5 Things to Know About the Album Famous Blue Raincoat

It covers Cohen’s work from 1969’s Songs from a Room through 1984’s Various Positions. The album draws from a 15-year span of his career.

It includes two songs from Cohen’s then-unreleased album I’m Your Man. Those songs are “First We Take Manhattan” and “Ain’t No Cure for Love.”

The album is a tribute or cover collection, not a Cohen original. It reinterprets his earlier material with a different sound.

The title track comes from Cohen’s 1971 album Songs of Love and Hate. It is one of his most famous and covered songs.

The album was released in 1987, before I’m Your Man came out. This gave listeners an early preview of Cohen’s new direction.