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Jeff Buckley — Hallelujah
Album: Grace
Avg rating:
8.2

Your rating:
Total ratings: 8946









Released: 1994
Length: 6:48
Plays (last 30 days): 4
Well, I heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do ya?

Well, it goes like this: the fourth, the fifth,
The minor fall and the major lift,
The baffled king composing Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well, your faith was strong, but you needed proof,
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya

And she tied you to her kitchen chair,
And she broke your throne and she cut your hair,
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well, baby, I've been here before,
I've seen this room and I've walked this floor
You know, I used to live alone before I knew ya

And I've seen your flag on the marble arch
And love is not a victory march,
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well, there was a time when you let me know
What's really going on below,
But now you never show that to me, do ya?

But remember when I moved in you,
And the holy dove was moving too
And every breath we drew was Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well, maybe there is a God above
But all I've ever learned from love,
Was how to shoot somebody who outdrew ya

And it's not a cry that you hear at night
It's not somebody who's seen the light,
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah,
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah
Comments (1527)add comment
This song might be the most important song of all time. Leonard Cohen and many other brilliant other Canadian singers singing it make my heart grow. But having listened to his father Tim Buckley for so many years previously. I used to almost cry. When I first heard this. I did cry for both of them. Brilliant!
 KelvinEcho wrote:

Not worth tieing the shoelaces to Tom Waits. Whiny and weak compared to the power, despair, and raw emotion of the original.



Not sure where Tom Waits enters into the equation, but, while I consider Leonard Cohen to be the greatest songwriter of all time, his original recording of this song really isn't that great.  The song itself is timeless, but the original recording has a distinct '80s vibe to it that makes it sound cheesy, and it seems as if Cohen hadn't quite figured out how to transition to the deeper register his voice was becoming.  Which is probably why the song didn't really gain popularity until John Cale's recording in the '90s.  That said, Cohen has since recorded live versions of the song that are magnificent.
my first 10/10 on RP..

Thanks RP for this one
While this is a wonderful version of "Hallelujah"...but, damn, I'm tiring of hearing the song, given all the versions now recorded, and played on RP and other platforms/streams.  So, yea, just hitting advance...
Speak no ill of the dead my friends..
A beautiful boy, tragically gone.
 KelvinEcho wrote:

Not worth tieing the shoelaces to Tom Waits. Whiny and weak compared to the power, despair, and raw emotion of the original.



Are you talking about Leonard Cohen's?
 KelvinEcho wrote:

Not worth tieing the shoelaces to Tom Waits. Whiny and weak compared to the power, despair, and raw emotion of the original.


kinda like your comment… whiny and weak
I would have liked to hear his Dad Tim sing this song.
 bmeador wrote:


EXCELLENT recommendation. Go listen to that podcast. It's so very touching and interesting. Great find, Chicago!


Thank you so much. It is an honor to know that good people around and hallelujah!
 chicago_mies wrote:

there are so many great versions of this song but Jeff Buckley's cover gets a "10-Godlike" ranking from me.  If you haven't heard it, Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History Podcast covers the story of how Jeff Buckley discovered and transformed this song.
https://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/07-hallelujah  



EXCELLENT recommendation. Go listen to that podcast. It's so very touching and interesting. Great find, Chicago!
Thank you Mr. Cohen
Nearly seven minutes of over-acting.


TLynneHenry wrote:

Not that it's not a lovely song, but twice in one day (k.d. lang version played this morning) is a bit much. 


 lily34 wrote:


huh. i thought it was a leonard cohen original. learn something new every day.

