The Delightful Back Story of Lisa Kline's Leonard Cohen Unified Heart Tattoo

February 7, 2013

Portland Nov 11,12, Lisa Kline (upper right and bottom) & Arlene (upper left)

On Nov 11,12, Lisa Kline and I were both in Portland for Leonard Cohen's concert at the Rose Garden.  In the morning,  I invited Lisa, a fellow Canuck, to my hotel room to watch the November 11th Remembrance Day memorial on my laptop. The ceremony in Ottawa was to be streamed live at 11 am on the CBC network

Lisa brought us coffee and when she removed her UHTC jacket, her UHTC tattoo was revealed.  She told me the story about it which I thought was delightful. So I asked her to please send me her story to post on the LC Scrapbook and she did.  Thank you, Lisa.  Here it is in her own words.

For years, I thought that I might like to get a tattoo, but the problem was deciding what image to have permanently inked into my skin. It had to be meaningful, and it had to be something that I would be happy with for the rest of my life. After I saw Leonard Cohen in concert during the 2008-2010 tour (which was a profound, life-enhancing experience), it occurred to me that a unified heart would make a perfect tattoo. Not only is it a beautiful symbol, but it is a great reminder of those sublime concerts. However, thinking about getting a tattoo and actually getting one are two different things, and for quite a while I never had the guts to do anything about it. How it finally became a reality is as follows:

In 2011, I went to Montreal with my good friend Rachel, a fellow Leonard Cohen enthusiast, who also shared my interest in the idea of a unified heart tattoo (but like me, she had never mustered the nerve to do anything about it!).One afternoon, we were walking along Blvd. St. Laurent (or “St. Lawrence Blvd,” as Anglophones may say), a few blocks from Leonard Cohen’s house. We came upon a tattoo parlour, and we both started laughing because we simultaneously remembered a delightful interview with Leonard Cohen from 1966. In the interview, Leonard jokes that he is thinking of changing his name (to “September Cohen”) and getting a tattoo. When the interviewer asks of the latter, “Where?”, Leonard smiles and says, “There’s this place on St. Lawrence Blvd.” After a brief moment of discussion and contemplation, Rachel and I realized that we simply could not pass up such a wonderful opportunity! A few hours later, we each proudly had a unified heart tattoo, and whenever anyone asks us “where” we got them, we can smile and say, “There’s this place on St. Lawrence Blvd…”

From the 1966 CBC interview (approx 4.50 depending on how many ads at the front)
Leonard Cohen: ... I thought that I would ... get a tattoo
Beryl Fox: Where?
Leonard Cohen: There’s this place on St. Lawrence Blvd.

-------------------------------------  

• Lisa Kline is LisaLCFan on the leonrd cohen forum
• Not all CBC archived videos are accessible outside of Canada.  So a big thank you to Lisa for finding the one above.
• Another video and full transcript of the CBC Beryl Fox interview can be found at Speaking Cohen Webheights here  
• For background about the poppies Lisa and I are wearing and Nov 11th Remembrance Day, see Leonard Cohen Commemorates November 11th Wearing The Emblematic Poppy  

FRIENDs Roman Gavrilin (Russia) & Ilia Muraviov (Belarus) Share Their First Photos of Helsinki Leonard Cohen Concert Venue - Sonera Stadium

September 1, 2012

Sonera Stadium - Helsinki - The Night before

"Roman Gavrilin was at Sonera Stadium"

So sayeth Facebook maps

FRIENDs Roman Gavrilin (St Petersburg) and Ilia Muraviov (Minsk) arrived in Helsinki on Saturday for their first ever Leonard Cohen concert.  The Old Ideas World Tour resumes on Sunday September 2 in Sonera Stadium and they are going.

Ilia and Roman proved they are as passionate about Leonard Cohen concerts as the rest of us.  With sleep deprivation after a very long drive from St Petersburg to Helsinki and after a fantastic meet-up dinner with 52 FRIENDs from 11 countries, they snuck over to the venue for a preview peek. They snapped a few atmoshere shots and uploaded them on Roman's Facebook page. Then and only then they finally took some shuteye.

