Important addition to the Jeff Buckley legacy
Alan Hutchins | Denver, CO | 07/06/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There's a telling moment just seconds into the DVD, right before the first live performance on "Grace-Around The World". It's January 17, 1995: Jeff and his band are arranged in the background of the opening shot, poised to begin the song "Grace" after the BBC announcer in the foreground reads a bit of copy about Jeff into the camera. The announcer fills the lower right foreground while Jeff is at the far left in the background, standing relatively still, like the other band members. A few sentences into the introduction, the BBC announcer inevitably mentions Jeff's biological father, the late Tim Buckley. Look at Jeff in the background at the edge of the screen when she does this and you'll see his sudden overhead, emphatic, two-middle-fingers-held-high salute. What better way to illustrate Jeff's discomfort with his genetic legacy and his insistence on being viewed independently from the father he never really knew than this unmistakable gesture!
This CD/DVD release captures much of the wide-ranging and powerful musical ability of Jeff and his band live as it happened, generally around the first half or so of a nearly 18 month odyssey promoting the Grace disc all over the place. European TV appearances dominate this collection; it appears that networks in places like Germany and England were more likely to give extensive airtime to a new artist like Jeff. This material is priceless for its ability to convey the depth of feeling of Jeff's music and the extraordinary tightness of the band. Since he never really performed before cameras again after the "Grace" tours, this and the Jeff Buckley - Live in Chicago DVD (the performance of "Lover, You Should Have Come Over" is the same as on that DVD) are really the only usually-well-lighted, mostly "studio quality" visual evidence available of Jeff and his band in action. Some of the material shows how songs had begun to be extended or toughened up as compared to the studio versions recorded in 1993/1994. "Eternal Life" from March of '95 is already in its "road version" form: the performance is that of a hard rock/nearly punk song that is considerably faster and louder than the "Grace" version. "Mojo Pin" from February of `95 sports an extended, extemporaneous solo intro using his voice and some delay guitar effects that Jeff had begun to tack onto the front of the song in live performances (another example of this is the so-called "Chocolate Version" of the song found on The Grace EPs).
Fans of Jeff can't go wrong with this release. Those not sure of Jeff's importance or meaning this far from his demise should seek this out to judge for themselves what this material conveys on the subject of Jeff's legacy. It's hard to imagine viewing (or listening to the CD portion of) this and being unmoved or remaining unconvinced of Jeff's bountiful gifts.
The only downside to this set is that it is very likely to cause the viewer or listener to experience a renewed wave of grief reflecting the magnitude of Jeff's loss: The Grace songs (and two here that were not on the "Grace" disc including an instrumental version of the song "Vancouver" in the bonus section, a vocal version of which show up on the posthumous release Sketches (For My Sweetheart the Drunk)) point to a bright future that we've known for over twelve years now will never come to be. There's a palpable sense of an unfulfilled promise here--the promise of a long life and a career featuring lots of future Jeff Buckley songs and stellar performances---a promise that was wiped out in one frivolous moment on the evening of May 29, 1997 in Wolf River Harbor, near the Mississippi river in Memphis. The irony of that event is that Jeff's zest for spontaneous, caution-be-damned, life-affirming experiences led directly to his drowning. Wherever he is now, he'd likely be pleased to know that people still seek to re-live and re-experience the fleeting moments preserved on video/audio tape that he left us in the final years of his life.
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Outstanding DVD/CD combo
Paul Allaer | Cincinnati | 06/24/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When I saw this advertized as "coming soon", let me just say I was highly skeptical that this simply would be another attempt by Columbia Records to squeeze just yet another penny out of the legacy of Jeff Buckley. But when I saw the song listing, I just had pick this up. Boy, am I glad I did.
The DVD (118 min.) first brings a "Main Program" consisting of the 10 songs found on the Grace album (but interestingly, presented in a different running order), assembled mostly from TV appearances all over the world, but also a couple of actual concert appearances (New Orleans; Belfast). The 10 songs are intermixed with commentaries from Jeff Buckley, which are short and not intrusive or cutting the flow of things too much. The TV clips are of great, if not perfect, visual and audio quality. I don't know that I can name any true highlights here, as I enjoyed all of these, although the 3 tracks from the Frankfurt TV show in February 95 are really engaging. And of course the chilling "Hallelujah" solo performance in Japan (Jan. 95). After the Main Program there are some bonus materials, including 4 more TV clips (with a very nice "Last Goodbye" from New York in Jan. 95), the video for "Hallelujah" (remember these are the days that MTV actually still played videos), a Jan. 95 piece from VH1's "Star Tours" (where Jeff and the band show us around on the tour bus), and an interview with Jeff on the tour bus from some months later. Overall, the live performances on the DVD, when played in the right home-theatre set-up (which I happen to have), are quite compelling, making this a must for any Jeff Buckley fan.
The CD (12 tracks; 77 min.) brings the audio portion of the 10 songs from the DVD's "Main Program", plus 2 of the bonus songs. Obviously, without the DVD footage, this loses a lot of its appeal. Not to mention that different live versions of most of these songs have previously been released on CD (in particular on the "Mystery White Boy" live album. You'll want to buy this for the DVD, pure and simple."
A Must Have!
Deborah M. Black | Georgia, USA | 06/06/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I received Grace Around the World Deluxe Edition which offered a download of Jeff Buckley Live from the Seattle Concert May 7, 1995. This is truly an awesome complilation Jeff's various performances and re-interpretations of his songs. The DVD's are terrific and are worth seeing over and over again. The Documentary Amazing Grace: Jeff Buckley is a fitting tribute to his influence."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1