Interesting. I didn’t know about a Glynis Johns and her role in this song till now.
Re: Hallelijah, I’ve never understood why it’s so popular, except that it is often used as a piece to express ‘Spirtuality’ by singers known to be either atheists or agnostics. “See? I have a Soul. I’m not just a Hedonist.
I have tearful compassion too, not for Men but for ‘Maya’”
This reason has also made John Lennon’s “Imagine” very popular as a default ‘Spirituality’ anthem, a non-denominational ode often embraced by those same atheists and agnostics in moments of national upheaval i.e. after terrorist attacks.
Except that understanding Leonard Cohen as a flawed Messianic Jew (his description, not mine), the derivation and meaning of the word Hallelujah, and Cohen’s own rationale for the song that in the middle of the chaos and the light, evil and good of this life, Hallelujah was the only response possible, I find that the song soars above those who recorded it.