Jeff Buckley released "Grace" on August 23, 1994. It's the only complete studio album we ever got from Jeff Buckley before his untimely death. "Grace" is such a masterful piece of work however that it's fitting that this be his only work because it encompasses everything that made Jeff Buckley such a special artist. Aspects like Buckley's insane three and a half octave vocal range, his ability to cover a song and make it his own, and his mixing of alternative rock with aspects from R&B and Jazz among many genres to make a body of work that stays in your mind and begs you to listen to it again.

     Clocking in at just  under 52 minutes in length, "Grace" is a substantial album that takes just the right amount of time to present what Buckley had to offer. "Grace" is a moody album that has gained a cult following in the 20 years since it's initial release. Songs like "So Real" and "Lover You Should" present Buckley as a man who has a love that while he needs, shows that this love that he has also makes him depressed at times. Even the more radio friendly songs like "Last Goodbye" and "Grace" that you could show to anyone and still appreciate the complexity in the instrumentation and the flourishes that Buckley puts into these songs to make them more than they seem on the surface.
     Of the ten songs on the album three of them are covers that Buckley transforms into songs of his own that mesh perfectly with the album and they never once feel out of place. The three songs are "Lilac Wine", "Corpus Christi Carol", and probably one of the most famous covers of all time "Hallelujah" which was originally written by Leonard Cohen, and Buckley made his own version the definitive version of the song, to the point that most people who know of the song have heard the Jeff Buckley version.
     "Grace" is a masterful work of art that cements Jeff Buckley's place as a cult legend in alternative rock, and it's a shame that his life had to be cut so short when he had so much to offer to the world through his music. If anything though, "Grace" is an album that will stand the test of time and deservedly so, every song on the album works well with one another and the flow of the album is great throughout. A great listening through and through that should be more widely known but for those who will listen it's an album you won't soon, if ever forget.

Standout Songs: Grace, Lilac Wine, Eternal Life, Last Goodbye, Hallelujah.

Songs You Can Afford to Skip: None really, the album works best when you listen to it from start to finish as every songs serves a purpose not only to itself but the song that came before it and the song that will follow it.a