Leonard Cohen Returns To U.S. Stage After 15 Years With Beacon Theatre Concert

Singer-songwriter, poet and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Leonard Cohen will perform at New York's Beacon Theatre on February 19th, marking the famed Canadian's first show in the States in 15 years. Cohen returned to touring after a long hiatus last year with concerts throughout Canada and Europe highlighted by a headlining slot at the Glastonbury festival. The singer is now performing in Australia and New Zealand.

As we hypothesized in our review of Cohen's Toronto concert from June, Cohen likely only came out of retirement after his manager fleeced him out of his life savings. Still, as we put it then, "Like a master bank robber forced out of retirement for one last gigantic score, Cohen poured everything he had into a stunning performance." Cohen had previously been so adverse to playing live, he didn't even perform at his own Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

But finally, after waiting since 1993, Cohen makes his return to the U.S. There's already speculation that this Beacon date will blossom into a full tour of the States, but nothing of yet has been confirmed. Still, this might be the last chance for New Yorkers to see the great Cohen live, as we predicted back in June, "When it's done he'll probably return to Los Angeles with a dump truck full of money and never perform again." Tickets for the show go on sale this Friday, January 16th at 9 a.m.

Related Stories:

• After 15 Years, Leonard Cohen Proves He's Still Got It in Toronto
• Rock Hall Inductee Leonard Cohen Announces First Tour Since 1993
• Madonna Leads 2008 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

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Song Stories

“Piano Man”

Billy Joel | 1973

Billy Joel’s first hit, “Piano Man,” was – ironically – an autobiographical lament about how his first album wasn’t a hit. When Cold Spring Harbor didn’t take off, Joel briefly became a lounge pianist in Los Angeles, and this song, about that experience, expressed his frustrations and fears at the time: “And they sit at the bar and put bread in my jar/And say, ‘Man, what are you doing here?’” “It was all right,” Joel said later, about the gig. “I got free drinks and union scale, which was the first steady money I’d made in a long time.”

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