You Want It Darker

You Want It Darker
A black-and-white photo of Cohen in a suit with a large black border around it
Studio album by Leonard Cohen
Released 21 October 2016 (2016-10-21)
Recorded April 2015 – July 2016
Studio Leonard Cohen's house in Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles
Genre Folk rock
Length 36:07
Label Columbia
Producer
Leonard Cohen chronology
Can't Forget: A Souvenir of the Grand Tour
(2015)Can't Forget: A Souvenir of the Grand Tour2015		 You Want It Darker
(2016)
Singles from You Want It Darker
  1. "You Want It Darker"
    Released: 21 September 2016
  2. "Traveling Light"
    Released: 23 February 2017

You Want It Darker is the fourteenth and final studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, released on October 21, 2016, by Columbia Records, 19 days before Cohen's death.[1][2] The album was created towards the end of his life and focuses on death, God, and humor. It was released to critical acclaim. The title track was awarded a Grammy Award for Best Rock Performance in January 2018.

Background

After touring extensively between 2008 and 2013, Leonard Cohen began to suffer from "multiple fractures of the spine" among other physical problems, according to his son Adam Cohen.[3] Due to Leonard Cohen's mobility issues, You Want It Darker was recorded in the living room of his home in Mid-Wilshire, Los Angeles and then sent by e-mail to his musical collaborators.[4]

Cohen has said his condition helped him eliminate any distractions during the recording of the album: "In a certain sense, this particular predicament is filled with many fewer distractions than other times in my life and actually enables me to work with a little more concentration and continuity than when I had duties of making a living, being a husband, being a father".[4] Despite his medical condition, Adam Cohen said his father "Occasionally, in bouts of joy, he would even, through his pain, stand up in front of the speakers, and we'd repeat a song over and over like teenagers".[3]

Music

Musically, the album is "a little bit more sparse and acoustic" compared to his recent albums, according to Adam Cohen. Blues dominate the album.[3][5]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?8.8/10[6]
Metacritic92/100[7]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[8]
The A.V. ClubB+[9]
Chicago Tribune[10]
The Daily Telegraph[11]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[12]
The Guardian[13]
The Independent[14]
Pitchfork8.5/10[15]
Rolling Stone[16]
ViceA−[17]

You Want It Darker received widespread acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 92, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 28 reviews.

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank Ref.
The A.V. Club The A.V. Club's Top 50 Albums of 2016 2016
11
The Independent Best Albums of 2016 2016
3
Mojo The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
5
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
17
Pitchfork The 20 Best Rock Albums of 2016 2016 N/A
Rolling Stone 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
9
Stereogum The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
34
The Wire Top 50 Releases of the Year 2016
22

Commercial performance

In Canada, You Want It Darker debuted atop the album charts, with 19,400 in traditional sales and a total of 20,000 units.[26] The album occupied the top position for three consecutive weeks and sold 106,000 units by the end of the year in Canada.[27] In the United States, You Want It Darker debuted at number 10 on the Billboard 200 with 25,000 units, 24,000 of which were pure album sales.[28] It is Cohen's second American top 10 album.[28] In the United Kingdom, the album debuted at number four on the UK Albums Chart, selling 20,330 copies in its first week and becoming Leonard Cohen's fifth top 10 album in the UK.[29] The album reached No. 1 on the Flemish Albums Chart and stayed there for 7 weeks.[30]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Leonard Cohen.

No.TitleMusicProducer(s)Length
1."You Want It Darker"Patrick LeonardAdam Cohen4:44
2."Treaty"L. CohenLeonard4:02
3."On the Level"Sharon RobinsonA. Cohen3:27
4."Leaving the Table"L. CohenA. Cohen3:47
5."If I Didn't Have Your Love"LeonardLeonard3:35
6."Traveling Light"
  • Leonard
  • A. Cohen
A. Cohen4:22
7."It Seemed the Better Way"LeonardA. Cohen4:21
8."Steer Your Way"L. CohenA. Cohen4:23
9."String Reprise / Treaty"L. CohenLeonard3:26
Total length:36:09

