A brilliant alternative rock artist and inspiration to many, Jeff Buckley leaves his legacy in the new documentary, “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley.”
Brought up in humility and gratitude, Buckley was able to love wholeheartedly, which became a great tool in his music-writing process.
Buckley is most notably remembered for his masterfully crafted album, Grace. The album charted extremely well in Europe, helping Buckley gain notoriety in the music world. His dedication to uncovering love, experiencing life and capturing moments lost in time was unmatched.
His well-known hit “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” is a cry of regret and bittersweetness about the missteps and anguish that come with love and humanity. Buckley squeezed every ounce of experience from his time on earth and poured it into a well-protected secret: his songs.
Buckley took his musical infatuation to incredible heights. During one of Led Zeppelin’s performances at the European Festival Eurockéennes, Buckley climbed the scaffolding on the side of the stage to “cling” to the music’s vibrations.
He learned to sing Qawwali, a Suli devotional form of music characterized by ethereal vocal runs, in hopes of impressing one of his greatest inspirations, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Jeff also dedicated time to memorizing Edith Piaf’s “Je N’En Connais La Fin” for his Parisian audience.
Buckley has been understandably compared to Nina Simone because of the emotional heft and soulful vocals they both project onto audiences. In his eyes, music was an otherworldly gateway that connected people not solely through words, but through passion.
However, pressure from his label, Columbia Records, left Jeff feeling cornered and exploited. He and his band had been touring for two years, which drained Buckley. By putting constraints and expectations on his music projects, his label created feelings of dread and disillusionment in him towards his future career.
The emotional stress caused Jeff to break things off with his partner and former touring mate, Rebecca Moore. Soon enough, he had isolated himself from his closest friends and even his mother. Buckley began experiencing hallucinations that were accompanied by dreams he interpreted as prophecies.
After envisioning a tumor-caused death, Buckley succumbed to a spiraling depression. He feared that his death was predetermined and would lead to a similar fate to his father, who died of a cocaine overdose at only 28 years old.
Seeing his future as a “blank movie screen,” Buckley attempted to return to a state of normalcy. He purchased a quaint house in Memphis, Tennessee, where he could draw inspiration from the overgrown grass and anonymous trips to the grocery store.
“Without ordinary life, there is no art,” Buckley would say.
There is an apparent quality in his music that lingers in a place of heaviness and understanding that youth is invested in the young. Buckley dreamt of nothing more than using individuality and spirit to make a change; a love like his is sacred.
In his final moments, Buckley enjoyed the swirling sensations that Led Zeppelin brought him, and even during his struggles, he was at peace. His drowning in Wolf River was tragically foreshadowed in lines from his songs “Grace” and “I Know It’s Over,” which include Buckley being able to feel audiences “drown his name” and feeling that the “sea wants to take him.”
However, he is not a character in a movie or the protagonist of any novel; he is human and cherished. There is a significant loss in his absence, as he comforts society with his vulnerability and craftsmanship.
Buckley was brave, unafraid to stray, and inspirational beyond his years, which makes him so remarkable.
“It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley” illustrates the extraordinary and often misunderstood nature of Buckley, and you can rent or buy it on YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video to experience it yourself.
