Leonard Cohen- Hat fancier

[tortswon]

Last night I had the pleasure of attending Leonard Cohen's concert at the Merriweather Post Pavillion in Columbia, MD, just outside Baltimore. It was cold and rainy (the venue is of the shed variety with open sides allowing the wind to whistle through.

I was truly amazed when at the end of the show, Leonard gave credit to two women who "take care of our hats." It must be great to be a star and have two people to take care of the band's hats. I could get away with one. Every band member except two wore a hat for the show. Best, Sam

 

[celtic]

You told me again you preferred handsome men, but for me you would make an exception....

 

[tortswon]

Clarification

Celtic, lest anyone be confused, the line you posted is from Chelsea Hotel written by Leonard Cohen about Janis Joplin. We don't want the mods to think we are turning this into an alternative lifestyle dating site.

"And Im crazy for love but Im not coming on
Im just paying my rent every day
Oh in the tower of song"- L. Cohen

Best, Sam

 

[Lefty]

Does anyone know what brand Cohen favors? New or vintage?

found by google: bad handling

 

[feltfan]

Sigh. I was tempted to see him when he played
here in the deco Paramount Theatre. But then I
figured out how many hats I could buy for the
overpriced tickets. Yeah, his manager absconded
with all of his money, but gee...

Anyway, I bet it was a great show, regardless
of his hat brand.

I did see Randy Newman last year ("You can leave
your hat on") and for a lot less for great seats.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Have never seen him live, but did catch him on Austin City Limits a ways back. I'll bet the show was fantastic.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[tortswon]

Philly show

Attended last night's show in Philly. Once again, he gave a tip of the hat to the people who take care of the band's hats. Nice work Lenny!

 

[MattJH]

I was front and center on the balcony at the Beacon Theatre show in February and front and center in the first row (!!!!!!!!) for the Academy Of Music show in Philadelphia on Tuesday night. He is my most favorite artist of all time, without question. Sam, I looked for you, but failed, and thought to give you a call when the show let out but it was a work night and I just had to get to bed.

 

[MattJH]

Anyone recognize the brand?

I've seen many photographs of him wearing nice fur felts, but for the stage, it looks like he wears a hat made of some other sort of material. It's not wool. I was very close. It was something else.

 

[Ande1964]

Hmm...

Looks like a packable with a grosgrain sweat, but who makes one with a liner?

Anj

 

[daizawaguy]

Looks like it has multiple stitches on the brim, possibly made of material...European?

 

[Spellflower]

I saw him at Radio City, and got a good look at his hat by looking at the giant TV screen with my binoculars. It did not appear to have a grosgrain ribbon, but some kind of ribbon substitute made of the same material as the hat.

The ticket was pricey, but I'd rather have that memory than another Akubra. Hopefully it will last as long!

 

[Ray George]

Anyone recognize the brand?

I've seen many photographs of him wearing nice fur felts, but for the stage, it looks like he wears a hat made of some other sort of material. It's not wool. I was very close. It was something else.

Leonard is so spiffy these days...

Wish I had a suit like the one he has on in the photo you included.

Leonard is one of my favorites; has been for many years now.

Even though my specialty now is swing/jazz standards, I still
sing his, "Hallelujah" every chance I get.

 

[Be-Bop Baby]

Awww, I've seen him play at a venue in Germany last October. He's sooo amazing!! Will see him again in August and am playing with the thought of wearing a fedora myself *lol*

I've just found another picture of the fedora's inside, where the label is a bit clearer visible, yet unfortunately not readable.

 

[Be-Bop Baby]

Got it - Lennies choice of hat during Summertime: A Stetson!

Me again. I just talked about this topic to my friend, who is a great fan of the Master too. She already saw him at two of his concerts. One of them last summer at the "Stimmen" Festival in Lörrach/Germany. Lucky as she was she stood right in front of the stage, front row, during soundcheck AND concert. In fact so close to Mr Cohen, that when he lifted his hat she could actually read the label inside and she said it was definitely a Stetson.

However, this concert took place on a VERY hot summer day and the hat was different to those very elegant ones he wears in the concert halls these days. Still thought you might like the information

These are photos from the concert, showing the Stetson in question: