With the recent passing of Leonard Cohen, I’ve been listening to A LOT of different versions of Hallelujah. Here are my top 5 favourite covers of Hallelujah, but first let’s start with the original by Leonard Cohen released in 1984.

 

#5 K.D. Lang

I was lucky enough to attend a dress rehearsal for the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Games and heard KD Lang belt out her version of Hallelujah. Her version of this song has been one of the most played in Canada.

 

#4 Pentatonix

The most recent release of Hallelujah comes to us from Pentatonix. It is featured on their Christmas album which was released October 21st with the music video they created being shared on Facebook millions of times already.

 

#3 Espen Lind, Askil Holm, Alejandro Fuentes & Kurt Nilsen

Who? These guys are all Norwegian singers who you may not have ever heard of. If you were an Idol fan, you might remember Kurt Nilsen winning World Idol in 2004 by beating out Canada’s Ryan Malcolm.

 

#2 Ramin Karimloo

Ramin Karimloo is an accomplished Canadian broadway singer who recently played Jean Valjean on Broadway. He’s also been in Phantom of the Opera and many world renowned productions. He’s actually one of my favourite singers of all time and in this version he mixes Hallelujah with a song called The Perfect Space by The Avett Brothers. Watch for a special appearance by Ramin’s son Jaden… SOOOO CUTE!

 

#1 Jeff Buckley

Yup! I had to go with Jeff’s version. He originally released it in 1994, just 3 years before he accidentally drowned in 1997. His version of the song reached #1 on Billboards Hot Digital Songs in 2008. Though it’s hard to compare any cover to the original by Mr. Cohen, I think Jeff Buckley does a pretty incredible version of the song and it remains one of my favourites songs of all time.

 

 

Filed under: Alejandro Fuentes, Askil Holm, Cover, Espen Lind, Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley, KD Lang, Kurt Nilsen, Leonard Cohen, pentatonix, Ramin Karimloo