“Hallelujah,” Leonard Cohen, the legend of a hit in reverse

Critique This documentary by Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine traces the miraculous destiny of this song, from its difficult gestation to its commercial triumph in the early 2000s. Tonight at 10:30 p.m. on Arte.

The incredible story of “Hallelujah” is so similar to the sedimented life of Leonard Cohen that Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine hesitate throughout to trace the fate of one or the other. Let’s stick to the saga of this hit, which the Canadian minstrel took seven years to mature before recording it for the first time in 1984. Until then, Cohen had filled entire notebooks with lyrics without managing to find a satisfactory symbiosis – to his friend the New York critic Larry Sloman he confided that he had written 150 verses, perhaps 180.

The song appears on the album “Various Positions” – a predestined title – which was rejected by the boss of the major Columbia, Walter Yetnikoff. Due to the fault of this sad man, this opus, which sounded like a return to the sources for Cohen, after a frustrating interlude under the aegis of Phil Spector, would not be favored by an American release in stores. “Various Positions” was nevertheless distributed in Europe and then, two years later, in the United States, via a tiny label.

Cry of ecstasy

In those years, “Hallelujah” remained confidential, spotted however by Bob Dylan, who sometimes sang it on stage. Then Cohen, once again, changed the text: he toned down the religiosity of the 1984 version, replacing it with a touch of eroticism – from a divine complaint “Hallelujah” became a cry of ecstasy. In 1991, John Cale appropriated it in turn. His interpretation seduced Jeff Buckley, who incorporated it into his first album, “Grace”. The archangel of Generation X was initially unaware of Cohen’s paternity, whom he would ultimately never meet: in 1997, he disappeared at the age of 30 in the Mississippi River without realizing the telluric impact of his “Hallelujah” on his nascent audience.

New revival at the beginning of the 21st century: the song was reworked for the needs of a scene in the film “Shrek” (2001), shortened to fit the rhythm of the sequence, then expurgated of its naughty allusions. It subsequently established itself as a pop gimmick, champion of talent shows, used in weddings and funerals. Modestly triumphant, Cohen savored this reversal as a “sweet revenge”. Elegance is not always a matter of miracles.

◗ Friday, September 20 at 10:30 p.m. on Arte. American documentary by Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine (2021). 1h50.