Suzanne (Leonard Cohen song)
"Suzanne" | |
---|---|
Single by Leonard Cohen | |
from the album Songs of Leonard Cohen | |
B-side | |
Released | January 1968 |
Recorded | Columbia Studio E, New York City |
Genre | Folk |
Length | 3:48 |
Label | Columbia |
Songwriter(s) | Leonard Cohen |
Producer(s) | John Simon |
Alternative release | |
"Suzanne" is a song written by Canadian poet and musician Leonard Cohen in the 1960s. First published as a poem in 1966, it was recorded as a song by Judy Collins in the same year, and Cohen performed it as his debut single, from his 1967 album Songs of Leonard Cohen. Many other artists have recorded versions, and it has become one of the most covered songs in Cohen's catalogue.
Background
"Suzanne" was inspired by Cohen's
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Its lyrics first appeared as the poem "Suzanne Takes You Down" in Cohen's 1966 book of poetry Parasites of Heaven. The song was on his debut album Songs of Leonard Cohen. Cohen's recording was released as a single in 1968 but did not reach music charts.[10] The song only charted after Cohen's death in 2016.
In popular culture
Film
The song is used in the 1971
Nick Cave performed the song in the film Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man.[11]
Other
Martin Sharp wrote the lyrics for Cream's "Tales of Brave Ulysses" to the melody of the Judy Collins version of this song. Eric Clapton later set Sharp's lyrics to his own music.[12]
Charts
Chart (2016) | Peak position |
---|---|
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[13] | 39 |
France ( SNEP)[14]
|
3 |
Germany (Official German Charts)[15] | 61 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] | 79 |
Scotland (OCC)[17] | 56 |
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[18] | 9 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[19] | 14 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Notable recordings
The song "Suzanne" was first performed by The Stormy Clovers in 1966 and then recorded by Judy Collins, appearing on her 1966 album In My Life.
In 1967,
In 1969, Herman van Veen's Dutch version[28] entered the Dutch Top 40 list at number 39 on April 26[29] and reached fourth place on May 31.[30]
It has since been covered by many other artists,[3] including a young Bruce Springsteen in his band the Castiles.[31]
It has been translated in Italian by Fabrizio De André and included in his album Canzoni (1974).
The band
References
- Far Out. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ Patton, Alli (March 8, 2023). "Top 10 Songs by Leonard Cohen". American Songwriter. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
- ^ a b Arjatsalo, J., Riise, A., & Kurzweil, K. (July 11, 2009). A Thousand Covers Deep: Leonard Cohen Covered by Other Artists Archived August 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. The Leonard Cohen Files. Retrieved July 12, 2009.
- ^ "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. September 15, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
- ^ Martyris, Nina (November 15, 2016). "The Story Behind The 'Tea And Oranges' In Leonard Cohen's Song 'Suzanne'". The Salt: what's on your plate. NPR. Archived from the original on November 19, 2016. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
- ^ Simmons, Sylvie. I'm Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen. New York: HarperCollins, 2012, p. 124-7.
- ^ Simmons, Sylvie. I'm Your Man: The Life of Leonard Cohen. New York: HarperCollins, 2012, p. 126.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 7, 2009. Retrieved October 30, 2004.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Maslin, Janet. "Searching the Soul of a Soulful Poet". The New York Times. September 14, 2012, C1.
- ISBN 9780307367020.
- ^ Trendell, Andrew (November 11, 2016). "Nick Cave pays tribute to Leonard Cohen: 'The greatest of them all'". NME. Archived from the original on October 1, 2017. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
- ^ "Tales of a Brave Ulysses - Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved September 15, 2017.
- ^ "Leonard Cohen – Suzanne" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved November 24, 2016.
- Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archivedfrom the original on November 18, 2016. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
- ^ "Leonard Cohen – Suzanne" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
- ^ "Leonard Cohen – Suzanne" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
- Canciones Top 50. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
- ^ "Leonard Cohen – Suzanne". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
- ^ "British single certifications – Leonard Cohen – Suzanne". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
- ISBN 9780771080425.
- ^ "Bubbling Under the Hot 100". Billboard. September 30, 1967. p. 29.
- ^ "The Hot 100: The Week of October 28, 1967". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 5, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
- ISBN 9780875862071.
- ISBN 9781442242746.
- ^ "Noel Harrison". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 6, 2017. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
- ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles - December 9, 1967" (PDF).
- ^ "Herman Van Veen – Suzanne". Media Markt Top 40. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
- ^ "week 17 (26 april 1969)". Media Markt Top 40. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
- ^ "week 22 (31 mei 1969)". Media Markt Top 40. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
- ^ "Cover Song Spotlight: "Suzanne" by the Castiles". Legends of Springsteen. Archived from the original on December 7, 2015. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
- Ultimate Classic Rock.
External links
- The song lyrics, from Leonard Cohen's web site (higher graphics)
- The song lyrics, from The Leonard Cohen Files (lower graphics)
- Rear-view Mirror: Who was "Suzanne" and why did Leonard Cohen make her famous? (CBC)
- Transcripted excerpt from the BBC Radio 4 FM, June 1998 interview with Suzanne Verdal McCallister