Dinosaur With Headphones

The new Leonard Cohen album Popular Problems is here. Not his most sonically inspiring or diverse, but what matters most with Cohen are the lyrics, and at the age of 80 he's as depressingly talented as always. "Samson In New Orleans"... what a poem. Here are some snippets of good lyrics from the album:

"All your moves are swift,
all your turns are tight.
Let me catch my breath,
I thought we had all night.

I like to take my time,
I like to linger as it flies.
A weekend on your lips,
A lifetime in your eyes."

---

"There is no God in Heaven,
and there is no Hell below.
So says the professor
of all there is to know.
But I've had the invitation
that a sinner can't refuse,
and it's almost like salvation.
It's almost like the blues."

---

My favorite song is the closing one, "You Got Me Singing". It reminds me of someone, and the song they used to me make me sing in my own heart. "The only song I ever had"... Damn you, Leonard Cohen.

"You got me singing,
even though the news is bad.
You got me singing,
the only song I ever had.

You got me singing
ever since the river died.
You got me thinking
of the places we could hide.

You got me singing,
even though the world is gone.
You got me thinking:
I'd like to carry on.

You got me singing,
even though it all looks grim.
You got me singing
the Hallelujah hymn.

You got me singing
like a prisoner in a jail.
You got me singing
like my pardon's in the mail.

You got me wishing
our little love would last.
You got me thinking
like those people of the past."

---

Sigh.