Here are a few of their photos, and some of the text from Roman's  messages.

from Roman Gavrilin (in Part)

Sorry, no video, it is impossible at the moment. It's 2:30 a.m. here, I haven't slept for almost two days (those who will say I slept in a beer tram will be wrong). No sleep, no alcohol, no herring.  But I met Jarkko, Maarten and many others, that's wonderful. This evening there were people from eight countries among those who sat at the same table as me (out of total eleven nations, counted by Jarkko).

From Suomi with love
R

 ---------------------------------------------

• Roman Gavrilin is also known by:  Hermitage Prisoner, Goldin, Abstractor of the Quintessence, and  Currentcohen
• Ilia Muraviov is one of the webmasters of the Leonard Cohen site for Russian speakers here and Ilia on the Leonard Cohen Forum

Leonard Cohen 7" Vinyls Featured on Betty and Luc's Belgian Jukebox

July 24, 2012

"It feels so good to hear Leonard's voice coming out of our jukebox"

When Betty Vercauteren sent me the wonderful photos of the tattoos she and husband Luc acquired for the opening concert in Ghent of the Leonard Cohen Old Ideas World Tour, she included the photo above of their jukebox. Betty's enthusiasm for all things Leonard Cohen is shared equally by her husband Luc Huybrechts. I was very excited when I saw this photo and asked her to send more photos and a description of their 7" vinyl collection.

Photos and narrative by Betty Vercauteren

• Our jukebox is a dream come true for Luc and me. And it's fun to go out and look for old records too !! 
  

  
  There's no special story about our jukebox, we wanted it for so long and

  finally we found someone who repairs old jukeboxes .We went to his home to

  choose one, and after a few months our precious jukebox was ready !

  
  

  Then we started looking at the flea market for little vinyls ! We already

  have a lot of them, (English, French, Dutch songs) but now we start looking

  for vinyls who we like the most : Leonard Cohen, Bruce Springsteen, Dire
  Straits, CCR , but those are difficult to find and sometimes very expensive,

  so we try to find them as cheap as possible ! But for that you have to look

  everywhere !!

  
  

  The labels in our jukebox are handmade : every vinyl has its own label. We

  can put 100 vinyls into the jukebox so that means 200 songs ! Once in a

  while we change them, but vinyls of Leonard, Bruce and Dire straits never

  change because we love to hear them so often !!

  
  

  

  
  

  Now I'm trying to find more vinyls from Leonard. 

  
  

  

  
  

  We already have in our jukebox :

  • Suzanne
  • Bird on the wire
  • Take this waltz
  • Lover, lover, lover
  • Do I have to dance all night
  • First we take Manhattan
  • I'm your man
  • Sisters of mercy
  • Who by fire
  • Chelsea hotel n 2 

So that's the story of our beautiful jukebox with Leonard's voice in it !!
 
Big hug Arlene!

Hydra Memorial Event for Bill Cunliffe, Owner of "Bill's Bar" Immortalized by Leonard Cohen

Bill's daughters Carolyn & Kathy scatter his ashes in Kimini Harbour, Hydra

.

July 20, 2012

Now the crickets are singing
The vesper bells ringing
The cat's curled asleep in his chair
I'll go down to Bill's Bar
I can make it that far
And I'll see if my friends are still there...

(Night Comes On) 

Bill Cunliffe's Memorial Event 

(from the leonard cohen forum with permission)

by hydriot Thu Apr 26, 2012
Bill's daughters are holding a small memorial event on the beach at Vlichos at 1300 on 1 May, followed by lunch.