Written by Leonard Cohen. You are correct!
Insta PSD... really tired of this one.  :/
 TLynneHenry wrote:

Not that it's not a lovely song, but twice in one day (k.d. lang version played this morning) is a bit much. 



huh. i thought it was a leonard cohen original. learn something new every day.
How does Radio Paradise work?  I just heard this song yesterday.
Not that it's not a lovely song, but twice in one day (k.d. lang version played this morning) is a bit much. 
Not worth tieing the shoelaces to Tom Waits. Whiny and weak compared to the power, despair, and raw emotion of the original.
 vandal wrote:

I can't remember who posted this, years ago, but this best explains the intent of Leonard Cohen's lyrics: 

"The song begins with David, one of God's most devout servants, who spoils that relationship in his adulterous passion for Bathsheba. In the line "she cut your hair" he probably thinks of Samson, whose bond to God as a Nazarite (symbolized by his uncut hair) was likewise broken when his passion for Delilah blinded him to her betrayal.

In the lyrics that grow out of those two stories, Cohen rejects the idea that romantic love is discovery, victory, or revelation. Rather, it is urgent and painful, it seems to have happened against the will of the singer himself, and it has left him broken. Yet though he is broken, he cries out Hallelujah—the ultimate cry of praise—to a love so emotionally overwhelming it's like worship." 

Beautiful...



i love this, thank you!
Simply transcendental
 Stetsonman wrote:

Still shit



As are all of your comments regarding this song. 
Took Cohen two years to write.
Is this the most played song on Radio Paradise. Great song, but played way too often. 
Hellelujah is quite probably my favourite song of all time, and several individuals and bands have covered it, and if I'm honest, I have loved 'almost' all of them.  This cover is right up there, I absolutely love it.
This is the song for which "10-Godlike" was invented
 Emperors_Spork wrote:

I think I liked this song perhaps the first 800 times. 
Like the birthday song, it has gotten really, really, old and annoying.
Never, ever need to hear it again. Will likely hear it hundreds more times.

Overly dramatic, sap-fest of saccharhine.



I did enjoy the first 30 seconds of this version, though
 kimacho wrote:
In recent years, this song has indeed been done to death, often in very inappropriate ways and by very untalented people. But back in 1994, this was a single, beautiful breath, lovely in a new and different way from the Cohen original. Still one of the finest covers ever.

Your words ring true in my ears.   After about 30 years of that history, I cannot enjoy Mr Buckley's version as I did in the past.  In fact, I have a hard time enjoying  Leonard Cohen's original version, too.

Time for the "PSD" button, now displayed as Fast Forward!
 kimacho wrote:
 
 
kimacho, I fully agree with you! Thanks for your opinion
 grandemarch wrote:

Sorry, but I keep on thinking and feeling that this song is overrated


In recent years, this song has indeed been done to death, often in very inappropriate ways and by very untalented people. But back in 1994, this was a single, beautiful breath, lovely in a new and different way from the Cohen original. Still one of the finest covers ever.
Sorry, but I keep on thinking and feeling that this song is overrated
Hallelujah to the orgasm indeed! What a fantastic interpretation.
Well there goes all my work productivity
I've had this song in my personal music library for over ten years along with more than thirteen hundred others. I've heard it more than once on RP and today it gets a 10.
 digthemusic wrote:

Overplayed religious crap



I love it, many don't, music is like that. BUT, contrary to appearances, and all the choirs that have sung it, this song is NOT about religion. Love, sex, obsession maybe but NOT religion
 digthemusic wrote:

Overplayed religious crap



Funny. I never think of it as religious. It takes a religious framework and makes it a song about lost love.
Still shit
 chicago_mies wrote:

there are so many great versions of this song but Jeff Buckley's cover gets a "10-Godlike" ranking from me.  If you haven't heard it, Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History Podcast covers the story of how Jeff Buckley discovered and transformed this song.
https://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/07-hallelujah  


Bump.  That is a great podcast.  Highly recommended.  It's about  more than just the evolution of this song, the way creators crate.
Overplayed religious crap
 chicago_mies wrote:

there are so many great versions of this song but Jeff Buckley's cover gets a "10-Godlike" ranking from me.  If you haven't heard it, Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History Podcast covers the story of how Jeff Buckley discovered and transformed this song.
https://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/07-hallelujah  



Thank you for including the link and suggestion on that podcast!
So I went back to the beginning of these comments and …. Ummm … everyone is only focused on their favorite (or not) version of this song. But what about more Leonard?!! He has a great canon of work - pick anything other than Suzanne please BillG
 nightdrive wrote:



Fuck it. This schmuck stole it from Leonard.

