Writing a paper about a Pearl Jam song

ryanrunning · November 2009

okay for my composistion class we have to write our final paper about two pieces of art and how one influenced the other. Our teacher told us the art could be in type, print, music, actual pieces of art. I decided that I was going to do it on a Pearl Jam song and its most direct influence. I was thinking either Yellow Ledbetter to Little Wing, or Given to Fly to Going to California. Which do you think I should do, or do you have any other songs that were directly influenced by another one I should think about doing.

pax

ryan

Stephen Flow · November 2009

can you really write a lengthy paper about something like this?

jmuth · November 2009

How bout Save You to Fuckin' Up

ryanrunning · November 2009

It only has to be 3-5 pages double spaced, this is the shortest paper I've had to write all year and hardley understand why its my final, so I think I should be able to write at least 3 pages, using the songs in question as main examples and the underlying theme being copying musical styles or something like that

Gems and Rhinestones · November 2009

Stephen Flow wrote:

can you really write a lengthy paper about something like this?

dude you can write a lengthy paper on any topic in the world. i could write a 30 page essay on why poop stinks if i wanted to.

ryanrunning · November 2009

jmuth7098 wrote:

How bout Save You to Fuckin' Up

I see where your coming from but I'm not sold on it

inmytr33 · November 2009

this is such an easy paper. i wrote three pages on Alive for a media theories class. just start typing and you'll have 4 pages in no time.

ryanrunning · November 2009

I have no doubt that itll be easy to write,just don't know which one to do/ if there are any interviews for either stating the basis of the song.

Joerock · November 2009

I wrote a 6 pager on Jeremy earlier this semester

Tuolumne Mama · November 2009

If you want, you can pm me what the connection between Little Wing and Yellow Ledbetter or Going to California and Given to Fly are saying to you as far as influencing one to the other. I can probably help you, with an analogy if I understood what line of reasoning you have going in tieing these songs together. I've taught English comp in the past and know a good deal about 60's and 70's music as well as PJ. Also it would be helpful to know your class (high school or college) level as well. Let me know.

theboxerorthebag · November 2009

love your avitar!

ryanrunning wrote:

okay for my composistion class we have to write our final paper about two pieces of art and how one influenced the other. Our teacher told us the art could be in type, print, music, actual pieces of art. I decided that I was going to do it on a Pearl Jam song and its most direct influence. I was thinking either Yellow Ledbetter to Little Wing, or Given to Fly to Going to California. Which do you think I should do, or do you have any other songs that were directly influenced by another one I should think about doing.

pax

ryan

ryanrunning · November 2009

theboxerorthebag wrote:

love your avitar!

ryanrunning wrote:

okay for my composistion class we have to write our final paper about two pieces of art and how one influenced the other. Our teacher told us the art could be in type, print, music, actual pieces of art. I decided that I was going to do it on a Pearl Jam song and its most direct influence. I was thinking either Yellow Ledbetter to Little Wing, or Given to Fly to Going to California. Which do you think I should do, or do you have any other songs that were directly influenced by another one I should think about doing.

pax

ryan

haha thanks

Veddernarian · November 2009

Save you / Other side

SL116452 · November 2009

my opinion... the easiest one is 'Daughter' and 'Rearview Mirror'....

"the shades go down" to... "the shades are raised"

these two songs can definitely be interpreted as a "part 1" and "part 2" kind of thing.

A lot of good stuff between those two songs...

Veddernarian · November 2009

Or how The Who's "Boris the Spider" inspired Pearl Jam's "Bugs".

ryanrunning · November 2009

Veddernarian wrote:

Or how The Who's "Boris the Spider" inspired Pearl Jam's "Bugs".

lol I was just thinking that

Tuolumne Mama · November 2009

Nevermind. It isn't.

Gems and Rhinestones · November 2009

Tuolumne Mama wrote:

I may be wrong but isn't bugs a Tom Waits song?

your wrong

Paul Andrews · November 2009

I'd be taking a different approach and looking for inspiration in Eddie's lyrics in a song and the text that influenced that. He is a very wide reader and gets inspiration from stories, characters, emotions etc.

Johnny Guitar from Picture on toilet wall?

JM55546 · November 2009

The easiest would be the article from the school in Texas (that's widely available) to Jeremy?

Either that or you could do the Howard Zinn / Down approach.

Paul Andrews · November 2009

JM55546 wrote:

The easiest would be the article from the school in Texas (that's widely available) to Jeremy?

Either that or you could do the Howard Zinn / Down approach.

But would the initial news report be regarded as art?

