Tim
Buckley’s musical history can be broadly divided into three periods. First
is the conventional view of a Sixties singer-songwriter that is covered by three
earlier albums - Tim Buckley (Elektra -1966), Goodbye and Hello
(Elektra - 1967) and Blue Afternoon (Straight/Warner Brothers - 1969). The
second period was one of more ambitious musical styling that moved more in the
realm of experimental and jazz-tinged music. Lorca (Elektra -1969), Happy/Sad
(Elektra - 1968), and Starsailor (Straight/Warner Brothers -1969) are the
three studio albums that show Tim’s willingness to forsake the easy path
for one far more demanding of musician and listener alike. Curiously
enough, one of Tim’s most popular songs came in this period. Song to the
Siren - a little gem that appeared for the first time on disc on Starsailor
after debuting on the very last Monkees TV show - has been covered extensively
by artistes as diverse as Robert Plant and This Mortal Coil, whose 1998 version
has been sampled many times in electronic mixes. Tim’s
final period began in 1972, when a more muscular, funk-tinged version appeared
first on Greetings from LA (Straight/Warner Brothers - 1971), followed
by Sefronia (DiscReet - 1973) and Look at the Fool (DiscReet - 1974).
Since
his death in 1975, there have been at least that number again
of live recordings and unreleased songs on albums that showcased
Tim’s range as a singer, and as a pioneer who pushed
musical boundaries as few had done before.
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