Cover of the Moment: Masters of War

[mikejasond]

This is without a doubt one of their best. The old 92 versions with Eddie in pure anger mode are incredible and the versions he did later on are awesome too. I like the increased speed they sometimes do now. I remember hearing some INCREDIBLE boots of this one of them from the Wrigley shows from the last time they were there. This is a song that brings out the best in Eddie. And the wall of sound the band creates is just great.

I heard one version...I forget if it was from 03 or 06 or what but it was some time in the 2000s played fast and loud and it was AMAZING

This is one cover I'd never mind hearing. I'd love to get this one

[Strat]

Goddammit. Can we just give this guy his own fucking subforum ?

[mikejasond]

You have Song of the Moment threads for every single song Pearl Jam has ever did, threads for every album, threads for a guided tour of every album, threads for your favorite part of every album, threads for the biggest flaw of every album, threads for your first time with every album, all linked in the chat index thread

I try to start new discussion about pearl jam's various covers that they've played numerous times throughout their 25 year history, starting an actual new discussion, and now its a problem?

If we can have a thread about the best song about religious faith that Pearl Jam has done, I dont see why we can't discuss their covers as much as their album songs.

PJ treats them with just as much love as their album tracks, and often, with more love. Rockin in the Free World is much more of an important song in Pearl Jam's catalogue than Ghost or All or None, or In My Tree, if you read their concert setlists.

Obviously I don't really think it's more important, but the fact is, that these covers are worth discussing as its part of their regular repertoire, and not some one time thing.

True, Masters of war is not one of their most played, but IMO, its one of their most memorable.

And anyways they've played it more than No Way and Around the Bend and All or None

[mikejasond]

Anyway....compare and contrast

young:

I miss this Eddie a lot

and old:

When they really start kicking in around 2:30 its like yessss

[VinylGuy]

I have never been a fan of Masters Of War. I liked the 2004 full band version though.

[mikejasond]

And now the best Masters of War I ever heard on Sirius XM so far from Newcastle 2006.

https://www.pearljambootlegs.org/module ... 3D&ext.m3u

I don't think I ever heard them play it as aggressively as this IDK what they were on that night but this is frickin awesome. Just keeps building and building. I think this might be the best version of this song unless somebody can top it. Has Eddie when he could still sing and a driving guitar. I just love the tempo. They rarely play it this fast but this worked.

[mikejasond]

I have never been a fan of Masters Of War. I liked the 2004 full band version though.

What do you think of the Newcastle 2006 one I just linked in the post above this?

Takes a minute to get to get going but then it's like yeaaaaaah

[washing machine]

mikesajond really shut Strat down in this thread.

[Sgt. Crackpot]

[Jorge]

mikesajond really shut Strat down in this thread.

Slapped him silly. It was actually uncomfortable

[Strat]

Guys, calm down. I think most of us are just a little exhausted with mikejasond making a post about every pearl jam related thought that comes into his brain.

Also, you'll thank me later for attempting to stand up to this monster when he starts posting about mid porch jam improvs and god knows what else.

[Birds in Hell]

Guys, calm down. I think most of us are just a little exhausted with mikejasond making a post about every pearl jam related thought that comes into his brain.

Are you kidding?

I think his posts are great.

[Strat]

Spenno, i swear to god.

[washing machine]

My only regret is that I came upon the genius of the account quite late in the game.

[96583UP]

i thought masters of war last time they were in boston was excellent

[Monkey_Driven]

i thought masters of war last time they were in boston was excellent

Yeah, that version blew me away.

[EJ]

i thought masters of war last time they were in boston was excellent

Yeah, that version blew me away.

Same.

[Kevin Davis]

These threads are a fine idea. The "Comfortably Numb" one generated 4 pages of good conversation.

The "Masters of War" from Bobfest was the first time I ever heard the song, on an old silver boot called "Covering Them." It blew me away and still does; when I discovered Dylan's version a couple years later it felt neutered and hokey by comparison. PJ's had so much more vitriol.

I could be misremembering but I think Eddie and Mike's '92 cover was a one-off until the band resurrected it for the post-"Riot Act" tour shows in protest of the Iraq War. I don't really care for these versions. Eddie's resigned "Riot Act" voice isn't up to the big notes and the full-band acoustic accompaniment feels robotic and too cluttered for a song that's primarily just one chord.

The '06 electric versions, with the dirty guitars and stomping drums, are awesome -- precisely the sort of thing the band should be doing to make these covers feel like theirs.

[mikejasond]

The 06 ones on youtube are very slow, but the newcastle one that I posted up there they increased the tempo and it changed the whole thing to me. They were super hyped up that entire show. It really did make it their own

[mikejasond]

But yeah, the shows they've done it where they have made it their own its like the perfect kind of cover to me.

Nobody would call Knockin on Heavens Door just a cover song for guns n roses, even though it's also a bob dylan song. Yes of course that's because it was on an album, was a big hit for them, and they did way more to change the structure (and Slash's amazing solos on that song or all his own).

But when you hear Comfortably Numb it feels just like a Floyd cover. When they do this one correctly it's different enough that it feels like a Pearl Jam song and I actually think it brings the best out of the band. That wall of sound reminds me of what I love best about Immortality. I would love to hear this one live. I actually think it's their best cover though I also really like Fuckin Up (which will be a topic for another day )