THE 2008 ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME

Leonard Cohen (vocals, guitar; born September 21, 1934)
Induction Year: 2008; Induction Category: Performer

With the 1966 release of In My Life by Judy Collins, containing Leonard Cohen’s “Suzanne” and “Dress Rehearsal Rag,” Cohen became a folk rock icon of the singer songwriter movement. Already an acclaimed poet and novelist in his native Canada, Cohen moved to New York in 1967 and released his classic album Songs of Leonard Cohen on Columbia Records. Its music launched Leonard Cohen into the highest and most influential echelon of songwriters. Cohen’s elegiac work is widely used in film and covered by artists from Jeff Buckley to Bono to Bob Dylan to R.E.M. As Kurt Cobain said, “Give me a Leonard Cohen afterworld so I can sigh eternally.”

There are few artists in the realm of popular music who can truly be called poets, in the classical, arts-and-letters sense of the word. Among them are Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, Joni Mitchell and Phil Ochs. Leonard Cohen heads this elite class. In fact, Cohen was already an established poet and novelist before he turned his attention to songwriting. His academic training in poetry and literature, and his pursuit of them as livelihood for much of the Fifties and Sixties, gave him an extraordinary advantage over his pop peers when it came to setting language to music. Along with other folk-steeped musical literati, Cohen raised the songwriting bar.

Cohen’s recording career spans 40 years, commencing with the 1967 release of his debut album, Songs of Leonard Cohen. He was in his early thirties and seven years older than Dylan, and his age set him apart from the young musicians who dominated the rock and folk worlds. Cohen was born and raised in the city of Montreal, a city whose rich history and thriving culture served to train his writer’s muse on three fundamental preoccupations: romance, religion and politics. His first musical group, the Buckskins, played traditional music at square dances. He studied poetry at Montreal’s McGill University and published his first collection, Let Us Compare Mythologies, as part of the McGill Poetry Series. His favorite literary figures included the Spanish poet Federico Garcia Lorca, the Canadian poet Irving Layton, and Beat Generation figurehead Jack Kerouac.

In 1958, Cohen lived in New York, where he briefly attended Columbia University. He received a grant for his writing that allowed him to travel the world and make the Greek island of Hydra his on-and-off home for a fertile seven-year period. Cohen relocated to the States in 1966 and tried his hand at songwriting, largely as a reaction to having experienced the starving lot of the poet and novelist. By then he’d published four books of poetry and two novels (including the celebrated Beautiful Losers). “But I found it was very difficult to pay my grocery bill,” Cohen said in 1971. “I’ve got beautiful reviews for all my books, and I’m very well thought of in the tiny circles that know me, but…I’m really starving.”

Beyond the promise of better income, his entrée into the music world greatly increased the audience for his poetry. Cohen has always been adamant about the power of words to change individual lives and even entire societies for the better. “I always feel that the world was created through words, through speech in our tradition, and I’ve always seen the enormous light in charged speech,” Cohen told interviewer Robert Sward. “That’s what I’ve tried to get to [and] that is where I squarely stand.”

Cohen found an early supporter and sponsor in Judy Collins, who introduced his songs to the world via her recordings of “Suzanne” (still his best-known song) and “Dress Rehearsal Rag” on her 1966 album In My Life. Legendary A&R man John Hammond signed Cohen to Columbia Records, and his first three albums for the label – Songs of Leonard Cohen, Songs from a Room and Songs of Love and Hate - represent the fruitful first phase in an episodic recording career. The hallmarks of Cohen’s style were his plainspoken vocals, spare arrangements, deep but accessible lyrics, and an abiding preoccupation with the feminine mystique. Cohen’s tightly constructed verses served the rhyming and meter demands of pop-song form without sacrificing the higher ends of poetry.

As a songwriter, Cohen seemed somewhat less comfortable in the Seventies than he had been in the Sixties, recording only four albums of new material – Songs of Love and Hate (1971), New Skin for the Old Ceremony (1974), Death of a Ladies’ Man (1977) and Recent Songs (1979) – in that decade. The first and last of these were marked by strong songwriting and sympathetic production, whereas Death of a Ladies’ Man was marked by difficulties with producer Phil Spector.

