A fitting send off for Leonard Cohen in Athlone

When legendary songwriter Leonard Cohen died in November, Athlone man Dermot O’Neill felt the loss was so great that it should be commemorated publicly all around the world.

'I thought to myself, this major figure in music and literature has gone. The occasion needs to be marked, and respect needs to be paid,' said Dermot.

Last month, he organised a tribute night in memory of Cohen which took place in Flannery's pub, Athlone. It was billed as 'A Wake for Leonard Cohen', but rather than dwelling on the sadness of his passing, it proved an enjoyable celebration of the Canadian artist's remarkable work.

Dermot is a native of Sli An Aifrinn. A published poet, he now lives close to Drogheda and also organised a ‘Wake for Leonard’ in the Louth town.

He said Cohen was a 'very profound and very wise' man, who continued to make remarkable music right up to the time of his death. 'He was just getting into his prime at the age of 82,' he said, with an irony that Cohen would have appreciated.

'I had the pleasure of talking to him on the phone years ago,' explained Dermot. And on the tribute night in Flannery's, he explained how this unusual phone conversation came about.

Dermot had seen Cohen perform in Dublin and was so enchanted by the performance that he decided to try to contact the singer directly.

Several phone calls were made to hotels, with each establishment reporting that the Montreal maestro wasn't staying there. But from the way one hotel responded to his query, Dermot had a suspicion that Cohen was, in fact, staying there. So, sometime later, he rang back and boldly asked to speak to Leonard. He was told to ring again very early the next morning, which he did, dragging his sister along to a phone box.

She thought it would be a futile mission but Dermot was persistent, telling her that if he succeeded and she didn't come along, she'd always look back with regret. Dermot's persistence was rewarded. Leonard took the call and Dermot enjoyed a conversation that he would never forget. 'He seemed happy to have someone to talk to,' recalled the local man.

At the ‘Wake’ in Athlone, Des Campbell was among the performers, delivering a superb version of 'Bird on a Wire', and many other songs besides.

On several songs, Aine O'Regan provided wonderful accompanying music on the fiddle. Gerry Flynn, a regular performer at the blues sessions in Flannery's on Monday nights, lent his considerable talents to the occasion, while Frank Fahy was also among the performers.

Tommy O'Neill delivered a self-penned song featuring song titles and phrases from Cohen's repertoire, in addition to delivering the ever-popular 'So Long Marianne'.

Cohen was a poet before he became a songwriter so it was fitting that the Athlone event featured poetry as well as song. Among those to read poems was Anne Gaffney, a poet who often performs with Martin O'Hara (a blues night regular who puts Anne's poems to music). Anne said that listening to Cohen's songs had healed wounds for so many people over the years.

Caroline Coyle and Amy Barry, members of the Athlone-based Poetry in the Park group, also read poetry as did Patrick Carton, a performance poet and storyteller from Horseleap. 'Lady Midnight', 'The Partisan' and 'Song of Bernadette' were among the pieces of work connected to Cohen that were performed or read out on the night.

Baritone singer from Athlone, Darren O'Hara (accompanied by Breda O'Connor) hit the high notes in characteristically flamboyant style. And the 'Wake' ended with everyone in the pub singing Cohen’s most-covered composition, 'Hallelujah'.

Cohen was known to have a slow and deliberative method of writing his songs, drafting and redrafting them for months until he was satisfied. ‘Hallelujah’ took years, and reportedly involved him writing 80 verses before he settled on the final version.

Singer Maria Muldaur once said of Bob Dylan’s lyrics, 'Some people just aren’t interested. But for those who are interested, he goes way deep.' And the same is certainly true of Cohen, whose work regularly touched on themes of love, religion, darkness, and light.

There are those who dismiss his work as depressing, but humour was never far from the surface with Cohen. Many years ago, a friend’s uncle spotted him having breakfast in Greece. Unsure if he had correctly identified him, he approached tentatively and asked, 'Are you Leonard Cohen, the singer?'

'No,' was the reply. 'I’m Leonard Cohen, the man.'

Even though he mastered the art of songwriting like few ever have, the process remained a mystery to Cohen. 'If I knew where the good songs came from, I’d go there more often,' he said in 2014.

He went there often enough to craft a powerful and beautiful body of work – a treasure trove of song that will continue to withstand the test of time. Rest in peace, Leonard.