Song: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen

Hallelujah lyrics

I heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth,
the minor fall, the major lift,
the baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu----jah

Your faith was strong but you needed proof,
you saw her bathing on the roof,
her beauty in the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair,
she broke your throne, she cut your hair,
and from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu----jah

Maybe I have been here before,
I know this room; I have walked this floor,
I used to live alone before I knew you
I've seen your flag on the marble arch,
love is not a victory march,it's a cold and its a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu----jah

There was a time you let me know
whats really going on below,
but now you never show it to me, do you?
(and) Remember when I moved in you;
the holy dark was moving too,
and every breath we drew was Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu----jah

Maybe there's a God above,
and all I ever learned from love
was how to shoot at someone who outdrew you
And its not a cry you can hear at night,
its not somebody who's seen the light,
its a cold and its a broken Hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu--jah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelu---u---jah

“The Baffled King Composing Hallelujah” Leonard Cohen, although late to the scene of song writing, has created a plethora of music that has inspired millions. In his late 40’s, early 50’s Cohen embarked on a reevaluation of his faith. This produced several songs of religious nature, one of which is “Hallelujah. Although it sings out in a melancholy tone, “Hallelujah” is a song with a positive message about God and the nature of believing. Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” was created after Cohen’s midlife journey of religious exploration as an affirmation of his faith.

Leonard Cohen was born in Montreal in 1934. He was born into a Jewish family; however his works containing religious aspects have been mostly inspired by the Christian and Protestant influence of Montreal. Around his fifties Cohen wanted to affirm his faith. He proceeded on an exploration of faith, his and in general, and at the end of the journey made the album Various Positions. Various Positions features several songs of the religious nature. After the album he continued to create songs of faith in order to reach his fans about the nature of believing.

The first verse of “Hallelujah” sets the mood for the rest of the song. “David” is King David from the second book of Samuel. It also states a question directly from Cohen to God; “But you don’t really care for music, do you?” It isn’t talking about music, specifically; it’s an overall question to God about his caring about the world. Cohen also makes mention of a “baffled king.” This is both David and Cohen himself. David is a baffled king, as in the bible when he asks for an ordeal, but also in his actions dealing with Bethsheba in the second stanza. Cohen is the baffled musician, not necessarily searching for an actual lost chord, but searching for the element that ties everything together and makes sense of existing.

The second stanza of “Hallelujah” refers to David from the second book of Samuel. The woman in the verse is Bethsheba, wife of Uriah. While strolling on the roof David comes across her. Eventually he takes her to his bed and she becomes with child. Bethsheba did tie David to a chair and did break a throne. Cohen also wanted to make note in this stanza the workings of relationships between men and women. He writes this passage with the stance that nothing can be reconciled here. There are conflicts in life and in us that don’t come with resolution. It isn’t until later, both in life and in the song, that we see any kind of conflict resolution. Between David and Bethsheba it isn’t a happy ending that we look for, but David, and Cohen, rising above the mortal coil and embracing what it is to be alive.

The third stanza ties the biblical introduction to Cohen’s experiences and feelings. This is where Cohen introduces his crisis of faith. “You say I took the name in vain” is talking about sins. Here it states the sin of taking the lord’s name in vain, however it can be broadened to refer to all of Cohen’s sins. “I don’t even know the name” is Cohen’s response to the accusations- that he doesn’t know God, or that God has not made himself known to Cohen. “But if I did, well really, what’s it to you?” is Cohen asking others why it matters to them what he believes or doesn’t believe. The final part that talks about the blaze of light in every word is saying that God is in all the words. It doesn’t matter which you’ve heard because God is in all of them.

The final stanza of “Hallelujah” is the firm statement that Cohen believes in God. “I couldn’t feel, so I tried to touch” refers to Cohen’s religious exploration in the late part of his life. Cohen felt the lack of faith in his life and so sought out a path to God to feel complete. “I’ve told the truth, I didn’t come to fool you” shows his honesty and earnest searching. The “you” in the lyrics refer to God. With these words he reassured God of his pure intentions. “And even though/ It all went wrong/ I’ll stand before the Lord of Song/ With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah” is the final statement that Cohen feels his journey has been fulfilling. Despite the hardships and failures, Cohen stands before the “Lord of Song” still singing Hallelujah. “Hallelujah” is the basic sense that even though no one ever completely understands faith and God, sometimes all there is to say is Hallelujah.

Despite rumors of Cohen being a pessimist, “Hallelujah” is an uplifting song with a strong, positive message. Created after Cohen’s explorative stint in religion, “Hallelujah” is a song about the believing and having faith. It moves gracefully through Cohen’s transition from doubting to faith. With religious metaphors and imagery it captures listeners who listen to lyrics, and with its harmonizing singing and flowing melody it ensnares listeners who prefer instrumentals. “Hallelujah” is a song that helps listeners to believe and to trust in God, or merely to have faith.

song performed by Rufus Wainwright, Jeff Buckley, Bob Dylan,

Leonard Cohen: Hallelujah! (update)

One would never wish financial hardship on anyone but 'Halleujah!' for the financial hardship that forces Leonard Cohen back on to the stage. Here Telegraph journalist Neil McCormick welcomes Cohen back with an in depth look at one of his most enduring songs. Additional material from the Independent now added at the foot of this article.

This weekend one of the most revered singer-songwriters in history arrives in Britain and Ireland for a tour that will take him from the gardens of Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin to the main stage at Glastonbury.

In 15 years away from the stage, Leonard Cohen has endured psychological crisis, spiritual transformation and the loss of his fortune in a financial fraud, yet he treats such personal dramas as the stuff of art. "We basically all lead the same kind of lives," he said recently. "Gain and loss, surrender and victory - popular music has to be about those subjects."

It is all there in one song in particular, an epic, gospel-tinged ballad of desire and rejection, love and sex, God and man, failure and transcendence, the inevitability of death and triumph of the spirit against the greatest odds. Performed by a 73-year-old man with a shattered voice, it is a song with the power to turn a rock arena into a cathedral.

The song is Hallelujah. Written and rewritten by Cohen over the years, it has come to be regarded by many as the greatest song of all time. It has been recorded and performed by more than 100 artists in a dozen different languages, including versions by Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Bono, KD Lang, Rufus Wainwright and, most famously, Jeff Buckley. It has featured on the soundtracks of dozens of films, from Shrek to the dark satire Lord of War

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