It's His Forever
Hallelujah, Hallelujah



Braindead, it didn't stole it, he just make a cover of it, with respect for Leonard Cohen
I'm among the throngs who cannot reach the skip button quickly enough.  Whiney, schmarmy, drivel. 
Love this! Dare I mention kd Lang's praiseworthy version here?!
This is [far and away] the best rendidion of this song I've ever heeard!
 BlackBetty wrote:

Outstanding! His sensless death was a minor tragedy!


Your second exclamation mark is odd, especially combined with the word minor.  Trying to read it in my head with the implied emphasis is making me giggle, and I'm sure that was not your intent.  
Please, no. I haven't heard a cover of Hallelujah that I want to hear more  than once. 
I have specifically created an account to ask to remove this stupid idiotic boring repetitive crap.
I used to worship this song and Buckley in general, but nowadays I find it a bit 'over the top', don't know what it is.
 milleymeister wrote:

This is not a church song. And no it is not Jeff Buckley’s now. To each their own on which version you like best, but it is Cohen through and through.

On Sunday mornings, KOKE-FM plays gospel music - all kinds - from 8-11.
It's really great: country, traditional, Black church gospel, you name it. The Louvin Brothers, Aretha, Willie, on and on.

AND some bro-country guy who decided this song deserved the 'white country gospel' treatment. Oh well.
c.

 cavemanleong wrote:
The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years.

 SeriousLee wrote:
I was just thinking the same. No one covers it better.


Fuck it. This schmuck stole it from Leonard.

It's His Forever
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
 Vbdegroot wrote:

The day this album came out I ran to the store to get it and It's been in my player for ages... I'd love to hear the song 'Eternal Life' on RP more too, and all the other songs on that album for all I care.




Agree!  Tired of this song!
With so many great songs he does, why do they keep playing this one.  Sick of it already!
 cavemanleong wrote:

The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years. 



I was just thinking the same. No one covers it better.
 belegato wrote:

God I hate this song, by anyone.


To each his own... thank you for just stating your opinion, rather than attacking the artist. I can respect your comment because of that.
Simon and CJ and Posse Comitatus. Always.
Imagine losing your hearing? Imagine not being able to hear Jeff Buckley's version of Hallelujah? Not ever again? 


That wouldn't be so bad.
The day this album came out I ran to the store to get it and It's been in my player for ages... I'd love to hear the song 'Eternal Life' on RP more too, and all the other songs on that album for all I care.
This is not a church song. And no it is not Jeff Buckley’s now. To each their own on which version you like best, but it is Cohen through and through.

Write me a song that every teenager wants to be deflowered to. 

Leonard Cohen: 
"Hold my beer." 

Jeff Buckley: 
"No, hold my beer!!!"




While I love this song I think it's pretty well played out on RP, like songs in heavy rotation on the radio.
The critics of this rendition of or of this original song need to get a transplant of their taste glands. One of the most outstanding poetic renditions of faith and doubt, life and love and done with musical brilliance. You can all do one big time (and that is without expletives)!
Great song! [obviously] rendered beautifully. What a pity, but I've donethings j
 KelvinEcho wrote:

This... this is just a pale shadow of the power of the original. Give us Cohen's version, please.

There‘s quite a few interpretations of the original, all different and all in their own right. Try Popa Chubby‘s live version. Brilliant. 

This song now reminds me of "Brown Eyes Girl".  Similar to Van the Man, this is the only song the majority of people ever want to hear from Buckley against a substantial back catalog of brilliance.  Please play anything else!
God I hate this song, by anyone.
whiney nonsense.  next song please!
Outstanding! His sensless death was a minor tragedy!
This... this is just a pale shadow of the power of the original. Give us Cohen's version, please.
 cavemanleong wrote:


This version by Jeff Buckley is regarded by music critics and fans the world over as a classic gem. But apparently, you had to be different, simply because you're sooooooooo special. See that >| next to the play button? Click that. See where that takes you.


its bit shit 
 dtl wrote:

Nice version, yes, but how about getting John Cale's version into the rotation?


