Leonard Cohen - The Traitor

[Xiaolian7]

I am a Falun Gong practitioner. Falun Dafa is a cultivation system in the Buddha School based on the principles of the Universe: 真 Truthfulness 善 Compassion

 忍 Forbearance.

Since 1999 it has been brutally persecuted by the CCP in China. People are being killed, tortured, put into concentration camps and have organs harvested from live people, simply because of their belief. More than 3400 Falun Gong practitioners have died at the hands of CCP in the past 12 years.

faluninfo(.)net

[dothomejean]

the only man worth meeting at laundry mat

[weemanorama]

fantastisk



[imgottie]

Canzone molto piacevole

[JiveDadson]

This song is in iambic pentameter - Shakespeare's favorite.

[myheadhurtss]

it makes me sad

[ADonovan43]

The dreamers of equality and freedom for all mankind know to be free is to be happy.You cannot be happy if you have lost your home to the bank and lost your job due to no fault of your own.You can not be happy when your family is hungry.The trators get richer and the dreamers get poorer.See the men of action laugh.Take care ADonovan43

[1mangangbanga]

@ADonovan43 the only difference between those that are happy and those that are not is choice.

[vrbrno]

@1mangangbanga As it is for freedom.

[nmr652]

Amazing,video and song!

[kexzi123]

Íslenskur cohen fan! me gusta!

[Miedzianeczka]

Wspaniałe połączenie melodii i obrazów oraz tekstu, zaskakująca puenta ...moje wielkie uznanie i przeogromna wdzięczność.

[sirronald69]

* * * * *

[timpauloconnor]

some by mysticism - some by addiction -- non judge poetry

[berio204]

Pura poesia

[MrLuciano54]

I love this song, Martha Wainright does a great version as well

[magoulianitissa]

Is this Leonard singing?

[joannaorlean]

@magoulianitissa it sure is, his voice timbre lowered with age

[spoiler138]

@magoulianitissa Yes, he was much younger when this was recorded .

[gham619]

beautiful ending

[ADonovan43]

Beautiful music can dull the pain and seduce us into forgeting, even though it may give one only temporary relief. Take care ADonovan43

[zeldagoblin]

Can someone tell me who is playing the violin?

[MemphisBlueAgain]

I realise, just now, that I have an unexplicable desire to buy "Recent Songs". Still I've listened to "New skin for the old Ceremony" all day...just goes to show what a pleasant surprise Cohen sometimes is.

[Thugz89]

Fenomenalni gospodin Koen, mnogo ga volim i mnogo uživam u njegovim pjesmama!!! Hvala za sve gospodine Koen.

[earthling0302]

@Thugz89

Svakako!!!

[cindytomato]

don't make em like this anymore. Love this imagery. and you can make up your own mind.

[isaysee]

The next time the Dreamers ride against the Men Of Action , - they will probably be over powered again . Take a lesson from this man and you will never lack for wired roses and windup swans - elsewise, you could end up out in the wilderness with nothing but a camp fire, your memories , ----- and your friend Fernando.

[mamakasi13]

Wczoraj... Dziś i ... jutro.....

[iriswigle]

Why doesn't he just lift his arms up and pull himself up to get his foot out of the net? The wound is non threatening. His hands are tied. Not exactly like Riddick are we? Hmmm? He's expressing love. He didn't do this to himself. Must have been the other husband huh?

[chadricka]

just the end of the world of the person that is unsaved. lol

[MsTommyknocker]

It's about being ashamed of NOT being under the grace of g_d, and in the end realizing that it's not the end of the world to be unsaved

[bwrpwr]

My #1 song in the world.

[poohsmate]

Brilliant, This and Bird on the wire my two favourite cohen songs!!!

[patrickcorliss]

@poohsmate

Check out the Australian anti-cancer ad using Leonard Cohen's song, Everybody Knows. The song will have a new meaning that sticks with you forever.

See the ad on YouTube at watch?v=kzoagsjlUv4.

The full version of the song is at watch?v=wh9AC0jCGjY

[jasena09]

Absolutely amazing..

Thanks!

[ubbuu]

where did you find the last image of hanged man?

[ochiorbus]

thats a tarot card

[emopopcorns]

guði sé lof fyrir íslendinga með gott vit á tónlist.

[EAMOOOO1]

he sings about the worst in us and puts our case out there to whoever cares to judge...cool

[sunshinejls]

"Leonard"

I don't know what to say anymore.....as doors just continue to open.....

Keep the the pen, poetry, Love & Life flowing - and I'll stand here Loving a man I never knew I had.

Love & Blessings,

~ Jan ~

[parisianna87]

the only celebrity worth having lunch with!

[elephantinacar]

@parisianna87

I'd tie him to the kitchen chair

[smilelcohen]

Lovely vid. Leonards`s name is Jikan...silent one!

