Porch
I really love PORCH. We often see lists of people’s favorite Pearl Jam songs. If I made such a list, PORCH would stand outside that list. There are my current favorites, then there is PORCH. And maybe more than any other Pearl Jam song, PORCH has evolved into a new entity while remaining the same song. I’ve listened to a number of versions of PORCH over the years and, in general, it has been a satisfying listen, but my personal opinion is that PORCH has grown up over the years. Maybe that’s why I never get tired of it.
The early incarnation of PORCH, as we hear it on Ten, has very much a classic rock flavor, except for the key changes. There’s the churning power chord backbone, the screaming guitar solo, the echo-drenched vocals, yet at the same time it doesn’t really sound like most classic rock. It might be the wordless chorus, the vocally based bridge going into the jam, the dependence on the power of the vocals to give the song its shape and form. In early live incarnations, the instrumentals were quite shapeless. The vocals were the focus. As time went on, the instrumentals sharpened and tightened, and the jam became more structured. Eddie stopped jumped into the pit and began doing his many famous vocal ad-libs. At some point, the riffing pattern in the intro that we hear in current versions was introduced. I believe that this may have existed in the song as originally written because remnants of it can be heard in the MTV unplugged version of the song, when the band was left without the cover of feedback.
The PORCH of today is a sharper, punchier song than the original. A better song than the original. The rhythm patterns are played more distinctly. There is less feedback covering the rather languid playing of the early days, and the jam is more sophisticated and more highly structured. There is also less focus on the vocals (and Eddie jumping into the pit). However, there are times when I miss the intensity and power of those early vocals even if I don’t miss the shapelessness of the instrumental playing.
Everyone welcome Dierdre into the More Than Ten fold! A regular contributer in the comments section, she’s decided to take on some extra-curricular Pearl Jam material, as well as re-investigate some of the original songs. The MTT tag stands for More Than Ten, and will henceforth be used to note content and perspectives from More Than Ten contributors, like Dierdre. Welcome Dierdre!
nice one. but why, diedre, why is it more than a favorite?
I love the PORCH of today. Ever since Ed has started playing the intro–now with a distinct “chug” in its sound–the song has, as Dierdre said, grown up. I think the song still maintains a lot of the intensity of the early days, even if some of the edge has been taken off over the years. As the years go on, I’d love to see this song take a place at the front of a setlist. I think that’s where it belongs.
Thanks for the first post-Corduroy entry, Dierdre!
Well, oleyever, it’s because the normal criteria that I would use to make, let’s say, a top ten list don’t apply to PORCH. First, my least favorite version is the studio version. I never listen to it. Second, there are dozens of versions that I like, but none that are definitive for me. Finally, I love the song so much that I can’t even judge whether is actually a good song. I could imagine lots of artists doing great versions of many Pearl Jam songs, but would anyone else do what I would consider a satisfactory version of PORCH? For all these reasons, I don’t know where I would fit this song on a top ten list.
cheers…i feel like listening to Porch right now…
Version from the Letterman show is the sexiest Porch. Go watch the video and you will see what I am talking about!!
where can we find this video online?