Jeff Buckley - Grace Around The World Review
Posted by Vanessa Willoughby on 06.20.2009
A musician and songwriter who had an overwhelming amount of promise, Jeff Buckley was and still is the kind of visionary that proves timeless with each and every listen.
TRACK LISTING:
1. Grace (BBC Late Show, London, 1/17/95)
2. So Real (Live aus dem Südbahnhof, Frankfurt, 2/24/95)
3. Mojo Pin (Live aus dem Südbahnhof, Frankfurt, 2/24/95)
4. What Will You Say (Live aus dem Südbahnhof, Frankfurt, 2/24/95)
5. Hallelujah (MTV Japan, Tokyo, 1/31/95)
6. Dream Brother (Howlin' Wolf, New Orleans, 12/2/94)
7. Eternal Life (MTV's Most Wanted, London, 3/3/95)
8. Last Goodbye (MTV's Most Wanted, London, 3/3/95)
9. Lover, You Should've Come Over (JBTV, Chicago, 11/8/94)
10. Lilac Wine (MTV Europe, Eurockéennes Festival, Belfort, 7/9/95)
11. Grace (MTV, 120 Minutes, New York, 1/15/95)
12. So Real (MTV, 120 Minutes, New York, 1/15/95)
What can be said about Jeff Buckley that hasn’t already been said? Like those iconic figures of film and music, such as Kurt Cobain, James Dean, and Jimi Hendrix, Buckley will forever be immortalized as an ageless, youthful virtuoso with a guitar. However, it’s not his untimely death that catapults Buckley from the category of rock wunderkind to legitimate legend. Grace, the only complete studio album released by Buckley, is solid testament to his musical prowess. Every song showcases his ethereal voice and a level of emotional intensity that seems almost contradictory to his age. Unfortunately, Buckley’s talent wasn’t fully appreciated until after his death. Grace, released on August 23, 1994, peaked at #149 on the US Charts but has gone on to sell 2 million copies worldwide. A tour de force, the album remains as fresh and innovative in 2009 as it did in 1994.
Born in Anaheim, California, Buckley moved many times in and around Orange County while raised solely by his mother, Mary Guibert. In a similar vein to many musicians and general music fanatics, music was introduced and integrated into the Buckley household from the very beginning. Buckley’s mother was a classically trained pianist and cellist. Additionally, his stepfather introduced him to Led Zepplin, Jimi Hendrix and The Who. After graduating high school, Buckley moved to Hollywood to attend the Musicians Institute. At age 18, he finished the one-year course study. Looking back at his experience there, Buckley confessed to Rolling Stone that it was “the biggest waste of time.”
In 1990, Buckley left the West Coast for New York. The move to The Big Apple further fueled not only Buckley’s ambitions, but his appreciation for music itself. He became interested in qawwali, the devotional music of Pakistan, along with Robert Johnson and Bad Brains. In 1996, Buckley temporarily relocated to LA and coincidentally bumped into Herb Cohen, his late biological father’s manager. Cohen helped Buckley record a demo tape and the following year, Buckley returned to New York. After generating considerable buzz through his performances in the East Village, Buckley signed a three-album deal with Columbia Records.
Following the recording of Grace, Buckley spent the next year and a half internationally touring. Stops included Australia, Ireland, Germany, Paris, and Japan. When Buckley and the band finished touring, Buckley began work on his sophomore effort, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk. Tragically, Buckley would never hear or see the release of the finalized album. On May 29, 1997, Buckley drowned in Wolf River Harbor, a channel of the Mississippi River.
The title and opening track of Grace is the sort that slithers through one ear and shocks your heart into attention. A small preview of Buckley’s obvious influences, his soothing voice contains just enough energy to rise above the instrumentation without overpowering it. He fully understands that his voice can function just as much as an instrument as the guitar or the drums; the slight touch of vibratos and falsettos add a vulnerability that the tenacious aggressiveness of the bass and guitar suppress. Towards the ending of the track, Buckley’s voice breaks into unprecedented wails, words rising and crashing into near incoherency. The final word at each sentence is pushed to a stunning volume, almost as though Buckley’s vocal chords are in danger of giving out. The tonality and the texture develop the scratchiness that some people could never possess without smoking a daily pack of Menthols. Already, from that one track, the listener knows that he or she is about to be hit by a phenomenon, a singer that is able to twist and contort notes and sounds into pure art.
The second track, “So Real,” begins with a distortion of the guitars, taking its time to settle into the rhythm. Once again, Buckley’s voice isn’t so much about achieving pitch perfection, but locking on to a certain emotion, a certain mood.
