is eddie the greatest singer songwriter of this generation?

Eliot Rosewater · April 2008

GlorifiedAnimal wrote:

bright eyes are unbelievable. i think conor is definitely up there in terms of best songwriters of our generation. i wish that more people knew about him and bright eyes because some of those songs (like the ones you named) are just incredible.

Yeah, and he's like 25 years old. That was a very, very short list of his songs that absolutely blow me away. He's really got 25+ that are just amazing.

I didn't just throw names out there for this thread. I thought about Ed's songs and how they blow me away too...and who else could compare. For my money, it's those three that I mentioned already, Ed, Bono, and Conor Oberst. Each of them have 25+ songs that just blow me away.

But people are different and some people have to bash on Bono and U2 in order to feel good about themselves or even worse, in order to feel "cool". Well, fuck' em. It doesn't change the fact that the songs are brilliantly written.

Lostdogsinthegarden · April 2008

I would definitely say yes.

meme · April 2008

I don't know that he's the greatest, but he's my favorite

Anon · April 2008

Eliot Rosewater wrote:

Yeah, and he's like 25 years old. That was a very, very short list of his songs that absolutely blow me away. He's really got 25+ that are just amazing.

I didn't just throw names out there for this thread. I thought about Ed's songs and how they blow me away too...and who else could compare. For my money, it's those three that I mentioned already, Ed, Bono, and Conor Oberst. Each of them have 25+ songs that just blow me away.

But people are different and some people have to bash on Bono and U2 in order to feel good about themselves or even worse, in order to feel "cool". Well, fuck' em. It doesn't change the fact that the songs are brilliantly written.

i agree very much. and the scary thing about conor is how fucking young he is and that he is showing no signs of slowing down. the latest record, cassadaga is just amazing. everybody should at least give bright eyes a chance.

Eliot Rosewater · April 2008

GlorifiedAnimal wrote:

i agree very much. and the scary thing about conor is how fucking young he is and that he is showing no signs of slowing down. the latest record, cassadaga is just amazing. everybody should at least give bright eyes a chance.

Definitely. And he's probably already released as many songs as anyone else mentioned in this thread. He's got just a shit load of music out there. Cassadaga is one of my favs for sure.

Indifference · April 2008

Rhinocerous Surprise wrote:

Actually, throw Mike Cooley (Drive-by Truckers) into the running. The guy writes phrases Dylan would kill for.

Hope your talking about Jakob.

Rhinocerous Surprise · April 2008

Indifference wrote:

Hope your talking about Jakob.

Nope. I'm not saying Cooley's better than Dylan, just saying some of his phrases are up there with Dylan's. Nobody from this generation writes a better character song than Cooley.

digster · April 2008

Eliot Rosewater wrote:

Really? Then who?

He's definitely one of the top two or three IMO and possibly the best.

If we're talking lyricists/vocalist/frontmen, I'd put Michael Stipe above him, although I suppose you could argue they are different generations.

The thing is that Eddie's work with Pearl Jam is not really singer/songwriter as it's usually defined. Eddie is frontman, chief lyricist and sometime guitarist for Pearl Jam, and that means that his songs are filtered through four other people. I mean, Rearviewmirror, even with Ed writing it on guitar, is not really singer/songwriter stuff because it's part of a band effort, with everyone contributing; I don't think you could compare to someone like Beck or Bright Eyes, who are solo artists. If we limit Eddie to only his singer/songwriter stuff like No More, Driftin, etc. I'd say he's not the best of his generation. Personally, I think Beck and Patty Griffin are better songwriters, but Eddie's one of the best frontmen/lyricists/vocalists, again I think second only to Stipe and maybe Thom Yorke. Maybe.

Rhinocerous Surprise · April 2008

digster wrote:

If we're talking lyricists/vocalist/frontmen, I'd put Michael Stipe above him, although I suppose you could argue they are different generations.

The thing is that Eddie's work with Pearl Jam is not really singer/songwriter as it's usually defined. Eddie is frontman, chief lyricist and sometime guitarist for Pearl Jam, and that means that his songs are filtered through four other people. I mean, Rearviewmirror, even with Ed writing it on guitar, is not really singer/songwriter stuff because it's part of a band effort, with everyone contributing; I don't think you could compare to someone like Beck or Bright Eyes, who are solo artists. If we limit Eddie to only his singer/songwriter stuff like No More, Driftin, etc. I'd say he's not the best of his generation. Personally, I think Beck and Patty Griffin are better songwriters, but Eddie's one of the best frontmen/lyricists/vocalists, again I think second only to Stipe and maybe Thom Yorke. Maybe.

