Amazing Grace: A FEATURED FAVOURITES Post on Jeff Buckley

“Grace is what matters. In anything. Especially life, especially growth, tragedy, pain, love, death. About people, that's what matters. That's a quality I admire very greatly. It keeps you from reaching for the gun too quickly; it keeps you from destroying things too foolishly; it sort of keeps you alive and keeps you open for more understanding.” – Jeff Buckley

Last summer I went on a six-week trip across the US with my friend Gwen. One of the most important stops on this trip, for me, was an area called Wolf River Harbour, a channel of the Mississippi River outside of Memphis, where Jeff Buckley accidently drowned on May 29th 1997. Being a fan of Jeff Buckley for  coming on ten years now and having read about his death in many biographies and articles during this time, I wanted to visit the exact place where the legendary musician took his last breath, after he ventured into the water for a spontaneous swim. It was without a doubt one of the most memorable experiences of the time we spent in America.

At the moment, there are talks of a new biopic being on the cards, a film on the life of Jeff Buckley helmed by Jake Scott, director of the hit film Welcome to the Rileys. While this is something that excites me, I wanted to do a feature piece for Rarities paying tribute to another piece of work, a fantastic feature documentary that many people may not be familiar with. Amazing Grace: Jeff Buckley explores Jeff Buckley’s legendary and inspiring music and its enduring impact on people all over the world, long after his sudden tragic death at the age of 30.

The passionately crafted hour-long film investigates the power behind Jeff's music, featuring moving interviews with Jeff's mother, Mary Guibert, his band's four members, other family members, colleagues and friends. As well as featuring those who knew Jeff, it also features those who didn't; artists (including a composer, painter, dancer and singer) who all pay tribute to how Jeff's music has inspired and continues to inspire them in their lives and in their work. Touching down in New York, Sydney, London, Los Angeles and eventually Memphis where Jeff died, Amazing Grace takes viewers on an intimate journey though the life of one of the world's most unusual and phenomenal deceased musical talents. The film was produced and directed by first-time filmmakers Nyla Bialek Adams and Laurie Trombley, and on its completion was screened at 25 film festivals to huge critical acclaim, including the 2005 Seattle International Film Festival and the Cinequest Film Festival. It was winner of four awards, including Best Music Documentary and Best Film.

Amazing Grace includes rare performances and exclusive video footage that is an absolute must-see for fans of Jeff. It touches on why Jeff's untimely death kept him on the periphery of popular music, even though his rare and excpetional talent would have undoubtedly poised him for huge success, and examines how his art has endured throughout the years despite a lack of major commercial attention. Fellow artists such as Chris Cornell, Duncan Sheik and even Skid Row’s Sebastian Bach make appearances in the film and talk about Jeff’s unwavering integrity and his incredibly gifted songwriting ability. The film also explores the various reactions when those interviewed for the documentary found out about Jeff’s accidental drowning. Because his popularity was mostly limited to a cult following at the time of his death, it makes people's reactions to the news seem even more personal, allowing  us a rare glimpse into the lives of the people Jeff touched with his music and his warm and engaging personality.

One of the first scenes in Amazing Grace shows Jeff being asked what his main influences in life are, to which he replies, "Love, anger, depression, joy and dreams. And Zeppelin. Totally". The scene then fades to reveal the video for Jeff's most famous song, his cover of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah'. The documentary then opens with Jeff in New York, where he moved from California in the early ’90s. He grew up in Orange County in Southern California, which Gwen and I also visited, but he never thought he fit into the scene down there. By moving to New York, he was hoping to burn away some sort of "film" that he felt was settling on him. He just wanted to get out into the busting city and work, find a place to play and share his music. The most important place that Jeff would play in his short life, the one where he would find solace, would be Sin É in Manhattan's East Village.

According to Amazing Grace, Sin É was where Jeff felt most comfortable. He felt that Shane Doyle, an Irish immigrant who was the owner of the original venue, was "never about the money". He just wanted a definite place for music where people could come and listen, which Jeff liked the idea of. Entry to Sin É was free, so often people passing on the street would look through the window and then wander in and out depending on the sounds coming from inside. However, when Jeff played the seats would be full, as people would be drawn to the sound of his beautiful voice and guitar playing coming from inside. Word quickly spread and people would eventually come from all over the city specifically to see him.

From when he was a very young age, it was clear that Jeff was in possession of an incredible talent. His mother describes him as a child who would soak up every piece of music available to him, drawn to every type of music you can imagine. Folk, symphonic, country, Qawwali music; he absorbed every artist of every genre. He wanted to utilise all music within his grasp. He digested it and channelled it, until he could use it himself, interweaving into his own sets, yet completely making it his own. Acquaintances and colleagues also recall Jeff as a "musical sponge", able to soak up (and sing) anything he desired. Jeff's vocal ability was also something that was evident from an early age. Impossible to classify, his four-octave range voice moved people to tears, signalling a passion and talent way beyond the boy's years, and far beyond their expectations. Jeff's voice and his stirring and emotive songwriting drew on influences from the worlds of rock, soul, blues, folk and even gospel, showcasing a deep innate feel for music.