Personnel

Cantor Gideon Zelermyer, vocal

Background Vocals: Dana Glover (Tracks 3 & 8), Athena Andreadis (Track 6), Alison Krauss (Track 8)

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[77] Gold 35,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria)[78] Platinum 15,000*
Belgium (BEA)[79] Platinum 30,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[80] Platinum 80,000^
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)[81] Gold 10,000^
France (SNEP)[82] Platinum 100,000*
Germany (BVMI)[83] Gold 100,000^
Hungary (MAHASZ)[84] Gold 3,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[85] Gold 7,500^
Poland (ZPAV)[86] 3× Platinum 60,000*
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[87] Gold 20,000^
Sweden (GLF)[88] Gold 20,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[89] Platinum 20,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[90] Gold 100,000^
Worldwide (IFPI) N/A 1,100,000+[91]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

  1. ↑ Monroe, Jazz (12 August 2016). "Leonard Cohen Announces New Album You Want It Darker". Pitchfork. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  2. ↑ "LEONARD COHEN'S YOU WANT IT DARKER IN STORES OCTOBER 21". Columbia Records. 21 September 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 "Inside Leonard Cohen's Late-Career Triumph 'You Want It Darker'". rollingstone.com. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  4. 1 2 "Leonard Cohen Makes It Darker". newyorker.com. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  5. ↑ "Review: Leonard Cohen's 'You Want It Darker' Possibly His Darkest LP Yet". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2017-12-01.
  6. ↑ "Leonard Cohen: You Want It Darker". anydecentmusic.com. AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  7. ↑ "Reviews for You Want It Darker by Leonard Cohen". Metacritic. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
  8. ↑ Jurek, Thom. "You Want It Darker – Leonard Cohen". AllMusic. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  9. ↑ Zaleski, Annie (21 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen examines his life and details his laments on You Want It Darker". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  10. ↑ Kot, Greg (28 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen finds path through darkness on latest album". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  11. ↑ McCormick, Neil (18 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen's You Want It Darker is a bleak masterpiece – review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  12. ↑ Greenblatt, Leah (14 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen's 'You Want It Darker': EW Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  13. ↑ Petridis, Alexis (20 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen: You Want It Darker review – still changing, still full of life". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  14. ↑ Gill, Andy (19 October 2016). "Album reviews: Lady Gaga, Leonard Cohen, Pretenders and more". The Independent. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  15. ↑ Anderson, Stacey (24 October 2016). "Leonard Cohen: You Want It Darker". Pitchfork. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  16. ↑ Hermes, Will (21 October 2016). "Review: Leonard Cohen's 'You Want It Darker' Possibly His Darkest LP Yet". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  17. ↑ Christgau, Robert (18 February 2017). "An Incorrigibly Courteous Liar's Last Act: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Vice. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  18. ↑ "The A.V. Club's Top 50 Albums of 2016". The A.V. Club. December 12, 2016. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  19. ↑ "Best Albums of 2016". The Independent. November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  20. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Mojo. November 22, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  21. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Paste. November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  22. ↑ "The 20 Best Rock Albums of 2016". Pitchfork. December 7, 2016. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
  23. ↑ "50 Best Albums of 2016". Rolling Stone. November 29, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2016.
  24. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Stereogum. December 1, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  25. ↑ "Rewind 2016: Releases of the Year 1–50". The Wire. No. 395. London. January 2017. p. 30 – via Exact Editions. (subscription required)
  26. ↑ "On The Charts | FYIMusicNews". Fyimusicnews.ca. 2016-10-31. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  27. ↑ "Nielsen Music Releases 2016 Canada Year-end Report" (PDF). Nielsen SoundScan. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  28. 1 2 Caulfield, Keith (30 October 2016). "Seven Albums Debut in Top 10 of Billboard 200 Chart, Led by Lady Gaga, Michael Buble & Pentatonix". Billboard. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  29. ↑ Jones, Alan (28 October 2016). "Official Charts Analysis: Elvis tops the albums chart again". Music Week. NewBay Media. Retrieved 30 October 2016. (Subscription required (help)).
  30. ↑ "Leonard Cohen - You Want It Darker". ultratop.be. Retrieved 14 January 2017.
  31. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
  32. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  33. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  34. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
  35. ↑ "Leonard Cohen Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  36. ↑ "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 201643 on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  37. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  38. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  39. ↑ "Leonard Cohen: You Want It Darker" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