Tuolumne Mama · November 2009

Gems and Rhinestones wrote:

Tuolumne Mama wrote:

I may be wrong but isn't bugs a Tom Waits song?

your wrong

Thanks. YOU'RE
correct.:-D

red mos · November 2009

I like the daughter and rvm comparison, that's a good one. That could easily be a 3-4 page paper.
how about comparing Black and Parting ways? Both relationship songs but that's all I can think of at the moment.

Compare Jeremy and rival- both deal with Guns and suicide (though I don't think they really have a lengthy connection paper wise.

Or... Just thought of this one:

Wake up by mad season and 4/ 20/ 02 on lost dogs could be a good one about a friends battle with addiction even though Layne's outcome was that he died. Wake up also is the theme song that the Layne Stayley benefit uses every year. you could discuss that and how these two songs have lead to helping addicts recover. Mike and Layne were best friends or real close too. So there is a pretty deep connection between both songs there.
Hope my idea helps and isn't too dumb or something. Let us know what you decide. I loved doing papers like this with music influence in college.

pickupyourwill · November 2009

Gems and Rhinestones wrote:

Stephen Flow wrote:

can you really write a lengthy paper about something like this?

dude you can write a lengthy paper on any topic in the world. i could write a 30 page essay on why poop stinks if i wanted to.

lol

pickupyourwill · November 2009

You could do something with those Leatherman songs, if you can find copies and lyrics of them. Read the book The Old Leather Man. He said he was inspired by that true story to write those songs. or for that matter, you could use any of Ed's songs off of the Into the Wild soundtrack in relation to the movie and/or the true story that the movie is based on.

spnoone · November 2009

love boat captain and all you need is love seems the most obvious to me. he comes right out and says it. "it's already been sung but it can't be said enough..."

Paul Andrews · November 2009

I would have thought the paper would have needed to focus on and show how one piece of art inspires and influences another. Simiple similarities or 'samples' would show only a superficial understanding of this. For example, comparing Beastie Boys 'Fight For Your RIght To Party' with AC/DC becasue of the riff similarities doesn't really delve deeper into the motivations and influences of the artist. (Not saying these tunes/bands have anything in common).Discussing Given To Fly and Going To California because of similar riffs/chords, to me is problematical in that you are going to have to show a definate link between the two, when this has never been confirmed and the paper will almost be purely opinionative. As many people have said, there are only so many ways you can play chords.

You'd be better of examining Weird Al's parodies of the original songs and show how he uses this form to mock, endear or even criticise the original artist.

Just my 2c worth from someone who has written a pile of these things in my English degree. But remember, in an English and Literature degree, you are looking soley at the lyrics/words and their usage, manipulation and the positioning of the reader, not the music.

For the record I wrote and extensive (probably 5000) word essay on Pearl Jam, examining Alive, Rear View Mirror and Off He Goes.

Hammartime33 · November 2009

Writing papers will really get you prepared for the real word....
enjoy a life of shitty/non employment.

FrankieG · November 2009

I cant believe that i am saying this but....

Im jealous that I don't have to write this essay.

This kind of essay would kick ass! All of my essay topics suck so much... :(

Do you have to compare song to song? or can it be like song to object or experience?

Paul Andrews · November 2009

Hammartime33 wrote:

Writing papers will really get you prepared for the real word....
enjoy a life of shitty/non employment.

What a stupid comment. This just shows your ignorance. And I rarely flame anyone.

Encouraging deeper thinking and an understanding of issues deeper than the literal or practical is what drives innovation, lateral thinking and understanding. It is what allows us to grow and experience different perspectives and ways of thinking and doing. I'd much rather employ someone who has had to think deeply and widely than someone who disses education.

And for the record, I've never been unemployed and the only time I was in shitty employment was when I was employed by people with the above attitude.

Good luck with your paper, I hope you enjoy it and grow from the experience.

Hammartime33 · November 2009

Paul Andrews wrote:

Hammartime33 wrote:

Writing papers will really get you prepared for the real word....
enjoy a life of shitty/non employment.

What a stupid comment. This just shows your ignorance. And I rarely flame anyone.

Encouraging deeper thinking and an understanding of issues deeper than the literal or practical is what drives innovation, lateral thinking and understanding. It is what allows us to grow and experience different perspectives and ways of thinking and doing. I'd much rather employ someone who has had to think deeply and widely than someone who disses education.

And for the record, I've never been unemployed.

I guess it depends on the level of education that this class is being written for. In my experience, papers like this tended to to the ones that I got the least out of, they were extremely easy to BS and in the end weren't very relevent to my field of study. Topics like this always seemed like busy work.

I guess I was just overreacting, this just reminded me a lot of some classes which friends of mine have made a habit of taking at their respective schools. They earned degrees, but had very little to show for it afterwards.

Writing a paper about a Pearl Jam song

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