Father John Misty’s enigmatic covers of Leonard Cohen classics
Over half a century on from his debut album, Leonard Cohen still maintains a grip on the folk genre. Pairing deeply personal and poetic lyrics with soft strums and swells, the Canadian songwriter gifted the genre with some of its greatest moments, from the iconic sleeper hit ‘Hallelujah’ to the beautiful ‘Suzanne’. His enduring influence can be felt in the folk artists of today, perhaps nowhere more than in the music of Father John Misty, also known as Joshua Tillman.
Though Father John Misty’s soundscapes are often a little warmer and more romantic than Cohen’s, the folk legend has influenced his sonic stylings. Like his folk predecessor, Tillman tells intimate and descriptive tales of love and religion delivered with literary prowess. As most contemporary folk artists do, Tillman owes much to the words and world of Cohen, so much so that he once paid homage to him with two covers.
As part of the Bandcamp ‘No Share Revenue Day’ in 2020, Tillman put out an enigmatic EP for one day only, which contained covers of Link Wray and Yusuf/Cat Stevens. He also provided his takes on two Cohen classics – ‘Anthem’ and ‘One of Us Cannot Be Wrong’.
‘One of Us Cannot Be Wrong’ formed the closing track to Cohen’s debut record, Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. Accompanied by just a guitar, it finds the Canadian at his most poetic, “I showed my heart to the doctor, he said I’d just have to quit,” he sings, “Then he wrote himself a prescription and your name was mentioned in it.”
Tillman’s take on the track is slightly fuller than the original, accompanying the horns with trumpets and percussion. Tillman’s more airy, soaring vocals almost bring a lighter tone to the song, though they’re still permeated by emotion.
Father John Misty also included a cover of Cohen’s 1992 track ‘Anthem’ from his ninth studio album, The Future. Again, Tillman provides a slightly lighter version of the track. While Cohen’s vocals were low and husky, Tillman’s are slightly more breezy, though they’re accompanied by the same heavenly instrumentation.
It’s a beautiful track, one that was representative of Cohen’s musings, according to his girlfriend at the time and song producer Rebecca De Mornay. “To me, ‘Anthem’ was the pinnacle of his deep understanding of human defeat,” she once told Uncut, “‘I can’t run no more with that lawless crowd, while the killers say their prayers out loud… And they’ve summoned up a thundercloud, and they’re going to hear from me,’” he added.
“That ‘I’ – that’s the soul of Leonard Cohen,” she concluded, “He doesn’t suffer fools. He’s deeply kind and generous-spirited, but he’s not a sweet little monk.” Whether it’s in the original or Tillman’s contemporary cover of the song, the soul of Cohen’s humanity and the soul of folk can be found.
Listen to the Father John Misty cover below.
