You’ve likely heard the work of Jeff Buckley. All across social media the past year his song “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” has garnered massive attention, frequently accompanying depressing videos that utilize the song’s opening to enhance their melancholy or parallel their message with the song’s yearnful lyrics. Additionally, his album Grace was one of the highest selling vinyl records of the past few years, a feat made even more impressive by the fact that it was released over thirty years ago. However, those who have discovered Buckley through his recent return to popularity and seek to delve further into his discography are often shocked to discover that Grace was the only complete album he ever released. Tragically, having spent years working on the follow up to Grace, titled My Sweetheart the Drunk, the project never reached completion, as Buckley drowned in 1997 at only thirty years old. The following year, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk was released, compiling recording sessions and demos made for the record.
The record kicks off with the song “The Sky is a Landfill,” which, unlike the moody, slow building intro song of Grace entitled “Mojo Pin,” immediately hooks the listener with Buckley’s masterful and heavy guitar work, carrying energy and anger from the first note. The song also departs from the lyricism of Grace, shedding the yearnful, romantic feelings for a complex and varied critique of authoritarian, anti-democratic governance and the people who support corrupt systems through compliance, tying it all together with the metaphor of a darkening sky. Closing the track with a powerful guitar solo, Buckley further excites the listener for the rest of the album.
However, the next track, “Everybody Here Wants You,” proceeds to shock the listener. with its soft atmosphere and romantic lyrics echoing the soundfont of Grace. Yet, “Everybody Here Wants You” doesn’t feel like Buckley sticking to what works, with the song opting instead to explore new aspects of what could be done with his wonderful lyricism and angelic voice highlighted by incredible guitar, bass, and drums. As the song builds to its crescendo in typical Buckley fashion, the singer’s insistence to the recipient of his song that “I know they all look so good from a distance but I tell you I’m the one” fully resonates with the listener. Altogether, what could’ve felt like a retread instead pulls at heartstrings Buckley had never touched before.
Following this, “Opened Once” presents an acoustic, soft touch that’s minimalism makes it stand out, while “Nightmares By The Sea” sticks to its repetitive but heavy riffs and scaling choruses to entrance the listener. Afterwards, Buckley once again shows his talent in his cover of “Yard Of Blonde Girls,” his incredible vocal range, going from angelic to soft to pained to harsh in “Witches’ Rave,” and his ability to construct influential work that would inspire music for decades in “New Year’s Prayer.”
“Morning Theft” is next, and it quickly builds into one of the greatest songs in all of Buckley’s discography. Deeply introspective and painful yet beautiful, Buckley explores his struggles with his maturity and maintaining relationships while also deeply loving and admiring his partner. Suspected to have been written for Buckley’s lover and Cocteau Twins lead singer Elizabeth Fraser, who herself had written Buckley a song (“Rilkean Heart”) and recorded a duet with him (“All Flowers in Time Bend Towards the Sun”), the song gains further depth and meaning.
Second to last comes in “Vancouver,” which also establishes itself as another one of Buckley’s all time greats. After laying down a masterful guitar riff, in comes a diverse bassline and sparse, bizarre drums, soon followed by awesome vocals by Buckley. Originally an instrumental track that opted as a concert closer, “Vancouver” features cryptic lyrics that enhance the track’s mystique while also adding melodic elements that demonstrate once more Buckley’s musical talent. He manages to fit in a guitar solo, multiple changes in time signature, and an iconic ending. Lastly, “You & I” closes the record (not including the swath of demos added to the compilation).
The track is easily one of the most minimalistic and atmospheric tracks Buckley ever made, and it leaves one last hint of how perfect this album could have been. All in all, Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk is a bittersweet work of art. Even if it doesn’t measure up to the monolith that came before it, nor did it even get the opportunity to attempt to, this album shows the promise of what could have been a masterpiece.