Given to Fly

chiquimonkey

forgive me if there is an existing thread, i couldn't find one. i just wanted to share my love for this song - listened to it on the way into work today on repeat. for some reason it's resonating in me today. i love how it builds and just soars!

adore this part:

and he still gives his love, he just gives it away;
the love he receives is the love that is saved

you can't help but sing along at the top of your lungs....at least i can't

little_wish

Originally posted by chiquimonkey
you can't help but sing along at the top of your lungs....at least i can't

You're not alone on this. Not by a long shot. This song is awesome and I always have it in my head.

**First he was stripped and then he was stabbed by faceless men well fuckers... he still stands**

That line is powerful and the whole song just moves me to tears. I can listen to any PJ song when I'm feeling down and it will cheer me up but Given To Fly sends chills up my spine.

chiquimonkey

definitely! and the lines you quoted....just how it all swells up and rises - so cool! i've listened to it when i've been down and it raises me up, and i've been in a great mood today and it's sent me straight into the sky the power of great music!

VEDHEAD27

Ooooooh YES chiqui!!! This thread needed to made. Talk about a super feel good song. Whew! This song does send me straight up to the sky and beyond. It always gives me major chills and forces me to smile from ear to ear.

The way Mikey described it on SVT is just perfect!...Like a wave, it builds and builds and then it just explodes. Sooo true!! I absolutely love the way this song builds up and it really does take you higher and higher. Right from the very beginning, after Eddie sings...."the wind rose up, set him down on his knee", well... prepare to fuckin rise!!!!!! The music takes a huge turn upward and leads Ed to "a wave came crashing like a fist to the jaw, delivered him wings, hey look at me now..." OMG! If that part doesn't crash like a fist to a jaw and make you feel like you have wings, well I don't know what does. WOW! It's gorgeous. Chills...all...over. The music and Ed alike...super feel good!

And I totally agree with you, I loooove this entire ending part with a passion...


and he still gives his love, he just gives it away;
the love he recieves is the love that is saved
and sometimes is seen a strange spot in the sky
a human being that was given to fly..



One hell of a song! It can brighten the darkest day.

ACCBootlegGoddess

Well Lyd you said it better than I could.
I agree with Mike...it just builds till it explodes! I know I'm jumping up and down by the time Ed is singing "well a wave came crashing like a fist to your jaw...deliver him wings HEY look at me now!!" Just such a wicked, feel good song.
I am on such a high after listening to that one.

a country doctor

Yeah, Given to Fly is ... well i don't know a word for it, unbelivable something

I like the music but i just adore and love the lyrics of it.
I never had an idea what the mean until i searched on Amazon and looked what people think about that song. And there was one guy who had understood the lyrics and explained that, unfortunatly in German ^^
But i will try to translate it:


And now the try of a translation of me:

Given to fly is somehow the picture of a human being who changed his life extremly( sorry i could not think of a better word)
At the begining of the song he is an outcast who can't handle with his environment and the other people, he withdraws he retires, the situation is getting worse and he runs away,
on his escape he is illuminatied, inspired, he has got his inspiration ( i bet that's not the correct word but whatever)
"A wave came crashing like a fist to the jaw."
First time in his life his life got a sense.
This insight( another time not the correct word i bet) gives him wings, he is "given to fly"
Wow he did something right, maybe the first time in his life.
BUT now he knows and everbody else should know who has been jamned in his daily life just like him before.
"he wanted to share his key to the locks on the chains he saw everywhere..."
But those who profite from this status quo, those fuckers, those faceless man don't wanna him to share his key to the locks of many many guys.
They get and kill him.
"but first he was stripped, and then he was stabbed by a faceless man, the fuckers he still stands..."
But they can't stop him, his idea lives on.
"And sometimes is seen a strange spot in the sky / A human being that was given to fly."

But who the hell is that given to fly guy?
The answers can be different, they depend on the person who asks this question.
Some people say it's Ed himself, after having smoked a joint and going surfing now.
Others say it's Jesus or Che or Steven Biko( who the hell is that?)
i think that every answers is correct and wrong
So given to fly is a song about you and me, about everybody

