“The baffled king composing hallelujah.” David is always the protagonist of this phrase and his perplexity comes from the fact that, despite being chosen by the Lord, he could not help but follow his own human nature. The lyrics start with David, king of Israel, who, by playing the harp, can calm the evil soul of Saul, his predecessor. In the lyrics there is first of all the sex-religion dualism, two topics often present in many other songs of the Canadian. But Cohen, as he revealed in an interview, took his little revenge thanks to one of the songs belonging to that album: Hallelujah.
JEFF BUCKLEY HALLELUJAH LYRICS MEANING FULL
This is how Leonard Cohen made his way in the world of music at the age of 33: it was 1967 and the album was called Songs of Leonard Cohen.īefore Various Positions, other records followed: Songs from a room, Songs of love and hate, Recent songs, all full of sin and redemption, sex and holiness.Īlthough Various Positions had true milestones in the Canadian singer-songwriter’s discography, the producers were quite skeptical, that’s why it was released later in USA. A simple but deep voice, classical guitar arpeggios and above them stories of platonic and non-platonic love ( Suzanne), goodbyes ( So Long Marianne, Hey that’s no way to say goodbye), tales of a claustrophobic world on the verge of an apocalypse ( Stories of Streets) and damned souls in search of redemption. It also gives the song a hyperbolic ending, which I prefer.Leonard Cohen was one of the greatest songwriters (even if in this case the term is an understatement) that last century gave us.īorn in Canada to a Jewish family in the 1930s, he then moved to Hydra, where in the first half of the 1960s he wrote and published several novels and collections of poetry. It takes it full circle, bringing back the biblical relationship between the subject and a (the) Lord. This last verse is not included in most covers, but for me the last verse makes the song complete. This Hallelujah is optimistic, because it shows that the hardships have not defeated him. We start with the best intentions and though it can go wrong, we need to try. The conclusion of the song: Here LC turns from looking back to looking forward. I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you He remembers when things were good, how their lovemaking made him feel like they were really together, and their Hallelujahs were those of joy and ecstasy. He has seen the glorious side of love (the flag on the marble arch), but the love is not lasting and his hart is broken, therefore the Hallelujah is cold and broken.
The relationship still exists, but it's hollow. When you hear a Hallelujah it's probably not because of joy (seeing the light), but because someone is hurting. Maybe the most "black" verse, reflecting on the bitterness of love. It is a distructive relationship and the Hallelujah is one of dispair.Īnd it's not a cry that you hear at night It ends up with him submitting and losing his powers. The man (David) falls in love, but the relation is not a healty one. She broke your throne, and she cut your hairĪnd from your lips she drew the Hallelujah Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you Your faith was strong but you needed proof I believe this is about unmatched intrests in a relationship. He does not understand this (is baffled) and tries to explain (the cords are matched by the actual song), thus composing the Hallelujah. That David played, and it pleased the Lordīut you don't really care for music, do you?ĭavid loves music, but his love does not. Taken from the description of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah.
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