Merkin Ball
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Merkin Ball | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| EP by Pearl Jam and Neil Young | |||||
| Released | December 5, 1995 | ||||
| Recorded | February 7, 1995–February 10, 1995 at Bad Animals Studio, Seattle, Washington | ||||
| Genre | Alternative rock | ||||
| Length | 10:52 | ||||
| Label | Epic Records | ||||
| Producer | Brett Eliason | ||||
| Professional reviews | |||||
| Pearl Jam singles chronology | |||||
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Merkin Ball is a Pearl Jam-led two song EP featuring Neil Young that was released on December 5, 1995 through Epic Records. Merkin Ball is considered the official companion to Neil Young's Mirror Ball. The EP has achieved Gold status in the United States.
Contents |
[edit] Recording
The tracks on Merkin Ball were recorded at the tail end of the Mirror Ball sessions in February 1995.[1] The songs were produced and mixed by Pearl Jam sound engineer Brett Eliason.
Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder was not around much for the Mirror Ball recording sessions due to what he called a "pretty intense stalker problem."[2] Vedder said that "leaving the house wasn't the easiest thing to do."[2] Vedder wrote and performed vocals and guitar on the songs "I Got Id" and "Long Road" which were left off of Mirror Ball.[3] Neil Young contributed lead guitar to "I Got Id" and pump organ to "Long Road". Mirror Ball producer Brendan O'Brien plays bass on "I Got Id" while Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament plays bass on "Long Road". Pearl Jam drummer Jack Irons plays drums on both tracks.
[edit] Music and lyrics
Mirror Ball and Merkin Ball complement each other musically. Jonathan Cohen of All Music Guide called "I Got Id" "an even mix of Vitalogy's raw rock and No Code's major-key majesty," and said that with "Long Road" "Vedder's melody is uplifting, his lyrics poignant."[1]
"I Got Id" is also known as "I Got Shit" by the band and its fans. It is rumored that when Vedder proposed the idea of a single to Epic, the label made him change the title of the song.[1] Upon introducing the song at Pearl Jam's September 19, 1998 concert in Washington, D.C., Vedder stated that "[Neil Young] gave me a song writing lesson at a half-price rate; this is what I came up with...on my final, he gave me a B+ I think."[4] At Pearl Jam's May 10, 2006 concert in Toronto, Vedder revealed that the song's chorus melody was inspired by the verse melody in Neil Young's "Cinnamon Girl".[5] At Pearl Jam's July 7, 2006 concert in San Diego, California, Vedder revealed that he wrote "Long Road" after hearing about the death of his former high school drama teacher and mentor, Clayton E. Liggett.[6] He added that he began to hit the opening D-chords of "Long Road" as if he was "trying to ring a bell to say that 'We lost one of the good ones'", and following "about eight minutes" the rest of the performers on the track joined in without saying anything and began to bring the song to life.[7]
[edit] Release and reception
Merkin Ball has achieved Gold status.[8]
David Browne of of Entertainment Weekly gave Merkin Ball a B+. Browne called "I Got Id" a "standard PJ chest thumper," and stated that "Long Road" "[takes] Young and Pearl Jam into a mystical zone never hinted at on [Mirror Ball]."[9]
The A-side of Merkin Ball, "I Got Id", reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100. "I Got Id" reached number two on the Mainstream Rock charts and number three on the Modern Rock charts. In September 2001, Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready joined Neil Young to perform "Long Road" from Merkin Ball at the America: A Tribute to Heroes benefit concert.
[edit] Imagery and design
[edit] Album artwork
A wrecking ball graces the front cover of Merkin Ball. Mirror Ball and Merkin Ball complement each other in the layout and content of the album packaging.
[edit] Album title
The title Merkin Ball is a play on Mirror Ball. A merkin is commonly known as a pubic wig. Eddie Vedder came up with the title.[10] In an interview, Vedder said that the title refers to an "arrowhead."[11]
[edit] Track listing
All songs written by Eddie Vedder.
[edit] Personnel
- Brendan O'Brien – bass on "I Got Id"
- Neil Young – guitar, pump organ, vocals
- Eddie Vedder – guitar, vocals
- Jeff Ament – bass on "Long Road"
- Jack Irons – percussion, drums
- Brett Eliason – production, engineering and mixing
- Joel Bernstein – portraits
[edit] Chart positions
Information taken from various sources.[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | "I Got Id" | Australian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Finnish Singles Chart | 3 | ||
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 5 | ||
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 7 | ||
| US Mainstream Rock Tracks | 2 | ||
| US Modern Rock Tracks | 3 | ||
| Swedish Singles Chart | 14 | ||
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 17 | ||
| UK Singles Chart | 25 | ||
| Irish Singles Chart | 29 | ||
| 1996 | Dutch Singles Chart | 38 |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Cohen, Jonathan. Merkinball. All Music Guide. Retrieved on 2007-04-29.
- ^ a b Weisbard, Eric, et al. "Ten Past Ten". Spin. August 2001.
- ^ Strauss, Neil. "The Predictably Unpredictable Neil Young". The New York Times. July 2, 1995. Retrieved on March 27, 2008.
- ^ "Pearl Jam: 1998 Concert Chronology: Part 3". fivehorizons.com.
- ^ "Pearl Jam Concert Chronology: 2006". TwoFeetThick.com.
- ^ Varga, George. "By finish, Pearl Jam, Vedder had a connection". The San Diego Union-Tribune. July 10, 2006.
- ^ "Pearl Jam Concert Chronology: 2006 Part Two". TwoFeetThick.com.
- ^ Gold and Platinum Database Search. Retrieved on 2007-02-12.
- ^ Browne, David. "Merkin Ball". Entertainment Weekly. December 22, 1995.
- ^ "Pearl Jam Rumor Pit: Issue #11". sonymusic.com. November 15, 1995.
- ^ Kava, Brad. ""I'm Just looking to make it right." --- E.V.". www.vedderism.friko.pl. November 3, 1995.
- ^ EveryHit.com. Retrieved on 2007-02-16.
- ^ Pearl Jam Artist Chart History. Billboard. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
- ^ PEARL JAM - MERKINBALL (EP) (SINGLE) (98732). Australian-charts.com. Retrieved on 2007-04-29.
- ^ The Irish Charts - All there is to know. Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved on 2007-04-29.
- ^ PEARL JAM - MERKINBALL (EP) (SONG). New Zealand-charts.com. Retrieved on 2007-07-17.
- ^ Swedish Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay. swedishcharts.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ Norwegian Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay. norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ Dutch Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay. dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
- ^ Finnish Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay. finnishcharts.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
