Eddie Vedder solo

Hearing his latest solo tune 'Goodbye' just reiterates my feelings. I've always enjoyed his contributions during Pearl Jam's live shows, but when you get right down to it, he'll always be the band's bread-and-butter. He's one of my fave modern lyricists and usually Pearl Jam's strongest material originates from his creative center. I love Pearl Jam, and want them to stay together as long as they're recording albums of quality akin to their latest album (plus, they're an amazing live act), but a man of Vedder's talents should shed his skin on a more independent-centric forum--a solo album. Chris Cornell managed to do it quite successfully, and I don't see any reason why Vedder couldn't do it.

'Goodbye':

http://music.aol.com/franchise/first...00050000000031

The Pearl Jam frontman channels his inner surf bum on 'Goodbye,' a laidback, ukelele ditty that he recorded for the surfing documentary 'A Brokedown Melody.' Jack Johnson, who is featured in the film, will release the entire soundtrack on his own Brushfire Records on Nov. 14, but you can hear Vedder's contribution exclusively on AOL Music for the next 24 hours.

I envy you. When I was in the 6th grade, I was still listening to my mom's Top 40 Radio (here's looking at you, Phil Collins and Rod Stewart!).

An album's worth of Eddie Vedder solo material is coming our way (September 18th) via the soundtrack to Sean Penn's new flick, INTO THE WILD:

http://theplaylist.blogspot.com/2007...res-penns.html

To say that I'm excited would be putting it lightly. One of the greatest songwriters and vocalists in rock getting the chance to unleash the closest thing to a solo album? It's about damn time.

As an addendum to my post from last year: Chris Cornell's second solo album sucks major balls. I know Vedder couldn't possibly release material that weak and shallow even if he tried.

More than a year later, it's still on my DVR, too. I can't get myself to erase it, considering it's one of the greatest Tv performances I've ever witnessed.

A few points, Dave:

1) I'd never say that Pearl Jam = Eddie Vedder. If that were the case, the band's catalogue wouldn't be as impressive as it is. However, if it weren't for the last two Pearl Jam discs, I'd have no qualms in saying that the band's strongest material usually materializes from Vedder. Even when he's not solely responsible for the songwriting duties, his harmonious vocal inflections and/or unmistakable baritone pushes the tunes to an entirely different level. And as a lyricist, he's unmatched not just by his fellow bandmates, but by few of his rock n' roll peers. His knack for an amazing pop melody is highly underrated. He knows how to tell a good story using the minimalist of tools--hell, his vocals and uke are enough at times. So I'm not expecting solo Vedder to match any Pearl Jam album, necessarily, and I don't think that's his intention. But I'm expecting it to be good in a different kind of way.

2) Still love Thom Yorke's THE ERASER, which holds up to the majority of Radiohead's catalogue. Few Radiohead fans probably feel the same way, but with that said, I still wouldn't imply that Yorke = Radiohead.

Glad you mentioned Jeff Ament. I generally find Ament's lyrics to be so obtuse and plain that they're almost incapable of rescue reading them on plain paper. It speaks volumes (for me, at least) that a vocalist like Vedder can turn what could be near-disasters into something halfway decent ('Nothing As It Seems') or even magnetically original ('Help Help').


I don't know how many times I've heard fans insist that Vedder's delivery on RIOT ACT is tired and lifeless. That couldn't be further from the truth if you're viewing his delivery as a deliberate attempt to allow the music to flourish on its own terms. Which is why I find an album like RIOT ACT to be so criminally underrated it makes me sick--it's richly conveyed and a melodic powerhouse. The band never used the studio to their benefit as much as they did with RIOT ACT. And Vedder's voice is beautifully understated, building color and detail with the music like a skilled painter adding brushstrokes to a painting.

The tracklist to Vedder's "solo album" (I don't know if this is final or official...haven't read it anywhere else):

http://www.amazon.com/Music-Motion-P...6446703&sr=1-2

Album cover:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/ima...6446703&sr=1-2

For the second half of the year, this and the next Radiohead album have me really, really anxious. 11 tracks was more than I was expecting. It really is an album's worth of new tunes.

The tracklist/album cover I posted is official. Here's another bit of info.:

http://theplaylist.blogspot.com/2007...cover-art.html

The first single, "Hard Sun"' a song originally written by Seattle musician Gordon Peterson (aka Indio), is a duet Vedder did with Corin Tucker of Sleater-Kinney.

This one's a grower. My Ten Club version arrived in the mail on Monday (with a cool-as-shit Ed Ved T-Shirt), and I've been through it twice so far.

One thing's for sure: if you're a fan of Eddie's voice, parts of this disc will be bone-chilling. Some of the tunes end right when they're about to take you to the clouds, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Once I see the actual film, it wouldn't surprise me if these tunes take on a whole new life.