55. Faithfull vs. I Am Mine

Post by **stip** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:01 am

Faithfull vs. I Am Mine

Post by **stip** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:32 am

Ugh, this one is gonna hurt. Faithful wins the prize, I think, for most overrated song in Pearl Jam's catalog. I'll rail about it more later.

Instead I want to celebrate the underappreciated beauty and power of I Am Mine, the best song on Riot Act, and a quiet masterpiece. I love the rocky, fuzzy, off kilter guitar parts and the chiming accents. The lyrics are cryptic and occasional nonsensical but always evocative. There is a exhausted but patient power to Eddie's performance that is the perfect distillation of the confusion of the times watching the country fall in love with Bush, wondering if you were the only one who saw things clearly, but never loosing hope that people would snap out of it. It's actually the most Riot Actish of all the Riot Act songs - the best musical and thematic distillation of everything worthwhile about that record. There are bursts of energy sprinkled throughout (especially in the instrumental bridge) that struggle to break free, but can't quite manage it, until it all bursts apart at the end with one of the most cathartic passages Mike ever played. This song is a gem. Criminally underrated around here, especially since it's not like Riot Act is one of those pearl jam albums that's largely dismissed before diving in.

knee tunes · Post by **knee tunes** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:34 am

Faithfull

tragabigzanda · Post by **tragabigzanda** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:34 am

I Am Mine is the first PJ song I ever hated

Post by **stip** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:36 am

you hate force of nature too, right? They are very similar songs (and each are my favorite songs on their respective albums). What don't you like about it (I am Mine?)

JuanHamm · Post by **JuanHamm** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:38 am

I am mine.

Stip really nailed it. I'll never forget hearing the studio version for the first time after listening to the bridge school version about 1000 times. That solo at the end really blew me away.

tragabigzanda · Post by **tragabigzanda** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:39 am

stip wrote:you hate force of nature too, right? They are very similar songs (and each are my favorite songs on their respective albums). What don't you like about it (I am Mine?)

heck no, i love Force of Nature. Probably more than almost anyone on this board. I even like the intro.

I hate everything about I Am Mine, except for the YAWP! ed yells before the outro, which I admit is kind of sexy.

-The sea shanty chord changes are boring
-The lyrics are trite
-The chorus is monotonous
-The solo is straight out of a Mastercard commercial

Just a bland song all around.

PHATJ · Post by **PHATJ** » Tue March 16, 2021 1:09 am

Faithfull is a great song. Definitely in my top 20 or so. I Am Mine is good, but it’s just a middle of the pack PJ song for me.

digster · Post by **digster** » Tue March 16, 2021 2:11 am

I Am Mine is a really good song; the lyric as a whole may have a few clunkers, but it also has a few lines that I still really love, and the lyrics of the last chorus manage to capture something that could so easily become cloying and make it a really impactful moment for me. I really love the '03 live versions of the song, before it was given a steroid shot in speed like so many of their other songs. It maintained the leisurely pace of the record version, but had a bit more bite to it.

That being said, it's very good, but it's not Faithfull, which gets the vote here.

VinylGuy · Post by **VinylGuy** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:12 am

i almost voted for Faithful and then i remembered how it felt to listen to I Am Mine for the first time, that melody, Ed´s vocals, the bridge, the guitars....its REM meets PJ at its finest.

Post by **epilogue** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:15 am

stip wrote:you hate force of nature too, right? They are very similar songs (and each are my favorite songs on their respective albums). What don't you like about it (I am Mine?)

I loathe Force of Nature.

But I Am Mine is amazing. Top tier Pearl Jam.

Post by **epilogue** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:18 am

I know all the cool kids on RM adore Faithfull. It's a lovely song that means a lot to me. But I've never been cool.

This is an easy vote for I Am Mine for me. I'm sure I'll get plenty of chances to vote for Faithfull later.

VinylGuy · Post by **VinylGuy** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:21 am

cmon you live in NY, you are super cool

Post by **epilogue** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:26 am

VinylGuy wrote:cmon you live in NY, you are super cool

Ah shucks

LetMeSleep · Post by **LetMeSleep** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:44 am

Faithfull all day.

Jaeti · Post by **Jaeti** » Tue March 16, 2021 3:52 am

I wonder if eventually I might fall back in love with I Am Mine. But right now, I'm not there.

Faithfull.

ABNorman · Post by **ABNorman** » Tue March 16, 2021 11:50 am

Faithfull handily wins here, but I Am Mine is Quite Good™

Post by **epilogue** » Tue March 16, 2021 12:12 pm

This is proving to be the blood bath I expected. Ah well. I still heart you, RM.

E.H. Ruddock · Post by **E.H. Ruddock** » Tue March 16, 2021 6:02 pm

tragabigzanda wrote:I Am Mine is the first PJ song I ever hated

hey everyone, let's all vote for I Am Mine!

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Tue March 16, 2021 8:38 pm

I love I Am Mine, and I might agree with Stip that it's the best song on Riot Act. Still, have to go with Faithful. Vitalogy through Yield is my PJ sweet spot, those songs just have an advantage to me.

Red Mosquito