a country doctor

now i will give the real text for germans, maybee is someone interested

Insbesondere Given to Fly steht für alles, was Yield ausmacht. Es ist eine gleichnishafte, sinnbildhafte Darstellung eines Menschen, der sein Leben komplett umstellt, nachdem er den Sinn seines Daseins erkannt hat. Zu Beginn des Songs ist er ein Ausgestoßener, ein Außenseiter, einer, der mit seiner Umgebung nicht zurecht kommt. Er zieht sich zurück, die Lage spitzt sich zu, er haut ab. Auf seiner Flucht bekommt er seine Erleuchtung: A wave came crashing like a fist to the jaw. Zum ersten Mal bekommt sein Leben einen Sinn. Seine Erkenntnis verleiht ihm im wahrsten Sinne des Wortes Flügel, er ist Given to Fly. Endlich, endlich hat er etwas richtig gemacht. Nachdem er das weiß, sollen es alle wissen, vor allem jene, die noch in ihrem alltäglichen Einerlei verhaftet sind. Nur diejenigen, die von dem Status Quo profitieren, sind gegen die Verbreitung. Sie sind Gesichtslose und er eine leichte Beute. Sie schnappen ihn und meucheln ihn. Und doch können sie nicht verhindern, dass seine Gedanken weiter verbreitet werden: And sometimes is seen a strange spot in the sky / A human being that was given to fly. Viel ist diskutiert worden, um wen es sich dabei handelt. Je nach individuellem Hintergrund sind die Antworten unterschiedlich. Manche sagen, es geht um Eddie Vedder selbst, der einen Joint raucht und zum Surfen geht. Andere sehen in ihm Jesus, Che oder Steven Biko. Ich denke, jede Antwort ist richtig, - und keine! So ist Given to Fly ein Lied über jeden von uns.

leashman

Top five best PJ ever and a great sing-a-long.

Kaddikat

Originally posted by chiquimonkey
forgive me if there is an existing thread, i couldn't find one. i just wanted to share my love for this song - listened to it on the way into work today on repeat. for some reason it's resonating in me today. i love how it builds and just soars!

adore this part:

and he still gives his love, he just gives it away;
the love he receives is the love that is saved

you can't help but sing along at the top of your lungs....at least i can't

I have to say.. i didnt like this song at first.. then.. there is SOMETHING about hearing a song LIVE that either seals its fate as just *not for me* or just fucking INCREDIBLE. this song is FUCKING inCREDible. Screaming at the top of my lungs. visuals of FLYING fucking AWESOME! YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Builds and soars is the PERFECT description!!

SoLATisA

unlike kaddi, i loved this song at first.... i got the single from a bowling alley promotion in my town (another story,, but to sum it up, i went bowling and for some reason, unknown to me, it was pearl jam promo night)

the single reminds me of that year in high school... it was cold when the single came out... i'd wake up in the morning, and it would be the first thing i'd put on! the sun would be rising, and the sky would be gray, orange, and just beautiful as it gets during winter mornings.... listening to that song was motivation to pull my shit together and go to school!!!!!!

Squirrel

i absolutely love this song!! one of my all time favourites!!

so inspiring and dunno..hopeful..and positive...oh just wonderful!!!!

chiquimonkey

*bump* for one of my faves off of yield

Bertha

greetings ;-))

lots of fun for me to read some posting in German here!

As for "Given to fly"...by sheer coincidence (if anyone believes in that) I heard that song soon after its release while I was reading "Birdy" by William Wharton; the Film by Alan Parker had just been shown on TV, and I was deeply touched by it. Borrowed the book from a friend and sort of got completely lost in it. So in this context, "Given to fly" transported the same story and essence I found in the book as well as in the movie (they are different storywise, but very close as far as essence and message go). I just marveled at how it all matched.

To me, it has become some sort of personal "hymn" since then, some kind of launching site ;-)). Whenever I feel stuck on the ground with chaos all around me, that song opens the sky and makes me realize that at least my mind can still fly.

Love,
Bertha

chiquimonkey

welcome bertha! and it's so cool seeing everybody's thoughts on this great song - it's nice to see how it touches everybody else too

Bertha

Thanks a lot, chiquimonkey!
Yes, it´s exciting to read...and just imagine, there are so many people all around the world feeling the same! Amazing...

i forget

Thank You Pearl Jam for an uplifting song! Given To Fly has and continues to help me get through certain obstacles. Love this song!!
Bump

chiquimonkey

Originally posted by Bertha
Thanks a lot, chiquimonkey!
Yes, it´s exciting to read...and just imagine, there are so many people all around the world feeling the same! Amazing...

that's the power and beauty of music!!

and yes this song definitely helps in clearing obstacles in one's life - it just pulls you up and out - i watched the 2000 dvd the other day and put it on - sends your soul into the sky

Delivered_Wings

This is the PJ song that changed my life.

chiquimonkey

Originally posted by Delivered_Wings
This is the PJ song that changed my life.

your user name is a definite tribute to the song for sure! how did it affect you (only if you want to share!). if not it's cool - it's just great to see how a song can affect people!

Kaddikat

Spomenka

i just LOOOOVE THIS SONG!!!!!!!
when i think about it, i love almost every PJ song....
they are all special, each one is a true pearl