Cohen’s output was lesser still in the Eighties, but the pair of albums he did release – Various Positions (1984) and I’m Your Man (1988) – are indisputable classics. The first of these found Cohen writing about spirituality; one of its songs (“Hallelujah”) is among his best-loved and most-recorded, having been covered by Jeff Buckley, Rufus Wainwright and Allison Krauss. The release of Various Positions was accompanied by the publication of Book of Mercy, a self-described “book of prayer.” I’m Your Man was arguably Cohen’s greatest set of songs since his 1967 debut, containing such classics as “Tower of Song,” “Everybody Knows” and “First We Take Manhattan.” In 1992, some of rock’s most respected acts, including R.E.M., the Pixies, and Nick Cave, contributed to the Leonard Cohen tribute album I’m Your Fan. Another Cohen tribute album, Tower of Song: The Songs of Leonard Cohen (1995), included cover versions from more mainstream artists, including Don Henley, Billy Joel and Elton John.

Cohen’s most disenchanted and apocalyptic work, The Future, appeared in 1992. In the title track, he sang, “Get ready for the future, it is murder.” Not surprisingly, Cohen retreated to a mountaintop monastery in Southern California for five years, during which he studied with and served his Zen master, Joshu Sasaki-Roshi. “It was one of the many attempts I’ve made in the past 30 or 40 years to address acute clinical depression,” he acknowledged in a 2001 interview. That year, he released Ten New Songs, his first studio album in nearly a decade. He has since issued Dear Heather (2004) and produced Blue Alert (2006), an album by backup singer Anjani. Between their releases came the documentary I’m Your Man, which featured live performances of Cohen’s songs from U2, Beth Orton and others.

On his ties to Columbia Records, similar in mutual loyalty and longevity to the careers of Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, Cohen told writer William Ruhlmann: “I never sold enough records to make them dependent on my next record or to make them anxious about it. On the other hand, I never lost them any money. [The records] seem to sell themselves in modest quantities with very little money necessary for promotion.”

Cohen has earned a better living as a singer-songwriter than he would have as a poet and novelist alone. Yet he’s enjoyed the poet’s advantage of not having to compromise his dignity by indulging in the often-distasteful rituals of pop celebrity. In other words, he’s drawn the best from both worlds, forging a wholly unique and remarkable niche for himself. There’s no denying that Cohen’s voice has deepened and coarsened over the years, but there’s still a marvelous musicality to his phrasing and poetical lilt to his lyrics that attests to an unquenchable spirit.

In his notes for The Essential Leonard Cohen, writer Pico Iyer noted, “The changeless is what he’s been about since the beginning…Some of the other great pilgrims of song pass through philosophies and selves as if through the stations of the cross. With Cohen, one feels he knew who he was and where he was going from the beginning, and only digs deeper, deeper, deeper.”

Cohen’s artistic outlook might best be expressed in his own words with this lyric from “Anthem”: On Anthem (1992), he wrote: “There is a crack, a crack in everything/ That’s how the light gets in.” He remarked, “That’s the closest thing I could describe to a credo. That idea is one of the fundamental positions behind a lot of the songs.”

TIMELINE

September 21, 1934: Leonard Cohen is born in Montreal, Canada.

1956: Let Us Compare Mythologies, Leonard Cohen’s first book of poetry, is published in Canada as part of the McGill Poetry Series.

1966: Beautiful Losers, Leonard Cohen’s second novel, is published.

December 1967: Songs of Leonard Cohen, the poet/novelist’s debut as a singer-songwriter, is released. It contains “Suzanne” and “Sisters of Mercy,” among his best-known songs.

April 1969: Songs from a Room, Leonard Cohen’s second album, is issued. From it comes “Bird on the Wire” and other favorites.

March 1971: Songs of Love and Hate, Leonard Cohen’s third album, is released. It is highlighted by “Famous Blue Raincoat” and “Joan of Arc.”

November 1974: New Skin for the Old Ceremony, Leonard Cohen’s fourth album of original material, is released. Its original cover is banned in the U.S.

November 1977: Leonard Cohen’s Death of a Ladies’ Man –a Phil Spector production – is released. It will be followed by Cohen’s book Death of a Lady’s Man.

September 1979: Leonard Cohen’s Recent Songs, is released. The Songs of Leonard Cohen, a documentary, is filmed in Canada and Europe the same year.