We first met when I was a teenager and he remains one of the most colourful characters I have ever known. He seemed to be friends with everybody. He was one of life's great fixers, able to introduce you to practically anybody you needed (or wanted) to meet, and from every walk of life: I remember once bumping into him on a Hydra street and being immediately introduced by him to Claudio Abbado. How did Bill come to know one of the world's greatest conductors? Who knows?

I'll go down to Bill's memorial event, I can make it that far, and see if my friends are still there.

* * *

by hydriot Thu May 03, 2012 

We gave Bill a good send-off on 1 May, his birthday when he would have been 65.

About forty of us gathered at the far end of the shingle beach at Vlichos for a few minutes of silence in his memory. Next several poems were recited relevant to him.

Roger Green reciting a poem

.

His two daughters were then taken out to sea a little way where they scattered half his ashes on the water (the other half had already been scattered in Amersham, his English home) and strewed flowers.

Those on the tiny pier threw their flowers and wreaths into the sea too. We were then each given a small packet of raisins and cereals, koliva, a traditional pagan offering in remembrance.

A banquet -- there is no other way to describe it -- then took place at the Endalion taverna just off the beach. Nine courses spread over more than two hours: a beetroot and yoghurt dip, Greek salad, green salad with figs, zuchini balls, tomato-and-something balls, spanacoppita, meatballs and chips, mushrooms, cake. Somebody commented that all we needed were couches and it would have been a Roman feast. Considerable amounts of wine and beer were consumed, as Bill would have required.

And of course around the table many anecdotes of Bill's life circulated amongst friends who had known him from as long ago as the sixties. My favourite anecdote was this one --

In the afternoons, Bill insisted on drinking tea like a proper Englishman before he started on the evening's alcohol. One afternoon, having brewed tea very correctly (including warming the pot), Bill amazed a friend by adding an ice-cube. When the friend asked why, Bill replied impatiently "It's not cooling fast enough!"

The end of an era, indeed.

*   *   *

-------------------------------

• Thank you to Hydriot for sharing his moving report on the Leonard Cohen Forum and to Judy Scott (Jazz4111) for sharing the photos.
• Bill’s Bar is now the restaurant of the Bratsera Hotel on Hydra.
  

Marie and Albert's Excellent Adventure to view Leonard Cohen's Portrait at the National Portrait Gallery, London

Sláinte, Marie.  Good job!

February 24, 2012

Marie Nolan wrote a terrific report about her family's visit to view the Venetia Dearden portrait of Leonard Cohen which is owned by the National Portrait Gallery in London. (more)

Marie's report reads like a thriller novella. Will they or won't they...

She was kind enough to let me feature her report.

The back story
I stumbled upon the portrait on the internet whilst searching for something else, a common occurrence in Cohenland. I posted it on the leonard cohen forum and referenced a post by Mordy. Subsequently, some forum members went to the NPG to view the portrait but it was not on display. Then sebmelmoth2003 posted info that one could apply for a viewing appointment.

Cast of conspirators:
From the leonardcohenforum
Mordy
somewhat_nifty/Ruth
sebmelmoth2003
Arlene/bridger15

bridger15 wrote: Ask for a private viewing away from the exhibition du jour. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

At the National Portrait Gallery
Marie Nolan
Albert Noonan
Emily Noonan
James Noonan

In advance of a family trip to London last summer and inspired by Arlene's suggestion I decided ask for that private viewing at the National Portrait Gallery.  

I recalled that Sebmelmoth2003 had posted contact details and I emailed the gallery advising them that I would be in London for a few days and that I would like to view the portrait during that time. They responded that they could accommodate us and suggested a date and time. 

The Viewing took place at the Heinz Archive & Library at 39-45 Orange Street, this is situated directly opposite the back entrance of the National Portrait Gallery.

Emily Noonan

There was myself and Albert and our two teenagers James and Emily, who at this stage in their lives didn't find it at all unusual that we would make such a visit! 

Security was tight and when we arrived, we had to produce proof of our appointment, photo id and we were asked to sign a visitor's agreement form.

