Thumbing My Way
| "Thumbing My Way" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
"Thumbing My Way" is a song by the rock group Pearl Jam off of the band's 2002 album, Riot Act. The song was written by frontman Eddie Vedder.
Drummer Matt Cameron revealed to lead singer Eddie Vedder that he considers it the nicest chord progression Vedder has come up with.[1] Guitarist Stone Gossard about the song:
That's a real live performance with lots of room ambience. It's us trying to keep up with the chord changes! There are some nice drums and bass. The sentiment of the song is amazing.[2]
The song's live debut was during an Eddie Vedder solo performance at the Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles on February 26, 2002.[3] A live performance of "Thumbing My Way" can be found on the live album Live at Benaroya Hall. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs Live at the Showbox and Live at the Garden.
Lyrical meaning
The song's lyrics are about a person in turmoil.[4] In an interview Vedder stated that the song is not about himself. He elaborated by saying, "I'm pretty good at removing myself from most of the songs. One thing about writing songs is, they don't always have to be about you. When they are always about someone, I lose interest after a while."[4] The song includes several referances to hitchhiking.
Music video
A music video directed by James Frost was filmed for the song at Seattle's Chop Suey club in September 2002.[3] The video is a filmed live performance rather than a conceptual video. It was one of five videos shot at the club to promote Riot Act (including "I Am Mine", "Save You", "Love Boat Captain", and "1/2 Full"). Up to that point the band had not made any music videos since 1998's "Do the Evolution". The video was released in late 2002.
References
- ^ Scaggs, Austin. "Eddie Vedder: Addicted to Rock". Rolling Stone. April 21, 2006.
- ^ Cohen, Jonathan. "Inciting a 'Riot': Pearl Jam's New Album". Billboard.com. November 2002.
- ^ a b Pearl Jam: 2002 Concert Chronology. fivehorizons.com.
- ^ a b Kaufman, Gil. "Pearl Jam: Readin' The Riot Act". VH1.com. November 7, 2002.
