Jeff Buckley: Grace (Album)

Last week, when Jason Castro sang “Hallelujah” on American Idol, I was astounded by the beauty of his performance, but also inspired by the beauty of the song. Frankly, the whole thing was a little raw compared to what Idol normally serves up. Fortunately, I have a huge appetite for music: I like it raw, rugged, processed, whatever. I’m a junkie.

I knew I’d heard the song before, and I was surprised that the singer didn’t come to mind immediately, because I’m a walking music encyclopedia. So, when Simon let it slip that the song was by Jeff Buckley, a bell went off in my head. “Hey, that’s my friend Jaden’s favorite singer!” Despite that fact that Buckley is so beloved by my good friend, I really haven’t been exposed to much of his music, so I hopped online and read about him. It turns out that the song Jason Castro performed, “Hallelujah,” was actually a Leonard Cohen original, but I was intrigued by Buckley’s biography, and what the critics had to say about him. I listened to a snippet of Cohen’s version and a snippet of Buckley’s and determined that Buckley’s was the one I was familiar with, and the artist I wanted to explore in greater depth.

Nowadays, we live in a 99¢ song culture. Over the last few years, it’s been rare for me to purchase an entire album versus just downloading a song or two. But I splurged because Buckley seemed worth it. And I wasn’t disappointed.

Grace is an album of haunting beauty, enchanting melodies, and soul-stirring rhythms. Buckley’s voice is simply angelic. Actually, angelic doesn’t begin to describe the total grace and nirvana that is Jeff Buckley’s voice. Although each track stands alone, and “Hallelujah” remains my favorite, the songs come together as one to form an album that is both moving and somehow rebellious, soulful and edgy. Put simply, the entire collection is contrary to itself, and paradoxical in that it manages to be one thing (pure) and the complete opposite (dirty) simultaneously. I love it.

Buckley gave us music that manages to be classy yet unclassifiable, for this album defies genre or label. Is it rock? Folk? Classical? I’d say it’s musical magic, but that’s too cheesy a description for work of this caliber. Buckley makes an electric guitar sound like an angel’s harp and it’s heartbreaking that we lost this young artist, who surely would have filled our ears with his sweet refrains for years to come. I will continue to listen to this album and hope that Jeff Buckley’s music reaches out and inspires a new generation of songsters, and I’m grateful that Idol (however lame you think that show is) has brought attention to Jeff Buckley and his awe-inspiring work.