I have to agree that Buckley's cover isn't better (nor is it worse)... just different.

So fans who went to see him at the O2 last night, what did you think? I thought it was great, it more than met my expectations. We had great seats, rather high up, but looking down onto the right hand side of the stage. We were at the end of a row, so able to nip out to the loos and get drinks etc! He seemed genuinely pleased to be there and kept thanking us for coming to see him which was really sweet! The band were great and the sound was fantastic. I must say I had tears in my eyes when he first came on stage. I never thought I would see him live again. And when he thanked us for keeping his songs alive for all these years! All in all, a fantastic night out.

I think he wil be releasing a live dvd/cd of the tour.

Nobody does it better than Leonard Cohen.

Wonder how much they will charge for them?

I was there - he was FANTASTIC, SUBLIME, WONDERFUL As were the ladies and the band - all BRILLIANT

Did you manage to stay till the very end ? A lot of folks had to leave early to catch trains We were staying at the hotel up the road so were able to stay till the last encore.

We were directly, dead centre, straight in front of the stage but up in the first tier - a long way and all on the stage were like little dots - TG for the big screens . I would have hated to be right up in the top tier - or worse, in those seats right at the front which seemed to be facing back towards the audience instead of the stage.

I cried when he came on stage and when he introduced " if it be your will " and I was transfixed when he read " a thousand kisses deep". OH ! and I bought a tshirt too

Whatever it is, it will be worth every dime

I bought a programme and my friend also bought a t shirt (the black one). And we have booked to go back and see him again in November!

We were able to stay till the end and I managed to get home (West London) by 12.30 which was pretty good going! Glad you enjoyed it as much as me.

Bit mean-spirited and ill-thinking, one of you posters there.

Len gets nervous when he's being tracked by cameras and it affects his concentration. That's why he asked not to be filmed. I guess that he will tolerate it at one show during the tour so that the dvd can be made.

It was a very emotional evening for me. His voice is still sublime. My best moment came when he read " A Thousand Kisses Deep".
You could have heard a pin drop .

I agree, in such a huge arena, that was an amazing moment.

I don't know.

I've been a Leonard Cohen fan for about 25 years, and in all that time he hasn't come to play anywhere near to where I live - except on this tour. It was a magical night. We'd waited so long for it - many people around me were in tears.

It's no secret that he is touring for the money. His manager ripped him off, and ran of with his retirement fund. However, just because he's doing it for the money certainly doesn't mean he is just going through the motions. He put on a fantastic show. I've had a lot of enjoyment from his records over 25 years, and if I can pay him back by sticking a few quid in his pension fund then I'm very happy to be able to do so.

I'm pleased he has been able to reclaim "Hallelujah" as his song. Trent Reznor has given up on "Hurt" and declared it is now Johnny Cash's song, and there was a danger for a while that "Hallelujah" was going to become Jeff Buckley's song or, following Shrek, even John Cale's or Rufus Wainwright's song, so it's nice to see that it is still very much Leonard's song.

I was rather upset not to be able to have got to the O2 gig, seen some of the footage from it on youtube, so it kinda alleviates the sadness. When I was a kid, I would raid my father's record collection, that's were I discovered Leonard, amongst others, the love of his music and lyrics just grows.

That sadness has now gone because he's coming back to England later in the year with more dates (see below). Come hell or high water I'll be going to see him.

Wed 05/11/08 Clyde Auditorium Glasgow
Thu 06/11/08 Clyde Auditorium Glasgow
Sat 08/11/08 Cardiff International Arena Cardiff
Tue 11/11/08 Bournemouth International Centre Bournemouth
Thu 13/11/08 The O2London
Sat 22/11/08 NEC Birmingham Birmingham
Fri 28/11/08 The Brighton Centre Brighton

There's also a possibility of an extra O2 show on November 14th. Wild rumours of a date or two at the Royal Albert Hall. Maybe an extra show in Brighton, and a confirmed gig in Dublin on December 1st, with possibly 2nd and 3rd too.
Keep checking - the demand is massive.

