The Great Lost Talent
Ian Creamer | Dublin,Ireland | 07/13/2000
(2 out of 5 stars)
"Like many other people I was totally amazed by the passion,power and the incredible vocals of Jeff Buckley when I first heard the c.d. 'Grace'.It was and still is one of the best c.d.'s I've ever heard.I was totally devestated when I heard what happened to him and one of my biggest regrets was not having availed of the opportunity to see him live in Dublin many years ago.When I heard a proper live c.d. was coming out I was really excited at the prospect.I know these concerts were not recorded with any specific idea to make them into c.d.'s and I now think having heard them it was a mistake to do so.You can get a vague idea of how good a singer and guitarist Buckley was but the quality is ridiculously poor.The great songs like 'Last Goodbye' and 'Grace' have been totally diminished by the awful sound quality.The whole c.d. is redeemed slightly by the last track-'Hallelujah/I Know It's Over'medley.The 3 songs on the bonus c.d. are better than nearly all the other songs on the main c.d.,especially 'So Real' which sounds really powerful.If you are a real die hard Jeff Buckley fan and really want to get this I would certainly reccommend buying the extra c.d. I like many other fans feel selfishly sad that I never got to hear Jeff Buckley write and record songs the way he himself wanted-now I just hope that they stop re-issuing reject material and leave us to remember him from that amazing album 'Grace'!"
In the raw...
Dirk Hugo | Cape Town, South Africa | 07/13/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Jeff Buckley's studio recordings all sounded very polished, with his soaring, passionate voice often haltered by big and highly layered production. On these live tracks his voice is naked and raw, often descending headlong into an anguish that the studio versions only hinted at. The musical interpretations of the songs are also less compact, often meandering into improvised explorations in a spirit of childlike adventure. This special edition is well worth acquiring, if only for the inspired renditions of "So Real" and "Lover, You Should Have Come Over"."
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1