By Matt Vaughan

Music has healing powers. To me and many people music is your vibration, your frequency, it’s your medicine. We seek music in times of need. We use music in times of celebration and joy. Songs can find their ways into our soul when we least expect it. We can become overwhelmed with emotion or find ourselves in deep reflection. Or it might simply just jack us up. It might even help form our identity. Loved ones grow closer. We find people who might share in our love of a song, a band, an artist, a voice. We merge with others and we emerge empowered and unified. As far as I’m concerned, music is essential. Agree?

We all belong to this world, to this universe. During these times of isolation, we have had to be the power, we have had to be the light. It may just be getting through another day. It might be lifting another person up or helping out your neighbor. We are earthlings after all, we are in this together and most of us could use a little help. Let’s have the courage to be our best self and get to higher ground. Earthling, the latest release by Eddie Vedder, might just get you there.

Earthling could be considered Eddie’s first real solo record. Eddie has done solo soundtrack work in the past (Dead Man Walking, I Am Sam, Return to Mount Kennedy, and most recently Flag Day), setting a high bar for himself with the 2007 soundtrack for Sean Penn’s Into The Wild.  It was so good that the Academy Awards didn’t understand it to be a soundtrack, so it wasn’t nominated for an Oscar (Eddie did win the Golden Globe however, I prefer the Globes anyway).  The soundtrack was a character in and of itself. Freedom songs for the misfits.  To this day, the vinyl release of this record is one of Easy Street’s most in-demand. Currently out of print.

With the surprise success of Into the Wild, there was a demand for Eddie to go on tour. Other than performing a couple songs, he had never gone out as a solo act before. To test the waters and shake out any butterflies, Eddie had us book The Kenyon Hall (The Home of the Mighty Wurlitzer) for him. The shows were promoted a few days before the shows, at the Easy Street Records counter with a 5x7 placard that Eddie made himself, “Into the Wild Special Presentation, two nights only, $5”.  Kenyon Hall at 7904 35th Ave SW, March 24, 2008 here in West Seattle was where Eddie performed his first solo show. Were you there? 100 people only.

Eddie’s second full-length release in 2011, Ukulele Songs was another surprise hit. It is a collection of songs as the title explains, played entirely on the uke. I can’t help but think that having two young daughters at this time brought this out of him. It’s essentially a collection of lullabies and campfire songs, but when the powerful and often times indignant front man of Pearl Jam is singing this sweetly with a little ukulele, you can’t help but fall in love with the guy, if you hadn’t already.

In this day and age of digital streaming and songs coming at you from all over, it’s hard to find a body of work anymore. I guess that’s why we have seen a rise in vinyl sales, the full album, a complete story. There are so many channels in our car or on satellite radio. Every commercial, TV show, and movie has songs splattered all over. It’s hard to keep track of what’s out there, what’s new, what’s good, and who are these people.

A full-length album we can come back to over and over again. We consume the message, we are interpreting it on our terms. We take in the whole story, the musicians, the lyrics, the artwork. How does it help define my life today? Well, if you want to make sense of what we are doing in this world and why we should care, Eddie Vedder’s Earthling is just what the doctor ordered.  

This record was unplanned. In May 2021, Eddie went down to Los Angeles to perform at the Global Citizen benefit. Not only has Global Citizen worked tirelessly to end world hunger, but this last year they were working with the World Health Organization to bring the Covid vaccine to parts of the world that otherwise couldn’t get it. Of course Eddie was going to contribute.

While in Los Angeles, he met a young producer and lifelong Pearl Jam fan, Andrew Watt. Andrew has made a name for himself as one of the great new young producers. I’m not so sure Eddie was aware of this at the time. Andrew’s success has been in the pop field, producing Miley Cyrus’ last record Plastic Hearts and songs for Post Malone, Lana Del Rey, Justin Bieber, and many others. This was a rock guy in the pop field. His all-time favorite bands were Black Sabbath, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Janes Addiction, and Pearl Jam. To have the opportunity to work with Eddie Vedder was his dream.

