Pearl Jam – Once

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  General Comment:PS ... in the Alanis song, remember her other hand is GIVING A PEACE SIGN, and GIVING A HIGH 5. Is it saying she wears a mask of Peace and Enthusiasm for the world, but guards herself with the other hand ?! A contradiction between her outward appearance and her internal fear ?!

  Flag Baronderkilton June 12, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:"One hand in my pocket" ... What does that mean? Alanis Morrsette uses the same lyric. Is he trying to get a grip on himself?! lol. Or hand on a weapon, or making sure his Wallet is in place, or family jewels in place, metaphorically protection of his most prized possession(s)? Or metaphorically that he is keeping guard on his assets from the world that wants to take them ?! HELP ~! Someone young and hip tell me what it means, please.

  Flag Baronderkilton June 12, 2012   Link

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  Song Meaning:(Direct quote from Eddie in Rolling Stone about the trilogy)The story of the song is that a mother is with a father and the father dies. It's an intense thing because the son looks just like the father. The son grows up to be the father, the person that she lost. His father's dead, and now this confusion, his mother, his love, how does he love her, how does she love him? In fact, the mother, even though she marries somebody else, there's no one she's ever loved more than the father. You know how it is, first loves and stuff. And the guy dies. How could you ever get him back? But the son. He looks exactly like him. It's uncanny. So she wants him. The son is oblivious to it all. He doesn't know what the fuck is going on. He's still dealing, he's still growing up. He's still dealing with love, he's still dealing with the death of his father. All he knows is 'I'm still alive' -- those three words, that's totally out of burden.
  
  Now the second verse is 'Oh she walks slowly into a young man's room... I can remember to this very day... the look... the look.' And I don't say anything else. And because I'm saying, 'The look, the look' everyone thinks it goes with 'on her face.' It's not on her face. The look is between her legs. Where do you go with that? That's where you came from."
  
  But I'm still alive. I'm the lover that's still alive. And the whole conversation about 'You're still alive, she said' And his doubts: 'Do I deserve to be? Is that the question?' Because he's fucked up forever! So now he doesn't know how to deal with it. So what does he do, he goes out killing people -- that was 'Once.' He becomes a serial killer. And 'Footsteps,' the final song of the trilogy that's when he gets executed. That's what happens. The Green River killer... and in San Diego, there was another prostitute killer down there. Somehow I related to that. I think that happens more than we know. It's a modern way of dealing with a bad life.

  Flagged LisaKlavier1993on January 05, 2012   Link

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  General Comment:I know the real story is it's supposed to be about a killer or something, but when I heard it the growls of Eddie Vedder and the "running" pace of the music instantly put werewolves in my head, and the lyrics seemed to fit, about going "wild" and "bloodthirsty" and not being able (or maybe not even wanting) to stop it. And just looking back on how he used to have a normal life but not no more. Lol. A little silly but that's what sticks with me. I see the wolves running when I hear this song. :D
  
  Also, about Eddie being the GR killer, lol, I dunno cause wasn't that in the 80s when he was still in so-cal? But it's fun to think about. Maybe he could just put himself in the killer's shoes a little, but well, we will never know for sure. ;)

  Flag NickMichon September 03, 2011   Link

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  My Interpretation:Ever notice that the album (Ten) begins and ends with the same undeclared song that is driven in its emotional pain? The end takes you back to the beginning... Once...let go by a woman...a young man will contemplate death to all that hurts him...no one ever takes the time to tell a young man that the ashes of love mix better in the foundation of life (buried) rather than a paint for it's walls (bloody). He sets the stage for the emotion that drives all the lyrics in Ten...a young man's angst...

  Flag IfYouOnlyknewon February 21, 2011   Link

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  General Comment:It's just amazing what Eddie Vedder is capable of doing with his voice. After he says "You think I got my eyes closed but I've been lookin' at you the whole fucking time", you can hear anger, aggression and madness in his voice in the first "myself" (Ooh, once upon a time I could control myself) he sings.
  In the third "myself" (Once upon a time I could love myself) you can hear that he realises that once he used to be a normal guy and you can feel the pain he has because of this.
  
  Maybe it's just my imagination and nobody else hears this, but I really think you can hear it in his voice.

  Flagged Harrie2010on September 13, 2010   Link

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  General Comment:This just occured to me as well:
  
  "Oh, try and mimic what's insane, eh
  I am in it, where do I stand? Uh"
  
  He's telling the police try and pretend to be insane. He's not pretending anymore, he really did fall to insanity.

  Flag Boomsarson July 12, 2010   Link

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  General Comment:Er, I never really said why the song was before Alive. Assuming this IS a police confession, then he describes the crime to the police and he goes to jail and all that fun stuff. However, someone like this probably would not have been thrown straight into jail and may have seen a psychiatrist or something first, and Alive is his repressed memories being brought back to him by the psychiatrist or whatever. Thus this is first, and then Alive is second on the album. Alive is the first part of the trilogy because chronologically the events in Alive happened first.

  Flag Boomsarson July 12, 2010   Link

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  General Comment:I have a couple theories about this song, as I've been listening to the album a lot lately. First things first, why would this song be first? The opening lines indicate that the song is a confession. I imagine he's in police custody and he is confessing (I admit it...) and explaining what happened (I'll relive it...). Like many others have said, the back seat lover is a prostitute and the 16 gauge is a literal gun. As far as the second verse goes, it's self explanatory until the last line. Like a lot of you I imagine, I thought he was either playing pocket pool or was hiding a boner or something, but he's keeping the gun in his pocket and he's waiting for the right time to kill the prostitute (or whoever). The line "You think I got my eyes closed but I've been lookin' at you the whole fucking time" could be referring to the police, in that they caught him but it was his intention to get caught and to be thrown in jail. It could be a double meaning, referring to his mother also, but I don't see why the police idea doesn't work.
  
  And if you know the meaning of the song I think the chorus is self explanatory.

  Flag Boomsarson July 12, 2010   Link

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  General Comment:I think this song may be about how the world used to be, and where we've came to.

  Flag pearljam68on March 05, 2010   Link

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