We were then given passes and were escorted to the archive area. This was rather like a formal library setting, very quiet with a number of academic types sitting behind large mahogany tables.

We were introduced to a lady called Helen. She had the original print ready for viewing. It was lying flat on one of the large tables. It was covered with two layers of tissue paper.

James Noonan

She lifted the paper and revealed the portrait to us.

My initial reaction was that it looked better than it does on photos on the net. It was approximately 24 x 18 inches. We commented on how lovely it was to see it in reality and a gentleman came over to greet us. He said in a quiet voice that he just wanted to say hello and he thought we might be Canadian. He was a fan also and although he didn't see any of the recent concerts he had seen Leonard in the seventies at the Royal Albert Hall.

I was looking closely as Leonard's bolo tie and Helen offered to decipher the writing on it, she began writing out the letters on a notebook, I stopped her explaining that Camargue was written on it - I knew this thanks to our very detailed Clothing Time thread in Comments and Questions. She said "Ah you know your Leonard Cohen".

I did ask if there were any plans to exhibit the print again, but they had no plans at that time. He said that all the portraits at the Gallery are of British citizens. They had acquired the portrait of Leonard as part of a set of photos they purchased from the photographer Ventia Dearden, He did say that if any particular "themed" exhibition were to be organised in the future it may be a possibility.

We were there for about ten minutes, I asked if I could take a photo of it and Albert also asked if he could take a photo of me viewing it. We were given a polite but firm no to both requests. We thanked Helen for her time and made for the exit.

We were asked to return our passes on departure but not before we took a sneak photo. The tension is evident in the photo with me distracted and looking towards reception for fear of being "caught". (photo at the top)

Detail of security pass Marie is holding in photo at the top

 Looking back, we were very satisfied with our visit and can certainly recommend it to others. Perhaps, (as Arlene suggested) if enough people request a private viewing they might actually put Leonard out on public display.... now that would certainly be a case of, for him they really did make an exception !

PS. And of course , when in Covent Garden later that day I " Cohenised " the Apple Store

*   *   *

A special kudo to Marie for wearing her symbolic "final concert in Las Vegas" polka dot dress on this special Leonard Cohen occasion.

And special thanks to Albert for his great clandestine photos. He's awfully good at that.

-----------------------

Albert Noonan

The photos of Emily and James were taken in Berlin, August 2010, when I had dinner with the family. A few nights later, Albert, Marie and I attended Leonard Cohen's concert at the Berlin Waldbuhne.
 
- The thread that started this adventure on the leonardcohenforum here 

- On the LC Forum, Marie Nolan is IrishMar and Albert Noonan is IrishAl.

Albert's YouTube Channels
"albertnoonan"  Leonard Cohen Tour 2008-2010 i(here)
"DabbyNoNa" Adam Cohen, NEeMA and the Webb Sisters  (here)

Report From Australia, "A Successful Gathering - Twice As Long As A Leonard Cohen Concert."

Alan Mawhinney with "Roscoe" &  Dean (from Adelaide) Engelhardt

January 28, 2012

Alan Mawhinney and I have been exchanging emails since the Adelaide concert in 2010.  One thing about Alan that was evident from the start, he is so passionate about the genius of Leonard Cohen he wants everybody in his life and beyond to enjoy and admire LC as much as he does.

Alan was inspired to bring together people of different levels of appreciating Leonard Cohen including newcomers with little background.  It was a mission he set for himself and it appears he has succeeded

Karin (like a rose on its ladder of thorns)

On January 21, 2012, Alan and his wife Karin hosted a Leonard Cohen fans get together at their home in Adelaide. Alan, along with the equally passionate Dean (from Adelaide), organized a program for the evening with extensive coverage of Leonard Cohen material.

Alan kindly sent me emails and photos to let me know how the evening went. Thank you to Dean for inviting me to join in on Skype, but I am not on Skype...yet.

Following is a reprint of Alan's emails (in part) describing the planning and the meet-up in his own words.

