Taking Sides: DEAR HEATHER (leanord cohen) versus REAL GONE (tom waits)

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If anyone has heard the latest by these two weathered wizened minstrels, I'd like to hear your thoughts. Personally I take Dear Heather. At times it's like your grandfather singing soul ballads from the early 70s. Very endearing. But I'm a freak.

― Tone Def, Wednesday, 27 October 2004 22:54 (twenty-one years ago)

has dear heather a thread of its own?

I like it a lot.

― RJG (RJG), Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:05 (twenty-one years ago)

there's a new leonard cohen album?!?!?!??!

― amateur!!st, Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:06 (twenty-one years ago)

I didn't see another thread. The title song is on right now. This is really an amazing album.

― Tone Def, Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:07 (twenty-one years ago)

Um, I like them both, to an extent. Dear Heather wins, but it's...well, it's not like old Leonard Cohen, which I guess is to be expected. I find it works more as an album to put on and listen to, and enjoy, but not pay much attention to. There doesn't seem to be any stand out tracks, and it kind of has a slightly dreamy air to it. I do like it, but I'm still kind of disappointed.

― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Haven't heard the Waits, but I like the Cohen. It's charming to hear a 70 year old sing a Tennessee Waltz. In the liner notes he looks like Telly Savalis.

― martin hilliard, Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:21 (twenty-one years ago)

He shaved his head?

― From a Land of Grass Without Mirrors (AaronHz), Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:47 (twenty-one years ago)

Or his barber did. Or maybe his daughter?

― Tone Def, Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:56 (twenty-one years ago)

I had a date with this girl who played trumpet on the LC album

― Riot Gear! (Gear!), Wednesday, 27 October 2004 23:57 (twenty-one years ago)

Cohen's album is better than the Waits one. He takes his usual shtick, with the background singers and saxophone solos, and tries to do something different, while at the same time reverting back to traditional folk. I find the album fascinating.

― a. begrand (a begrand), Thursday, 28 October 2004 04:04 (twenty-one years ago)

haven't heard either, but i detest leonard cohen's music. so it's tom waits by default, though i'm not overly fond of HIS music either come to think of it.

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Thursday, 28 October 2004 04:07 (twenty-one years ago)

"Tennessee Waltz" is from '85, so Cohen was 51 when he sang that.

Dear Heather is a work of uncanny wonder (full blog piece forthcoming) whereas Real Gone is, with the exception of two tracks, the HeeBeeGeeBees doing Tom Waits.

― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 28 October 2004 07:20 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't mind Leonard Cohen but I love Tom Waits - and now I don't know whether to buy Dear Heather because all these people think it's even better than Real Gone, or not to bother because if they don't rate Real Gone, then I'm not sure their tastes are going to be anything like mine....

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 28 October 2004 10:44 (twenty-one years ago)

Dear Heather is an easier listen than, say, the Elliott Smith album, but is in many ways a more exacting and demanding listen. Cruel souls may point to an analogy of Lee Marvin doing "Wand'rin' Star" over a Bontempi organ, but it is far, far more layered and draining than that.

I'm not saying any more about it at the moment because I want to preserve my thoughts for the blog.

― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:25 (twenty-one years ago)

Hmm. I've only listened to it 2-3 times, so everyone's enthusiasm for it is making me wonder if I judged it too quickly - maybe it was me, rather than the album, that lacked focus. I'll listen to it again later.

― Kevin Gilchrist (Mr Fusion), Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:28 (twenty-one years ago)

"Dear Heather is an easier listen than, say, the Elliott Smith album...."

I haven't actually got round to listening that one yet.

Indeed there are some people (e.g. my partner, her daughter, her parents, my parents, all my friends, the postman, some guy who came 'round to trying to sell us double glazing last week....) who might say that I've already got a sufficiently large pile of things that I haven't got round to listening to yet, without contemplating adding anything else to that pile....

An easier listen than the new Elliott Smith album 'though, eh?

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:47 (twenty-one years ago)

I've found the Elliott Smith album to be a particularly gruelling and difficult one to listen to, which doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad record; you just have to be in the right frame of mind to endure 55 minutes of unalloyed, unapologetic suicidal ideations.

― Marcello Carlin, Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:55 (twenty-one years ago)

Aaaaaah.

So not what you'd call "party music" then?

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:58 (twenty-one years ago)

I must really not have paid enough attention to Dear Heather, because I thought Real Gone was a much better album. Not even close. But, based on what I've read here, I'll listen to it a few more times.

― Charlie Rose (Charlie Rose), Thursday, 28 October 2004 11:59 (twenty-one years ago)

If only you'd written that 13 hours ago Charlie....

― Stewart Osborne (Stewart Osborne), Thursday, 28 October 2004 12:05 (twenty-one years ago)

That's the story of my life, Stewart.

― Charlie Rose (Charlie Rose), Thursday, 28 October 2004 12:08 (twenty-one years ago)

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