For those of you who don't know, Jeff Buckley made one record in his lifetime, Grace. Just as his career was picking up he drowned in 1997, in the Mississippi River. He was 30. Some say he was pulled down by the wake of a passing boat, others say it was a planned suicide. In the song, "Nightmares by the Sea," (on "Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk", a record released posthumously) Buckley exhibits the haunting foreshadowing of his death. On the track you can hear Buckley eerily sing "Stay with me under these waves tonight / Be free for once in your life tonight." .
Jeff Buckley means everything to me. Eventhough I listen to bands like Falling Sickness, Anti-Flag, the Ramones, and MxPx, Jeff Buckley's Grace knocked all of that out of the water. Sure I love those bands, and will remain a fan of punk rock for as long as I live. .
Grace is a record unlike anything else. Looking for comparison is hard to do. People who are into bands like The Smiths and Radiohead will certainly like him. Even so, it's not a record for any certain group. It's a record for those who appreciate astonishing vocals and lyrcis. It's not a punk rock record. Although he was influenced by punk rock, this is not a punk rock record. (Dead Kennedys was the last thing he ever listened to.) .
If you are an open-minded person, this is a record to check out. I bring this before you because it has done a lot for me. I would like others, who have not heard Jeff Buckley, to hear what you have been missing. Without question it is my favorite record of all time. Though he doesn't play punk rock he still has the attitude. He even turned down acts like Saturday Night Live and Late Night Shows in order to keep his music pure and intimate. The one thing he never let happen was let the big corporate music industry get in his way. .
Jeff Buckley is emotion. His voice will rip out your heart and make you cry and his rightly placed chords will tear down the walls of your soul.
