Grace

At a 1993 show at the New York club Sin-é, Buckley said this song is about "not feeling so bad about your own mortality when you have true love." This can be heard on the 2003 release Live at Sin-é.

"Grace" was the album's first single, and it was also released as a video. Buckley performed the song for a long time before he recorded it, and an early demo appears on an album he made with Gary Lucas that was released posthumously called Songs to No One 1991-1992. Lucas and Buckley were part of a project called Gods & Monsters when they wrote this song; they also collaborated on the Grace track "Mojo Pin."

Buckley died in 1997 when he drowned in a river at age 30. His father, Tim Buckley, died of a drug overdose at 28, but Jeff was in good spirits at the time and the drowning was accidental (he was wearing heavy boots when he jumped in, making it difficult to return to shore). This song deals with death, as he sings: It's my time coming I'm not afraid to die Later in the song, he even alludes to drowning, although metaphorically: I feel them drown my name So easy to know and forget with this kiss I'm not afraid to go but it goes so slow The lyrics sound unsettling in light of his death, but the entire album is soaked through with themes of loss.