December 1984: Leonard Cohen’s Various Positions is released abroad. PVC Records issues it in the U.S. two months later after his label, Columbia Records, passes on it.

January 1987: Jennifer Warnes, who has sung backup with Leonard Cohen as Jennifer Warren, issues Famous Blue Raincoat, an album of covers from Cohen’s songbook.

April 19, 1988: I’m Your Man, by Leonard Cohen, is released. Arguably the poet-singer’s best album since his first, it includes “Tower of Song” and “Everybody Knows.”

November 10, 1989: Songs of Leonard Cohen, the singer/poet’s 1967 debut, is certified gold by the RIAA.

November 26, 1991: The Leonard Cohen tribute album I’m Your Fan is released. It includes cover versions by R.E.M., the Pixies and other indie-rock acts.

November 24, 1992: Leonard Cohen releases The Future, a dyspeptic album reflecting a mental state that inspires a five-year retreat.

November 2, 1993: Stranger Music: Selected Poems and Songs, by Leonard Cohen, is published by Pantheon Books. The 432-page collection was assembled by the poet/singer himself.

September 26, 1995: Tower of Song: The Songs of Leonard Cohen is released. Contributors include Don Henley, Billy Joel, Peter Gabriel, Elton John, and other stars.

October 9, 2001: Leonard Cohen releases Ten New Songs, his tenth studio album, his first new album in nine years, and his first to chart in the U.S. since 1973’s Live Songs.

October 22, 2002: The Essential Leonard Cohen, a double-disc retrospective compiled by the artist, is released.

August 31, 2004: Judy Collins, whose recordings of Leonard Cohen’s songs introduced the world to the singer/poet in the late Sixties, releases Democracy: Judy Collins Sings Leonard Cohen.

October 26, 2004: Dear Heather, Leonard Cohen’s second studio album of the new millennium and the 11th of his career, is released shortly after the artist turns 70.

September 2005: Leonard Cohen – I’m Your Man, premieres at the Toronto Film Festival. The documentary includes tribute-concert footage from Sydney, Australia.

April 24, 2007: Leonard Cohen’s first three albums – Songs of Leonard Cohen, Songs from a Room and Songs of Love and Hate – are reissued in expanded editions to mark his 40th anniversary as a recording artist.

December 11, 2007: Composer Philip Glass’ Book of Longing – a double-disc song cycle based on the poetry and images of Leonard Cohen – is released on the Orange Mountain Music label.

March 10, 2008: Leonard Cohen is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the 23rd annual induction dinner. Lou Reed is the presenter.

THE 2006 CANADIAN SONGWRITERS HALL OF FAME

Leonard Cohen ( Montreal, Quebec, 21 September, 1934)
Year Inducted: 2006; Era Inducted To: Modern

With an extraordinary career spanning more than forty years, Canadian musical icon Leonard Cohen has earned the distinction as one of the most influential artists of his generation. A legendary songwriter, Cohen has brought honesty and artistry in a way few others have. His stark images of love, beauty and despair have touched fans and inspired writers and musicians the world over.

Throughout his storied lifetime, Cohen has succeeded as both poet and pop star. Inspired by his own history and romantic experiences, his intelligent musings and musical gifts have endured no matter where he resides - be it the urban chaos of Los Angeles and Montreal, the domestic comfort of a Greek island or monastic isolation of a Zen Buddhist Monastery.

His intense lyrics, spiritual observations and deft humour weave throughout his impressive body of work. Cohen's extraordinary writing and musical talents have gained him numerous accolades, among them: the Governor General's Award for poetry in 1969 which he declined, stating, "the poems themselves forbid it absolutely," followed by several Juno Awards, honorary degrees, and in 2003, the Companion of the Order of Canada, Canada's highest civil honor for achievement in the arts.

Leonard Norman Cohen was born in Montreal on September 21, 1934. He attended McGill University, where at 17, he formed a country western trio called the Buckskin Boys. While still an undergraduate, Leonard became part of Montreal's burgeoning Bohemian scene and published his first collection of poetry (Let Us Compare Mythologies) in 1956. The Spice Box of Earth (1961), his second collection of poems, catapulted Cohen to international recognition.