I thought I might cry when he just beamed up at everyone after Dance Me To The End Of Love- his expression was just amazing. One of the few performers I've ever seen actually seem to be sincere when they effusively thank the audience.

He was absolutely stunning (though given his constant introductions of all the band members I couldn't help but wonder how weird it would be going to a barbecue at his house... every time you came back from the fridge or toilet he'd be like "and this is Stoatie..." and then you'd have to do a solo... they kind of deserved it though; they were magnificent).

Strangely, The Gypsy's Wife, which was never anywhere close to being one of my favourite Cohen songs, was one of my highlights of the evening. Along with, of course, Hallelujah, which sent shivers up and down my spine.

I really want to go again in November now. It was such a lovely evening... and afterwards we all figured "f*** the Tube... let's get the boat to London Bridge instead", which finished the night off in style- I'd never done that before!

I'm still gobsmacked that anyone can be simultaneously that cool, that old, and CALLED LEONARD.


Mind you, a friend of mine absolutely hated it, and has decided he is never going to go to see a band or artist he loves ever again, because it'll ruin them for him. I have absolutely no idea what he's on about. That was TRULY AWESOME.

How is that possible ? That is a mystery to me - although I have heard a few people say the venue was not really right for him. Too big, not intimate enough. I have heard suggestions that he might do The Albert Hall ?? I looked this morning at the O2 website and the only tickets they have left ( already ) are up in the top tier - I was too far back in tier 1 so not interested in anything further back.

But to be honest, I've seen him now - it was a once in a lifetime thing, like being in the presence of God - more than once would seem greedy Although I might feel differently in a few days - I still haven't come back down to earth yet

I wish I had known where you were sitting - I would have liked to wave to you

I'd have been easy to spot- I have bright pink hair now! (And probably a lot more piercings than most people there...)


Yeah, a smaller venue would have been better, but my chances of getting a ticket would have been zero... maybe a few nights at the Apollo in Hammersmith would have been feasible- saw Neil Young there a couple of months back and it was just about the right size.

I heard bits of him at Glastonbury- I was a security guard and was guarding the farmhouse when he was on, but when the wind blew in the right direction I could hear him! A mate of mine who was watching him there said it was one of the most amazing gigs he'd ever seen- there was a beautiful sunset right when he was playing Hallelujah. Sounds awesome, in every sense of the word.

All the reviews said the same thing - that it was the performance of the night and that Hallelujah was the most emotional moment. I read that the whole audience was singing along and they all knew all the words. I wanted to sing along but had to do it silently - I had my hand over my mouth most of the night cos I would have pissed off all around me if I had let myself go

My daughter saw him at Glasto and said the same thing about the sunsetting. One of those majical moments.
The couple sitting next to me obviously didn't enjoy it though, they left at the interval.

So what was it that they expected, that Leonard did not come through with ???

He totally EXCEEDED all of my, already high, expectations

I am just very disappointed. I considered Leonard cohen not just a great singer/songwriter/Poet but a great example of human decency and I told people this. I know you will defend him but he was one of the few acts at Glastonbury over the years who has refused to be filmed for the free BBC showings. If he could only manage one concert being filmed, why not that one? The resultant exposure would have upped his sales any way, so he wouldn't have lost out financially, furthermore they have big enough Zooms on Cameras these days to be inconspicuous. He could have negotiated low profile filming. It made him look bad and that is the shame

".. forget your perfect offering,
there is a crack, a crack in everything
that's where the light gets in ........ "


He still has the right to decide on his own exposure.


I have gone for 35 years with only his records - it didn't do me any harm - the concert was a HUGE HUGE bonus. If I hadn't seen that, I could still listen to his songs and his beautfiful words.

Really beautiful Babe... Is that from one of his songs?

It is

I will send you a link

I'd certainly go to the RAH. The O2 is a bit of a pain to get to.