Tim Buckley - "Goodbye and Hello" (1967)

This is a relatively old record but a newcomer in my collection. The question I ask myself these days when I buy a new record is if I should buy it on vinyl or CD. I must honestly admit I think it's much more comfortable with a CD. Throw it into the player, jump around between songs as you want, pause, if necessary, by pressing a button, etc. To top it all is a new CD also often cheaper than a new vinyl. Yes, new vinyls are actually disturbingly and provocative expensive. The record companies seem to want to use the vinyl neo-Renaissance to the utmost and use us connoisseurs shamelessly. But sure, it feels like a vinyl should actually be a bit more expensive to produce, and they are probably pressed in much smaller quantities.

But these negative thoughts seem not to exert any power over me, because I always buy a vinyl if there’s a choice. I say as many others, it's a completely different feeling with a vinyl. It’s a, if not religious, at least a very nice experience to hold a vinyl cover in your hand – it’s large, it is (often) beautiful and there’s somewhat of a ceremony to pull out a record from its cover and put it down on the turntable. It’s not just something you do on the fly, you have to slow down, take a break from everyday life and suddenly arises that inner peace that exists somewhere deep in the soul. In addition, you can have vinyl covers as works of art on your wall too. How many CD covers are sitting on people's walls?

Many also argue that the sound is better on vinyls than on CDs, however, I leave that unsaid. Both sound good, let us be happy with that.

So I bought this album new and it’s a re-release made ​​by Four men with Beards who specialize in 180 gram audiophile re-releases on vinyl (standard weight of a vinyl is around 120 grams and it’s said that the sound quality becomes better if the record is heavier. Moreover, it will keep its shape better and not be skewed so easily. Fact or myths created by the companies? Who knows. Most re-releases occurs today on 180-gram discs, anyway.). Elektra released the original 1967.

Tim Buckley was an American singer who moved between many different genres - folk, jazz, psychedelic, funk, etc. Goodbye and Hello was his second album and is considered by many to be his best, Tim was 20 years old when it was released. I discovered the album through the book 1001 albums you must hear before you die. I have discovered an alarming number of albums through this book, and I have not even read a fifth of it yet...

The owner of Elektra, Jac Holzman, had a lot of faith in Tim and rented advertising space on the Sunset Strip at the time of the release. This was highly unusual for a solo artist who had not seriously broken through yet. Goodbye and Hello was not a smash hit but reached a 171st spot on the Billboard Charts, Tim's best position with a record. Tim had most of his career a certain cult status and the number of fans varied over the years.

I think it's a good album. The music can be said to lean toward the singer-songwriter tradition with a spice of folk and some half psychedelic elements. That’s a very nice mix and the album has a clear aroma of the 60's, which I mean in a positive sense. Tim has a very distinctive and beautiful voice that leaves its mark on the songs, and throughout his career he often used his voice as an instrument. Even his singing in falsetto sounds great. He has written most of the songs himself, some with the poet Larry Beckett.

Tim Buckley met Death in 1975 in the form of an overdose of heroin, 28 years old. He had used drugs from time to time, but during the last tour he didn’t (and therefore his tolerance was probably lowered). When the tour was completed, he partied a weekend with the band and went on Saturday night with his friend Richard Keeling to his home, hoping to score some heroin. Tim walked into the bedroom while Richard was having sex and a minor quarrel arose. It all ended with Richard in frustration, throwing a quantity of heroin to Tim with the invitation / challenge "Take it all, then". And that’s what Tim did. He was transported, still alive, to his wife Judy who bedded him down in a bed. When she a little later checked on him, he had died. According to reports Richard Keeling, during the fateful evening, had heard Tim's last words that were supposed to have been "Bye, bye, baby" which was probably directed towards his wife.

Tim Buckley had a son who was named Jeff Buckley. He also had a musical career and met Death prematurely by drowning, 30 years old.

Favorite Song
Carnival Song
Pleasant Street
Goodbye and Hello

Side A
1. No Man Can Find the War 2:58
2. Carnival Song 3:10
3. Pleasant Street 5:15
4. Hallucinations 4:55
5. I never asked to be your mountain 6:02

Side B
1. Once I was 3:22
2. Phantasmagoria in Two 3:29
3. Knight-Errant 2:00
4. Goodbye and hello 8:38
5. Morning Glory 2:52