Bonnie McKee Performs A Spare, Gorgeous Cover Of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”: Watch

“American Girl” songstress Bonnie McKee is so renowned for her skills as a pop scribe that it’s easy to forget that she actually has a killer set of pipes, too, even when all the production tricks get stripped away. For the holidays, McKee recorded a special cover of Leonard Cohen‘s iconic “Hallelujah,” which — as she explains — isn’t necessarily brimming with Yuletide cheer, but felt somehow seasonal.

“I know ‘Hallelujah’ isn’t actually a Christmas song, but it has that cozy, haunting vibe that sounds like a winter’s night and belongs by a fire,” she told Rolling Stone. “It’s still and reflective, one of the most beautiful descriptions of the sparkling highs and devastating lows of falling in love, and perfectly captures the thrilling rapture and free-falling fear we feel when we dare to really show ourselves to another person. 

The video, taped with some very soft lighting by a glowing fireplace, features just a guitar for accompaniment, which allows McKee’s voice to shine — powerful and clear and emotive, she hits all the right marks.

Watch below.

[via Rolling Stone]

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