» 2000s, Pop » Hallelujah – Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris
Hallelujah – Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris
I watched segments of the “Hope for Haiti Now” telethon tonight. Frankly, some of the performances seemed a little too serious, a little too self absorbed. The cause is just. The need in Haiti is great. But sometimes celebrities take themselves way too seriously in their self-ascribed benevolence.
Not so with Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris. Their performance of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” was striking on many levels. And that’s saying something.
“Hallelujah” has been covered by many, many artists. In fact, Top One-Hit Wonders contributor Matt Thurston wrote at length about the history of “Hallelujah” and his favorite versions of the song. Read it; it’s worth your time.
This version released tonight by Timberlake and Morris has to be one of the strongest yet.
Their harmonies are spot on. The emotion was appropriate for the evening. It stopped me cold. Now listen for yourself. My respect for Justin Timberlake grew yet again tonight.
Listen to Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris perform “Hallelujah”
Hallelujah - Justin Timberlake and Matt MorrisBuy Hope for Haiti from iTunes and contribute to Haitian relief
Related link: Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen
Written by Michael Waterman
I'm an obsessive music collector, cataloger, commenter and trivia nut. Sometimes I'm even a listener. One-hit wonders have always been a guilty pleasure.
Filed under: 2000s, Pop · Tags: ballad, Hallelujah, Hope for Haiti Now, Justin Timberlake, Leonard Cohen, Matt Morris, one hit wonder
Nice. Wish they could have performed all 5 verses. Agree about the harmonies. So I guess the Hallelujah legacy continues to grow… Tough to keep up with all of the versions. They keep coming out fast and furious. And I just saw the Cohen version in the movie Watchman while watching HBO the other night. And someone sang it on American Idol last week.
It seems like Justin Timberlake is trying to show that his and Jessica Biel’s love is going well. I do think he seemed happier together with his ex – Cameron Diaz though.