Leonard Cohen: If It Be Your Will has been put together by Adam Cohen, son of the legendary singer-songwriter, documenting his efforts to curate his father’s memorial concert in Montreal in November 2017 on the one-year anniversary of his death. (NME report)
The documentary includes contributions from a range of Cohen fans, including Springsteen, Costello, Sting, Lana Del Rey, Chris Martin, Willie Nelson, Celine Dion, Peter Gabriel, Courtney Love, kd lang and Judy Collins.
The documentary is available to watch now on the streaming service Marquee TV in the UK and US.
It tells the story of Cohen’s financial struggles in the 2000s, which prompted him to return to touring in his ’70s for the first time in around 15 years. The revival was a huge success, restoring him to huge cultural relevance and inspiring a run of acclaimed new studio albums, including 2012’s ‘Old Ideas’ and 2016’s ‘You Want It Darker’.
The clips intersperses reflections from high-profile fans with clips from some of Cohen’s comeback shows, with Wesley Schultz of The Lumineers proclaiming that “not many people get to experience their own heyday”.
Springsteen reflects on going to see him during that period. “He turned his act into this tremendous road act, where he could get up and play three-hour shows,” he said. “That was really something, not only to do three-hour shows, but these epic performances.”
Elvis Costello added: “When he re-emerged after a period of being away, he captured not just the audience that he had begun with, but a much, much younger audience. Far younger than say the audience that comes to my concerts.”
