Going My Way » Thankya Sai, I say Hallelujah

Thankya Sai, I say Hallelujah

Published by Jongleur on Tagged Arts & Entertainment, The Byways, The Highways
A few weeks ago, I was watching “Criminal Minds� on CBS, and at the end of the show they started playing a song that I had heard before (maybe this show, it was a repeat) and that had stuck with me. Hearing it once again, I was struck by how strong the song was. Infinitely sad yet somehow rejoiceful, it fit the episode’s ending, in which the ‘unsub’ had tried to surrender, but was shot down anyway by a police sniper.

About all I knew at the time was that the song was a “hallelujahâ€? type song, a few of the lyrics, and that it was on “Criminal Mindsâ€?. I fired up Google, looking for a web site I had read about, that provided information regarding music played on television episodes. hmmm, no luck. Tried a different tack, googling on: “criminal mindsâ€? hallelujah – and came up with several sites that mentioned “Leonard Cohenâ€?. Ok, that was a promising start. Googled “leonard cohenâ€?, came up with a “Leonard Cohenâ€? web site run by Sony, and another site, “The Leonard Cohen Files“. The lyrics were provided, and they fit what I had remembered from the show, but didn’t offer snippets of the song. There were other sites, mostly lyric sites, but I figured that this was enough to start.

*edited to add 8/23/06* I found a link that gives a listing of music for various shows. Go to TuneFind.com for Criminal Minds

*updated 8/27/06* – Maybe not the definitive list/source, but for all of those who wander through here looking for sources of just about *ANY VERSION OF HALLELUJAH* – check out My Old Kentucky Blog – And be thankful that there are people out there who do this for us. PS – thank you Dodge

Off to iTunes, and download the Leonard Cohen version, figuring that this must be the song I heard. Started playing it, and instead of the light tenor voice that I had heard on the television, I was thrust into the world of a gravelly, introspective, baritone voice.

WOW! – This was not what I was looking for, but it was still the right song. I listened to it a half-dozen times, trying to get a feel of the artist behind the vocals; for I had discovered while reading about Leonard Cohen, that as well as being a singer, he was also a poet.

Reality intervened, and I had to get off the computer and live in the real world for a while. But all through the day, the two versions of the song were running through my mind, the tv version and the one I had just downloaded. Sometimes they played in sequence, othertimes they would play in counterpoint. I was hooked. There are several terms for that phenomenon, ‘ear worm’ and ‘meme’ being the most common. Those are songs that insert themselves so deeply into your mind that nothing short of electroshock is sufficient to stop them from playing incessently. Fortunately, time is rumored to have the same effect, with fewer consequences.

I knew that I was on the right track, but still felt unsatisfied. Leonard Cohen’s version of his own song was magnificent, but not what I had started out to look for. Back to Google, “leonard cohen hallelujah� I came up with a number of references, two by him Then one each with k.d. Lang, Jeff Buckley, Bono and finally Bob Dylan, all ‘cover’ versions. I knew I could scratch Bob Dylan based on the voice, but was unfamiliar with Jeff Buckley. I knew some of k.d. lang’s work, and thought that it was possible that I had misidentified the voice as being tenor, maybe it was alto instead. Tried the k.d. lang version from iTunes next. Close, but no cigar. Clearly k.d. lang’s voice was more female than the version I had heard on the television. Downloaded the Bono, Dylan and Buckley versions.

Now I had a collection of versions, and set out to listen. Dylan was incoherent (no surprise there) and completely wrong. Bono’s version was also the wrong voice. Worse, it had no appeal either, though some reviews had like it. But when I got to Jeff Buckley I knew I had found it. Light, strong, sad. It was full of pain, and of enlightenment. Everything that the song as played on “Criminal Minds� had been.

Back to the real world, but now I had three versions of the song vying for time in my head. Ackkkk… This was getting worse! When I got back to my computer, I started looping the three versions, reading the lyrics, and trying to understand.

As if one can understand why some notion sinks its claws into you.

As I was listening, I was also reading more of Wolves of the Calla, #5 of the Dark Tower series. Roland, Susannah and Jake are readying themselves to battle the Wolves, and the song is running through my head. More reading, more listening, the song plays in my head even when it isn’t playing on my pc.

Now it is late at night, I’m on the toilet, reading. Roland has just woken up from a night spent with Rosalita, and is answering his own call of nature. Light dawns, I’ve been listening to the Ka-tet!

Roland sets the pace, Leonard Cohen does the same. Susannah/Mia are kd lang, and Jeff Buckley plays the part of Jake, someone who may in time become as Roland.

Only time will tell. But music, like literature, demands a place in the mind. My mind was overwhelmed. Not by my insight, for the insight of the ka-tet was trivial. But the talents of the respective artists aren’t trivial. Pay attention, and say “Thankya Sai, I say Hallelujah� that we are privileged to partake of the fruit of their talents.

August 18th, 2008




One Response to “Thankya Sai, I say Hallelujah”

  1. Going My Way » A Fistful of Grace Says:
    August 22nd, 2008 at 4:18 am

    [...] of you who liked the various versions of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” will find much to love about this song. I recommend you find it and listen to it. It compliments [...]

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