C G
Yes I understand that every life must end, aw huh…
As we sit alone, I know someday we must go, aw huh…
I’m a lucky man to count on both hands the ones I love…
Some folks just have one, others they got none, aw huh…
Am
Stay with me…
F
Let’s just breathe.
Practiced are my sins, never gonna let me win, aw huh…
Under everything, just another human being, aw huh…
Yeh, I don’t wanna hurt, there’s so much in this world to make me bleed.
Stay with me…
You’re all I see.
G Dm
Did I say that I need you?
G Dm
Did I say that I want you?
F Am
Oh, if I didn’t I’m a fool you see…
F G
No one knows this more than me.
G
As I come clean.
I wonder everyday as I look upon your face, aw huh…
Everything you gave and nothing you would take, aw huh…
Nothing you would take…
Everything you gave.
Did I say that I need you?
Oh, did I say that I want you?
Oh, if I didn’t now I’m a fool you see…
No one knows this more than me.
As I come clean.
(Fingerpicking over verse chords)
Am
Nothing you would take…
F
Everything you gave.
Hold me till I die…
Meet you on the other side.
** These chords and lyrics are interpretations and transcriptions, respectively, and are the sole property of the copyright holder(s). They are posted on this website free of charge for no profit for the purpose of study and commentary, as allowed for under the “fair use” provision of U.S. copyright law, and should only be used for such personal and/or academic work. **
This most recent Pearl Jam release is aptly titled; in many ways, Backspacer is closer in focus and energy to Ten than any of their more recent efforts.
Most reviews have wasted little time in pointing out that this album holds the band’s record for brevity — 37 minutes from the first guitar strum to the final vocal fade. This can, of course, be interpreted in one of two ways, the worst case scenario being that the album was hurriedly prepared and produced.
This could not be further from the truth.
Backspacer is a strong, purposeful album comprised of eleven very upbeat, very direct tracks that leave little room for the listener to catch his breath over the record’s half hour span. For the most part, these tight, three minute tracks are energizing and satisfying, catchier and cooler than anything Eddie Vedder and company have turned out in a long time.
This is, of course, a mixed bag. After all, short, to-the-point pop rock is fun when done properly — which, by the way, it certainly is here. Still, the electric soundscapes of 2000’s Binaural and the distortion-drenched protest of 2002’s Riot Act were excellent installments in the Pearl Jam catalog, even if their respective values have been minimized by critics who seemed more concerned with comparing them to early releases like Ten and Vs.
It should be noted that 2006’s Pearl Jam lacked cohesiveness as an album, although several songs on that release are among the best of their career (“World Wide Suicide” or “Marker in the Sand,” anyone?). This eponymous release is an album of wild energy and abandon, which works particularly well in the first half of the track listing. That being said, Vedder rips his vocal chords to shreds in his effort to sing without holding any emotion or effort in reserve. This works well in some places, and yet crackles to pieces in others.
On Backspacer, Vedder has somehow been able to amp up his emotions and energy, and yet his vocals stand out as some of the best of any Pearl Jam recording to date. Some songs, like the opener “Gonna See My Friend,” harken back to the roughly shouted vocals of Pearl Jam. Most, however, feature Vedder at his best.
The opening track is also notable for a strumming pattern that is evocative of some mid-1950s Chuck Berry-esque riffing — with a decidedly grunge rock twist to it, of course. “Gonna See My Friend” is a catchy track but certainly does not stand out among the other excellent album starters of their career.
From the first millisecond of “Got Some,” there is suddenly evidence that this might be an excellent album. Jeff Ament’s collaboration with Vedder is a nice addition to the other outstanding Ament contributions — think: “God’s Dice,” “Ghost,” and “Low Light;” if you’re really kind, forget “Pilate.” The best part of “Got Some” is that, by the time it has finished, you haven’t even heard the single yet.
“The Fixer” comes next, a tour-de-force taken on very convincingly by Vedder. I have vacillated about three or four times a day since I picked up the album on Sunday, and I’m still not certain whether I like “Got Some” or “The Fixer” better. I suppose I’ll just have to keep listening…
As the album continues, there are other rockers performed at breakneck speed (“Johnny Guitar,” “Supersonic”), as well as considerably slower, more instrospective numbers (“Just Breathe,” “The End”). These latter tracks were clearly influenced by Vedder’s recent solo project, writing and recording the soundtrack for the Sean Penn film Into the Wild. The fingerpicking patterns that open these songs are reminiscent of his solo tracks, yet these songs clearly show the progress Vedder has made in such a short time, particularly in terms of structure.
For once, I am forced to agree with Rolling Stone‘s assessment of this album. Their four star rating is a simple means of stating that Backspacer is an excellent album, but not a masterpiece. From track 6 to “The End,” the album takes some repeated listening to really be appreciated. At first, I felt that some of these tracks were too tight and traditional to ever truly stand out. As I’ve listened, more and more of these songs have stood out, like the soaring “Amongst the Waves” and the excellent “Speed of Sound” (listen to Vedder’s vocals in the first few lines as he momentarily invokes Leonard Cohen).
