A Tragic Talent Revisited in It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley

Monday, 21 July 2025 00:05

Jeff Buckley’s life was cut short at 30 when he drowned in the Wolf River while working on his second album, leaving behind a legacy defined by brilliance and loss.

When Jeff Buckley died in 1997 at the age of 30, the music world lost a uniquely spellbinding voice. Now, nearly three decades later, director Amy Berg’s new documentary It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley brings his story back into the spotlight. It premiered at Sundance in January 2025 to a standing ovation and will reach theaters on August 8 before debuting on HBO and HBO Max this winter.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Jeffrey Scott Buckley was born on November 17, 1966, in Anaheim, California, and spent much of his youth in Los Angeles until relocating to New York’s East Village in the early 1990s. He was raised mainly by his mother, Mary Guibert, and had minimal contact with his father—legendary folk singer Tim Buckley—until a single meeting when Jeff was eight. This complex father-son legacy would shape much of his life and artistry.

Buckley began performing publicly in small New York venues—most famously the café Sin-é—where his improvisational style, deep love for diverse music, and ability to connect one-on-one with audiences won him early acclaim.

Breakthrough and Grace

Buckley signed to Columbia Records and released his only studio album, Grace, in 1994. The album was a critical success and contained his iconic cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” widely regarded as definitive. Rolling Stone later named it one of the greatest albums of all time, and Buckley’s “Hallelujah" was inducted into the U.S. Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.

Grace showcased Buckley’s extraordinary vocal range—from soaring heights to gentle whispers—melding rock, folk, blues and jazz influences. His tours across the U.S., Europe, Japan and Australia introduced him to a global audience and cemented his reputation as a genre-defying artist.

Personal Struggles and Untimely Death

Despite critical acclaim, Buckley struggled with the pressures of fame. He disliked being placed on magazine cover lists like People’s 50 Most Beautiful People, reportedly buying every copy he could find to hide it from fans. His imposter syndrome and discomfort with celebrity shine through in Berg’s film, which explores his mental health and self-image issues.

At the time of his death, Buckley was working on a second album, My Sweetheart the Drunk, with producer Tom Verlaine. He had relocated to Memphis in early 1997 to escape some of the spotlight. On May 29, he drowned accidentally while swimming fully clothed in the Wolf River Harbor. His body was found days later; the official ruling was accidental drowning with no signs of drugs or alcohol. Posthumously released material from those sessions came out in Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk in 1998.

Legacy and Influence

Buckley’s influence has grown steadily after his death. His one album and scattered demo recordings have become touchstones for generations of musicians—Thom Yorke of Radiohead and Muse’s Matt Bellamy among them have cited him as inspiration. His version of “Hallelujah” remains a widely revered classic.

His image—part romantic martyr, part restless explorer—often became mythologized. Berg’s documentary works to reframe him as a real person: curious, alive, deeply flawed, and perpetually evolving. As Pitchfork reflected: “What if we finally did away with this notion of Jeff Buckley as a seraphic being... trustworthy, honest and in the moment”.

The New Documentary: It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley

Director Amy Berg spent nearly two decades trying to make this documentary. She first approached Buckley’s mother in 2007 and finally secured her collaboration in 2019. The film features never-before-seen footage, personal voice memos, childhood photos and intimate interviews with Mary Guibert, former partners Rebecca Moore and Joan Wasser, band members, and artists like Ben Harper and Aimee Mann.

Critics responded with overwhelming emotion: the Sundance premiere brought tears and a standing ovation. It currently holds a 100 percent “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film opens in theaters on August 8, with HBO and HBO Max to follow this winter as part of HBO’s Music Box series.

The film aims neither to canonize nor romanticize Buckley, but to reveal his complexity: “It feels as close as one could get to Jeff without knowing him,” Berg said of her subject. It’s a portrait rooted in humanity—his endearing humor, his sensitivity, his restless creativity, and the relationships that defined him.

In Conclusion

Jeff Buckley’s life was short, messy, brilliant—and enduring. Grace resonates as a singular expression of vulnerability and musical ambition. He died before completing his second album, but his influence only grew with time. Amy Berg’s documentary stands as the most personal and respectful portrait yet—inviting both longtime listeners and newcomers to discover the human behind the legend.

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