Eddie stayed in LA. Eddie played him a couple songs and before they knew it, they assembled a group of musicians. Chad Smith and Josh Klinghoffer from Red Hot Chili Peppers were in, but then others caught wind of what was going down. Benmont Tench from Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers guests on the song “Long Way.” Then it was Elton John, then Stevie Wonder, then Ringo Starr….wtf? He also had family in the studio, with both daughters Olivia and Harper contributing backing vocals. It’s the last song, though, “On My Way,” that might have the most surprising guest of all: Edward Louis Severson, Jr., Eddie’s father. Eddie never knew his father. It wasn’t until he was 15 years old that he found out that his stepfather wasn’t his real father and that his brothers weren’t exactly full-blooded brothers. With all that a teenager has to take in already, adding this into the mix is going to mess with you. Well, as we know, some amazing songs came out of that, thankfully. Sing with me: “Ooooh Ohhh I-I-I- I’m still alive…”

The record begins with the track “Invincible”. Oh, Bono wishes he would’ve written this one. We are all grounded by nature, us earthlings. We are in this together, indivisible, universal, and even though our world is spinning out of control, let’s try to keep our feet on the ground and lift each other up. When we love and when we’re loved, we are invincible. Yes, more of that please!

For those who have stuffed Eddie into the brooding angry political grunge-y category, let’s move on a bit. In some sick way we’ve enjoyed others getting more upset about things than we have. Eddie has certainly done that for us, sacrificing himself at all costs.

His true personality might be most fully recognized on this record though. This is a man who has maybe always been far more optimistic than you might give him credit for. Eddie also has no way of faking anything, he will always be authentic, he knows no different, there is no deception. Like the female artists that topped the Easy Street charts this last year, the trusted voice is what we search for, it’s what we’ve needed, what has brought us comfort and what will get us through.

For anyone expecting another Into The Wild or Ukulele Songs, that’s a no. Once the second track starts it’s clear, we are on another playing field. The “Power of Right” is one of the great hard rock tracks of the year. Pearl Jam is arguably the greatest rock band of the last 30 years and that chemistry is unique, but it’s exciting to hear Eddie collaborating with another set of phenomenal musicians. To all of us that have supported Eddie, it’s great to hear another side of him.

The “Long Way” track is as if Tom Petty tapped Eddie on the shoulder and said, “Can you take this one?” The song found Eddie somehow, as if he pulled it from the heavens, I don’t know, but if you needed one last Petty song, this is it. Hearing Benmont on the keys only enhances the “Free Fallin’” essence of Tom Petty. For all the Petty fans out there, this will get you missing him, but you’ll also love the tender care Vedder seems to effortlessly put into this secret little tribute while also keeping it very Eddie Vedder. 

“Brother The Cloud” is clearly a very personal song, but also one we can all relate to. Losing a friend, a brother, a family member…we can feel so sad that it doesn’t even seem real. We feel guilt and we can be so upset that the rage is maddening. We oftentimes hide our hurt while being there for everyone else. It can be so hard losing those we care about, especially when we least expect it. We just hope that there is comfort and that our friends will always look after us. This very well could be a track off 1991’s Temple of the Dog.

Sometimes we need arguments to justify what we’re doing, a good dive into our souls or a plea for a second chance. “Fallout Today” will have you singing along “…the fallout today was just a test of strength”… “we all need to share and shake the pain”.

“The Dark”-  sounds like this song came easy, almost as if Jon Landau whispered in his ear, “Don’t overthink this, Ed. Grab a beer, turn the lights off, and dance by yourself in the dark, tell us what you’re feeling right now.” Relationships have been crucial to our well-being these last couple years, we’ve had to journey into the darkness to finally find some light. Eddie will often write simple catchy songs, hit singles if you will. They come so easily to him that he’ll often times just shrug them off. He let this one stay. My guess is Andrew Watt heard it and said, “That’s a keeper, I don’t care what you say.”

