In December 5th, 2001, Cohen posted a message on French Leonard Cohen Site: I am very sorry that I neglected to cite Constantine P. Cavafy, and his great poem, “The God Forsakes Anthony”, as the inspiration for my song “Alexandra Leaving”. Somehow the credit got left out of my liner notes, although I did make the connection clear in many interviews and on Jarkko’s site, The Leonard Cohen Files. The work of Cavafy has touched and influenced me for many years. Even as I write this, there is a picture of him above my desk. Please accept my apologies.
Sincerely, L. Cohen.
Cavafy’s poem from 1911:
When suddenly, at midnight, you hear
an invisible procession going by
with exquisite music, voices,
don’t mourn your luck that’s failing now,
work gone wrong, your plans
all proving deceptive—don’t mourn them uselessly.
As one long prepared, and graced with courage,
say goodbye to her, the Alexandria that is leaving.
Above all, don’t fool yourself, don’t say
it was a dream, your ears deceived you:
don’t degrade yourself with empty hopes like these.
As one long prepared, and graced with courage,
as is right for you who proved worthy of this kind of city,
go firmly to the window
and listen with deep emotion, but not
with the whining, the pleas of a coward;
listen—your final delectation—to the voices,
to the exquisite music of that strange procession,
and say goodbye to her, to the Alexandria you are losing.
― corrs unplugged, Friday, 24 June 2022 11:09 (one year ago) link