Personally, I think Jeff was a better guitarist and Tim was a better songwriter, but the real question is, pound for pound between father and son, which of the legendary Buckley’s was the better singer?
Tim Buckley vs. Jeff Buckley
(Just in case you can’t tell, that’s Tim on the left and Jeff on the right) Here’s a couple of clips if you need a quick refresher on the astounding talents of these two singers, but feel free to make your case using any of their songs.
Tim Buckley “I Woke Up”
Jeff Buckley “Hallelujah”
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January 4th, 2012 - 1:51 PM
Jeff was the better guitarist by far. Since it is documented how much Jeff stuggled with songwriting and after listening to Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk, Tim wins hands down on this one. Although his early songs were a Buckley/Beckett collaboration he would eventually drop Beckett as his lyricist and write his own. Tim put out 9 albums and Jeff only one and even if you count the unfinished "My Sweetheart" that makes only 2.
As far as vocalist goes, just listen to the live album," Dream Letter: Live in London 1968" and you can see he has the great range, his voice has a fuller sound and he knows how to use it better than Jeff. Tim started to train he voice as a young teen whereas Jeff refused to sing until his mid twenties. Tim used his voice as an instrument whereas Jeff concentrated on his guitar. Jeff does have a beautiful voice especially on the Grace album but he again does not use it to its fullest on the Sweetheart album.
Both men put their heart and soul into their music but concentrated on different parts of their talent.