Concert: Cohen in Barcelona

One of the great things about living in (or, depending on the details of geographical definitions and your political philosophy, on the outskirts of) Europe is just how short a distance it is to other countries. Last week, I took advantage of this and made a last-minute trip to Barcelona to see Leonard Cohen perform at the Palau Sant Jordi.

It turns out it was his 75th birthday that day (it also turns out he had just collapsed on stage due to food poisoning; luckily there seemed to be no lingering aftereffects by the time of our concert). He treated us to three and a half hours of music from “Suzanne” to “The Future” and his most recent recordings. Although sometimes the band lapsed into light-jazz mode, Leonard’s gravel voice carried the night, and gave hope to those of us hoping to age gracefully.

(More photos here.)