Backspacer may not be the next Ten, but it is silly to even entertain that desire. (If you read music reviews in the major magazines, you wouldn’t know it though!) What this release does offer is an energetic, cohesive Pearl Jam album — and that, for me, has always been more than enough.
Hello and welcome to an all-new week of cover songs at the best acoustic cover song music video blog in the universe — guaranteed, or your money back!
I guess the guilt falls to me for breaking the Beatles marathon…
It’s been a blast reviewing Beatles albums, recording Fab Four covers, and watching the Traveling Acai Berrys’ and Jeff’s renditions, but now it’s time for me to inject a little fresh music into the timeline of the Laptop Sessions.
“Just Breathe” is track five from the new Pearl Jam album Backspacer, and is truly a perfect fit for the Laptop Sessions format. The studio version is primarily Eddie Vedder singing and playing acoustic guitar, so it only took memorizing the words and transcribing the chords. As usual, I started online and found a site with chords and lyrics that were almost right.
Well, “almost right” doesn’t fly around here.
The middle is NOT comprised of C and F chords; that “C” simply didn’t sound quite right. It should be Am instead of C. In addition, there were some minor lyrical inaccuracies — “all” instead of “are,” “save” instead of “take,” etc. The person who transcribed the song included a personal note about the song at the bottom, and he seemed like a really nice guy who truly loved this song. And he made figuring out this song much easier than if I had simply started on my own.
But that’s what we at the Laptop Sessions pride ourselves about — our commitment to performing songs as faithfully as possible, cross-checking our facts to be certain what we write is accurate, and always knowing when a song has already been recorded as a session.
Oh, right. About that last one…
I need to apologize to Jeff for recording “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away” as though he had never recorded it. The funny part is that, when I went back and read his post later, I clearly remembered reading it. I recalled his mention of Eddie Vedder (whose music I barely knew and wasn’t enthusiastic about at the time), and I remembered being intrigued by his “Semaphore” reference. Apparently, flag semaphore is a system of symbols for conveying information through waving flags or bare hands. Although photographer Robert Freeman had the idea to have John, Paul, George, and Ringo spell out “HELP” in semaphore, they decided on a different arrangement — “NUJV”– that was more aesthetically pleasing as the cover art for Help!
Going back to the song of the day, I should acknowledge that I originally planned to record “The End,” and I practiced it a number of times with that intention in mind. In fact, a former student of mine emailed me with the idea of recording it, so I was reluctant to admit to myself that the chorus is just too far out of my range. I still posted the chords and lyrics, though, so others might be able to enjoy learning and playing it. Guest session, anyone?
As I was preparing for my session last week, I had been listening back to some of my recent sessions and realized something. Since I moved from the Fusco-Moore Experience to my current apartment, I have never worn the same shirt twice while recording a music video. Here’s a quick retrospective:
July 13 – Bob Dylan Together Through Life t-shirt (thanks again, Fusc!)
July 20 – Vermont t-shirt (thanks, Mom & Dad!)
August 4 – plaid, western-looking collared shirt
August 4 (second video) – Dodge Charger t-shirt (thanks, Jim!)
August 31 – Abbey Road t-shirt from London (thanks, Nicole!)
September 28 -black Bass fishing t-shirt
Today marks my tenth video, and thus it is my tenth shirt. My goal is to never wear the same shirt twice. Even though I’m running out of t-shirts, we are heading into winter, so my long sleeve shirts will be featured soon. When spring comes, it should get interesting. I wonder if I can fit into Nicole’s shirts…
Anyway, I hope you enjoy my video. This completes my recent Pearl Jam run, adding both a full album review and a one-sentence review of Backspacer, chords & lyrics to three songs, and now a full Laptop Sessions post.
Aside from an ever-increasing stack of grading on my desk at school, life has been hectic but good recently. I’ve been really excited about the music on my iPod and in my car this past month. After going through quite the dry spell during the summer — Third Eye Blind and Sister Hazel, anyone? — the Arctic Monkeys and Pearl Jam have added some excitement to my “Albums- 2009” playlist. In addition, my birthday weekend has been pretty laid back, but a lot of fun. I heard from just about all my closest friends, and Jaime even came up from New York to visit on Sunday and give me the beautifully designed “Chris Moore Birthday Bash!” mix CD! I’m itching to start tweeting about the FYE gift card that Mike got me, Nicole bought me (among other awesome items ranging from practical to academic to entertaining) a book of essays about Bob Dylan written by scholars, I got a text message from Alb that brought me back to our summer of video gaming, and I’m officially, finally having breakfast next week with one of my dearest friends who I haven’t seen for over a year. Good stuff all around.
