Alter Bridge treated fans in Paris to a very special moment on Monday night, with frontman Myles Kennedy performing “Hallelujah” using the late Jeff Buckley’s guitar.
Buckley’s rendition of Leonard Cohen classic was included on the singer-songwriter’s lone studio album, 1994’s Grace. His cover has since become an iconic track itself, thanks to Buckley’s soaring vocals. However, it wasn’t until years after Buckley’s tragic 1997 death that his rendition of the song became a universal hit.
Alter Bridge performed at L’Olympia in Paris on Monday night. It’s the same venue where Buckley played in 1995, as captured on his posthumous live album, Live À L’Olympia.
As he started the song, Kennedy called Buckley “one of my biggest influences”, and then proceeded to deliver a fateful rendition of the track, showing off his own impressive vocal range. At the end of the performance, Kennedy explained that the guitar he played belonged to Buckley, and was lent to him by Matt’s Guitar Shop, who now own the instrument.
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In fact, the 1983 Fender Telecaster was Buckley’s go-to guitar, and he can be seen playing it in the video for his rendition of “Hallelujah”.
In a Facebook post following the gig, Alter Bridge stated the following:
“Paris – Tonight was an amazing night for us, one we will never forget. The Olympia is a very special room & we selected this room for its history. Jeff Buckley played and recorded his historic live album in this room… with this guitar.
Thanks to our friends at Matt’s Guitar Shop — tonight Myles Kennedy was able to be the first person since Jeff to play this guitar on stage. Thank you.
Thank you Jeff, your music has reached so many and changed our lives. We hope you know we love you.”
Watch Myles Kennedy’s rendition of “Hallelujah”, followed by the Jeff Buckley video, in which he’s playing the very same guitar, below. If you’re a fan of Buckley’s, make sure to revisit our recent season of The Opus dedicated to Buckley’s Grace.