After a brief stint at Columbia University in New York, Cohen traveled throughout Europe and settled on the Greek island of Hydra where he wrote another collection of poetry (Flowers for Hitler, 1964) and two highly acclaimed novels (The Favourite Game, 1963 and Beautiful Losers, 1966). The books have been translated into many languages including Chinese and Japanese.

After seven years on Hydra, Cohen's restless spirit led him to the United States where he pursued his career as a songwriter. Championed by singer/songwriter Judy Collins, Cohen appeared at the Newport Folk Festival in 1967 where he caught the eye - and ear - of legendary Columbia A&R man John Hammond (who also recruited Billie Holiday, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen to the label) and by Christmas of that year, Columbia released his signature debut album, The Songs of Leonard Cohen.

Songs like the enduringly popular Suzanne, and Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye, So Long, Marianne, and Sisters of Mercy propelled Cohen to the top of the pop music pantheon. The songs had such power that Robert Altman's 1971 film, McCabe and Mrs. Miller became, in effect, the first longform video for Cohen's soundtrack.

Songs From a Room (1969), his second album, and Songs of Love and Hate (1971) further reinforced Cohen's standing as a sentry of solitude. With Bird On a Wire, The Story of Isaac, Joan of Arc, and Famous Blue Raincoat, he continued to stretch the borders of the lyrical landscape of the times.

Recent Songs (1979), co-produced with Henry Lewy (who had previously worked with Joni Mitchell), continued Cohen's dissection of the male female union, but also reflected his many explorations into the religious sphere. Various Positions (1984) marked the full flowering of these religious journeys. Songs like Hallelujah, The Law, Heart With No Companion, and If It Be Your Will, are contemporary psalms, born of an undoubtedly long and difficult spiritual odyssey, so difficult that its conclusion left Cohen - in his words " wiped out." I'm Your Man (1988) was the culmination of Cohen's professional and personal reintegration, a beautifully crafted work that speaks eloquently to his experience as a musical elder. Buoyed by now classic songs like First We Take Manhattan, Tower of Song, and Ain't No Cure For Love, the album went to #1 in several countries.

Despite many long passages of time between albums, Cohen's music has been kept on the airwaves through interpretations by artists as diverse as Neil Diamond, Nick Cave, Diana Ross, Joan Baez, Rita Coolidge, and Joe Cocker. Longtime musical colleague Jennifer Warnes released the critically acclaimed Famous Blue Raincoat in 1986, an entire album of Cohen's work.

In 1992, a number of contemporary recording artists collaborated on a tribute to Leonard Cohen. I'm Your Fan (1991) was the brainchild of Christian Fevret, editor of French rock magazine, Les Inrockuptibles. Originally intended for release on the magazine's small offshoot label Oscar, the project mushroomed into an 18 song cover collection released by Atlantic, featuring such prominent musicians as R.E.M., John Cale, Nick Cave, lan McCulloch, The Pixies, House of Love and Lloyd Cole. Tower of Song (1995) featured interpretations of Cohen songs by more mainstream artists such as Billy Joel, Sting, Elton John, Willie Nelson and Bono.

1992 saw the release of his eleventh album, The Future, an amazingly aural documentation befitting a cultural malaise. It was following the 1993 "Future" tour that Leonard Cohen retreated from public life and lived several years at the Zen Center on Mount Baldy in Southern California.

In January 1999, Cohen came down from the mountain armed with hundreds of new lyrics and poems. He settled in Los Angeles where he released two records, first another live album entitled Field Commander Cohen Tour of 1979 and in October, after nine years, the entrancing collection, Ten New Songs. After such a long silence, the power of this new studio album lay in its singleness, its unity of tone, songs flowing one into the other with a grave, contained intensity. In 2002, many of his best known songs were digitally remastered and released on the double CD The Essential Leonard Cohen.

In 2004, Cohen returned with Dear Heather, produced with collaborators and singers, Sharon Robinson and Anjani Thomas. This musically diverse collection of songs seemed to celebrate the beauty of the world he had returned to with soaring lyrical styles and musical arrangements. Cohen's supporters and the sizeable online community of newsgroups and chat lines continually dissecting his creations anxiously await his next release. He is now working on new songs for his next album for a possible mid-2006 release. He is also working on new songs for Anjani Thomas' forthcoming album Blue Alert, to be released in Spring 2006.

