Sunday 19 October 2008

Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah

At the beginning of this year a friend introduced me to the music of Jeff Buckley (1966-1997). Specifically Buckley's cover of Leonard Cohen's song, "Hallelujah". Buckley does a riveting rendition that gives me goose bumps every time I hear it. And of course, Cohen is a master lyricist. (Read the lyric here.) I wander whether the song is more eerily beautiful because Jeff Buckley died so young -- as if the knowledge of his early death deepens the emotive quality of the song. Buckley died at the same age that I am now. He drowned.

The YouTube video below is a live recording of Jeff Buckley performing “Hallelujah” at a concert in Japan. Alternatively, download a (low audio-quality) mp3 here (from The Tape is not Sticky).



1 comment:

Einstein's Brain said...

Wow. I didn't know about him. That song was on the soundtrack for Shrek, sung by Rufus Wainright. Those lyrics are great, some of the best.