The Essential Leonard Cohen | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Greatest hits album by | ||||
Released | October 22, 2002 | |||
Recorded | 1967–2004 | |||
Genre | Folk rock | |||
Length | 2:34:10 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Digitally remastered by Leonard Cohen and Bob Ludwig | |||
Leonard Cohen chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Robert Christgau | A [2] |
Rolling Stone | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Essential Leonard Cohen is a career-spanning collection of Leonard Cohen songs released in 2002. It is part of Sony's The Essential series.
The songs are arranged in chronological order; all studio albums released before 2002 are represented, except the 1977 album Death of a Ladies' Man . All tracks were digitally remastered by Leonard Cohen and Bob Ludwig. All songs on the compilation were chosen by Cohen himself.
The album was re-released in August 2008 with an extra disc of previously not included tracks (presented as the selection of "fans' favorite" songs).
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Suzanne" | 3:47 |
2. | "The Stranger Song" | 4:59 |
3. | "Sisters Of Mercy" | 3:33 |
4. | "Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye" | 2:54 |
5. | "So Long, Marianne" | 5:37 |
6. | "Bird on the Wire" (misspelled as "Bird on a Wire" on tracklist) | 3:25 |
7. | "The Partisan" | 3:25 |
8. | "Famous Blue Raincoat" | 5:07 |
9. | "Chelsea Hotel #2" | 3:05 |
10. | "Take This Longing" | 4:05 |
11. | "Who By Fire" | 2:33 |
12. | "The Guests" | 6:39 |
13. | "Hallelujah" | 4:39 |
14. | "If It Be Your Will" | 3:42 |
15. | "Night Comes On" | 4:39 |
16. | "I'm Your Man" | 4:26 |
17. | "Everybody Knows" | 5:34 |
18. | "Tower of Song" | 5:37 |
Notes
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Ain't No Cure For Love" | 4:49 |
2. | "Take This Waltz" | 5:58 |
3. | "First We Take Manhattan" | 5:50 |
4. | "Dance Me to the End of Love" (live) | 6:04 |
5. | "The Future" | 6:41 |
6. | "Democracy" | 7:13 |
7. | "Waiting For The Miracle" | 7:42 |
8. | "Closing Time" | 5:58 |
9. | "Anthem" | 6:06 |
10. | "In My Secret Life" | 4:53 |
11. | "Alexandra Leaving" | 5:22 |
12. | "A Thousand Kisses Deep" | 6:26 |
13. | "Love Itself" | 5:22 |
Notes
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Seems So Long Ago, Nancy" | 3:39 |
2. | "Love Calls You By Name" | 5:38 |
3. | "A Singer Must Die" | 3:17 |
4. | "Death Of A Ladies' Man" | 9:19 |
5. | "The Traitor" | 6:14 |
6. | "By The Rivers Dark" | 5:20 |
7. | "The Letters" | 4:48 |
Notes
Track 2 is from Songs of Love and Hate
Track 3 is from New Skin for the Old Ceremony
Track 4 is from Death of a Ladies' Man
Track 5 is from Recent Songs
Track 6 is from Ten New Songs
Track 7 is from Dear Heather
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
|
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [24] | 2× Platinum | 140,000^ |
Finland (Musiikkituottajat) [25] | Gold | 17,896 [25] |
Germany (BVMI) [26] | Gold | 150,000‡ |
Italy (FIMI) [27] | Gold | 25,000* |
New Zealand (RMNZ) [28] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Norway (IFPI Norway) [29] | Platinum | 47,000 [30] |
Poland (ZPAV) [31] | Platinum | 20,000‡ |
Sweden (GLF) [32] | Gold | 30,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [33] | Platinum | 235,749 [34] |
United States (RIAA) [35] | Gold | 500,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |