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2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 The EPs and promos released during the GRACE tour now collected in a box, but nothing essential Nov 09, 2007
Although Jeff Buckley released only one album during his lamentably short career, 1994's GRACE, his recorded output is quite large. Part of this is due to the large amount of posthumous releases and re-releases of live material by his estate--which many are starting to feel only diminishes his legacy. But even while Buckley was still with us, Columbia Records released several EPs and promos to bring GRACE to greater attention. This 2002 box set collects five of this small releases together.
PEYOTE RADIO THEATRE was a promotional release directed mainly to Germany in the weeks leading up to the release of GRACE. "Mojo Pin" is the same version as on the album. "Dream Brother" is present in the so-called "Nag Champa mix", a curious ambient version of the song to which Buckley added tabla drums. "Kanga-Roo" is a cover of an old Alex Chilton song which Buckley was especially fond of--he may have first come across it on This Mortal Coil's album It'll End in Tears.
THE GRACE EP is a 1996 commercial release. It contained the album version of "Grace" and unfortunately limpid live performances from the final visit to Australia on tour. The ambient jam "Tongue" was added to this box set; taken from the same Bearsville sessions that produced GRACE, this shows Buckley and his three band members trying to reach a cohesive collaboration.
LAST GOODBYE was a 1995 Sony Japan commercial release. "Last Goodbye" is an edit of the album version. "Mojo Pin" appears in a remarkable 14-minute long live version from a New York City concert, and here Buckley begins with long vocalizations that show inspiration from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. "Lost Highway" is a cover of the Hank Williams classic. There is fine photography by Hideo Okada on the sleeve, which comes as a nice contrast to the photos that adorn the box and make Buckley look like some kind of teen idol.
LIVE FROM THE BATACLAN was released in 1995, first as a promo and then commercially. It has four live tracks from a February 11, 1995 performance at the Bataclan in Paris. While we don't need an umpteenth live version of "Dream Brother" or "Hallelujah", there are two rare covers. This first is Van Morrison's "The Way Young Lovers Do", which is okay. The second is a medley of the Edith Piaf tunes "Je n'en connais pas la fin" and "Hymne a l'Amour", which are charming though one wishes Buckley had used the original French instead of the clunky English translations. All in all, this EP is more interesting as a document of how much French audiences adored Buckley--the crowd cheers and claps throughout--than for its music.
Finally, SO REAL a.k.a. LIVE AT NIGHTTOWN contains three live tracks from a February 25, 1995 performance in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Few live performances of "So Real" are out there, but we don't need yet another "Grace" or "Dream Brother".
I would recommend this box set only to Buckley completists. There is a lot of Buckley material out there, but in my opinion casual fans need only three items. These are Grace in its original version (the Legacy Edition sounds awful, a victim of the "loudness wars"), the Live in Chicago DVD which has Buckley blending good music with some fine humour, and the Live at L'Olympia import CD, which records the Paris concerts Buckley felt to be the finest performance of his career. You might also want to hear his collaborations with Liz Fraser, long passed around between fans but regrettably not yet released commercially.
4 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 in my opinion a must-have Nov 05, 2005
It may be a little diffucult for me to write a "neutral" review for the Grace Eps, since i am absolutely obsessed with jeff buckley, but ill do my best.
the Grace Eps are great, of course, its jeff buckley - must be great!
You might not be sure if this box set is worth buying, cuz u might already have heard all the songs and you might think you don't really need more live versions of the Grace songs, cuz "they're probably not much different than the other live versions" And exactly that is NOT true. "The Way Young Lovers Do" is one of the best jeff buckley live performances i have ever heard (and believe me, i have heard a LOT of his live stuff).
Not less amazing is "Mojo Pin - live at Wetlands" this version of mojo pin has a 7 min long intro ("chocolate") and its simply impossible not to loose yourself into the song. Whether you want it or not, your whole body will be taken in by this absolutely amazing version of Mojo Pin.
Not to forget is the instrumental track "Tongue" - a very strange track, but strange in its most beautful way!
Now you're probably thinking that it's not worth buying the box set, just cuz 2 of the songs are amongst the best live recordings of jeff buckley.
But the "Grace Eps" are a must-have for every Jeff Buckley admirer, cuz they're just great.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
New facets to Grace Apr 04, 2005
If you've never heard Jeff Buckley this is a good place to start. If you think you've heard these songs before, know that each and every performance that Jeff gave was a new reading loaded with passion and rich drama. His brilliant vocals and musicianship make songs sparkle and shine in a new way each time.
Whether he's doing originals or covers Buckley inhabits the material completely. If you've heard "Hallelujah" you understand his talent for making everything he touched blossom and shimmer with his earnestness.
Spend some time listening to Buckley's tranced-out exorcism of Alex Chilton's "Kangaroo". Go with him and let him show you the power of pleasurable obsession.
The performance at the Bataclan was magical. The French adored him, and rightly so. Let him touch you too.
3 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Give it a chance Jan 28, 2005
I never give anything 5 stars because i always see room for improvment. But anyways, I am a musician and some of these pieces are so tranquil its like knocking on heavens door. At first this wasn't what i was really looking for, but after time and like alot of the cds i have acquired i took this one close to my heart. To sum it all up the guitart playing and the singing remind us what real music sounds like and that it's not all lost in this era of commercialism.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
incredible, Aug 06, 2003
I don't know what to write in order to explain the captivating, passionate music this disc contains. Through listening to this disc one can hear the great and amazing talent Jeff Buckley possessed. I highly recommend this disc and highly recommend listning to Jeff Buckley's music.
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