According to those who saw him perform regularly at the venue, Jeff grew and developed very quickly while playing at Sin É. When he took to the small stage and plugged in, he just came to life and completely nailed his performances every time. His pitch was always impeccable. People often thought he wouldn’t reach the notes, but he hit them perfectly every time. Amazing Grace explains how Jeff played very longs sets, which were filled with huge onslaughts of emotion. Reflecting his deep-thinking and sensitive nature, he focused primarily on the emotion in his songs, continuing to play until he completely ran out of steam. As a result, word spread even further about this coffeehouse chanteur who had a voice that was almost divine and was covering everyone from Edith Piaf to Judy Garland in his candlelit sets. More and more people started visiting Sin É and more and more emerging singer-songwriters were sending requests to Doyle to play there. Everyone knew it was only a matter of time before Jeff was signed. It was inevitable. And, before long, limos filled with record company executives began to line the streets outside the venue, all hoping for a minute with the budding artist.

Jeff was deeply torn in his decision to sign with a record company. He had strong opinions on the music industry and didn’t want to get sucked in too fast. All his life, Jeff had listened to stories about people involved in the music business; stories of people who thought they had failed, stories of dreams being inflated and then eventually crushed. Every time he picked up a guitar at home in Southern California someone had a story to tell him. However, despite this worrying him a little, Jeff was drawn to the humanness of music and its industry, of people rising and falling. He was adamant that his future be about the rising. Aware that he might one day arrive at Sin É to find the limos were not there anymore, Jeff knew he had to make a decision before he missed out on the fantastic opportunities being presented to him.

As Amazing Grace details, Jeff eventually signed with Columbia Records, who are now owned by Sony Music Entertainment. When Jeff first went to a meeting with the company, he saw a picture of Bob Dylan on the wall and something stirred within him. Columbia Records represented what Jeff called great “heritage artists" and had a reputable history with acts, something which he felt was important to his work as an artist.

As it was Sin É that first established him as a performer, Jeff decided that his first release from Columbia should be a live album recorded at Sin É, which was a huge risk at the time. Many people, those who were outside of Jeff's cult following, would find Live at Sin É difficult to warm to, as they had no previous experience of him as a recording artist and had still not seen him play live. But Jeff pulled it off. The 4-track EP, released in 1993, showed an amazing voice and a great talent and left those who heard it hungry for more. With the release of Grace, the only studio album Jeff would release while he was alive, things became even clearer.

Grace was released in August of 1994. Jeff began working on it in mid-1993 with record producer Andy Wallace, who had mixed Nirvana's now multi-platinum album Nevermind. For the album's recording, Jeff assembled a band, composed of bassist Mick Grondahl and drummer Matt Johnson, and spent several weeks rehearsing. He made sure to take his time recording it, ensuring every detail was perfect, despite the fact that people were quite restless for it to be released. We are told in Amazing Grace that when Jeff began to write a song, it literally had to pour out of him. The emotion came first, then he carefully shaped it with lyrics and a melody. A perfect example of this is Jeff's fantastic song 'Last Goodbye', the video of which plays in the backdrop of the film as we are told about how Jeff's music came together for Grace.

At the time that Jeff was working on his debut studio album, Grunge was the dominant sound in America and was also becoming popular in other places across the world. With the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, Seattle was giving a picture of the bad side of music in America, a picture of depression, anger, drugs and death. What Jeff accomplished with Grace was to show a whole other side to music. He sang about things that that were important to him, in a way that was different to other artists at the time; he sang about love, hope, faith and grace. He was such a mature artist and musician that way. He was not shy about trying new things or messing about with and recording other people’s songs, even female artists. At the time, people were starving for someone like Jeff to come along. According to those who knew him best, Jeff never let what was going on in the music scene affect him. He just wanted to show his human realities no matter what; that was his main goal in his music. Regardless of whether it was commertial or not, of whether it was accepted or not, putting into music his raw and genuine feelings was all that mattered to him. Jeff's pain, his love and his humanness were poured into his music and his expression really influenced people. He did it in a way that made people believe they had that capability too, that they could reach inside themselves for inspiration for their work.

One thing noted by all who were interiewed for Amazing Grace is that Jeff was very hard working. He “toured his ass off”. While he felt very suited to touring, him being a fan of the transient and adventurous life, Jeff knew that the new record was not enough and that in order to get his music out into the world, he had to tour with it. No gig was beneath him. He constantly travelled, doing promo gigs and support slots, even opening for Oasis at one stage, something that now seems inconceivable. When Jeff came off of tour, he found it very hard to wind down and adjust to a normal and non-transient life again. We are told in Amazing Grace that New York was especially hard for him to return to, as at the time he felt he was moving in a new direction and wanted to re-evaluate his business, musical and personal life. Going to Memphis was a chance for him to get away from the city and do just that, as well take the time to see which direction he wanted the next album, the posthumously released Sketches for my Sweetheart the Drunk, to go in.  

