Which Hallelujah lyrics version do you prefer?

[Martinus]

The first two stanzas are the same in both versions, i.e.:

Well, I heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
Well it goes like this:
The fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Well your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
She tied you to her kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

But then the versions diverge.

The original Cohen's version would go:

You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light
In every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken Hallelujah

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

But the one that gained popularity was an alternative one he debuted 4 years later:

Baby, I've been here before
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor (you know)
I used to live alone before I knew ya
And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
And love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

There was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below
But now you never show that to me, do ya?
But remember when I moved in you
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Maybe there's a God above
But all I've ever learned from love
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya
And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

[Monoriu]

I learned of the song from the Shrek movies.  I listen to the Jeff Buckley version, though I usually don't pay attention to the lyrics. 

[Martinus]

I learned of the song from the Shrek movies.  I listen to the Jeff Buckley version, though I usually don't pay attention to the lyrics.

It's one of my favourite songs and the lyrics are amazing, imho.

Learning to play it right now as a part of my piano lessons*.

*This WAS a humble brag.

[HVC]

I count this as a gay thread


. I like the second version and wasn't aware of the first. I also like most of the cover versions rather than the first. His voice just doesn't do it for me.

[Martinus]

I count this as a gay thread


. I like the second version and wasn't aware of the first. I also like most of the cover versions rather than the first. His voice just doesn't do it for me.

Yeah, nothing more gay than a religious Jewish guy singing about having sex with a woman. 

As for the versions, I originally liked Buckley's (and Wainwright's) ones better but recently I am finding that I like Cohen's more (not that he is really singing, more like rapping).

But I still think that Liza Minelli's "New York, New York" version is better than Sinatra's (now that's gay).

[HVC]

You like the song mainly because of Rufus   I remember you starting a thread about it years ago

[Martinus]

You like the song mainly because of Rufus   I remember you starting a thread about it years ago

I grew out of Rufus by now but still like the song. I find Rufus too whiny.

[celedhring]

Actually I have always been partial to the first version. It mixes up religious and erotic themes nicely while the second one is more obvious. Both are great anyhow.

Also, I love Buckley but never liked his Hallellujah cover much, actually.

[celedhring]

And please don't tell me that liking Buckley is now a gay thing.

[Eddie Teach]

I like the line about showing her pussy to him.

[HVC]

I like the line about showing her pussy to him.

but she doesn't do it anymore, so it's bitter sweet... The moment, not the pussy, just to be clear

[Martinus]

I like the line about showing her pussy to him.

but she doesn't do it anymore, so it's bitter sweet... The moment, not the pussy, just to be clear