By: Alan Mawhinney, Adelaide, Australia

Overall we had a successful gathering - twice as long as a Leonard Cohen concert.

I have decided to host the inaugural meeting of the LC Fan Club (Adelaide branch) on Jan 21st.
Each person is asked to introduce a song and then I will play the relevant video.
Dean and I will then introduce the novices to some of the songs not played on the World Tour.

There is a tradition in Australia to have "Christmas in July" when it is cold, so this will be LC's birthday party in January when it is hot.

I caught up with Dean and Cathy at a cricket match a few days ago and they are both in good form.
Dean will bring his concert CD artwork and I will display my vinyl collection.

They are the only others outside my group of inductees that are local forum members.
However I found out a couple of weeks ago that my neighbours are recent fans, so that will increase the numbers a little.

....
Meeting Dean and Cathy this evening (yes at another cricket match) for further planning for our gathering.

....
 Planning for Saturday week is progressing a-pace. Dean wondered if you wanted to tune in on skype!

.....
Overall we had a successful gathering - twice as long as a Leonard Cohen concert.

1. Some audio recordings of Cohen Rarities - Do I Have To Dance All Night, To Love Somebody, etc.

2. Video "The Guests"; Alan intro 21st January = LC birthday when it is hot (33C), followed by Albert Noonan's "Happy Birthday" video.
....
Followed that with the Sony version and then the Alan/Allan version of "A Thousand Kisses Deep". (see below)

Some examples of Cohen humour including the Shoe Hospital thing from Austin City Limits and the intro to Billy Sunday (Blues by the Jews).

Then 3 tracks from Old Ideas -lyric videos of "Going Home", "Show Me The Place" and "Darkness". All very well received. Easy segue from the Cohen humour bit to "Going Home".

3. Each person or couple then presented a song, for which I supplied the video. They said what their song meant to them and I tell you that was a real eye opener for me. I thought many just tagged along because of my missionary zeal, but each had their own deep meaning that they had discovered for themselves.

One of the group is a serious Elvis fan and was delighted when I slipped in the video of Leonard singing a few lines of "Can't Help Falling In Love With You" from the recently appeared BBC interview.

Dean and I gave our various concert recollections during the introduction to our songs, and through it all there was significant discussion, followed by respectful silence during the playing of the videos.

4. To round off the evening I had compiled a list of audio recordings that I called "Gentle Songs". These had not been played during the World Tour and were more easy-listening for novices. I omitted things like "Dress Rehearsal Rag", "Sing Another Song, Boys" and similar. I feel they are more for the advanced listener.

I had displayed my vinyls, books and DVDs and Dean displayed his 2010 concert CD collection with its magnificent artwork - greatly admired by all.

5. The unplanned bit - my neighbours - the most recent fans of all - demanded to see more before they went home!

All in all, a successful evening.

L-R  Front row - Lee, Karin, Jo, Lorraine, Cathy, Dean; Back row - Klaus, Mel, Ian, Julie, Chris, Alan

The Alan Mawhinney/Allan Showalter collaboration of "A Thousand Kisses Deep"

-----------------------------------------

Alan Mawhinney is AlanM on the Leonard Cohen Forum
Alan is alanm5049 on YouTube. His YouTube channel is (here) with six superb videos from the Adelaide and Sydney concerts.

Dean (on the beach)

Dean Engelhardt (dce) posted a wonderful comprehensive report about this Adelaide event on the Leonard Cohen Forum (here)

Dean (from Adelaide) blog, lcdownunder 2010,  A Time Capsule of Leonard Cohen's 2010 Tour of Australia and New Zealand (here)







Karin Mawhinney (photo above) is sporting a transfer rose tattoo in honour of the event

And leave no word of discomfort
And leave no observer to mourn
But climb on your tears and be silent
Like a rose on its ladder of thorns  (The Window)

Pup "Roscoe" is now 15 months old and was named after...you guessed it... Roscoe Beck, Bassist and Musical Director with the Leonard Cohen World Tour 2008-2010. I just love pup Roscoe's hat.

