So Real - Songs From Jeff Buckley on CD

Description

Among the legions of rockers who died way too young--including Jeff Buckley's father, Tim--few have approached the artistic range and seemingly limitless potential on display here. In the decade since Buckley's death, there has been such a flood of posthumous releases that it might be hard to remember that he issued only a four-cut live EP and a studio debut album while he was alive. This anthology serves as an effective introduction for the initiate, showing how Buckley could rock with the slash-and-burn intensity of Led Zeppelin on "Eternal Life (Road Version)," turn rapturous with the reverie of "Lover, You Should've Come Over," and cover the likes of Edith Piaf ("Je N'en Connais Pas La Fin") and Leonard Cohen (his by now iconic transformation of "Hallelujah"). Completists will need this for the live versions of "So Real" and The Smiths' "I Know It's Over," previously unreleased commercially. Whether Buckley would ever have been able to balance the control that mature artistry requires and the ecstatic abandon that distinguished him, such raw talent continues to startle. 14-track pressing features tracks from his two studio albums and includes two rarities, "So Real" (Live and Acoustic in Japan - non album version/ promo single) and "I Know it's Over" . (previously unreleased Smiths cover from a session at Sony Studios that was edited for broadcast on WNEW on April 6, 1995. It was not included on the radio broadcast.) Other highlights include "Last Goodbye", "Forget Her", "Everybody Here Wants You" and more. All of the tracks lifted from Grace are pulled from the remastered tracks that featured on the Legacy Edition. Sony. 2007. Review 10 years after his tragically early death, Jeff Buckley's name is one that constantly crops up when bands list their influences. The list of those who have recorded tribute songs is equally impressive, including PJ Harvey, and Rufus Wainwright. So Real acts as an introduction to Buckley's legacy, comprising material from the only full-length album he recorded, 1994's iconic Grace, demos he was working on at the time of his death in 1997 (the posthumous unfinished album Sketches For My Sweetheart The Drunk), live tracks and previously unreleased recordings. It also serves as a way of getting round all the hype now attached to Buckley. The decade since he died has seen a flood of releases on a scale that must come near to the Tupac offerings, and his elevation into musical sainthood, accompanied by wailings about his early death and comparisons with his father, Tim Buckley. Ignore all that - the best way to approach Buckley is to sit down and listen, and make up your own mind as his incredible voice soars around you and wraps you up in a blanket of sound. While it was almost inevitable that there would be a compilation to mark the anniversary of his death, and a question of whether one was needed, this one does run the range of his music. You'll find songs here where Buckley unleashes his intensity in blistering live performances, as on 'Eternal Life'', to the achingly beautiful ''Hallelujah'', and the burning passion of ''Lover You Should Have Come Over''. Buckley completists should note the previously promo-only version of ''So Real'', showcasing the beauty and power of Buckley's vocals, and a previously unreleased cover of The Smith's ''I Know It's Over''. In fact the only track striking an off note is ''Everybody Here Wants You'', which veers dangerously close to nu soul. There is little here that doesn't merit its place on this unofficial greatest hits. If this is your first listen to Jeff Buckley, and it doesn't get you straight down to the record shop to buy a copy of Grace, you clearly can't hear properly. 

Tracks:

Last Goodbye
Lover You Should Have Come over
Forget Her
Eternal Life (Road Version)
Dream Brother (Alternate Take)
The Sky is a Landfill
Everybody Here Wants You
So Real (Live and Acoustic in Japan)
Mojo Pin (Live at Sin E)
Vancouver
Je N'en Connais Pas La Fin (Live at Sin E)
Grace
Hallelujah
I Know It's over (Previously Unreleased)