Leonard Cohen More Best Of CD

Personnel includes: Leonard Cohen (vocals, keyboards); Jennifer Warnes, Anjani, Evelyine Hebey, Mayel Assouly, Elisabeth Valletti, Julie Christensen, David Morgan, Perla Batalla, Jackie Farris, Alex Brown (vocals); Bob Metzger (electric & pedal steel guitars, bass); Dean Parks (guitar, mandolin); Dennis Harring (guitar); John Bilezikjian (mandolin); David Campbell (strings); Bob Furgo (violin, keyboards); Paul Ostermayer (saxophone, keyboards); Stephen Zirkel (trumpet, keyboards, bass); Michel Robidoux, Jeff Fisher, Steve Lindsey, Randy Kerber, Bill Ginn, Tom McMorran (keyboards); Jorge Calderon, Lee Sklar (bass); Tom Brechtlein, Steve Meador, Vinnie Colaiuta, Curt Bisquera (drums); Lenny Castro (percussion, tambourine); LA Mass Choir.

Producers include: Leonard Cohen, Michael Robidoux, Gean-Michel Reusser, Rebecca De Mornay, Leanne Ungar.
Engineers include: Roger Guerin, Leanne Unger, Kevin Beauchamp, Ian Terry, Richard Cottrell.
Personnel: Leonard Cohen (vocals, keyboards, programming); Mayel Assouly, Victoria ?, Elisabeth Valletti, Evelyine Hebey, Jackie Farris, Jennifer Warnes, Julie Christensen, Alex Brown, Perla Batalla (vocals); Bob Metzger (guitar, electric guitar); Dean Parks (guitar, mandolin); Dennis Harring, Steve Metzger (guitar); John Bilezikjian (mandolin, oud); Bob Furgo (violin, keyboards); Raffi Hakopian (violin); Paul Ostermayer (saxophone, keyboards); Stephen Zirkel (trumpet, keyboards); Darrell Leonard, Earl Lon Price, Thomas Timko, Greg Smith , Lee Thornburg (horns); Jeff Fisher (keyboards, programming); Tom McMoran, Jim Cox, Steve Lindsey, Randy Kerber, Bill Ginn (keyboards); Curt Bisquera, Steve Meador, Tom Brechtlein, Vinnie Colaiuta (drums); Lenny Castro (tambourine, percussion); Iki Levy, Yoav Goren (programming); David Campbell (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Gabe Veltri; Bill Schnee.
Editor: Iki Levy.
Photographer: Dominique Issermann.
Arrangers: Jeff Fisher; Jean-Philippe Rykiel; Leonard Cohen; Yoav Goren.
This second compilation covers Leonard Cohen's career from 1984 to the present (skipping over both Death of a Ladies' Man, which is understandable, and Recent Songs, which is more questionable). Cohen did not have any hits during this period, though a few songs, notably "Everybody Knows" and "Tower of Song," became well enough known to be essential choices. Otherwise, Cohen's craftsmanship makes a choice from among his work difficult. This set chooses four of the eight songs from the celebrated I'm Your Man album (and more might have been included) and four from its less successful follow-up, The Future. One track, "Dance Me to the End of Love," comes from Various Positions, with another of that album's songs, "Hallelujah," included in a live version. There is also a live version of the Cohen standard "Suzanne," and there are two previously unreleased songs, the typically funny and erotic "Never Any Good" and the minute-long disembodied recitation "The Great Event." It's easy to note important omissions -- "Came So Far for Beauty," "If It Be Your Will," and "First We Take Manhattan" are perhaps the most missed -- but what's here chronicles both the continuance of Cohen's talent as a songwriter and the improvement in his deepened voice and record-making abilities in the second half of his career. ~ William Ruhlmann
A best-of that comprises cuts from two studio efforts and a live album? For a lesser artist, the consumer would be well within his rights to cry foul. In Leonard Cohen's case, however, virtually every track he's ever recorded merits anthologizing. MORE BEST OF contains the strongest songs from I'M YOUR MAN and THE FUTURE, two of Cohen's latter-day masterpieces that combine his dark, poetic lyrics with an ironically glossy sonic framework. To add some historical perspective, live versions of early cuts like "Suzanne" are included. The depth (both spiritual and physical) of Cohen's readings here stands in sharp contrast to the original recordings.NME (Magazine) (10/18/97, p.54) - 7 (out of 10) - "...Listened to at 9am, greeted with clear blue skies,...this record sounds utterly pointless. At 4am, however, after that fifth bottle of red wine, news of a loved one's elopement,...it sounds utterly brill..."