This might sound like heresy to Leonard Cohen fans, especially in light of his recent passing. Until last night, I'd respected Cohen's song, "Hallelujah," but it wasn't a tune I usually wanted to hear. I feel the same way about the Beatles classic, "Yesterday." I respect the lyrics and the performance, but the song's melancholy outlook makes me want to hear it only occasionally.
Hearing "Saturday Night Live"'s Kate McKinnon sing "Hallelujah" and accompany herself on piano last night made me appreciate the tune more than I ever had, however. The context in which she sang it--as Hillary Clinton and with the admonition, "I'm not giving up, and neither should you,"--was a perfect acknowledge-your-post-election-grief-and-move-forward opening for the show.
Context is everything sometimes. In this case, it made me reassess one of Cohen's most covered songs and realize that I hadn't been giving it its due.
Well done, Kate. Well done, SNL.