Leonard Cohen Hydra Friends Reunite after 35 Years, May 2011 -- Photos and Narrative by Judy Scott

 Judy Scott and Marianne Ihlen at the Merlina Mercouri Gallery art opening (artist: Tom Powell), May 28, 2011

After a 35-year absence, we finally had a joyous Hydra reunion! Marianne was there to celebrate her birthday, a day we celebrated together on Hydra many years ago.

  Judy Scott & Marianne Ihlen visiting at the house of Pandias Skaramanga on Hydra, to view his collection of Anthony Kingsmill paintings, May 30, 2011

Anthony was a very dear friend to all of us and one of Leonard’s oldest friends. He was a very talented artist who lived and worked on Hydra for 27 years, and passed away in London in 1990.

Judy Scott, Marianne Ihlen, Brian & Valerie Sidaway and friend Jan  

May, 2011

One never tires of the sunsets on Hydra, and Brian & Valerie have possibly the best terrace in Kamini to view them from.

My partner, Monika, Marianne, Brian & Valerie, and Jan

It’s so wonderful to maintain such close connections over many miles and many years. Hydra is famous for fostering such a community. We used to call it ”the Hydra Connection.”

 Judy and Monika on the terrace of our rented house, referred to as the "Gore-Booth house", which was once owned by the English ambassador to India.

Monika and I have been together for 22 years and have visited Hydra 15-16 times.

------------------------------------

Photos and narrative by Judy Scott (Jazz4111): Please do not copy or republish these images without prior permission
To see Leonard Cohen and Marianne Ihlen 1960 Hydra photos, click here

Leonard Cohen Las Vegas Concert Reports: Dec 10 & 11 by LisaLCFan

Lisa Kline (Edmonton, AB)
outside the Colosseum, Caesars Palace

When I read Lisa's concert report on the leonardcohenforum, I had tears in my eyes.  She beautifully described everything I felt. I certainly couldn't write a better report.  I just had to keep a copy.  I was reminded by a dear friend that this is a scrapbook and I can paste anything in it I want.  So I would like to reprint a fellow Canadian's report.

Dec 14, 2010   leonardcohenforum

CONCERT REPORTS: Las Vegas, Nevada, December 10 & 11, 2010

by LisaLCFan » Tue Dec 14, 2010

I know that I wrote a few words yesterday about the concerts in Las Vegas, because I wanted to try to put into words how I felt. Now that I’ve had another day to let it all sink in, if you all don’t mind, I’d like to say a bit more, and give a few more details as to what stood out for me during those two magical nights.

My feet have yet to touch the ground since seeing Leonard Cohen in Las Vegas! Friday's show was absolutely perfect, the best I have ever seen, truly superb in every way. And then on Saturday, Leonard somehow surpassed even that, giving us the performance of his life. I have never seen him perform with such passion, such intensity, such exuberance, at such an unimaginably high level, throughout each song, each moment. I mean, he is always great beyond words, every concert he most definitely gives his all, but there seemed to be something extra-special in these two performances.

Some major highlights, at least for me, and as I remember them (forgive me if my memory is not 100% accurate, but it was all so thrilling!) from Friday's show are as follows:

"The Future" was electric, Leonard's voice was deep and profound and he growled in just the right places, and moved his body in such a wonderful way, and he even did the "white man dance" with Roscoe this time! It was exciting to watch and to hear this wonderful performance!

"Bird on the Wire" was very poignant, at that point near the end of the song when Leonard and the band go silent just before the last verse, you could have heard a pin drop in the auditorium, there was not a single sound, it was like an empty room, it was almost eerie how totally silent it was for that moment!

"Chelsea Hotel" was so moving and so intense, I think that almost everybody in the place had tears in their eyes, it was magnificent.

