Monkey with a Typewriter

Leonard Cohen is one of those magical artists that you only discover at the perfect time in your life. This may be when you're in the depths of despair, or perhaps in lying next the one you love, or will love, or used to love... He covers it all. And this 2-disc collection covers his career to date wonderfully.

It's amazing to hear his voice transform from Dylan-like folkster into the trademark Gravel-Bass that men only wish they could have late at night while trying to seduce some unsuspecting young thing. Thirty one tracks in all, and every one of them is simply amazing. I prefer his less-synthesized songs, but even those mid-80s early 90s electro-pop fusion pieces go down like warm honey tea on a cold night. Pre-fab Top 40 music withers and melts next to the heat of his lyrics, and yet... he sings about the same things. The one that got away. The next one coming down the street. The happy times, the angry times, the mistakes, the perfect moments. As another great songwriter once said, "Give me a Leonard Cohen Afterworld..."

Listen to (EVERYTHING! But my favorites are...):

Disc One
3. Sisters of Mercy
6. Bird on a Wire
8. Famous Blue Raincoat
13. Hallelujah (Voted the greatest song of all time by Canadians! Millions of Canucks can't be wrong!)
16. I'm Your Man
17. Everybody Knows
18. Tower of Song

Disc Two
1. Ain't No Cure for Love
3. First We Take Manhattan
7. Waiting for the Miracle
8. Closing Time