Cohen Does It Again

Review Score: (10/10)
Though it's not as strong as the subsequent two albums of his "comeback"-I'm Your Man and The Future-Various Positions is a strong and poignant album. Some of Cohen's most sentimental and thoughtful lyrics persist here. From the "love conquers all" mysticism of Dance Me To The End of Love to the religious ambivalence of Hallelujah (which contains the nominal verse "You say I used the name in vain/But I don't even know the name/But if I did, well really, what's it to ya?/There's a blaze of light in every word/It doesn't matter which one you heard/The holy or the broken hallejulah"), to the poignant, touching war story The Captain, Cohen is a lyrical genius here. This album is also notable because it is the last one where Cohen has complete control over his voice. Indeed, since it also manages to do without the keyboards and such that would come to dominate the textures of his next two album (particularly I'm Your Man) you could call this the last of Leonard Cohen's folk-styled albums. A must for any fan of his.

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