Leonard Cohen homage show in Montreal to feature Elvis Costello, Sting, k.d. lang

Calling on Leonard Cohen fans: The son of the beloved singer-songwriter and poet, Adam Cohen, is inviting you to let him know what songs of his father's they would like to hear on Nov. 6, when the elder Cohen will be commemorated in style on the first anniversary of his death.

The tribute concert, titled Tower of Song: AMemorial Tribute to Leonard Cohen, will take place at the Bell Centre, kicking off a week of events to celebrate Cohen's life.

Adam Cohen, the show's co-producer, will perform, along with Elvis Costello, Sting, Lana Del Rey, Feist, Philip Glass, k.d. lang, The Lumineers, Damien Rice,Patrick Watson and others still to be announced.

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"I would love to know what your audience is interested in," Adam Cohen told CBC Arts reporter Nantali Indongo.

"What songs would they like to hear? What artists that are not listed on the poster at the moment what artists do you see that we don't have yet?" he asked, directing Leonard Cohen fans to the @CommanderCohenInstagram account.

"I have a very clear idea of the playlist the songs we can't not feature in the evening," Adam Cohen said. "But I don't want to dictate to anybody what they walk out humming in their souls."

"The most important thing to my old man, and the thing he was most proud of and thanked his audience for, is that they were keeping his songs alive. This is the next chapter of keeping my old man's songs alive, in the world."

This is the next chapter of keeping my old man's songs alive, in the world.- Leonard Cohen's son, Adam Cohen

Although the tribute concert was just announced today, Adam Cohen says he's been planning it since the day his father died.

"I've been the motor, the engine. It'sbeen a passion quest," he said.

"My father left me with a list of instructions before he passed: 'Put me in a pine box next to my mother and father. Have a small memorial for close friends and family in Los Angelesand if you want a public event, do it in Montreal,'" saidCohen earlier Monday, in a news release.

How Adam Cohen got artists for tribute to his father, Leonard Cohen

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Adam Cohen tells CBC's Nantali Indongo how he approached artists about performing in the tribute concert for his father, Leonard Cohen.

Cohen's love affair with Montreal has been well-documented. He grew up in Westmount and had a home just off the Mainin the city's PlateauMont-Royalneighbourhood until he died.

Golden Globe winning director Jack Bender, known for his work on Game of Thrones, Lost andThe Sopranos,will film the event for an upcoming special.

Tickets for the show go on sale Saturday, Sept. 23 at noon. Prices range from$40.25 to$276.50, fees not included.

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Cohen was 82 when he died.

The announcement of his deathlast November came two weeks after his final album,You Want It Darker,was released on Oct. 28, 2016.

Proceeds from the show will be shared by several of Canada's arts organizations, a cause near to Cohen's heart.

Leonard Cohen A Crack in Everythingwill also debut that week. The exhibit at theMontrealMuseum of Contemporary Art will feature commissioned work by filmmakers, visual artists and musicians including Quebec stars Ariane Moffatt, Jean Leloupand French singer Lou Doillon.

The exhibit was approved by the late songwriter before his deathand will celebrate Cohen's life and work. It opens Nov. 9.

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CBC/Radio-Canada is co-creating several original productions for the exhibition and broadcasting some special events and concerts.

A nine-storey mural has gone up in honour of Leonard Cohen

7 years ago

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Mural artist Kevin Ledo painted the mural on Montreal's Cooper Building