Sting, Del Rey, Costello to sing Cohen’s praises
Star-studded memorial concert will be held Nov. 6 at Bell Centre
When he knew the end was near, Leonard Cohen told his son Adam that he was free to organize a public memorial event after Cohen’s death if Adam wanted to. He had only one request: it had to take place in Montreal.
“Adam just felt this compelling and moving duty from his heart,” said Robert Kory, Leonard Cohen’s manager. “The fire in Adam was so strong … and I told Adam: ‘You’ve got to lead it. I will do what I did with your father. I’ll help build the plumbing. But you’ve got to lead it.’
“I said: ‘Are you sure you’re ready? Are you sure you’re up for that?’ And he said: ‘Well, I’m not sure if I’m up for it, but I think I’ve got to do it.’ I said: ‘That’s what your father would have said.’ ”
That conversation took place in the spring; only months later, Adam Cohen’s wish is a reality. Tower of Song: A Memorial Tribute to Leonard Cohen will take place at the Bell Centre on Nov. 6 and features an impressive array of international artists, including Sting, Lana Del Rey, Elvis Costello, Feist, k.d. lang, Philip Glass, the Lumineers’ Wesley Schultz and Jeremiah Fraites, Patrick Watson, Damien Rice and Adam Cohen. Other artists will be added to the bill. The concert will be produced by Hal Willner, a noted record and concert producer who is known for albums and shows paying tribute to artists.
He has organized concerts showcasing the work of Randy Newman, Neil Young, Lou Reed, Tim Buckley and Leonard Cohen.
Cohen died Nov. 7 last year, so the memorial show will take place on the eve of the first anniversary of his passing.
Cohen had also authorized two projects to celebrate his work, both of which are set to première in Montreal this fall. There is a major exhibition opening at the Musée d’art contemporain on Nov. 9, Leonard Cohen: Une brèche en toute chose/A Crack in Everything, and Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal presents the Cohenthemed show Dance Me from Dec. 5 to 9 at Théâtre Maisonneuve of Place des Arts.
“So the idea emerged to kick off this series (of tributes) with a concert in Montreal,” said Kory.
The lineup of artists willing to participate quickly fell into place, he added.
“A project like this happens based on deep personal connections to Leonard Cohen,” said Kory. “I knew there was a producer, Hal Willner, who had a longstanding connection with Leonard … so I went to Hal and asked if he would be interested. He knew what a challenge this would be. So he meditated a little bit and he felt Leonard saying, ‘Help the family.’
“Then Adam had his connections to his artists, and I have a few. Promoters, lawyers, managers don’t put this together — it happens from a personal connection artists feel to Leonard Cohen.”
The show will be filmed for a TV special by Jack Bender, a director whose credits include episodes of Lost, The Sopranos and Game of Thrones.
All proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Canada Council for the Arts, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec and the Conseil des arts de Montréal. Kory said Cohen often mentioned how important these arts councils were for him, particularly in the early days of his literary career.
None of the artists will receive a fee for their performances, although the producers will cover the expenses of bringing them to Montreal. They will all be singing Cohen songs, but no specifics are available yet. There will also be well-known actors delivering
spoken-word tributes to the man who wrote and sang classics like Suzanne, I’m Your Man and So Long, Marianne.
Kory says he believes Cohen would be pleased that this show is happening in his hometown.
“Here’s what Leonard is telling me,” said Kory. “Leonard is saying, ‘I’m delighted that you’re helping Adam fulfil this sense of duty.’ We had a phrase that guided my whole management career with Leonard — ‘excellence without compromise’ — and so (Leonard is saying) ‘As long as we’re at that standard, fine, go ahead and do it.’ But then he would chuckle and say, ‘Kory, why do you keep doing these things? There’s really no need.’”