Cause It's Not Too Late: Jeff Buckley's Masterpiece
Written: Nov 06 '09 (Updated Nov 06 '09)
Product Rating:
Pros: Look up all of the terms synonymous with "beautiful"
Cons: None
The Bottom Line: This is the perfect time to get this record, too, as a Legacy edition was released a few years ago with a DVD and bonus disc of B-sides.
About five years ago after I had gotten into Elliott Smith, some guy mentioned that I should give Jeff Buckley a try as his music had the same kind of emotional output...although a bit more brazen. At first listen I didn't his music at all; Buckley's voice was a little too soulful for me and after listening to a few songs I quickly shelved it.
Years later (2008 to be exact) I decided to give it another try and on a sleepless night, I fell in love quickly with this record, which has been a constant among the independent music scene and artsy fartsy music network. This record is 1994's Grace by folk legend, Tim Buckley's son, Jeff.
Grace was Jeff Buckley's first full-length record and is comprised of three covers and seven other songs written by him with help from other people in his band, Mick Grondahl, Michael Tinge (whom he did a project with a few years prior), and Matt Johnson. Without question, Buckley is the heart and soul of the band lending his preciously sincere and romantic voice which has this insanely dynamic way of reaching the highs of the highs to the lowest of the lows with such honesty and class that he makes this record hauntingly intimate.
In songs like Hallelujah, his most popular song (based on a cover of a cover of Leonard Cohen song) he shows off not only his lone guitar playing skills with intricate chord details, but a quixotic and beautiful voice that fits perfectly with the uplifting lyrics. "Remember when I moved in you / And the holy dove was moving, too / and every breath we drew was hallelujah."
Another song, which steals the record implementing some of his best vocals is another cover song of Nina Simone's Lilac Wine, which surpasses the original (in my opinion). The dreamy vocalizations by Buckley with the equally translucent music playing behind him give it one of the best productions of a song I've ever heard. The song is slow ballad that you can hold your girl and sway along to-much to Buckley's delight I would presume.
While there are a lot of soft spots in this record, it also rocks pretty hard using a great mix of grunge, soul, and alternative. Some songs that show how good he and his band is at going from soft to loud with ease is a number like Mojo Pin, where it starts out pretty soft, but quickly gains ground with precision and intensity as it spirals into a controlled rage of a loud rock song.
Buckley shows a lot of his heart in these numbers--especially with one of his most popular singles, So Real, which is arguably a crazy diminished waltz at times and can get from loud to soft with a great power. Eternal Life also displays a wide range of sounds with a positively grungy sound that has Buckley sounding heavy and leading a hard rock band. A great song, but one that's different from a lot of the other stuff on here.
The remainder of the songs are awesome with the epically climaxical (new word) Dream Brother (cowritten by Buckley and his bandmates),which has an interesting organically cultural sound to it full of hand drums and some vibrant stringed instruments. It's a very soft number that's led by a wicked Jeff Buckley vocalization that has him acting like an instrument of God himself. The title track, Grace, is a great upbeat number with a ton of great music following Buckley's gorgeously soulful vocals and fast progressions.
My favorite Jeff Buckley song is Lover, You Should've Come Over, a haunting score that has Buckley cooing over a lost love and one of the most triumphant songs he ever wrote; one that sticks to your heart and doesn't let go. Buckley's vocals are heartbreaking and the guitar work is catchy and flows like a river carrying you away. "So I'll wait for you... And I'll burn / Will I ever see your sweet return? / Oh, will I ever learn? / Oh, Lover, you should've come over /Cause it's not too late."
Jeff Buckley tragically died in 1997 in a drowning accident, but his legacy lives on. This release is one that will change your life--it certainly changed mine. Buckley had such a beautiful voice and created some of the most endearing songs that it's like an experience to listen to him. All of these songs are catchy and long and sound like elegantly controlled improvisations.
Due to Buckley's perfectionism, all of these tracks are top notch with not even one song being a waste. I put this on when I'm sad, I put it on when I'm happy, I put it on when I'm exercising, it's a record perfect for every mood. While his second record was released posthumously and there's a string of live releases floating around, this is the best release by Jeff Buckley, which had his full control. There's a reason this is on a ton of peoples' top lists of the nineties-full of spirit, beauty, and dreamy atmosphere, Grace is one of the best records I've ever listened to in my life.
01. Mojo Pin 02. Grace 03. Last Goodbye 04. Lilac Wine 05. So Real 06. Hallelujah 07. Lover, You Should've Come Over 08. Corpus Christi Carol 09. Eternal Life 10. Dream Brother
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