Cohen, in response to the query, "Do you still view songwriting as a 'heroic enterprise?'" from Leonard Cohen by Dev Sherlock (Musician Magazine, November, 1993)
Answer #1 - From Drawn to complex characters by Michael Sragow, Sun Movie Critic, Baltimore Sun (June 28, 2006):
His [Cohen's] respect for Lunson's [Willie] Nelson documentary - and, Cohen has said, his response to "the kind of radiant presence Lian presents" - persuaded him to participate in the film. [emphasis mine]
Answer #2 - From Idol Chatter column by Brantley Bardin in Premiere magazine (June 2006):
Brantley Bardin: What made you decide to do it [participate in the "I'm Your Man" documentary]?
Leonard Cohen: I was approached by [director] Lian Lunson and she’s very beautiful— [emphasis mine]
DrHGuy Note: I say potato - Leonard says radiant presence.
Credit Due Department: The photo of Mr Cohen and Ms Lunson is a publicity shot for the I'm Your Man documentary.
Clarity is one of the things I like to go for. I don’t think we’re ever free from this mysterious mechanism, though. Mystery can go all the way from not knowing what to do with yourself to standing in awe at the vast activity of the cosmos which no man can penetrate. I don’t think we’re ever free from any of that. On the other hand, you can’t go around continually expressing your awe before these celestial mechanics. These are things that maybe we should keep to ourselves. I think that we’re surrounded by, infused with and operate on a mysterious landscape, every one of us. It’s something to keep your mouth shut about if it really is a mystery.
From Hallelujah For Leonard Cohen by Jon Wilde, Sabatoge Times. Posted 22 March 2011 (the quote itself is taken from a 1988 interview).
These intersections of the lives of Leonard Cohen and his one time mentor and long time friend Irving Layton are offered in celebration of the centenary of the birth of the man Cohen called "our greatest poet."
There was Irving Layton, and then there was the rest of us. He is our greatest poet, our greatest champion of poetry. Alzheimer's could not silence him, and neither will death.
I always think of something Irving Layton said about the requirements for a young poet, and I think it goes for a young singer, too, or a beginning singer: 'The two qualities most important for a young poet are arrogance and inexperience.' It’s only some very strong self-image that can keep you going in a world that really conspires to silence everyone.
- Leonard Cohen (The John Hammond Years, Interview with John Hammond and Leonard Cohen. BBC, September 20, 1986. Found at LeonardCohenFiles)
Always after I tell him what I intend to do next, Layton solemnly inquires: Leonard, are you sure you're doing the wrong thing?
- Leonard Cohen (Our National Muse By Judith Fitzgerald The Toronto Star, August 1, 1999)
He stood up for Nietzsche I stood up for Christ He stood up for victory I stood up for less
I loved to read his verses He loved to hear my song We never had much interest In who was right or wrong
His boxer's hands were shaking He struggled with his pipe Imperial tobacco Which I helped him light
- Irving and Me at the Hospital by Leonard Cohen, from Book of Longing, which is dedicated to Irving Layton (1912-2006)
My personal favorite of the videos about Leonard Cohen and Irving Layton is this clip of Leonard Cohen singing "The Banana Song" to Irving Layton, who, as I pointed out in the May 14, 2009 Heck Of A Guy post, Leonard Cohen Has Gone Bananas, plays second banana.
[Layton's] work moves us.... This is the tonic, the elixir. Irving, I salute the aching and triumphant impeccability of your life.
- Leonard Cohen, speaking at a 1991 tribute to Irving Layton (Various Positions - A Life Of Leonard Cohen by Ira Nadel. Random House of Canada, 1996)
Credit Due Department: Photo atop this post by Wayne Cuddington. Photo of Leonard Cohen and Irving Layton found at A Quiet Madman (Ottawa Citizen, Jan 5, 2006). Photo of Leonard Cohen, Jack McClelland, and Irving Layton from Canadian writing enjoys a golden age despite takeover of McClelland & Stewart - The Star (Jan 13, 2012). Photo of Leonard Cohen with Layton's book of poetry (at Layton's funeral) by Ian Barrett.
[Roshi] became a part of my life and a deep friend in the real sense of friendship: someone who really cared about – or didn't care, I'm not quite sure which it is – who deeply didn't care about who I was. Therefore who I was began to wither, and the less I was of who I was, the better I felt.
- Leonard Cohen, from the documentary, Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man
Leonard Cohen is the best known student of Kyozan Joshu Sasaki (most often called Roshi by Cohen), a Japanese Rinzai Zen teacher. Cohen served as Roshi's personal assistant during his stay at the Mount Baldy Zen Center Roshi founded and leads, in the 1990s.
As Cohen, Roshi's junior by 25 years, explains,
I thought I'd take that opportunity to hang with him while he's still around,
As of 2012, Roshi is still actively teaching at the age of 105.
