Continuing my list of best debut albums (with quite a few caveats)…

Jeff Buckley – Grace (1994)

Last week I wrote that Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the most successful debut album that ended up being its artist’s only studio release. Jeff Buckley’s 1994 Grace is the runner-up.

Recorded by the singer-songwriter in his mid-20s, this critically acclaimed album showcased Buckley as a true triple threat — equally adept at writing songs, playing guitar, and singing. He had the chops to be a creative force for decades to come, but sadly died by drowning at just 30 years old.

Buckley’s passing bestowed a poignancy on this album that fit its melancholy tone. It went from being a sadly beautiful work brimming with the promise of its creator to a beautifully sad work memorializing him. It’s hard to listen to it these days without feeling mournful.

But I recall the jolt I felt when I heard it back in 1994. Buckley’s original songs were expansive and inventive, threatening to fly out of control before he expertly reined them back in. His covers were ethereal and gorgeous. His version of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’ is credited with cementing that song’s reputation for a whole new generation.

He was fierce but feather-light — Led Zeppelin crossed with Nina Simone.

Buckley’s label, in consultation with his mother, has released 10 compilation albums since his death, culling demos, live tracks, and studio outtakes. None of that material measures up to the brilliance of the one album he finished on his own.

We’ll never know if he had another Grace in him, but we’re blessed to have gotten this one.