Don't forget songs like Guaranteed and Dead Man. Driftin might not be a work of genius, but it was also a throwaway song on a fanclub Xmas single. Guaranteed won a Golden Globe, and Dead Man should have, if it had been included on the soundtrack.

That said, I don't think he is the best.

digster · April 2008

Rhinocerous Surprise wrote:

Don't forget songs like Guaranteed and Dead Man. Driftin might not be a work of genius, but it was also a throwaway song on a fanclub Xmas single. Guaranteed won a Golden Globe, and Dead Man should have, if it had been included on the soundtrack.

That said, I don't think he is the best.

Of course, he's written brilliant songs completely on his own; Dead Man is one of my favorite Pearl Jam songs. It's just that he hasn't written enough of them to call him the best of his generation.

Anyways, it's really hard to parse what's Eddie Vedder and what's Pearl Jam. You just can't say he's a singer/songwriter the way Neil Young is for example. Eddie is a part of a band where, although he may have final say, everyone has creative input. In Neil's case, there was always creative conversation, but I think it's pretty clear who's steering the ship.

I stick with my ideas; if we're talking singer/songwriters, Beck and Patty Griffin are at the top of my list. Frontmen/lyricists/vocalists, Michael Stipe followed by Eddie and Yorke.

Rhinocerous Surprise · April 2008

digster wrote:

Of course, he's written brilliant songs completely on his own; Dead Man is one of my favorite Pearl Jam songs. It's just that he hasn't written enough of them to call him the best of his generation.

Anyways, it's really hard to parse what's Eddie Vedder and what's Pearl Jam. You just can't say he's a singer/songwriter the way Neil Young is for example. Eddie is a part of a band where, although he may have final say, everyone has creative input. In Neil's case, there was always creative conversation, but I think it's pretty clear who's steering the ship.

I stick with my ideas; if we're talking singer/songwriters, Beck and Patty Griffin are at the top of my list. Frontmen/lyricists/vocalists, Michael Stipe followed by Eddie and Yorke.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I completely agree that there are better singer/songwriters out there. I just wanted to make sure that you weren't judging Ed on two of his lesser tracks.:)

skipshot · April 2008

Not by a longshot.

Jeff Tweedy is the best of this generation.

AtlantaJammer · April 2008

R.E.M. sux,

chikevin · April 2008

since ten...is it me or does ed write better for movies than albums?
i'm not ripping him or anything, but for me....at least the last 5-7 years, the work he's done for movies most resonates with me.

JordyWordy · April 2008

Im surprised only two people have said Bono.
his consistency over twenty years of writing great songs and lyrics is mindblowing.

Conor Oberst
Nick Cave
Paul Noonan of BellX1 writes fanastic lyrics imo

if Matt Bellamy ever does any solo work then that might have my vote!

Cant put ed ahead of many of these for songwriting...but include his voice and he wins

danny · April 2008

taketheother wrote:

ssia

i say yeah

the unabashed fluffer thread of the day

oh yesssssssssss!!!!!!!

ashtrayrock · April 2008

taketheother wrote:

ssia

i say yeah

the unabashed fluffer thread of the day

i think the question should have been worded better because the words "this generation" is vague, at best. springsteen is this generation but so is bono and eddie.

overall weiner paul hewson.

halszka123 · April 2008

over_bends wrote:

Ed isn't even the best songwriter in his own band!

I have to agree:)
But anyway - I love This Guy, same as The Others.

halszka123 · April 2008

Being Enlightened wrote:

I find that I can just FEEEEEL the emotion when I hear Ed sing. I believe that he believes in what he's singing. He belives in his lyrics (even those of other band members ), and the way in which he delivers them, often touches me deeply.

I have been to many a concert in my time and I have only ever been brought to tears (and no, not those maniacal Fab 4 fan kinds of screamin' n' wailin' tears , just the ones summoned from the heart strings being played), by Ed. He moves me and to me, that makes him the greatest. That also makes PJ the only band I will pay to see umpteen times as well.

I couldn't describe this better

nowayimfaithfull · April 2008

hes great, but how can you judge art that way
as Ed said himself in 92

is eddie the greatest singer songwriter of this generation?

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