First We Take Manhattan

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"First We Take Manhattan"
Single by Jennifer Warnes
from the album Famous Blue Raincoat
B-side"Famous Blue Raincoat"
Released1987
RecordedSpring 1986
GenreFolk rock
Length3:32
Label
Songwriter(s)Leonard Cohen
Producer(s)
Jennifer Warnes singles chronology
"All the Right Moves"
(1983) 		"First We Take Manhattan"
(1987) 		"Bird on a Wire"
(1987)

"First We Take Manhattan" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen. It was originally recorded by American singer Jennifer Warnes on her 1986 Cohen tribute album Famous Blue Raincoat, which consisted entirely of songs written or co-written by Cohen.

Meaning

The song's oblique lyrics are suggestive of religious and

Bond villain".[1] Rolling Stone magazine's Mikal Gilmore similarly described the song as a threatening vision of "social collapse and a terrorist's revenge".[2] The Daily Telegraph's Robert Sandall likewise observed the prophetic character of the song, but emphasized the song's political statement, placing it in the context of the last days of the Soviet Union.[3]

Cohen explained himself in a backstage interview at 1988:[4] "I think it means exactly what it says. It is a terrorist song. I think it's a response to terrorism. There's something about terrorism that I've always admired. The fact that there are no alibis or no compromises. That position is always very attractive. I don't like it when it's manifested on the physical plane – I don't really enjoy the terrorist activities – but Psychic Terrorism. I remember there was a great poem by Irving Layton that I once read, I'll give you a paraphrase of it. It was 'well, you guys blow up an occasional airline and kill a few children here and there', he says. 'But our terrorists, Jesus, Freud, Marx, Einstein. The whole world is still quaking.'"

Jennifer Warnes version

Warnes' original recording is notable for the distinctive driving lead guitar played by

Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Beck asked Vaughan to record the guitar for the song. In a 2007 interview, Beck recalls that Vaughan did not have his guitar or amp with him, and used one of Beck's old Strats instead. After working on a few technical problems, the finished recording was achieved after two or three takes.[5] According to Jennifer Warnes' official site, Vaughan finished recording his takes at 4:00 a.m.[6]

Music video

The music video for Warnes' version of "First We Take Manhattan" was directed by Paula Walker. Filmed in New York City, the video features Stevie Ray Vaughan playing his weathered "Number One" guitar (with its distinctive "SRV" logo) on the Brooklyn Bridge. Cohen also appears with Warnes in the video. The 20th anniversary edition of the music video contains a German intro about the West Berlin discotheque bombing.[7]

The album version of the song is 3:47 in length, whereas the single is 3:32 long. A promotional 12-inch single version, entitled "Jennifer Warnes — First We Take Manhattan, Radio Remix — featuring Stevie Ray Vaughan", contained extended and edited versions.

Personnel

Leonard Cohen version

"First We Take Manhattan"
Single by Leonard Cohen
from the album I'm Your Man
ReleasedFebruary 1988
Recorded1987
GenreSynth-pop
Length5:56
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Leonard Cohen
Producer(s)Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen singles chronology
"Take This Waltz"
(1986) 		"First We Take Manhattan"
(1988) 		"I'm Your Man"
(1988)
Music video
"First We Take Manhattan" on
YouTube

Leonard Cohen's own quasi-

black and white
promotional video for Cohen's version of the track.

On his 1988 tour, instead of the original, Euro-disco-influenced arrangement of his studio version, Cohen introduced the new, funk-influenced arrangement, suggested by his backing singers Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen. He continued to perform the song this way in 1993, 2008 and 2009 tours.

Cohen's studio recording plays over the closing credits of the 2009 film Watchmen.

Personnel

Other cover versions

The song has been covered dozens of times. Most notably,

tribute album I'm Your Fan (1991). Their presence on the compilation led to a re-arranging of the I'm Your Fan track list. In the US release of the tribute, R.E.M.'s cover appeared as the first track, rather than House of Love's "Who by Fire" which was the starting track in all other countries. The song also appeared as a B-side on some versions of the single "Drive
".

Joe Cocker covered "First We Take Manhattan" on his 1999 album No Ordinary World.

Charts

Jennifer Warnes version

Chart (1987) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[8] 32
Canadian Hot 100 43
Canadian Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 6
UK Singles Chart[9]
 74
US Billboard
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
 29

R.E.M. version

Chart (1992) Peak
position
US Billboard
Alternative Songs[10]
 11

References

  1. ^ "Leonard Cohen: 10 of his best songs". The Guardian. 6 May 2015.
  2. ^ "Leonard Cohen: Remembering the Life and Legacy of the Poet of Brokenness". Rolling Stone. 30 November 2016.
  3. ^ "Twelve towering Cohen songs". The Daily Telegraph. 23 October 2004.
  4. ^ "Diamonds In The Lines". Archived from the original on 27 February 2010. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  5. ^ "2007 XM Interview with Jennifer Warnes, Leonard Cohen and Roscoe Beck". Jenniferwarnes.com. Archived from the original on 5 January 2009. Retrieved 15 February 2009.
  6. ^ "Photo of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jennifer Warnes". Jenniferwarnes.com. Retrieved 15 February 2009.[permanent dead link]
  7. YouTube
    .
  8. ISBN 0-646-11917-6
    .
  9. ^ "Official Charts > Jennifer Warnes". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  10. ^ "R.E.M. - Charts & Awards – Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
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