Our Man, Leonard
Field Commander Cohen


From the Liner Notes:

I want to thank the people who were kind enough to come to these concerts. Their warmth and hospitality allowed us to do what we were there to do. I am also deeply indebted to the musicians, for their genius and commitment. It was an honor to work with them, and with the technical crew whose perseverance served as a model for us all. In making this music we passed through more than a few graceful moments, and I thought they might be worth remembering. This record is dedicated to the memory of John Wood, the technical member of Passenger, wounded in the line of duty. We have not forgotten his bravery.

- Leonard Cohen, Los Angeles, September 2000



When the new tour album was announced in late 2000, Leonard told Jarkko Arjatsalo of The Leonard Cohen Files, "I believe when you hear this music you will understand why I wanted this record to see the light of day." As fans eagerly await the release of this live album, here is a glimpse of how it all came together.

In 1978 Leonard Cohen contacted music producer Henry Lewy to work with him on the recording of Recent Songs. Lewy had previously used the musicians from Passenger, a Texas-based fusion-rock group, on an album he had produced for Joni Mitchell and so he called upon them for Leonard's album. Thus, Mitch Watkins (electric guitar), Paul Ostermayer (sax), Steve Meador (drums), Roscoe Beck (bass), and Bill Ginn (keyboards) joined violinist Raffi Hakopian, oudist John Bilezikjian and vocalists Jennifer Warnes and Sharon Robinson at A&M Studios in Los Angeles for the recording of the album. The group seemed to mesh and a "strong sense of musicianship" pervaded the recording sessions.1

About the album, Leonard has said, "I really had to rediscover some sort of basis; something I knew about. It was a coming home...a very rich period."2 And the album was well received. The New York Times listed it among it's top ten albums of 1979.3

The September 1979 release of Recent Songs occasioned a tour which began October 7. The touring band was primarily comprised of those musicians who had formed so comfortable a union with Leonard in the recording studio, the members of Passenger -- Roscoe Beck, Bill Ginn, Steve Meador, Paul Ostermayer, Mitch Watkins -- along with John Bilezikjian, Raffi Hakopian, Sharon Robinson and Jennifer Warnes.

Rehearsals for the tour took place in London at Shepperton Studios. The tour began in Scandinavia, and went on to France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and England. Leonard and his band performed 53 concerts in 44 cities in less than 70 days with a impressive set-list of 45 songs.

Leonard's performances during the tour showed a "polished entertainer, with more rhythm and energy in his songs."4 "The dextrous band...made for agreeably sophisticated concerts, with Warnes and harmony partner Sharon Robinson proving gossamer foils for Cohen's ever more dolorous vocalising."5

About the concerts Elizabeth Thomson wrote in Melody Maker, "People of every age and from every walk of life stood to show their appreciation."6 And for The Lancashire Evening Post Fiona Linning summarized the Preston concert:

"Old favourites were given an airing... again we were reminded that it is the words that really count... But the music has changed -- jazzed up into a true tour product... Throughout, Cohen's performance was gentle, but insistently demanding of attention... He took us back to the 60s 'where all the critics think I belong'. But he did more than that -- he tapped the roots of memory and took his audience forward..."7
A few months after the European tour, Leonard commented to Australian radio about the audiences that were attending his concerts:

"When I look into an audience in a concert hall, I think they seem to be in their early 20's. Of course, there are some people that follow my work for a long period of time. So sometimes you find parents with their children."
When asked why he thought he might appeal to a younger audience, Leonard suggested that "younger people are interested in information in a way that older people are not... They just have an appetite for experience and that's what a writer is suppose to do, clarify experience."8



1. Nadel, Ira B., Various Positions, published simultaneously in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto, and in the U.S. by Pantheon Books, a division of Random House, Inc., 1996, p. 225.

2. Dorman, L.S. and Rawlins, C.L, Leonard Cohen: Prophet of the Heart, Omnibus Press, 1990, p. 300.

3. Nadel, Ira B., Leonard Cohen: A Life in Art, Robson Press, 1988, ECW Press, 1994, p. 118.

4. Nadel, Ira B., Various Positions, published simultaneously in Canada by Random House of Canada Limited, Toronto, and in the U.S. by Pantheon Books, a division of Random House, Inc., 1996, p. 229.

5. Sheppard, David, Leonard Cohen, Unanimous Ltd., 2000, p. 49.

6. Dorman, L.S. and Rawlins, C.L, Leonard Cohen: Prophet of the Heart, Omnibus Press, 1990, p. 311.

7. Devlin, Jim, Is This What You Wanted, privately published limited edition, September 1997, p. 28.

8. Transcript of a radio interview, ABC Radio, Sydney, Australia, March, 1980.




Return to the Home Page   Learn which band members will solo on the new album.   Read the recollections of Jim Devlin and Jim Donoghue about concerts that will be featured on the new album.
A list of songs featured on the new live album.   Study the notebook pages where Leonard began Field Commander Cohen.   Prepare to be dazzled by this photographic tour from the lens of Hazel Field.   Read what the press has to say about the new live album.   Harry Rasky filmed his documentary during the 1979 tour. Now Rasky has a new book about his experience.  

Beaucoup de ces informations sont disponibles en français sur le Leonard Cohen French site