Corduroy (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| “Corduroy” | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Song by Pearl Jam | |||||
| Album | Vitalogy | ||||
| Released | November 22, 1994 (Vinyl) December 6, 1994 (CD and Cassette) |
||||
| Recorded | January 1994–February 1994 at Bad Animals Studio, Seattle, Washington | ||||
| Genre | Grunge | ||||
| Length | 4:37 | ||||
| Label | Epic | ||||
| Writer | Dave Abbruzzese, Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, Eddie Vedder | ||||
| Producer | Brendan O'Brien, Pearl Jam | ||||
| Vitalogy track listing | |||||
|
|||||
"Corduroy" is the eighth track on Pearl Jam's 1994 album, Vitalogy. Despite not being released as a single, the song managed to reach number 13 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song was included on Pearl Jam's greatest hits album, rearviewmirror: Greatest Hits 1991–2003.
Contents |
[edit] Composition
"Corduroy" begins with an eerie riff played as an arpeggio of the first two notes of a power chord. Then the song lifts off, proceeding with a structure of verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus-verse. Although not revolutionary, the song structure is not completely normal, as almost no lyrics are repeated (including choruses) and the fade-out of the song begins after a verse rather than the traditional ending of a song after the third chorus.
[edit] Reception
Without being released as a single, the song peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and number 13 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in 1995.
Al Weisel of Rolling Stone called the song "hard edged and catchy."[1] Chris True of Allmusic described it as "simple, straightforward rock, the kind that Pearl Jam excelled at." He added, "Classic Pearl Jam — earnest lyrics and vocals, powerful classic sounding guitars, loose yet in control rhythm section, bass driven and tension filled breakdown (with Eddie mumbling in the background, of course) is all here, even down to the loose jam style outro."[2]
"Corduroy" can be heard in an advertisement for conservation.org which features Harrison Ford.
[edit] Lyrical meaning
The lyrical content can be interpreted in many ways, but one common theory is that they are about the pressures of fame. In an interview Eddie Vedder stated:
It is about a relationship but not between two people. It's more one person's relationship with a million people. In fact, that song's almost a little too obvious for me. That's why instead of a lyric sheet we put in an X-ray of my teeth from last January and they are all in very bad shape, which was analogous to my head at the time.[3]
Regarding the song's title, Vedder stated:
Yeah, that song was based on a remake of the brown corduroy jacket that I wore. I think I got mine for 12 bucks, and it was being sold for like $650. The ultimate one as far as being co-opted was that there was a guy on TV, predictably patterned, I guess, after the way I was looking those days, with long hair and an Army T-shirt. They put this new character on a soap opera, so there was a guy, more handsome than I, parading around on General Hospital. And the funny thing is, that guy was Ricky Martin.[4]
[edit] Live performances
The song was premiered live at the band's March 15, 1994 concert in St. Louis, Missouri.[5] The song has become a concert favorite, although in concert it is generally played at a slightly faster tempo. Some live performances are preceded by a brief jam of Pink Floyd's "Interstellar Overdrive". Live performances of "Corduroy" can be found on the live albums Live on Two Legs and Live at the Gorge 05/06. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs Touring Band 2000, Live at the Showbox, and Immagine In Cornice.
[edit] Chart positions
Information taken from various sources.[6][7][8]
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay | 53 |
| US Modern Rock Tracks | 13 | |
| US Mainstream Rock Tracks | 22 |
[edit] References
- ^ Weisel, Al. Vitalogy review. Rolling Stone. December 15, 1994. Retrieved on March 1, 2008.
- ^ True, Chris. "Corduroy > Review". Allmusic.com. Retrieved on May 17, 2008.
- ^ Hilburn, Robert. "All Revved Up (As Usual)". Los Angeles Times. November 20, 1994.
- ^ Modell, Josh. "Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam". The A.V. Club. November 6, 2002.
- ^ "Pearl Jam Songs:Corduroy "Corduroy"". pearljam.com.
- ^ Pearl Jam Artist Chart History. Billboard. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
- ^ Pearl Jam – Billboard Singles. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-06-11.
- ^ Billboard.com / Pearl Jam / Longplay. Billboard.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