  40. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
  41. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  42. ↑ "Top-75 Albums Sales Chart Week: 02/2017". IFPI Greece. Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  43. ↑ "Top 40 album DVD és válogatáslemez-lista – 2016. 45. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  44. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 43, 2016". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  45. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  46. ↑ "レナード・コーエン [Leonard Cohen album sales ranking]". Oricon. Japan. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  47. ↑ "South Korea Gaon Album Chart". On the page, select "2016.10.16~2016.10.22" to obtain the corresponding chart. Gaon Chart Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  48. ↑ "South Korea Gaon International Album Chart". On the page, select "2016.10.16~2016.10.22", then "국외", to obtain the corresponding chart. Gaon Chart Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  49. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  50. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  51. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
  52. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  53. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  54. ↑ "TOP 100 ALBUMES — SEMANA 43: del 21.10.2016 al 27.10.2016" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  55. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  56. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
  57. ↑ "第46 週 統計時間：2016/11/11 - 2016/11/17" (in Chinese). Five-Music. Archived from the original on September 25, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2016.
  58. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  59. ↑ "Leonard Cohen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  60. ↑ "ARIA Top 100 Albums 2016". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
  61. ↑ "Ö3 Austria Top 40 - Album-Charts 2016". oe3.orf.at. Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  62. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2016 Albums". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  63. ↑ "Rapports Annuels 2016 Albums". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  64. ↑ "Album Top-100 2016" (in Danish). Hitlisten.NU. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  65. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten - Album 2016". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  66. ↑ "Classement des 200 meilleures ventes d'albums de 2016". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (in French). snepmusique.fr. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
  67. ↑ "Top of the Music - FIMI/GfK: Le uniche classifiche annuali complete" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
  68. ↑ "Top Selling Albums of 2016". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 25 December 2016.
  69. ↑ "W 2016 roku najlepiej sprzedającym się albumem było "Życie po śmierci" O.S.T.R." 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  70. ↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade Alben 2016 – hitparade.ch". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  71. ↑ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2016". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  72. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten Albums 2017". Ultratop. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  73. ↑ "Rapports Annuels Albums 2017". Ultratop. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
  74. ↑ "Top Canadian Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  75. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 2017". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  76. ↑ "Schweizer Jahreshitparade Alben 2017 – hitparade.ch". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
  77. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2017 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  78. ↑ "Austrian album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved December 20, 2016. Enter Leonard Cohen in the field Interpret. Enter You Want It Darker in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen. 
  79. ↑ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 2016". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  80. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Music Canada. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  81. ↑ "Danish album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". IFPI Denmark. Retrieved 26 December 2016. Click on næste to go to page if certification is from the official website.
  82. ↑ "French album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved August 15, 2013.
  83. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Leonard Cohen; 'You Want It Darker')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
  84. ↑ "Adatbázis – Arany- és platinalemezek – 2016" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  85. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  86. ↑ "Polish album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  87. ↑ "Spanish album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker" (PDF) (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 28 December 2016. Select album under "Chart", enter 2016 in the field "Year". Select the certification month in the field "Semana". Click on "Search Charts".
  88. ↑ "Guld- och Platinacertifikat" (in Swedish). IFPI Sweden. Retrieved 16 December 2016. Type Leonard Cohen in the top right search bar. Click on "Sok" and select You Want It Darker and see certification.
  89. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Leonard Cohen; 'You Want It Darker')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  90. ↑ "British album certifications – Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type You Want It Darker in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  91. ↑ http://www.anuariossgae.com/anuario2017/frames.HTML
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.