A lyrical icon whose musical trials and travails have led him through an odyssey of hope, conflict and love, Leonard Cohen has taken us to that place by the harbor and our world has become much richer for the journey.

INDUCTED SONGS: Suzanne, Bird On The Wire, Hallelujah, Everybody Knows, Ain't No Cure For Love

In 1966, Leonard Cohen penned Suzanne with the landscape of the Old Port in Montreal in mind. Leonard Cohen revealed, "the song was begun, and the chord pattern was developed, before a woman's name entered the song. And I knew it was a song about Montreal..." The beautiful poem and love song was originally inspired by the view of the Montreal harbour from the observation tower of the Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours chapel, known as the Sailors' Church. Remnants of the chapel are found in the lines, "And the sun pours down like honey/ On our lady of the harbour" which are in reference to the Our Lady of the Harbour statue that stands, with arms outstretched, towards the St. Lawrence river. It was after Cohen's chance meeting with Suzanne, the wife of sculptor Armand Vaillancourt, that life was breathed into the piece. She invited him to her home located near the river where the pair shared a cup of tea. "Suzanne takes you down to her place near the river," begins the beautiful and descriptive narrative of the woman who "feeds you tea and oranges that come all the way from China." Suzanne is poetry set to music. The beautiful and descriptive narrative was published in Selected Poems 1956-1968 (Toronto 1968) and later released on his debut LP, Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. Judy Collins would be the first to record the song after having heard it sung to her over the telephone by Cohen, himself, and Noel Harrison would take the single to Number 56 on the pop charts. The song would go on to become one of Cohen's most covered singles with over 100 versions to its credit. COVER ARTISTS INCLUDE: Judy Collins, Nina Simone, Neil Diamond, Peter Gabriel, Françoise Hardy, Noel Harrison, Pauline Julien, Harry Belafonte, Roberta Flack, Graeme Allwright, Catherine McKinnon, Chad Mitchell, Tom Northcott, Joan Baez, and Genesis.

On a small Greek island, Leonard Cohen moved into an old seaman's house. There were no telephone poles or wires, but electricity finally came and with it wires that stretched across his windows. Watching them with a sense of disappointment and annoyance, Cohen noticed a bird on one of the wires: this was the genesis of the famous and much loved song. As with most of his work, it took many years to revise it and bring it to some acceptable version. Bird on the Wire reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard music chart, #31 on Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart, and was used as the inspiration for a 1990 movie staring Mel Gibson, in which Aaron Neville sang the title song. COVER ARTISTS INCLUDE: Willie Nelson, Joe Cocker, k.d. lang, Jennifer Warnes, Neville Brothers, Johnny Cash, Tom Cochrane, Judy Collins, Rita Coolidge, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Soul Asylum, and Blackeyed Susans.

Hallelujah is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful musical pieces ever written. Yeah but I remember, yeah when I moved in you and the holy dove, she was moving too and every breath we drew was Hallelujah. Although Hallelujah never neared the top of the charts or received significant airplay, it has become a favorite of both fans and artists, including Jeff Buckley and Bob Dylan, both of whom recorded cover versions. Buckley's 1994 version is considered by many to be the most dramatic and striking version, helping to launch the song into mainstream popularity. Most recently, Rufus Wainwright's cover, following Buckley's style, appeared on the soundtrack of the blockbuster hit, Shrek. COVER ARTISTS INCLUDE: Bono, Jeff Buckley, John Cale, Alison Krauss Bob Dylan, k.d. lang, Patricia O'Callaghan, Rufus Wainwright, and India Arie.

Featured on the album I'm Your Man, the moody song Everybody Knows was one of Leonard Cohen's first collaborations with American songwriter and vocalist Sharon Robinson. Everybody Knows gained mainstream popularity when a cover version by Concrete Blonde was used in the 1990 soundtrack for Pump Up the Volume which reached #20 on American charts. The original song also appeared in the popular Atom Egoyan film, Exotica, and was covered by Don Henley on a Leonard Cohen tribute album in 1995. COVER ARTISTS INCLUDE: Concrete Blonde, Dark Gift, Keith Hancock, Don Henley, Dayna Kurtz, Mean Larry & Friends, Jean-Claude Toran, Florent Vollant, and The Washington Squares.