So, in 1997, Jeff and his band moved west to Memphis to work on the new full-length album. Putting Sketches... together was not going well in the beginning. Coming to the scheduled rehearsals, Jeff would sometimes be distraught following meetings with record company executives. They wanted more “big hits” from the second album. We are told by those close to him who were interviewed for Amazing Grace that Jeff struggled with the industry side of things. He felt as if he was part of “the machine”, which made him constantly look at or examine himself and who he was as an artist. After the first few songs for Sketches... were recorded, Jeff wasn’t satisfied with the results. In a bizarre move, he decided to scrap everything and begin all over again with all new songs. In those days, wasting studio time and money would not be allowed and the record company were furious, but Jeff was adamant that he had to be 100% happy with the album before it was released. In one of his journal entries written while he was in Memphis, Jeff wrote, “I don’t write music for Sony. I write it for the people who are screaming down the road, crying to a full-blast stereo”. This was typical Jeff; he always stuck to his guns. Sure, like any other artist in the music industry he had his dark days where he doubted himself and sometimes felt completely overwhelmed, but he always came out on top of it. Jeff got through pressure by realising that, in the end, his work was all about the music and nothing else.

Shortly before his death, Jeff told his band to return to New York while he remained in Memphis to work on the new songs. According to the band members, he took the time to "go inside himself" and deal with his feelings about the music industry and how he wanted the forthcoming album to sound. During this delayed stint in Memphis, Jeff also held a Monday night residency in a small local pub called Barrister's and every week people would travel from all over America to see him perform there. 

Jeff's band were very excited about the album. Going on the feedback they were getting from Jeff in Memphis, they felt it was going to be “something amazing”. For this reason they were eager to get back down there and begin work with him again. On May 29th, the day of the band's arrival, Jeff decided to go down to the river on his way to the studio. With Led Zeppelin's 'Whole Lotta Love' playing in the background, Jeff decided to go for a swim. He was still fully dressed and wearing boots as he waded out; that was the kind of spontaneous guy he was. A roadie in Buckley's band, Keith Foti, remained on shore while Jeff floated in the water singing the chorus to the Zeppelin track, one of his favourites. After moving a radio and guitar out of reach of oncoming waves caused by a passing tugboat, Foti looked up to see that Buckley had vanished.

According to Amazing Grace, when it was revealed that Jeff has gone missing while swimming, those who knew him thought he had gone into hiding, that he had staged the disappearance so that he could concentrate on the album in solitude and would eventually return with an unbelievable finished product. So, when Jeff's body was discovered 6 days later, everyone was completely shocked. They were unable to contemplate the loss. Word quickly spread across the various music forums, including MTV, and before long those fans who had eagerly followed Jeff since his early days sat outside a closed Sin É, lighting candles for their departed musical hero. Meanwhile his band went to the spot where he died, a place which they explained felt peaceful and inviting.

Around the time of his drowning, there had been a lot of public deaths, including the already-mentioned Kurt Cobain. By far, Jeff was probably the least well-known musician of all. Besides the fact that he had only one full-length studio release and his music was not yet "commertially" successful, Jeff was quite a private person who remained on the periphery of popular music. Everyone wanted to know what made the musician and songwriter tick, but he would have been the very last person to talk about that. As Michael Tighe, guitarist in Jeff’s band, states, Jeff had conflicting feelings about being in the public eye and about fame. Being famous and going back to being someone anonymous is something he struggled with on a regular basis. He had the desire to be famous and get his music out there, yet had conflicting and tumultuous feelings to remain in the shadows. In one piece of footage in Amazing Grace we see Jeff being interviewed, where he states he would rather people not see or think of him as a face or name, but instead just listen to the music and take him that way. Just go on what you hear.

People say that Jeff Buckley created a religion. People still talk about Grace. It is a perfect example of how Jeff brought everything together in music- light and dark, pain and joy, life and death. He made vivid and emotive images with his music. There was no mask in front of it; it was pure, raw soul. It touched and still touches people in a completely surrendering way. Jeff had a special essence and an undeniable and genuine passion, a real burning in his heart that compelled him to write the way he did and expose himself the way he did. He showed there was huge strength in being vulnerable, and peeled himself back and exposed all of himself.

Even now, people are committed to preserving the memory of Jeff Buckley. People still talk about him and the gift in the music he left behind. And that is what this documentary, Amazing Grace so adequately captures; it conveys who Jeff was, what he did and what he meant by what he did. It perfectly portrays Jeff as that rare and special artist, the one who comes along only once in a century, the one who leaves his distinctive mark on everyone he touches, both directly and indirectly. As Soundgarden's Chris Cornell so adequately puts it in Amazing Grace, Jeff Buckley "will always be the guy to whom there are no comparisons...the benchmark for the next guy. He’ll always be the last guy". 

All the photographs used in this piece, except for the introductory drawing, are by Brooklyn photographer Merri Cyr. You can read my review of her book of photography on Jeff Buckley, A Wished For Song, here.

*Wayne Maguire is an artist based out of West Cork. You can find more of his incredible artwork on his official website, which you can access here. His work is also available to buy from his online store.