Although Leonard Cohen had been suffering from cancer, it was not the cause of his death last week. According to his manager, Robert B. Kory, it was the result of a fall he had recently suffered.

In a statement that was published by the New York Times, Kory wrote, “Leonard Cohen died during his sleep following a fall in the middle of the night on Nov. 7. “The death was sudden, unexpected and peaceful.”

The article reveals that, although Cohen had just released You Want It Darker and was battling cancer, he was working on two albums at the time of his death as well as another collection of poetry. According to producer Patrick Leonard, one of the records consisted of string arrangements and another was inspired by classic rhythm-and-blues, for which Leonard sent Cohen some new tracks on the morning that he died. Leonard would often get e-mails at all hours of the day consisting of changes that Cohen made to words they had already recorded.

“I feel really grateful that I have been able to have my email ding,” Leonard said, “and there’s a new Leonard Cohen lyric.”

This was the continuation of a prolific spell that saw Cohen put out three records since 2012. Sharon Robinson, a singer/songwriter who worked with Cohen since 1979, suggested this might have been the result of his declining health.

“He was dealing with the ultimate challenge, I suppose,” she said, “and wanted to make sure that he got everything out that he wanted to say.”

Rockers We've Lost in 2016

More From