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"Anjani - Blue Alert"

by A. D. Amorosi

Harp

July/August 2006
If it isn't crystal clear that Leonard Cohen likes the ladie—from the sun-dappled sexuality of his lyrics to 1968’s "Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye" through to the loin-stirring tenderness of "Nightingale" from his new tome of poems, Book of Longing—his hook up with Anjani should pretty much nail it.

The slow-stewing sensualist’s suddenly co-crafted and produced quickly written lyrics for this meditative Hawaiian songstress. The result's a minor gem; a smoky, small voiced jazz singer basing piano-fed melodies worthy of Tom Waits' earliest albums on Cohen’s allegorical mix of literary-infused militarism and dusky perfume-scented carnality. Perhaps inspired by Anjani's tiny touching vocals, Cohen's approach to emotional complexity and physical congress is simpler than anything in his oeuvre—"It's been Hell/It's been swell" from "Thanks for the Dance"; "I've known rags and riches/I'm a regular cliché" from "No One After You." And darned near lovelier.



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