Is Merkinball a perfect recording

eboweddie

A friend of mine text me . He's a not a Pj fan persay. Said he heard Merkinball recently 
 He couldn't believe how incredible it sounds. Said its a perfect recording.  The vocals the mix.
Everything.I'd say I agree with him. Its absolutely amazing. I'd put it up there as one of Pjs best recordings.  

Abe Froman

Yes it is perfect. And two of the best songs they’ve ever released. 

Gern Blansten

yep....I got shit is my favorite PJ song (and some argue it isn't PJ...and technically that's correct)

bootlegger10

I Got Shit is also my favorite song.  Unfortunately doesn’t translate as well live, to me.  Not sure why Mike doesn’t play closer to the recording.

Anyway, lots of bands use session players for recordings, so I think you could argue that this song is no different than that and it is 100% Pearl Jam.

mfc2006

Love these songs

mcgruff10

Two of my favorite songs.  Have these ever been played back to back live?

JT167846

Not sure but I remember seeing both played in London in 2007. How many times have they both been played I wonder, no matter the order? Would guess Long Road is usually played as the opener so chances of them played back to back in order are rather slim.

Tim Simmons

Yes. I love the sound of the recording. The tunes are great, but however BOB captured the sound of the band then, it’s perfect. It’s raw, a touch muddy, but great separation of the instruments. I wish their records still had that sound. Vitalogy and No Code are pretty much in the same vein. 94-96 was their definite time sound in the studio IMO. 

It must have been the way BoB was recording then because Purple had a similar vibe too. 

Tim Simmons

As opposed to the last 2 BOB records with the band where you can tell it’s pro tools and everything is clear and crisp. No bueno. 

Gern Blansten

JT167846 said:

Not sure but I remember seeing both played in London in 2007. How many times have they both been played I wonder, no matter the order? Would guess Long Road is usually played as the opener so chances of them played back to back in order are rather slim.

I Got Shit....played 158 times...opener 1 time
Long Road..played 94 times...opener 74 times and closer 3 times

I'm surprised at that...would have guessed LR played more

mfc2006

Tim Simmons said:

Yes. I love the sound of the recording. The tunes are great, but however BOB captured the sound of the band then, it’s perfect. It’s raw, a touch muddy, but great separation of the instruments. I wish their records still had that sound. Vitalogy and No Code are pretty much in the same vein. 94-96 was their definite time sound in the studio IMO. 

It must have been the way BoB was recording then because Purple had a similar vibe too. 

Yup. Those albums sound fantastic

Pap

Merkinball is indeed a great EP! Imho, their best EP is...

mace1229

bootlegger10 said:

I Got Shit is also my favorite song.  Unfortunately doesn’t translate as well live, to me.  Not sure why Mike doesn’t play closer to the recording.

Anyway, lots of bands use session players for recordings, so I think you could argue that this song is no different than that and it is 100% Pearl Jam.

I've always felt exactly the same way. I got Id is a top 5 studio song for me. Not nearly as good live.

brianlux

eboweddie said:

A friend of mine text me . He's a not a Pj fan persay. Said he heard Merkinball recently 
 He couldn't believe how incredible it sounds. Said its a perfect recording.  The vocals the mix.
Everything.I'd say I agree with him. Its absolutely amazing. I'd put it up there as one of Pjs best recordings.  

Oh yeah!  5 stars all the way.

DissidentRival74

mace1229 said:

bootlegger10 said:

I Got Shit is also my favorite song.  Unfortunately doesn’t translate as well live, to me.  Not sure why Mike doesn’t play closer to the recording.

Anyway, lots of bands use session players for recordings, so I think you could argue that this song is no different than that and it is 100% Pearl Jam.

I've always felt exactly the same way. I got Id is a top 5 studio song for me. Not nearly as good live.

Definitely one of the very few songs that I prefer the studio over  any live version I've heard.

mookieblalock

I have always thought that no song captures the quintessential Pearl Jam sound better than I got shit.

