Jeff Buckley’s cover of “I Know It’s Over” by The Smiths will give you chills

There have been mixed reactions over the years to the amount of unfinished recordings, outtakes, demos, rehearsal tapes, etc. trotted out from the Jeff Buckley archives and packaged as commercial releases. But the latest from the much loved singer-songwriter, who passed away in 1997, sounds incredibly promising.

As anybody who owns Grace will tell you, Buckley was a master of interpretation (see his iconic version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” See also: “Lilac Wine,” recorded over the years by Eartha Kitt and Nina Simone). So it’s amazing to hear that You and I, out on March 16th, is almost entirely covers.

Today, a particularly powerful teaser from the album surfaced over at Rolling Stone – a rendition of “I Know It’s Over” from The Smiths’ The Queen Is Dead. Its lyrical opening references death – “Mother I can feel the soil falling over my head” – which is chilling coming from the voice of a songwriter who famously died tragically, but song is really about isolation and loneliness, which is haunting in its own way.

Watch a new video for the cover here, via Rolling Stone – below, check out a live version, and compare it against the original. And scan the tracklist for You and I, which also features songs by Bukka White, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAJ_74tDZzU

01 Just Like A Woman (Bob Dylan cover)
02 Everyday People (Sly & The Family Stone cover)
03 Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Cryin’ (First recorded by Louis Jordan)
04 Grace (original)
05 Calling You (Jevetta Steele cover)
06 Dream Of You And I (original)
07 The Boy With The Thorn In His Side (The Smiths cover)
08 Poor Boy Long Way From Home (traditional blues song, Bukka White cover)
09 Night Flight (Led Zeppelin cover)
10 I Know It’s Over (The Smiths cover)