Now that would be very interesting to listen too
Nice version, yes, but how about getting John Cale's version into the rotation?
 liveaudio608 wrote:

Visceral and unpleasant reaction to this whinny whine.  



This version by Jeff Buckley is regarded by music critics and fans the world over as a classic gem. But apparently, you had to be different, simply because you're sooooooooo special. See that >| next to the play button? Click that. See where that takes you.
Visceral and unpleasant reaction to this whinny whine.  
I love the song but JB either doesn't get it or maybe just suffered from taking himself too serious.  Listen to LC's original for interpretation or to kd lang for the quality of singing. 
 acolt wrote:

When Johnny Cash covered "Hurt," Trent Reznor acknowledged, somewhat begrudgingly, that the song was no longer his, it was Cash's. 

I feel pretty comfortable in saying that this song is no longer Leonard Cohen's, it's Jeff Buckley's. And that's fine. Cohen has a whole bunch of songs that are still his. Let Jeff have this one.



hear, hear
This song (cover) hurts too much. 

Can.not.listen

Its kind of beyond a 10 rating in a non numerical universe
My eyes well up every time I hear this. Play this to the aliens when they finally show their faces...PEACE forever!
Kd Lang’s olympics opening ceremony version was excellent. This is just overdone with people not understanding the lyrics and thinking it is a church song. This version. Is too sappy.
 tgalvinize wrote:

How do I say this nicely?  (being Canadian and all..)  While I'm happy that many Americans have got to know and love this song through this cover, us Canadians have loved and treasured both the author/composer's (Leonard Cohen) heart-wrenching version, and the quintessential cover, most notably sung live, in bare feet and in tribute to Cohen who was sitting in the front row, by the goddess herself, kd lang.  Welcome to the team friends, and glad you like Jeff's version, but gad, the originals were devastatingly beautiful and still make me pause when I hear them today, decades later. 



Prick
Many, many versions and still no one has topped k. d. Lang (imho)

How do I say this nicely?  (being Canadian and all..)  While I'm happy that many Americans have got to know and love this song through this cover, us Canadians have loved and treasured both the author/composer's (Leonard Cohen) heart-wrenching version, and the quintessential cover, most notably sung live, in bare feet and in tribute to Cohen who was sitting in the front row, by the goddess herself, kd lang.  Welcome to the team friends, and glad you like Jeff's version, but gad, the originals were devastatingly beautiful and still make me pause when I hear them today, decades later. 
absoltly amazing version of léonard cohen song ...... wonderfull artist.....
I went to a wedding where the bride walked down the aisle to this song. Clearly she didn't listen to the lyrics.
 billyboydubai wrote:

This is the most over rated sappy, long and repetitive song ever and you play this waaay to much, Bill!!!  Fingernails on a chalkboard.  



i hear ya
 Stetsonman wrote:

this is one song that needs to be unwritten and deleted from the musical record.
i wish that were possible.
it is drivel and from the start i wish it to end. but like a bad disease it just keeps going

hey my first post, i signed up to give this a MINUS TEN



I stand by every word. 
How people gush forth forth over this bollox shows there are plenty limp minded people out there. 
and jeez leonard cohen what a depressing prick and thank god this buckley twat din't get to record much more. 
This is the most over rated sappy, long and repetitive song ever and you play this waaay to much, Bill!!!  Fingernails on a chalkboard.  
I love Leonard's understated original. And much of Tim Buckley's output is absolutely wonderful. But honestly, I don't get all the adulation for this version. Just dull to me. No subtlety. No real nuance.
 Stetsonman wrote:

this is one song that needs to be unwritten and deleted from the musical record.
i wish that were possible.
it is drivel and from the start i wish it to end. but like a bad disease it just keeps going

hey my first post, i signed up to give this a MINUS TEN



Well congratulations, you got 10 thumbs down on your post so mission accomplished it would seem.
 cavemanleong wrote:

The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years. 