BrainofBGA

Well, to me it’s pretty perfect, because this was the beginning of the end for a lot of casual fans. 

WindowPaine

i never realized, or maybe forgot, no stone or mike on the recording of these 2 songs. 

Gern Blansten

mookieblalock said:

I have always thought that no song captures the quintessential Pearl Jam sound better than I got shit.

yep...to me I Got SHit and Corduroy are intertwined. I will never get tired of those songs

Gern Blansten

WindowPaine said:

i never realized, or maybe forgot, no stone or mike on the recording of these 2 songs. 

and no Jeff on IGS....Brendon O'Brien on bass

josevolution

Gern Blansten said:

WindowPaine said:

i never realized, or maybe forgot, no stone or mike on the recording of these 2 songs. 

and no Jeff on IGS....Brendon O'Brien on bass

So who played the instruments session musicians? It’s Ed by himself? 

josevolution

Pap said:

Merkinball is indeed a great EP! Imho, their best EP is...

Totally agree I like LR & I got Id but like solat & breath way better!

fall by the wayside

josevolution said:

Gern Blansten said:

WindowPaine said:

i never realized, or maybe forgot, no stone or mike on the recording of these 2 songs. 

and no Jeff on IGS....Brendon O'Brien on bass

So who played the instruments session musicians? It’s Ed by himself? 

Long Road: Ed, Neil Young, Jeff, Jack Irons

I Got Shit: Ed, Neil, Brendan O’Brien, Jack Irons

josevolution

fall by the wayside said:

josevolution said:

Gern Blansten said:

WindowPaine said:

i never realized, or maybe forgot, no stone or mike on the recording of these 2 songs. 

and no Jeff on IGS....Brendon O'Brien on bass

So who played the instruments session musicians? It’s Ed by himself? 

Long Road: Ed, Neil Young, Jeff, Jack Irons

I Got Shit: Ed, Neil, Brendan O’Brien, Jack Irons

Never knew that! 

Pap

Q: Can you recall your first session and show with Pearl Jam?

A: The first official session was the Merkinball sessions, and those were part of the Mirrorball sessions, I do believe. The first show was a Bridge School Show, and I played a Djembe – not that well – with a shaker taped to my shoe. I was pretty nervous. I think Pearl Jam was ready for some experimenting at the time, so it felt right to have me come aboard. 

Q: Mirror Ball is one of my favorite records of all time. How did the project initially get off the ground?

A: Neil [Young] and Pearl Jam had done some playing together prior to my joining. That extended into Pearl Jam working with him again for a concert when I first joined, and from that show came the opportunity to record with him. The recordings were done spontaneously and quickly, with Neil letting us do our thing with the tunes he wrote for those sessions. It was a great experience as I had always been a big fan of his music. 

Former Red Hot Chili Peppers & Pearl Jam Drummer Jack Irons Speaks on New Music, Neil Young & More

2-feign-reluctance

I think it is. The No Code, Merkinball era stuff is golden. 

BrainofBGA

It should go down as one of rock’s all time great collaborations. 

mcgruff10

2-feign-reluctance said:

I think it is. The No Code, Merkinball era stuff is golden. 

100% agree.  I d add yield to that list.  

Let My Spirit Pass

Merkinball is a MASTERPIECE. Two perfect songs on a perfect EP. The mix of the songs, the band in their prime, and the artwork. Perfect.

I'm one of the lucky ones to see both songs in the same set...twice! Denver, June 23rd 1998 on the Yield tour and October 21st 2000 on the Binaural tour.

matt3846

LetMySpiritPass said:

I'm one of the lucky ones to see both songs in the same set...twice!

It didn’t occur to me at the time I guess, but I also twice got them both in one show!
Charlotte, Oct 4, 96
DC, Sept 19, 98

demetrios

2-feign-reluctance said:

I think it is. The No Code, Merkinball era stuff is golden. 

It is. Too bad there aren't much rough mixes, demos or rehearsal tracks released out there from the No Code era. If they ever released a No Code Box Set I hope they can make this happen.