[zeldagoblin]

He could linger on my thighs any time :-)

[EAMOOOO1]

it aìnt what it is, it is what we think it is

[MrFitolopez]

Rcent songs es uno de los mejores (y más olvidados) trabajos de L.C. Me encanta!

[elove772002]

Yes Leonard! LIve to be a centurian!

[cindytomato]

Madoff didn't rip him off his manager Kelly Lynch did while he was in a Buddhist Monastery for a few years. Can't remember his Buddhist name. Roshi is his teacher if Roshi is still alive, anyway Lynch ripped him off and he sued her, he won the suit but she said she couldn't pay him. Bitch, he really trusted her. Now he has to hustle again at his age. If you wanted Cohen you had to go thu Kelly, and she burnt him bad. five million, his life savings.

[NowIamheretoo]

At the Mount Baldy Zen Center, he's been given the Dharma name of Jikan (Silent One).

[TheThroney]

you live in tbay?

[lovegoodmusicz]

what's tbay ?

[eiroight]

tampa bay maybe?

[kwaka903]

Lay your Rose on the fire... The fire give up to the sun... The sun give over to splendor... In The Arms Of The High Holy One...

[Ermengarde11]

That violin solo, sweet as LC's work itself.

[TheStarJuggler]

Please post this video without the lyrics. Really cheapens it.

[eyeojo]

Sorry, nothing really cheapens LC's lyrics, especially not to non-English speakers, you lame-o

[TheRobsterOx]

Fuck off twat

[parisianna87]

you've got a point but i think the words go as.....the emotion of the song is over thrown by the pointless logic of reading them.....correct, maybe its a test.

[charlajoy1]

He has blessed my life with his song, and we can think of him often as he takes on the continuing world tour after Hydra in June.

[Ermengarde11]

I understand one reason he is touring again is that scumbag Madoff lost most of Leonard's fortune in his ponzi scheme. I hope they give madoff the entiare 150 year sentence. But as we know, LC's true fortune is his talent. Maybe now is a good time to begin replacing the entire LC library I had stolen, so dear LC can build his fortune up a bit again. I hope he lives to be 100, he's my all-time fave since 1974.

[charlajoy1]

Me, too, me, too, me, too...Here's to LC living to be 100!

[letsif]

All I can say is that Leonard Cohen writes songs of pure beauty.

[macflyfilm]

There's a handful of 'em, he's one.

[creasybear2]

Fantastic Martha Wainright does a great cover

[Alicialba7]

Or would it be Rufus Wainright (lol)? Hello to you!

[creasybear2]

Check out the DVD Im Your Man. Martha sings a great version her mother and brother also tribute on the same DVD

Well worth a look thanks

[patrickcorliss]

@creasybear2

Just rarely somebody does a cover that's better than Leonard's oroginal. One was kd lang's Hallelujah. Another is Martha's The Traitor.

See it on YouTube at watch?v=WMgYxYYqbHc. Then tell me I'm wrong.



[rdchase1]

@patrickcorliss I would disagree

[louiseduvee]

He's one of the greatest poets God made, and I have a book of his words I always carry in my HUGE purse, to read and re-read. The meanings have changed over the years, and they're changing still. Mr. Cohen makes me feel.

Thank you!

[camartin08]

hi i am just wondering what that book is and if it is still available to buy, i would love to have something in my bag that i can read and re read i love leonard and listen to him constantly thanks

[poleysmom]

In a world of choices, whatever loyalty you choose gives you no choice but to be a traitor to something else. Other people will always find fault, so it's best to take care of your own needs. Better to be a happy lover than a sad hero with no love.

[louiseduvee]

I tend to agree with that.

[TheStarJuggler]

Loyalty in one thing does not neccsiarily make you a traitor to another.

f your loyalty never lied in something, you cannot be a traitor to it.

[khasperg]

My favorite LC song by far, possibly the greatest lyrcis I've ever heard.

[sisaphis]

Wow . . . still.

[vampire176]

Yeah... Wow... Still... So beautiful!

[AmayaKatherine]

Esta canción me encanta! Es una de mis canciones favoritas de Leonard Cohen. De hecho, solo fue hace una semana o eso que la oí por la primera vez. Yo creo que está hablando de su país - la mujer es su tierra.

[uclrichard]

most of the images come from milton's post-revolutionary narratives. some seem strangely popian - yet it feels strangely shellyian.

god knows what len was thinkin' about - but i'm glad he wrote it - cos it's a bloody brilliant song.

[ashburnhouse]

Also Yeats and Lorca, i think...but who cares, really. Fucking beautiful song.

[TheStarJuggler]

I understand that this is about losing a loved one, but what do the dreamers riding against the man of action represent? Any poets out there?

