One listen of the syrupy smooth voice of Canadian poet and songwriter Leonard Cohen and you can't help but be engulfed in his lyrical genius and exploration of life's darkest crevices.
This morning, it was announced that Cohen has died at the age of 82, leaving the world a breadth of poetic and musical gifts, from 'Suzanne' and 'Bird on the Wire' to 'I'm Your Man' and his most famous hit single, 'Hallelujah'.
Throughout Cohen's prolific career, he was able to strike the perfect balance between wit, sadness, self-deprecation and dark humour, ultimately touching the hearts of a generation of music lovers.
The most fitting summary of his life and career comes in the form of 'Hallelujah', when he sings:
'I did my best, it wasn't much. I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch. I told the truth, I didn't come to fool you. And even though it all went wrong, I'll stand before the Lord of Song, with nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah…'
In memory of Cohen's work, we've rounded up his most iconic words:
'Ring the bells that still can ring, forget your perfect offering, there is a crack in everything, that's how the lights gets in.'
'True love leaves no traces, if you and I are one, it's lost in our embraces, like stars against the sun.'
'He sank beneath your wisdom like a stone.'
'Everybody knows that the boat is leaking. Everybody knows that the captain lied.'
'What is a saint? A saint is someone who has achieved a remote human possibility. It is impossible to say what that possibility is. I think it has something to do with the energy of love.'
'There's a blaze of light in every word, it doesn't matter which you heard, the holy or the broken Hallelujah.'
'If you don't become the ocean, you'll be seasick everyday.'
'My friends are gone and my head is gray, I ache in the places where I used to play. And I'm crazy for love but I'm not coming on. I'm just paying my rent every day in the tower of song'
'I smile when I'm angry. I cheat and I lie. I do what I have to do to get by.'
'Act the way you'd like to be and soon you'll be the way you act.'
'Everybody knows that the dice are loaded. Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed. Everybody knows that the war is over. Everybody knows the good guys lost. Everybody knows the fight was fixed. The poor stay poor, the rich get rich. That's how it goes. Everybody knows.'
'I think marriage is the hottest furnace of the spirit today. Much more difficult than solitude, much more challenging for people who want to work on themselves. It's a situation in which there are no alibis, excruciating most of the time … but it's only in this situation that any kind of work can be done.'
Leonard Cohen, 1943-2016.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.