Many of Cohen's songs have a recurring theme of love. According to Cohen, Ain't No Cure For Love addressed the idea that it "doesn't matter whether we found ourselves in the loneliness of separation or the vertigo of union, everyone finally learns there ain't no cure for love." Released by Jennifer Warnes on her brilliant 1986 Leonard Cohen tribute album Famous Blue Raincoat, Ain't No Cure For Love was later released by Cohen in 1988 on his I'm Your Man album. Considered by many to be his comeback album, I'm Your Man reached #1 in several European countries, earning Cohen a CBC Crystal Globe Award, reserved for artists who sell more than 5 million copies of an album in foreign territories. Cohen's version of Ain't No Cure For Love was used in the 1990 movie Love at Large. The song was also recorded by Aaron Neville and was featured on the all-star Cohen Tribute album Tower of Song. COVER ARTISTS INCLUDE: Grassland Boys, Aaron Neville, Northwood, and Jennifer Warnes.

THE 2003 COMPANION OF THE ORDER OF CANADA

Leonard Cohen, C.C., B.A., LL.D.
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Appointment: October 10, 2002
Investiture: October 24, 2003

Known for his striking imagery and evocative descriptions of the human condition, Leonard Cohen has the distinction of creating a body of work that has remained contemporary and significant through three decades of shifting musical and aesthetic tastes. His 1992 album, The Future, introduced his poetic style to a new generation of listeners. In 2001, he released his 12th album, Ten New Songs. It soared to the top of the charts, reaching gold and platinum sales in Canada and in several other countries. His continued popularity confirms his status as a Canadian icon and a venerated dean of the pop culture movement. This is a promotion within the Order.

THE 1991 OFFICER OF THE ORDER OF CANADA

Leonard Cohen, C.C., B.A., LL.D.
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Appointment: April 19, 1991
Investiture: October 30, 1991

Poet, singer-songwriter and novelist, he is one of the most popular and influential writers of his generation whose work has been critically acclaimed throughout the world and has made Canadian literature familiar to readers abroad. Images of beauty, despair, outrage and tenderness are found in his lyrical poetry and prose, whose themes of love, loss and loneliness touch a universal chord in us all.

THE 1991 JUNO/CANADIAN MUSIC HALL OF FAME

Leonard Cohen is one of Canada's best known singer songwriters. His songs and poems have been embraced by millions the world over, and his writings have been studied and translated into many languages. Born in Montreal in 1934, he started out his musical career as a guitarist in a country band while studying literature at McGill University. By 1966, his literary reputation had grown with the publishing of three collections of poetry and two best-selling novels.

Judy Collins' recording of "Suzanne" resulted in Cohen himself being signed by legendary Columbia talent scout John Hammond and released his first album, The Songs of Leonard Cohen, in 1967. Now on his tenth album and the latest recipient of the CBS International Crystal Globe Awards, he has sold more than five million albums outside of the United States. In Europe his popularity is such that he is honoured annually at the Leonard Cohen Festival in Krakow, Poland.

While performers like Suzanne Vega, Elvis Costello, and The Cure have cited his influence on their work, other artists like Neil Diamond, Diana Ross, Aaron Neville, Joan Baez and Joe Cocker have helped maintain Cohen's popularity with their own interpretations of his music. Long time associate Jennifer Warnes' critically acclaimed album of 1986, Famous Blue Raincoat, was devoted entirely to the songs of Leonard Cohen. In addition to his outstanding musical achievements, Cohen's work includes first prize at the Festival International de Television de Montreaux, Switzerland for the film I Am A Hotel which he scripted and scored.

With the induction into the Juno Hall of Fame, Leonard Cohen joins previous Hall of Famers including The Guess Who, Oscar Peterson, Paul Anka, Joni Mitchell, Glenn Gould, Guy Lombardo, The Diamonds, Neil Young, Hank Snow, The Crew-Cuts, The Four Lads, Wilf Carter, Gordon Lightfoot, The Band, and Maureen Forrester. Leonard Cohen's induction into the Hall of Fame is in recognition of his contribution towards the greater international recognition of Canadian artists and music.