AMY SALISBURY
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The first time I encountered the song “Hallelujah,” it was off the “Shrek” soundtrack, sung by the magnificent Rufus Wainwright. It’s still one of my all-time favorite songs nearly a decade later.

To me, the song was perfect. Wainwright’s buttery baritone and the gentle instrumentation were almost too good to be true. But the lyrics—oh, the lyrics—were beyond anything else I’d heard. In fact, they’re still so unbelievably poetic, calling the composition a “song” doesn’t even seem fair.

The respect I had for Wainwright writing this song grew exponentially once YouTube happened, and a quick search of “Hallelujah” exposed me to hundreds upon hundreds of covers, including an achingly poignant version by the late Jeff Buckley. OK, I thought, people just realize “Hallelujah” is indeed an excellent song, even if it is butchered on occasion. At some point, I listened to what I assumed was Leonard Cohen covering the song. Unfortunately, as talented as the man is in poetry (check out “The Spice-Box of Earth”), he just didn’t grab my attention with this spoken word thing he has going on when Mr. Wainwright makes the song nearly operatic.

To my surprise, I finally came across the copyrighted song credits: words and music by Leonard Cohen.

Cohen, a writer-turned-musician, composed “Hallelujah” in 1981 for his 1984 album “Various Positions.” Initially, the track wasn’t too successful; neither was the album. I can’t tell you why, but I can assume that most people would rather listen to a song that sounds nice than one that clearly surpasses the level of art present in most modern music. And let’s be honest here, Cohen hasn’t got the most melodious set of pipes in all the land. Even though the aesthetics of the work left something to be desired, listeners recognized where the beauty lies in Cohen’s most famous work. Today, Cohen’s official website documents over 300 authorized covers by signed artists, many of which catapulted artists to stardom.

To create a cover with such quality as Wainwright did, there must be a certain amount of respect present between the first artist and the cover artist. Fabulously enough, Wainwright—sort of— just had a baby with Leonard Cohen’s daughter, Lorca. Wainwright, Jorn Weisbrodt, Wainwright’s partner, and Lorca welcomed Viva Katherine Wainwright Cohen into the world in early February. Wainwright reported to The Guardian that all three parents will be involved in Viva’s upbringing.

Wainwright’s most recent works include a full-length opera (“Prima Donna”) and a sixth studio album (“All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu”). He is currently touring in the U.S. East coast and western Europe before “Prima Donna” opens at the New York City Opera for the spring 2012 season.

Photo courtesy of htbackdrops.com