CASL 2017 Special Honoree
On Monday, November 7, 2016, Leonard Cohen, Canadian poet and novelist, singer and songwriter, and inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, passed in his sleep at his home in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 82. We at CASL feel particularly connected, not just to the beautiful songs he composed over the decades, many being part of our life’s tapestry of sound, including Bird on the Wire, Suzanne,and the emblematic, and oft-covered, Hallelujah, because Richard Crooks toured with Cohen for many years and recorded with him on the studio album Dear Heather.
During Richard’s later days with us, Leonard Cohen reached out by phone to check up on Richard. CASL was lucky enough to be in the room on one such occasion and overheard an ordinary, friend talking to friend, what’s new with you, and yet loving conversation. Such was their relationship.
So, with honor and great respect, Leonard Cohen is the Crooks Annual Second Line’s special honoree for CASL Day, 2017! We miss Richard, we miss Leonard and we miss all of our honorees, however we are comforted by the belief that all of them, performers and audience alike, are having one helluva time up in the heavens, making loving music that shines upon us all.