[kentuckuh]

I'm not sure about the line, but to me the song is about staying in a marriage/relationship that no longer works for either lover (the man kisses her lips "as though I thirsted still", the woman left but kept her body behind for his use). he's a traitor to his real feelings, a former prophet/leader in the movement of the heart who cannot leave his idle duty to his lover/wife.

[Eagleray99]

I wouldn't have thought it was as allegorical as some think below. More like: "The pen is mightier than the sword". Not that I am any kind of proper poet.

[slashnrock]

I think it means that the dreamers always will have more power that the ones who use force or their power against the innocents, But basically I think that he means that the one´s who believe in love (the dreamers) always win over the ones who don´t. Just my interpretation, but I may be wrong. U see, mr. Cohen it´s not from this world, so we, poor mortals, can´t always understand what he means...Sad but true

[ashburnhouse]

Nothing to do with power. It's all about surrender, and of the offense of it. There is no ideology, no concern: just ecstatic paralysis.

[Kombajncek]

It is a story about mistreating a woman and realizing you made a mistake when it is too late.

[bwrpwr]

Leonard and Nick fan? Is that Nick Cave?Those are 2 of my top 5 singers as well if so and I congratulate you on impeccable taste.The other 3 being Warren Zevon,Tom waits,and Hugh Deneal.

[CiaranLiam]

I think she means Nick Drake.

[bwrpwr]

I'll wager it's Cave, he was on Cohen's tribute album, and even the DVD "I'm your man".

[CiaranLiam]

I know but perhaps it's both, I love Cohen and Drake and Cave but I love Cohen and Drake more so that's me for you. I too am a Leonard and Nick fan anyway.

[bwrpwr]

shades of Dylan? Nah Cohen was before Dylan and is better.Best song ever right here.

[patkiely2007]

Shades of Bob Dylan in this beautiful song.

[scotishjohn]

great vid man

luv L C

[ciuffolina1]

thanks leonard cohen for your immensity

[fioremichel]

Thanks everybody for all your comments....makes a lot of us happier and also thanks for You Tube!!!!I Love poetry my self and this is the reason I love Leonard so much. Love Fiore:)

[hug2046]

Thank U

[al47477]

Could anyone translate what on Earth is this song about ? Can anyone understand any of that gibberish ? OK, I understand some soldier somewhere around Barcelona, Spain "lingered on someones thighs", perhaps had sex or something but what else ?

"Now the swan it floated on the English River" ? Swan - a bird ? English River ? The one in Iowa ? Some secret lingo that I do not understand ?

[LeonardAndNickFan]

Well, Al, according to Leonard this song is about a mission meant to be accomplished but never realized... only to find that the true mission was all about "standing guiltless". I, myself, love to unravel and translate poetry. I'll need to work on this one a while before I have a better answer. It is a great song though, yes?!!

[nanoo1943]

SORRY, i clicked on the wrong "little hand" great response, leonard explains the song on the dvd i'm your man, it takes alot of listening to songs over and over to get the meanings, and then sometimes only LEONARD KNOWS!!! but if i understand or not, the songs are the greatest

[Miouiminon54]

Thanks, Leonard and the others.. I'm very fond of leonard Cohen since many years, but his songs always sound mysterious to me..

Well, I hardly speak english, as you can read, and I thought that was the reason why..

But it looks like english speaking people do not understand better!

I agree with you, Leonard: it is a great song.And the most important thing is not to undestand each word, but the feeling the words create.. respect for your job, nevertheless! I'd love to be able to do it!

[Eagleray99]

This is very accurate - a lot of his songs are meant to create a picture with words or to create a mood or an emotion.  Too many songs are dissected word by word, which is not necessary to enjoy and even understand it.

Hallellujah is one of the best examples, as is this song. Take it easy...just enjoy a master at work!

[Miouiminon54]

That's exactly what I do..:)

Even for one of his book: "beautiful lovers", which I read many years ago..

Some artists just create an atmosphere and feelings.. I don't need more..

[uclrichard]

ultimately, it's a reaction to 'the old revolution' complex.

but it also refers heavily to the idea that liberals and socialists very rarely consider the victims of revolution or insurrection.

even when they are in the right.

nobody deserves to die for someone else's political ideologies.

someone should tell that to the israelies (and the bush republicans)...

i posted this for my old friend marcus...i hope he liked it.

[Yin1956]

It's quite easy. It's about a traitor, someone who missed the right moment, that he didnt love any more, but continued to pretend he did ....

[vanirli]

You can not translate a poem, either you understand or you dont, either you feel or you dont, either you find something for yourself or you dont, either.........

[kirawillow]

it's a love song the swan is the man the rose is the woman,

[jennjuniper1952]

WOW this is beautiful looking forward to seeing him in dublin. You tube is great to enable us to enjoy this great music, thanks for posting to bring others pleasure.

[grannypoe]

thanks so much for sharing

[tukoni]

Thank you for posting--it's one of my favorites among his many great songs. Nice video too.