Dept. of tunes - Hallelujah

Recently, Cassie stayed overnight with us. She brought her Shrek tape. We stayed up late and laughed a lot.

In the later part of the movie, there was a sad scene, the setup for the happiness to follow. The tune playing during this sad scene is Hallelujah.

I have to admit that I wasn't paying attention when this song was released in the 80s. Leonard Cohen was a regular on my playlist from his first two albums, but if you're going to stay sane, you have to limit the quantities. For a long time, then, I didn't play the old albums. He's not radio material, so I missed the newer stuff.

For the last decade, lots of people covered the song, bringing out modest voices and great voices, each telling a common and uniquely personal story. There isn't one best version. K.D. Lang kinda owns it, but Justin Timberlake's performance in the Haiti benefit, Jeff Buckley, and Rufus Wainwright can make us hold back a tear. Even folks  less well-known in the States can draw from the deep, deep well of the tune's simple majesty and grace.  The guy himself does himself proud, a testimony to the strength of a great song.