Track 4 – “There is a War” (Leonard Cohen cover)

“Blankets and Covers: Volume One” – Track 4 – “There is a War” (Leonard Cohen cover) (recorded November 17th 2010 at “Bayside” Keyport, NJ )

“There is a War” is a song off Leonard Cohen’s 1974 album, “New Skin for the Old Ceremony”. Like the title of the album, the content of the song rings true although the names have changed. I met a friend when I went to Rutgers University by the name of Tim Turzo. He lived off campus and I would go to what he called his, “little slice of heaven”, which was a cabin of sorts on a farm in North Brunswick, NJ. I loved going there and looking through his record collection and listening to the music he put on. This is one of those songs Tim turned me on to that just blew me away. In a way, this is a tribute to him just as much as Leonard Cohen.

There is a war between the rich and poor,

A war between the man and the woman.

There is a war between the ones who say there is a war

And the ones who say there isn’t.

Why don’t you come on back to the war, that’s right, get in it,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, it’s just beginning.

Well I live with a woman and a child,

The situation makes me kind of nervous.

Yes, I rise up from her arms, she says “I guess you call this love”

I call it service.

Why don’t you come on back to the war, don’t be a tourist,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, before it hurts us,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, let’s all get nervous.

You cannot stand the man I’ve become,

You much prefer the gentleman I was before.

I was so easy to defeat, I was so easy to control,

I didn’t even know there was a war.

Why don’t you come on back to the war, don’t be embarrassed,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, we can still get married.

There is a war between the rich and poor,

There is a war between the man and the woman.

There is a war between the left and right,

There is a war between the black and white,

There is a war between the odd and the even.

Why don’t you come on back to the war, pick up your tiny burden,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, let’s all get even,

Why don’t you come on back to the war, can’t you hear me speaking?