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Jeff Buckley – A ‘Grace’ celebration

Jeff Buckley’s iconic album ‘Grace’ was released on August 23, 1994

Hard to imagine now that when ‘Grace’ appeared in 1994 it was considered a bit of a disappointment. The buzz around Jeff Buckley had been growing so loud, the expectations for his first album were so high, that when the record finally came out and it was neither a redeclaration of the power of rock and roll or a commercial blockbuster – in other words, when it was not ‘Nevermind’ – there was a slight sense among the self-anointed hip that ‘Grace’ was a let-down.

“It was subtle, it was meditative, it was overtly musical. At that Lollapalooza moment in musical history, in that brief open space between Nine Inch Nails and Smashing Pumpkins, ‘Grace’ felt disconnected from the revolution. Who would have thought then that it would turn out to be one of the most influential records of the 1990s? It turns out that not being part of its moment is what made ‘Grace’ a record for all time. By failing to be stylistically specific, Jeff Buckley made music that became universal. ‘Grace’ is full of beauty and yearning. It’s inspirational but more than that, it’s aspirational. It reaches for something just out of sight. Jeff had a very special talent – he could hit any note he could imagine, musical and emotional. Hearing ‘Grace’ influenced musicians to push past their own limits. ‘Grace’ made beauty cool again. That is a great gift to leave behind.”

Bill Flanagan (Summer 2004)

Head over to the Legacy Facebook page for a chance to win a 7″ blue and very rare LP of ‘Hallelujah’ and a Vinyl Extra of ‘Grace’ https://www.facebook.com/SonyLegacyUK

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