I very rarely develop crushes on the subjects of songs. There is, of course, the girl from "Underwhelmed" by Sloan. Every guy knows her. Every guy has a crush on her. Every guy never does anything about it.
But then there's "Suzanne", that purveyor of earthy sadness who may feed me tea and oranges all the way from China. I remember waking up in the country one Sunday- there was a snowstorm, and CBC was doing a piece on the actual "Suzanne" on the TV. She's homeless in California. She never had sex with Leonard Cohen. She shows me where to look among the garbage and the flowers.
People like this don't seem to exist in everyday conversation. Not around these parts, anyway. I think the closest I ever met was an Australian in India... but she just went back home to work at the bank.
Anyway, everyone knows the original. Here are a few versions from artists I love, or at the very least, find interesting. I think my favourite one is The Fairport Convention. Because a) I am a mark for British psych-folk and b) love the way it slowly burns, unlike the original which is hypnotic, but hence, sleepy.
-kam