Instrumentation: Vocals (lang), Guitar (Electric), Piano, Strings (violins, violas, cellos?), and occasional soft percussion (brushes).
Form: Strophic – the song shifts between verses and the chorus, which consists of repeated “Hallelujah”s.
Origin: This song was originally written by singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, and has since been covered and interpreted by a wide range of artists, from Jeff Buckley to Bon Jovi, and Brandi Carlisle to Allison Crow. Here, lang provides her own cover, which she has performed at various events such as the Canadian Juno Awards and her induction into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Lyrics: On one level, the song seems very much rooted in religion, as the lyrics provide specific references to biblical passages about King David, Samson, and the Holy Dove. Yet on another level, the lyrics seem to use these references to illuminate a turbulent relationship between two people. The song’s exact meaning is extremely ambiguous, which makes the song inscrutable on some level. Yet I also think the lyrical complexity is what has allowed each performer to sing exactly the same song, yet present it in a completely new light.
Timbre: lang has a very rich, textured, almost sultry quality to her voice, which makes it very pleasant and easy to listen to. Stylistically, she likes to “scoop”, or start from a lower pitch and slide to the right note: while this can create an interesting sound quality when used occasionally, in this song lang uses it excessively, creating a weirdly undulating melody line that takes away from the song’s simplicity and emotion.
Personal Response: I have known (and loved) this song for a long time – that said, lang’s version simply does not do it for me. While I think she sounds good on the song, the question I ask for each cover of this song is, “what new aspect, emotion, or interpretation do they bring to the song?” For lang’s version, I didn’t feel much of anything. In my opinion, in comparison to the Jeff Buckley version, this version was somewhat bland. In addition, her habit of ‘scooping’ the sound constantly really annoyed me. I did listen to a few samples of lang’s original songs, and I do appreciate her talent both as a singer and a songwriter, but just not in regards to this song.
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