Leonard Cohen Announces Fall Tour of North America
by Erik Pedersen, THR | May 03, 2012 9:35 EDT
(Photo by Paul Butterfield/Getty Images)
Hallelujah, Leonard Cohen’s coming back. The 77-year-old singer-songwriter will launch the North American leg of his “Old Ideas” world tour with a Halloween show in Austin. The 20-date jaunt announced Thursday runs through Dec. 20 and includes 10 shows in his native Canada.
Cohen already has a European trek booked from mid-August into early October. The world tour supports his 12th studio album, Old Ways, which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 in February — his first trip to the Top 50 stateside — and topped charts in several other countries.
In 2008, the smoky-voiced troubadour began his first concert tour in 15 years. It drew critical praise around the world and ended up stretching into 2010.
Although never a commercial juggernaut, Cohen has been a revered singer and songwriter since the 1960s. After a frustrating career as a poet and novelist, he released his first LP, Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. The disc featured “Suzanne,” which was covered by Judy Collins and many others.
“Hallelujah,” a track from his 1984 album Various Positions, gained notoriety when John Cale covered it for a 1991 Cohen tribute album. Three years later, Jeff Buckley’s version brought the song to a wider audience. The cover was featured on numerous TV shows, performed repeatedly on American Idol, and Rolling Stone ranked it No. 259 on its list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.
Cohen was named a Companion of the Order of Canada, the country’s top civilian honor, in 2003, and Lou Reed inducted him into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame five years later.
Tickets for AEG Live-backed Old Ideas tour go on sale starting May 11 for the Canadian dates and a week later for the U.S. shows, which include the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles and Madison Square Garden in New York.
Tour Dates:
Oct. 31: Austin, Bass Concert Hall

Nov. 3: Denver, 1st Bank Center
Nov. 5: Los Angeles, Nokia Theatre
Nov. 7: San Jose, Calif., HP Pavilion
Nov. 9: Seattle, Key Arena
Nov. 11: Portland, Ore., Rose Garden
Nov. 12: Vancouver, B.C., Rogers Arena
Nov. 16: Calgary, Alberta, Scotiabank Saddledome
Nov. 18: Edmonton, Alberta, Rexall Place
Nov. 20: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Credit Union Centre
Nov. 23: Chicago, Akoo Theatre
Nov. 26: Detroit, Fox Theatre
Nov. 28: Montreal, Bell Centre
Dec. 2: Quebec City, Colisee Pepsi
Dec. 4: Toronto, Air Canada Centre
Dec. 7: Ottawa, Scotiabank Place
Dec. 11: London, Ontario, John Labatt Centre
Dec. 13: Kingston, Ontario, K-Rock Centre
Dec. 15: Boston, The Wang Theatre
Dec. 18: New York, Madison Square Garden
Dec. 20: Brooklyn, Barclays Center