It's one of the best cover versions ever.
 cavemanleong wrote:

The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years. 



Check out KD Lang for a great cover
No discernible break between normal and head voice. That took some serious ability.
Hey BillG its Tim Buckleys son!!! Stetsonman - you need some love in your life. we dont care what you hate. Hope you get the attention and love you need.
i hate this fucking song
Jeff took this anthem to new heights. Goosebumps!
it's TRITE.

and also shite
Ok. That ending really broke me. Sublime
 dmcanany wrote:


Out of curiosity, just how many covers of this song are there? 

Recorded as in an album:

John Cale
Jeff Buckley
Rufus Wainwright
k.d. lang
Alexandra Burke
Pentatonix

and then 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...(Leonard_Cohen_song)#Other_cover_versions

Also give this a listen:
https://www.wnycstudios.org/po...





 cavemanleong wrote:

The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years. 



Out of curiosity, just how many covers of this song are there? 
much preferred Tim
He should still be singing that's for sure.
love this song--prefer the original by Leonard Cohen....
So well done. I especially like the guitar work.

BUT...
It is so overplayed. everywhere. Takes the magic away.
 hellsgardener wrote:


Always makes me smile to see choirs singing this with their best devout faces on - if only they knew 



I think with Leonard Cohen there's not much space between spirituality and sensuality. I'm with you that some folks singing this might not catch both aspects of it. Leonard Cohen is like that though. That's why I enjoy his music.
 I felt Sleepy
Terrific. 
LC must have been very proud when he heard this version.
 chicago_mies wrote:

there are so many great versions of this song but Jeff Buckley's cover gets a "10-Godlike" ranking from me.  If you haven't heard it, Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History Podcast covers the story of how Jeff Buckley discovered and transformed this song.
https://revisionisthistory.com/episodes/07-hallelujah  




I know that very many RPeeps love Buckley's rendition.  I hear a whiny kid going over the top.
Cohen did a great on his song during his later tours.
Sick of this song.  So many other awesome songs by Jeff.  Please stop playing it...
 firefly6 wrote:

Inappropriately performed as a spiritual song so many times...



Always makes me smile to see choirs singing this with their best devout faces on - if only they knew 
Like father like son, tragic and talented...
 ace-marc wrote:


Yeah, of all the versions this is the worst.


Pffff.  We're all taking you very seriously.
 wmrhendry wrote:


Check out KD Lang from the 2020 olympics, 


kd's was very good...I remember being stunned... but Jeff's version is better.
 cavemanleong wrote:

The absolute best cover I've ever heard of this song. Jeff made it his own. Still missing him after all these years. 



Check out KD Lang from the 2010 olympics, 
I just need to say, this song hits deep today.  In the wake of the Derek Chauvin verdict yesterday, this song's lyric, "it's a cold and broken Hallelujah", is how the Twin Cities feels today, at least for me.  I feel like we just survived a wildfire or a deadly storm.  We emerge from our shelters, see the incredible destruction around us, and yet we're still alive, and yet it could have been so much worse.  This time, we will build back with more justice, and humanity.  Thank you for your music, Jeff Buckley.  RIP and Hallelujah.  Hallelujah, Everyone.  
 ebanzai wrote:

I dunno, I like this well enough, but I'd much rather hear  Cohen's version.



Yeah, of all the versions this is the worst.
Time to change it up Bill - getting stale around here.
I think I liked this song perhaps the first 800 times. 
Like the birthday song, it has gotten really, really, old and annoying.
Never, ever need to hear it again. Will likely hear it hundreds more times.

Overly dramatic, sap-fest of saccharhine.
The genius of Leonard Cohen and the brilliance of Jeff Buckley.....  
A marriage made in heaven ?