Ed said in an interview the whole album is a narrative, so all of the songs link together pretty much and are about the same person. Someone else posted a thread on here ages ago about it, but basically went something like this:
You'll have to provide a link to this interview, because much of what you've written is quite a reach.
Life Wasted - dude quits army and is happpy.
This song was written driving home from Johnny Ramone's funeral. It really has nothing to do with war.
WWS - his friend is killed in action, leaving a wife and children.
A war song, definitely.
comatose - he turns to drugs.
This song has nothing to do with drugs.
Severed Hand - he turns to more drugs, sees imagaes of his dead friend(the severed hand with the wedding band).
A song about psychotropics, so I guess "drugs" is close enough. No evidence it's linked to any other song, though.
Marker in the sand - he tries to understand the war.
A rumination on the role of religion in the downfall of mankind. but I'll give you this one.
Parachutes - he falls in love.
It is a love song, but again, no evidence it relates to any other song on the album
Unemployable - his bad experiences in the army make it hard for him to hold down a job.
This is a song about outsourcing jobs overseas, basically. the army has nothing to do with it.
Big Wave - he likes to surf!?
See what I mean ... you're reaching.
Gone - he likes to drive!?
Classic ed "gettin' the fuck out of a bad situation" song, a la Rearviewmirror.
Wasted Reprise - he tries to remember how he felt when he quit the army and how he said he'd never go back again.
Or, he tries to remember that feeling driving away from Johnny ramone's funeral.
Army reserve - he's forced to rejoin the army as a reserve because he can't hold down a regular job.
This song is about the families left behind when a loved one goes to war. They are the "reserve" in this context. This song has nothing to do with a man joining the reserves.
Come Back - He's killed in action, form his wife's perspective.
This, I actually agree with. I consider AR and Comeback to be the only two songs on this album that are linked in narrative.
Inside Job - again from his wife's perspective, how she struggles to cope.(I know Mike wrote it about his problems but it still fits in with the narrrative).
This kind of highlights the problem with this "concept album" theory. "I know someone else wrote the lyrics about his own experiences in overcoming addiction ... but fuck it, I'm going to force a square peg into a round hole and make it about war."
I'm guessing Ed wanted to make the whole album about the war but in a clever way without mentioning it in every song.
Or, you know, not. The closest thing I've ever heard ed say to what you're suggesting is (paraphrasing): "This album is about what it's like to be an American in this day and age." That feeling encompasses more than just the war. Not every song has to be related to it.
everybody wants the most they can possibly get
for the least they could possibly do
This song was written driving home from Johnny Ramone's funeral. It really has nothing to do with war.
I'm sure it was, doesn't mean it doesn't fit in with a narrative though. Songs can have two meanings. Is Moby Dick just a book about a guy hunting a whale? Google allegory.
This is a song about outsourcing jobs overseas, basically. the army has nothing to do with it.
'After the big boss said, "You best be on your way"' doesn't sound like something a boss would say to someone if his job was being outsourced. It sounds like the guy was being fired. A lot of ex-army find it hard to to hold down a job after they leave.
This song is about the families left behind when a loved one goes to war. They are the "reserve" in this context. This song has nothing to do with a man joining the reserves.
No, it's about families left behind because the guy has gone to war as a reserve. Your meaning doesn't really make too much sense.
This kind of highlights the problem with this "concept album" theory. "I know someone else wrote the lyrics about his own experiences in overcoming addiction ... but fuck it, I'm going to force a square peg into a round hole and make it about war."
I never said Inside Job was about war. I know what Mike wrote the song about, I was saying, like with Life Wasted, that a song can be about one thing but still fit in with a narrative.
I should have checked before I posted, but I thought I remembered that guy saying something about Ed claiming the album was a kind of narrative. Again, my bad.
Comments
You'll have to provide a link to this interview, because much of what you've written is quite a reach.
This song was written driving home from Johnny Ramone's funeral. It really has nothing to do with war.
A war song, definitely.
This song has nothing to do with drugs.
A song about psychotropics, so I guess "drugs" is close enough. No evidence it's linked to any other song, though.
A rumination on the role of religion in the downfall of mankind. but I'll give you this one.
It is a love song, but again, no evidence it relates to any other song on the album
This is a song about outsourcing jobs overseas, basically. the army has nothing to do with it.
See what I mean ... you're reaching.
Classic ed "gettin' the fuck out of a bad situation" song, a la Rearviewmirror.
Or, he tries to remember that feeling driving away from Johnny ramone's funeral.
This song is about the families left behind when a loved one goes to war. They are the "reserve" in this context. This song has nothing to do with a man joining the reserves.
This, I actually agree with. I consider AR and Comeback to be the only two songs on this album that are linked in narrative.
This kind of highlights the problem with this "concept album" theory. "I know someone else wrote the lyrics about his own experiences in overcoming addiction ... but fuck it, I'm going to force a square peg into a round hole and make it about war."
Or, you know, not. The closest thing I've ever heard ed say to what you're suggesting is (paraphrasing): "This album is about what it's like to be an American in this day and age." That feeling encompasses more than just the war. Not every song has to be related to it.
for the least they could possibly do
Ok, my bad. I didn't remember the original thread properly.
I'm sure it was, doesn't mean it doesn't fit in with a narrative though. Songs can have two meanings. Is Moby Dick just a book about a guy hunting a whale? Google allegory.
and no evidence that it doesn't?
'After the big boss said, "You best be on your way"' doesn't sound like something a boss would say to someone if his job was being outsourced. It sounds like the guy was being fired. A lot of ex-army find it hard to to hold down a job after they leave.
No, it's about families left behind because the guy has gone to war as a reserve. Your meaning doesn't really make too much sense.
I never said Inside Job was about war. I know what Mike wrote the song about, I was saying, like with Life Wasted, that a song can be about one thing but still fit in with a narrative.
This is the original thread:
http://forums.pearljam.com/showthread.php?t=191890
I should have checked before I posted, but I thought I remembered that guy saying something about Ed claiming the album was a kind of narrative. Again, my bad.