Love, let me sleep tonight
On your couch…
And remember the smell
And the fabric
Of your simple city dress…
Oh... That was so real
Oh... That was so real
There’s nothing flat about his vocal style, as each word is given its own weight and importance. Due to the combination of the instrumentation and the lyrics themselves, there’s something undeniably seductive about the track, a quality that is certainly present throughout the entire album. Unfortunately, for some bands, an unnameable quality is lost when they go live. However, Buckley is the complete opposite. There’s a magic to this recording that makes the listener easily forget that this is not a studio recording.
The proceeding track, “Mojo Pin,” is introduced with the vivacious applause and cheering of the audience. For the first five minutes or so, the guitars are kept at an anxious strum, while Buckley takes his time caressing lyrics that are half-longing, half-heartbreak.
Well I'm lying in my bed
The blanket is warm
This body will never be safe from harm
Still feel your hair, black ribbons of coal
Touch my skin to keep me whole
If only you'd come back to me
If you laid at my side
I wouldn't need no Mojo Pin to keep me satisfied
It’s simple really, when you think about it: the glue that holds together this song and the rest of Grace’s tracks. It’s a relationship of co-dependency: Buckley’s voice can’t fully thrive and come alive without the music itself and the instrumentation loses that extra kick that his voice adds. Around the 7:00 mark, the melody subtly veers in a different direction for a verse and then returns to its original pattern. This is repeated at the 8:35 mark and the bass is much more audible. The sound momentarily culminates into a razor-sharp crescendo, Buckley’s voice reaching a full-fledged wail that probably wouldn’t seem out of place on a Stones record. Buckley’s mastery of his voice is evident in the way in which the wail gently eases into an angelic sigh.
Like two sides of the same coin, “Mojo Pin” showcases Buckley’s vocal versatility and his ability to soak up genres like a sponge. Judging by the applause at the end of the track, the audience recognized it as well.
Next, “Mojo Pin” seamlessly blends into “What Will You Say.” The song explores the theme of reuniting with an estranged parent, which is an interesting topic, considering Buckley’s own strained relationship with his biological father.
The fifth track is probably the most recognizable, as it’s the iconic cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” The original version is a well-crafted song, in all aspects. Yet there’s something about Buckley’s version that brings the song to a different level, one that takes its time to reach a catharsis that is satisfyingly spiritual. Just like Dylan and Hendrix’s approaches to “All Along The Watchtower,” it’s not that one version is superior to the other. Rather, it’s the radical change in emotions that each singer is capable of eliciting. This not a song you’re meant to analyze or dissect, but a song that you’re meant to feel right in the middle of your gut. The tonal quality of Buckley’s voice is one part scratchy soul, one part angelic choir-boy. Focus is directed towards his voice, the background guitar chords mimicking a subdued harp.
“Eternal Life” functions as a stark contrast from the sentimentality of “Hallelujah,” as Buckley’s voice sheds any trace of sweetness for tenacious and relentless combativeness. His demanding and caustic inquisitiveness seeps through each verse, as the musical arrangement leans much more towards a straight rock feel rather than the blues/soul influences of the previous tracks. Buckley becomes an angry philosopher, singing:
Did you really think this bloody road would
Pave the way for you?
You better turn around
And blow your kiss hello to life eternal....
There's no time for hatred, only questions
What is love, where is happiness, what is Life
Where is peace?
When will I find the strength to bring me release?
“Last Goodbye” and “Lover You Should Have Come Over” are a pair of iconic Buckley songs in their own right and naturally, illustrate Buckley’s admirable talent as a both a songwriter, singer and musician. As expected, the lyrics are quite poetic but without Buckley’s unique vocal style, they wouldn’t be half as powerful. It’s a very rare occurrence that a musician can seamlessly combine all of his or her influences into something entirely organic and yet, oddly familiar.
Finally, tracks eleven and twelve recall the opening tracks, “Grace” and “So Real.” Both the second version of “Grace” and “So Real” are taken from an MTV performance in New York, on 1/15/1995. Although the immediate placement of the two tracks may give a false sense of restarting the entire album, both serve as lasting reminders of the near flawlessness of his songs and the passion of Buckley.
The 411: There could never be enough words to describe the magic and the beauty of Jeff Buckley's talent. Some may wonder how Buckley would've fared through the years, if his music would have remained just as inspired and fresh as it sounded when he made his debut. I may be a born pessimist, but I highly doubt that Buckley's career would've quickly fizzled nor would he have stumbled upon the dreaded "sophomore slump." Grace Around The World is a stunning addition to any fan's collection, old or new.
