Take This Waltz is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, originally released as part the 1986 Federico García Lorca tribute album Poets in New York (Poetas en Nueva York) and as a single. The song was later included in Cohen’s 1988 studio album I’m Your Man, in slightly re-arranged version (with addition of violin and Jennifer Warnes’s duet vocals, both absent from the 1986 version). The song’s lyrics are a loose translation, into English, of the poem Pequeño vals vienés by the Spanish poet F. G. Lorca (one of Cohen’s favorite poets). The poem was first published in Lorca’s seminal book Poeta en Nueva York. The song reached number one in Spain in 1986. (Source: Wikipedia)
Jose Ignacio: I had not known the origins of the song. Thank you. Almost 50 years ago in high school an English teacher introduced us to Leonard Cohen through his song “Marianne” working to convince us not all great poets were long dead.
He must have been an excellent teacher, whose memory still persists, Bill!
Love this song. Every year I go to Hydra where Coen spent some time. I love his music.
Thank you Sarah for sharing your memories.