Leonard Cohen died in his sleep after a late-night fall

(Image credit: Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images)

published 17 November 2016

When legendary singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen died last week, his family did not provide any details. He had reportedly been fighting cancer, but on Wednesday, his manager, Robert Kory, said that Cohen died after a late-night tumble on Nov. 7, three days before his death was announced. "Leonard Cohen died during his sleep following a fall in the middle of the night on Nov. 7," Kory said in a statement. "The death was sudden, unexpected, and peaceful."

Cohen had been working right up until the end, and it wasn't clear before his death that his just-released album, "You Want It Darker," was to be his swan song. Collaborator Patrick Leonard tells The New York Times that he and Cohen were working on two other albums, one with string arrangements of his songs and another featuring songs inspired by old R&B grooves, and Cohen was also finishing a book of poetry. "He felt the window was getting narrower," Leonard said. "He wanted to use the time as productively as he could to finish the work that he was so good at and so devoted to."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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