The buoyancy in Vedder’s vocals and a nice use of vocal overdubs on the chorus serve as sonic sweetener. The song is much less obvious (and better) without the overwrought sense of drama. Pearl Jam has taken a “Sad” song and made it better.
The blistering guitars of “Alone” atone for the bland “Hitchhiker” and the silly “Don’t Gimme No Lip.” Pearl Jam has never been known as a particularly rhythmic band, but “In the Moonlight” opens with a tight groove. The groove is accented by hints of keyboard and then gives way to an understated chorus.
The inclusion of “Yellow Ledbetter” will be the highlight of the first disc for many fans. “Yellow Ledbetter” has for years enjoyed a mythical status akin to Radiohead’s “True Love Waits.” It is one of those songs that got away, but has been a fan favorite in concert. The riff is a cousin to Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing." (On the band’s Seattle #72 bootleg from their Binaural world tour, McCready weaves Hendrix’s masterpiece into their performance of “Yellow Ledbetter.”) and the lyrics are an indecipherable stream of consciousness by Eddie Vedder. A B-side that got considerable airplay on alternative radio stations in the early and mid 90’s, “Yellow Ledbetter” might be the most significant justification for releasing the package.
Perhaps the best segment of the collection comes on the second disc. “Fatal,” “Other Side,” “Footsteps,” “Wash,” and “Dead Man” are some of the finest songs Pearl Jam have wrought. Their exclusion from previous Pearl Jam releases until now is inexplicable. “Fatal,” “Other Side” and “Footsteps” are astonishing, acoustic-based songs. There is a warmth and wistfulness in Vedder’s voice as he opens “Other Side” with the refrain “It’s not the same without you.” Pearl Jam has learned to affect without bombast.
Imagine how songs on “‘Lost Dogs’” would have impacted the albums for which they were originally recorded. “Sad,” “In the Moonlight,” and “Fatal” were recorded during the Binaural sessions. Binaural could easily have been one of the best releases of 2000 if these songs replaced three others from that album. Even "Education" would have been an improvement over some of the more forgettable moments on Binaural. Riot Act was a very good album and would have been even better if “Down” and “Other Side” had made the cut. (These oversights can now be corrected, thanks to the advent of the iPod.)
“4/20/02,” a bonus track, will be an important song to any fan of the early 90s alternative scene. April 20, 2002 is the day Alice in Chains’ front man Layne Staley was found dead in his Seattle-area apartment. Staley died of a drug overdose. His body lay undiscovered for approximately two weeks according to a coroner’s report. His death may have come eight years to the date of Kurt Cobain’s suicide. For this one, Vedder has not gone through the trouble of writing opaque lyrics that hide his feelings in riddles. Unfiltered emotion flows through the words with only electric guitar accompanying his vocals.
Article comments
1 - Temple Stark
Ah. Pearl Jam. I love reading about them, especially when h writer, as in this case, doesn't get all pretentious. I saw them three days straight in December of 1995 in Seattle Center with various supporting acts - Hater being one of them. Deep Six another and I can never remember the third.
They will always be one of my favorites. 12 years? wow.
2 - DJRadiohead
especially when h writer, as in this case, doesn't get all pretentious.
I try to avoid pretentiousness... sometimes I am more successful than others. =)
And Pearl Jam is a band that seems to draw out pretentious responses because they themselves can sometimes be pretty pretentious. And I say this as a fan of the band- I like them very much and this collection has some of my favorite songs by the band.
3 - Temple Stark
DJ R
I point you to the Alabama music review site of Advance.net.
Your review's up there, loud and proud. Please go and tell your contacts that hundreds of thousands more readers will now have access to your review.
4 - Ranko
i found lost dogs to be a bit of a waste of time. there were sum brillant songs on there like yellow ledbetter and alone but the others jst seemed wierd sorta like the song "bugs" from Vitalogy really those songs are jst kinda gay and it seems wierd that a great band like pearl jam would want to release songs that are never going to be released as singles
5 - DJRadiohead
Ranko, I wish you would choose different descriptive words than 'gay.'
Many of the songs released on the Lost Dogs collection were b-sides to singles or were included on different compilations and/or soundtracks. Lost Dogs served as a cheap way to collect all of those songs.
As to the wierdness... it is not uncommon for bands to relegate some of their more unusual songs to b-side status or to be parceled out to soundtracks, etc. Lost Dogs takes songs that were recorded at different times throughout the band's entire career (and with different lineups). Cohesiveness could not really be expected on a package like that.
You are certainly entitled not to like the album. It is one I still quite enjoy.