The next track, “The Haves,” might come off as a downer at first, but in the end it comes around. Springsteen in an interview he did with Eddie said that it reminded him of “Don’t Give Up”, by Peter Gabriel. High praise indeed. Let’s not live with regrets, we got each other, the ceiling is always getting higher, let's enjoy what we have rather than focus on what’s lost.

The second half of the record gets you raising your brow, jumping up and down, raising your fist, and smiling in the end. “Good and Evil,”  “Rose of Jericho,” and “Try” are each under 3 minutes long. Power chords and punk ethos harken to Eddie’s roots. John Doe and Ian MacKaye should be very proud. The Earthlings are able to cut loose and power-drive through these tracks, all cylinders are firing and it sounds like the band is pretty damn comfortable together.

On “Try,” Stevie Wonder sits in for a harmonica solo, but people, this is nuts, this is faster than anything Stevie has ever done, this is right up there with 1963’s “Fingertips Pt.2.” Apparently, it’s Eddie trying to keep up with Stevie rather the other way around. Growing up, Eddie was a massive Stevie Wonder, Jackson 5, and Motown fan, so this must have been an insane experience for him. Yes, that Stevie Wonder, national treasure!

You’d think that would be enough for special guests, but no, Elton John then joins Eddie and The Earthlings for “Picture.” Eddie got to be the Bernie Taupin for Sir Elton. Must have been such a treat. Elton has been one of Eddie’s favorites. Apparently, this song was done in one take. 

Already, track 12 has become a fan favorite: “Mrs. Mills.” The story about a piano in a basement that has been played by all the boys. They’ve had their way with her. There’s some metaphors and allegories along the way. The fact is, there really is a Mrs. Mills piano, it resides at Abbey Road Studios. It’s been down there for 75+ years. Gladys Mills was a popular pub singer from England, singing and playing party tunes. She kept her piano there and it never left. So, guess what, who could we get to play drums on this one? “Hello, I’m Ringo Starr.” For any Beatles fan, this song is a must. Ringo’s style is undeniable and it’s a really fun song that would make Sir George Martin very proud. 

The record closes with “On My Way”. As the years went on, Eddie had heard that his father had been a musician and singer as well. Geez, really, that’s intriguing, but was he good, was he a hack, what did his voice sound like?

Eddie is a well-known baseball fan and by growing up in Chicago at a young age, he was loyal to his Chicago Cubs. He often goes to the Cubs pre-season camps. He got talking to Carmen Fanzone, ex infielder who played in the Cubs organization in the early 70’s. Eddie and he started talking music and Eddie went to see his jazz band a couple times, Carmen happened to be a really great trumpet player. Through a series of conversations he was introduced to some of Carmen’s other musician friends. “Wait, you knew my father? You played in a band with him?” “What is happening right now?”. A few years ago Eddie was given a tape of five songs that his father had recorded. How crazy it must have been for him to hear his father’s voice for the first time...and then to find out he was a really great singer on top of that. The apple didn’t fall far. In this last song, Eddie splices in his father’s vocals and sings along with him. A very touching and celestial way to end the record. 

All in all, this is a full-circle record that finds Eddie loose and filled with spontaneity and confidence. Without thinking about putting out a record, Eddie just went with his gut and natural ability. He trusted others and collaborated in ways that gives Earthling a liberating appeal. To have a young musician and producer like Andrew Watt join him on the ride gives the record youthful energy, but at the same time having these guests and legends wanting to help Eddie out  only proves the respect he has gained over all these years and also shows how young musicians and songwriters feel about Mr. Vedder.

I want you to experience the record for yourself. Also, my interpretation will probably be somewhat different than yours. That’s what’s so beautiful about music. We get close to it however we choose. Have your moment with it. Earthling is available on CD and on digital format. Vinyl edition is available for preorder. Eddie Vedder and the Earthlings will perform at Benaroya Hall for two nights, Feb 21 and 22. 

Matt Vaughan is the owner of Easy Street Records, Seattle’s premier vinyl, CD and cassette music store, in the West Seattle Junction.