I once wore home from a college shack an old faded Peal Jam t-shirt. It belonged to an ex-boyfriend from about ten years ago. I never gave it back; not because of some affinity I had for Pearl Jam, but because it was cozy, well-worn, and seemed to permanently smell of my man. He used to tease me that I was no where near deserving of wearing it, as he knew well that Pearl Jam was not a band that made it into my repetoire of music. "You don't even have one single CD, not ONE," I recall him teasing. Somewhere, in some part of me, I must have known that years later it'd be the last material possession I'd have to remind me of him. I still wear it a regularly and receive compliments on it often.
A guy at the gym offered to pay me $50 for it once not too long ago; he even offered as a trade his own shirt (post workout no less). Color me sentimental, hopeless, or perhaps a bit freaked out by the guy--I politely declined. Nonetheless, there's this part of me that feels a small pang of guilt whenever something like this happens, as I don't feel fully deserving of the t-shirt and all its glory. Confession: I still don't own a Pearl Jam CD. And I own a lot of CDs. But hey, when the man who sets the bar for how you wish to be treated in all your relationships (among a few thousand other things) gifts you his Pearl Jam t-shirt, you don't just go giving it away.
So that's a long, round about way of saying that I finally made my very own Vedder purchase. I picked up this CD after (finally) seeing Into the Wild last week. Films of this sort tend to make it to Iowa via the pony express, or sadly, not at all. Nonetheless, I'd had several of my Pacific Northwest friends tell me I "had" to see it when/if it ever arrived. As usual, I was a skeptic. I am not much of movie buff, but do consider myself a relentless reader. So naturally, I read and loved the book, and figured recreating the book in film would be a tall task. I'd read that they filmed most of the footage in the actual places, so was willing to take the risk for that alone. The music, well, it's been a long time since I purchased a movie soundtrack of anything, let alone one entirely by the same guy.
As for Peal Jam/Vedder, I should let the record state that I believe wholeheartedly that the band should and will go down in history as one of the top 10 bands ever, not that they would care/want to be named such a thing. I just tend to make musical purchases that are a bit easier on the ears; tunes that I can drag to work. This solo gig does the trick.
I loved the music in the film, the timing, the relevancy. So I bought it. And I have now listened to it four times through and I keep starting it again--there are 11 tracks and it's only 33 minutes long. I love it every bit as much as I loved the transitions to the tunes in the film. This CD and the film were brilliantly and beautifully done. My only complaint is that the CD is too short. And that the shots of all that beauty.....they made me want to jump ship from my cushy day job and hit the road again.
Which is why the t-shirt is all I have left of that relationship--I took off for a year to explore Europe and things upon your return from such journeys, well, they are never quite the same. Sitting there alone in that theater, admiring all that sky, all those places in this great country, the journey and maybe moreso than anything pondering the courage it took the family to make that film; it occurs to me that this amazing, confusing, rugged and fragile space we inhabit...to fully see and experience it in its most natural and raw and wild state, you should share it with some like-minded soul.
"...when you think more than you want, your thoughts begin to bleed." e.vedder
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