LEONARD COHEN INFORMATION SERVICE
(LCIS) 1984-1994

Leonard Cohen Information Service was established in Germany in mid-80's. On December 16, 1984, the first Newsletter was issued in German. It was a doublesided A4 of news, three items in all: the "I’m a Hotel" Video, the new album "Various Positions" and Leonard’s tour to Europe in 1985. Three German Cohen fans, Martin Rupps, Gerhard Schinzel and Michael Lohse, were the editors. The last German Newsletter was issued on May 10, 1989.

Jim Devlin in Sheffield, England, started his activity with English translations of the German Newsletter. The publication got lots of subscribers from all over the world, and it was clear that it had to be published in English.

Jim then continued with four Newsletters of his own each year, until the last one - # 37 - was mailed in December 1994 to about 200 subscribers in Europe, USA and Canada, Asia and Australia. It was A5 size publication usually with 12-20 pages, full of information.

Jim compiled Newsletters from his own archives and newspaper and magazine cuttings, audio and video recordings, cover albums and all kinds of memorabilia mailed by other Leonard Cohen fans and subscribers of the Newsletter.

Jim writes: "During its ten years, The Leonard Cohen Information Service" was simply a "conduit" for passing on information about the Great Man to those who took the interest and time to write in... We were an amateur, non-profit-making/seeking set-up, quite simply interested only in and dedicated to spreading and promoting news of Leonard’s career as writer/musician/recording artist/painter and, of course - singer!!... Leonard himself knew all about us (as did his UK and USA Record Companies) and was happy about our activities."

Jim collected and listed in detail Leonard’s concert tours (with song lists!), cover versions in many languages, promo albums and singles, and hundreds of TV and radio programs and interviews.

LCIS has so far published two books (both sold out). These two were compiled in Germany and England: "Recordings of Leonard Cohen 1957-1980", and an updated version "Recordings of Leonard Cohen 1957-1986" with 206 pages.

Jim Devlin has written three books about Leonard: In Every Style Of Passion (1996), Is This What You Wanted (1997) and In His Own Words (1998).