Right before "Anthem," Leonard gave a beautiful speech (it can be seen in the gorgeous video by Arlene) in which he thanked all of us faithful followers (so much deeper than fans, as The Man himself said), and that definitely had a lot of us crying! It was touching and beautiful and heartfelt, and I felt immensely privileged to hear Leonard speak such words, and to know that he meant them for me. I only wish that I could have expressed to Leonard my love and appreciation for his work, his efforts, his songs, and his very being, in such an intimate way as he expressed his feelings for us. My cheering and shouts of joy and affection were all that I could offer, and by the smiles that lit up his face throughout both concerts, I think that he got the message!

“Hallelujah” was one of the most intense, moving versions that I have seen, Leonard was completely absorbed in the song, and he took us there with him, it was totally beyond words, and there was a big standing ovation at the end. Incredible!

"First We Take Manhattan" was also a delight, so full of energy and enthusiasm, everyone was on their feet dancing and clapping along! Rapturous joy!

"Famous Blue Raincoat" was stunning, it left me breathless (that happened quite a bit, all the ballads were so intense, I would realise that I had stopped breathing, wanting to be as silent as possible to hear every word and every note).

As for Saturday's show, here’s what struck me most:

Leonard gave us the most incredible "Bird on the Wire" ever, his performance was so passionate, in the silent moment in the song, instead of being silent like the night before, the audience burst into cheers, because it was such a powerful performance, we couldn't wait until the end to show our appreciation! It was sublime!

"Everybody Knows" was absolutely delightful, Leonard was so playful and enthusiastic, he danced and waved his arms and did that "ba-dee-boo" thing slightly off-mic that he has been doing at some of the 2010 shows, and he got a huge standing ovation after that song, everyone was absolutely caught up in the utter joy of Leonard’s performance.

"Waiting for the Miracle" was one of the most electrifying versions of that song that I've heard, and "The Darkness" was also very fabulous. In fact, the whole first set just crackled with energy and passion, you know sometimes the first set is more laid-back, but on Saturday night, Leonard was on fire the whole time!

A bunch of us sang "Passing Through" as Leonard and the women came on stage for the second set, and Leonard sang along for one line, "Tell the people that you saw me passing through!" It was a beautiful moment!

"A Singer Must Die" was so intense, another one of those songs that left me breathless, Leonard’s performance was so passionate and powerful and poignant, he was moving his body with the intensity of it. It was amazing.

In "I'm Your Man," Leonard was cheeky and sexy and the audience went nuts, and I think there was a big standing ovation after that (there were more standing o’s on Saturday than on Friday).

It was also the best "Take This Waltz," just beautiful, and very moving, since, when Leonard did the band intros, it struck me that it would be the last time he did that (for the forseeable future), and that made it quite emotional for me.

"So Long, Marianne" was powerful and joyous, I was flooded with many emotions, crying and singing at the same time, as I think many others were, also!

Of course, every moment was wonderful, every song was perfect (Suzanne, Sisters of Mercy, In My Secret Life, all of them, just beautiful!) but these are what stand out in my mind today.

One great thing about the Las Vegas concerts was that Leonard gave his farewell speech on the Friday night, so that Saturday night could be more upbeat. I didn’t feel sad after Friday's show, since I had Saturday to look forward to, and so I was just very happy, and it was such an incredible performance anyway. And then on Saturday, Leonard gave such a spirited, enthusiastic, happy performance, that I didn't feel sad on that night either, since he ended on such a high note, I couldn't help but feel uplifted by his performance. It was really special and incredible and beautiful, and I’m so glad that I was able to be there.

I also must note that I had a wonderful time talking with many forum members, some of whom I had met before, many of whom I met for the first time. You know who you are, I won’t name names (I remember you all!), but please know that you made the whole experience even more incredible. It was such a pleasure to spend time with you all, sharing our passion for Leonard and our love of life that led us to that curious and un-magical place for the most amazing and magical time. I shall never forget it!

Cheers,
Lisa