Staff Pick
In the nearly 30 years since Leonard Cohen first recorded "Hallelujah," it has gone from a largely overlooked album track to one of the most covered songs in recent history. Rock editor and journalist Alan Light traces the improbable trajectory of this now-infamous song from its painstaking birth (it took years to compose) to its enduring ubiquity. The Holy or the Broken focuses mostly on the bard of Montreal and the late singer-songwriter responsible for its most well-known (and perhaps most stirring) rendition.
Since the turn of the millennium, "Hallelujah" has appeared in films, on television programs, as part of globe-spanning tribute concerts, in Olympic coverage, and, most recently, on nearly every conceivable incarnation of reality TV singing competition ever to grace the airwaves. With hundreds of available covers, "Hallelujah" has been performed by everyone (after Cohen, John Cale, and Jeff Buckley) from Rufus Wainwright, k. d. lang, Regina Spektor, and Bono to Bon Jovi, Justin Timberlake, Willie Nelson, Neil Diamond, Susan Boyle, and even Michael Bolton. Following brief biographical backgrounds on both Cohen and Buckley, Light follows the mania that has often accompanied the song, interviewing dozens of musicians for whom the song proved pivotal, poignant, or commercially lucrative.
Composing an entire book about a single song is a lofty endeavor, but Light's work is well-researched and often interesting. In addition to reporting upon the nearly exhausting number of cover versions, Light also considers the lyrical complexity and musical qualities that have made the song so appealing across so wide a spectrum. Apparently now somewhat of a regular at weddings, funerals, bar mitzvahs, and church services, Light outlines the song's allure in both spiritual and secular contexts. If you've ever referred to "Hallelujah" as "the Shrek song," this is probably a book that you should consider required reading posthaste. Recommended By Jeremy G., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
A fascinating account of the making, remaking, and unlikely popularizing of one of the most played and recorded rock songs in history—Leonard Cohen’s beautiful and heartrending “Hallelujah.”
“A venerated creator. An adored, tragic interpreter. An uncomplicated, memorable melody. Ambiguous, evocative words. Faith and uncertainty. Pain and pleasure.”
Today, “Hallelujah” is one of the most-performed rock songs in history. It has become a staple of movies and television shows as diverse as Shrek and The West Wing, of tribute videos and telethons. It has been covered by hundreds of artists, including Bob Dylan, U2, Justin Timberlake, and k.d. lang, and it is played every year at countless events—both sacred and secular—around the world.
Yet when music legend Leonard Cohen first wrote and recorded “Hallelujah,” it was for an album rejected by his longtime record label. Ten years later, charismatic newcomer Jeff Buckley reimagined the song for his much-anticipated debut album, Grace. Three years after that, Buckley would be dead, his album largely unknown, and “Hallelujah” still unreleased as a single. After two such commercially disappointing outings, how did one obscure song become an international anthem for human triumph and tragedy, a song each successive generation seems to feel they have discovered and claimed as uniquely their own?
Through in-depth interviews with its interpreters and the key figures who were actually there for its original recordings, acclaimed music journalist Alan Light follows the improbable journey of “Hallelujah” straight to the heart of popular culture. The Holy or the Broken gives insight into how great songs come to be, how they come to be listened to, and how they can be forever reinterpreted.
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"Brilliantly revelatory... A masterful work of critical journalism."
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"A combination mystery tale, detective story, pop critique and sacred psalm of its own."
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"Brilliantly revelatory... A masterful work of critical journalism."
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"Reverentially details every stage in the [song's] evolution." < -="" i="" -=""> - The Atlantic - < -="" -="">
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"[A] charming ode to a pop culture phenomenon." < -="" i="" -=""> - Publishers Weekly - < -="" -="">
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light]
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"A deeply researched mixture of critical analysis and cultural archaeology."
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"Keeps the pages turning... A
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"Fresh and compelling."
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"Reverentially details every stage in the [song's] evolution—and along the way, he reveals the compelling stories behind some of its most iconic interpretations."
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"Absorbing…Eloquent... Light expertly unpacks the song's long, strange journey to ubiquity."
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"A must for music fans."
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"Reads like an investigative oral biography of a song. A true songography."
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light]
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"Keeps the pages turning... A
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light]
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"Keeps the pages turning... A
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light]
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"Keeps the pages turning... A
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light]
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"Thoughtful and illuminating... [Mr. Light] is a fine companion for this journey through one song’s changing fortunes."
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"Keeps the pages turning... A well-constructed, consistently enlightening book, which should have Cohen devotees and music fans alike seeking out their favorite version of the song."
Synopsis
A fascinating account of the making, remaking, and unlikely popularizing of one of the most played and recorded rock songs in history—Leonard Cohen’s beautiful and heartrending “Hallelujah.” It’s become a staple of movie and television shows as diverse as Shrek, The OC, and The West Wing. It was the song MTV and VH1 chose for their official post-9/11 tribute video, using Jeff Buckley’s acclaimed rendition, and was the centerpiece of the telethon that followed the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. Today, it is one of the most recorded rock songs in history, covered by hundreds of artists, including Bono, Bon Jovi, Justin Timberlake, Susan Boyle, and Celine Dion.
Yet when iconoclastic rocker Leonard Cohen first wrote and recorded the song “Hallelujah,” it attracted little attention or airplay, not even making it onto his own “Best of” album. How did one unknown song become an international anthem for human triumph and tragedy, one which each successive generation feels they have discovered and claimed as uniquely their own?
Through in-depth interviews with the people who were actually there, Alan Light—one of the foremost music journalists working today—follows “Hallelujah”’s improbable and epic journey straight to the heart of popular culture. The Holy or the Broken not only gives insight into how great songs come to be, but how they come to be listened to and forever reinterpreted.
About the Author
Alan Light has been one of America’s leading music journalists for the past twenty years. He was a writer at Rolling Stone, founding music editor and editor-in-chief of Vibe, and editor-in-chief of Spin magazine. He has been a contributor to The New Yorker, GQ, Entertainment Weekly, Elle, and Mother Jones. He is the author of The Skills to Pay the Bills, an oral history of the Beastie Boys; The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, and the Unlikely Ascent of “Hallelujah”; and cowriter of the New York Times bestselling memoir by Gregg Allman, My Cross to Bear.