This is my version of "Famous Blue Raincoat", written by Leonard Cohen. It was released in 1971 on the album "Songs Of Love And Hate"
I tried to keep the arrangement as simple as I could with just two guitars and strings. Cohen is a great inspiration for me, and I hope that I'm able to make some justice to this masterpiece. 

Lyrics:
It's four in the morning, the end of December
I'm writing you now just to see if you're better
New York is cold, but I like where I'm living
There's music on Clinton Street all through the evening
I hear that you're building your little house
Deep in the desert
You're living for nothing now
I hope you're keeping some kind of record
Yes, and Jane came by with a lock of your hair
She said that you gave it to her
That night that you planned to go clear
Did you ever go clear?
Ah, the last time we saw you you looked so much older
Your famous blue raincoat was torn at the shoulder
You'd been to the station to meet every train
You came home without Lili Marlene
And you treated my woman
To a flake of your life
And when she came back
She was nobody's wife
Well I see you there with the rose in your teeth
One more thin gypsy thief
Well I see Jane's awake
She sends her regards
And what can I tell you my brother, my killer
What can I possibly say?
I guess that I miss you, I guess I forgive you
I'm glad you stood in my way
If you ever come by here, for Jane or for me
Well your enemy is sleeping, and his woman is free
Yes, and thanks, for the trouble you took from her eyes
I thought it was there for good so I never tried
And Jane came by with a lock of your hair
She said that you gave it to her
That night that you planned to go clear
Sincerely, L. Cohen

Famous Blue Raincoat - Leonard Cohen cover

Brothers in Arms (with Patrick Ferguson)

🌿 A soft voice for the ones who go unnoticed.
Not everyone gets thanked. Not everyone gets seen.
But this piece is for the servers, the caregivers, the quiet givers,
the ones holding everything together without asking for credit.
If that’s you… this is your thank you. 💸💚
You matter more than they say.
And someone out there does see you.

#ThankYouForShowingUp #EverydayGrace #InvisibleKindness #QuietStrength #SpokenWordHealing #HumanMoments #SmallActsBigHeart #SpokenTruth #EmpathyInMotion #YouMatter #GentleSongs #TipTheOnesWhoHoldUs

****Lyrics****

If no one’s said it lately…
I see you.
I hear you.
You matter.

You move through days like background noise,
Helping, holding, holding back,
Brushing crumbs from someone else’s table
Just to feel like you still belong at one.

You’ve learned to shrink in public,
Speak softly, smile quickly,
Nod instead of shout.
You’ve spent so long being strong,
You forgot what it feels like
To be held.

You are not invisible to me.
I see the kindness in your tired hands,
The effort behind your half-smiles.
I see the way you show up anyway,
Even when you’re unraveling.

You apologize for existing
Like it’s a crime to feel.
But I’d rather hear your truth
Than another silence performed as survival.

The world overlooks the steady ones.
It rewards the loud, the fast, the sure.
But you,
You are a quiet kind of brave.
You’ve been carrying things
No one even knows exist.
And you do it
Without applause.

Some nights, you wonder if anyone sees you.
If anyone could.
You’ve been so small for so long,
You’re not sure what it means to take up space.
So let me say it, clearly

You are not too much.
You are not a burden.
You are not forgettable.
You are not alone.

If all you did today was survive,
That’s enough.
If no one thanked you,
Let me be the first.
You are seen.
You are real.
You are worthy.
And I’m with you.

For the Ones Who Feel Invisible

🕯 I Leave Ashes Behind 🕯
A slow-burning soul elegy wrapped in velvet smoke.
No anger. No goodbye. Just the soft hush of someone choosing absence with grace.
Minimalist jazz-inflected instrumentation meets intimate, breath-warm vocals — a departure so quiet, it echoes.

This is not closure. This is sovereignty.
She doesn’t vanish — she simply leaves nothing behind but ash.

🎧 Mood: detached, graceful, unshaken
🖋 Line to remember: “I leave ashes — dry and clean / Like I was never in between.”

Let the silence speak.

I Leave Ashes Behind

---

Verse 1

I don’t need closure, I don’t need grace
I watched it burn and turned my face
No final words, no bitter cries
Just smoke curling through the sky

Pre-Chorus
You’ll search the air for what we were
But darling, I don't leave a blur


---

Chorus

I leave ashes behind
Not love, not hate, not the ties that bind
No trace for you to follow back
No scent of me on your collapse
I leave ashes — dry and clean
Like I was never in between


---

Verse 2

I left the dress, I kept the name
I walk in silence, not in shame
No bags to pack, no doors to close
Just lighter steps where nothing grows

I didn’t flinch, I didn’t stay
I simply turned and slipped away

Pre-Chorus
You’ll search the air for what we were
But darling, I don't leave a blur


---

Chorus

I leave ashes behind
Not love, not hate, not the ties that bind
No trace for you to follow back
No scent of me on your collapse
I leave ashes — dry and clean
Like I was never in between


---

Bridge (the ritual of disappearance)

No candle lit, no mourning song
No looking back to prove him wrong
No trace of me in what you find
Just breath… just dust… just disinclined


---

Final Chorus

I leave ashes behind
Not love, not hate, not the ties that bind
No myth for you to twist or keep
No echo waiting while you sleep
I leave ashes — soft and wide
Then I return to what’s inside

I Leave Ashes Behind

Fabric blue

i wish you would tell me things
we kiss and then you go your own way
you pull me in,
still want an apology
i don't know why
but i did it, to make you happy

so i'm back here again  
and i already know  
that i should go

i text you i'm leaving
and i drive myself home 
if I go, will you promise not to hate me

running low on sympathy
you say that you're too good for me

apology

Libretto

Io ho le serrature...
Ho io le chiavi...
A lui, gli allarmi...
Facile non sarà...
Due sensori là...
Ferri e chiavi!...
Ma ci vorrà anche... del Prosciutto e del formaggio

Niche humour. About a daring diamond robbery in Antwerp. Carried out by objectively brilliant Italian criminals. Almost the perfect crime, but for the fact they left a ham and cheese sandwich behind for the police to find.

I have the locks...
I have the keys...
He has the alarms...
It will not be easy...
Two sensors there...
Tools and keys!...
But we will also need... some ham and cheese.

La Scuola di Torino

i-believe

HÜBEN UND DRÜBEN - Ein kleiner Danse macabre

Mama By Pascal XV

UNDERWATER

Martin Howard is an English guitarist, originally trained in the classical tradition who
has expanded into folk, blues and rock, both electric and acoustic. He specialises in
original instrumental music featuring both solo and ensemble electric and acoustic
guitars. He has also collaborated with a number of other artists, notably Mark
Johnson, leader of the Kent based band The Midnight River Crew.

Martin also records and shares cover versions under PRS licence LE - 0036402.

Brothers in Arms (with Patrick Ferguson)

Martin Howard

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