Thumbing My Way
Encyclopedia
"Thumbing My Way" is a song by the American rock
band Pearl Jam
. Written by vocalist Eddie Vedder
, "Thumbing My Way" is the seventh track on the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act
(2002).
. Drummer Matt Cameron
revealed to Vedder that he considers it the nicest chord progression
Vedder has come up with. Vedder on the song:
Bassist Jeff Ament
on the song:
Guitarist Stone Gossard
about the song:
. At the band's February 14, 2003 concert in Sydney
, Australia
at the Sydney Entertainment Centre
, Vedder said, "This song's about hitchhiking your way through a broken heart."
stated that "Thumbing My Way" "resembles an acoustic 'Love Will Tear Us Apart
'" and called it one of the album's "best moments." Brett Hickman of Stylus
said, "Never a band to make their quieter forays really work, the band deliver their best one with "Thumbing My Way". Through its muted organ, acoustic guitars, brushed drums and Vedder's semi-coherent line readings, the band matches intent with mood perfectly."
for "Thumbing My Way" was directed by James Frost. The video was filmed at Seattle, Washington's Chop Suey club in September 2002. The video consists of a filmed live performance of the band rather than a conceptual video. It was one of five videos shot at the club to promote Riot Act (including "I Am Mine
", "Save You
", "Love Boat Captain
", and "1/2 Full
"). Up to that point the band had not made any music videos since 1998's "Do the Evolution
". The video was released in late 2002.
, California
on February 26, 2002. The first performance of the song with the full band took place at the band's December 6, 2002 concert in Seattle, Washington at The Showbox. Live performances of "Thumbing My Way" can be found on various official bootlegs
and the live album Live at Benaroya Hall
. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs Live at the Showbox
and Live at the Garden
.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included Eddie Vedder , Jeff Ament , Stone Gossard , and Mike McCready...
. Written by vocalist Eddie Vedder
Eddie Vedder
Eddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...
, "Thumbing My Way" is the seventh track on the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act
Riot Act (album)
Riot Act is the seventh studio album by American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, released November 12, 2002 through Epic Records. Following a full-scale tour in support of its previous album, Binaural , Pearl Jam took a year-long break. The band then reconvened in the beginning of 2002 and...
(2002).
Origin and recording
"Thumbing My Way" was written by vocalist Eddie VedderEddie Vedder
Eddie Vedder is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. He is widely considered a cultural icon of alternative rock.He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums...
. Drummer Matt Cameron
Matt Cameron
Matthew David "Matt" Cameron is an American musician who serves as the drummer for the American rock bands Pearl Jam and Soundgarden...
revealed to Vedder that he considers it the nicest chord progression
Chord progression
A chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
Vedder has come up with. Vedder on the song:
"Thumbing My Way" was written real quick. There's something about writing real quickly that keeps the music in a nice pure state. You don't think of it as homework. You think, "Wow, that was a good half hour spent." There is a tangible joy about creating something that wasn't there before.
Bassist Jeff Ament
Jeff Ament
Jeffrey Allen Ament is an American musician who serves as the bassist for the American rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of Pearl Jam...
on the song:
We were out in the room playing the song and learning it. In the process, [producer Adam KasperAdam KasperAdam Kasper is a Seattle area record producer and engineer, working with such bands as Cat Power, Pond, Seaweed, The Tragically Hip, Truly, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, R.E.M., Soundgarden and Pearl Jam...
] went and re-miked everything very covertly. So all of the sudden when we were ready to play it, it was up and he captured it. Nailed it. That to me was really critical and kind of how the record sounds. A lot of times, there's that cool thing when you don't quite know the song and everybody is really concentrating. It lasts for four or five takes and then it's gone. After that, it's all cerebral.
Guitarist Stone Gossard
Stone Gossard
Stone Carpenter Gossard is an American musician who serves as the rhythm and lead guitarist for the American rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of Pearl Jam...
about the song:
That's a real live performance with lots of room ambience. It's us trying to keep up with the chord changes! There are some nice drums and bass. The sentiment of the song is amazing.
Lyrics
The lyrics for "Thumbing My Way" are about a person in turmoil. In an interview, Vedder stated that the song is not about himself. He elaborated by saying, "I'm pretty good at removing myself from most of the songs. One thing about writing songs is, they don't always have to be about you. When they are always about someone, I lose interest after a while." The song includes several references to hitchhikingHitchhiking
Hitchhiking is a means of transportation that is gained by asking people, usually strangers, for a ride in their automobile or other road vehicle to travel a distance that may either be short or long...
. At the band's February 14, 2003 concert in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
at the Sydney Entertainment Centre
Sydney Entertainment Centre
The Sydney Entertainment Centre is a multi-purpose venue, located in Haymarket, Sydney, Australia. It opened in May 1983, to replace Sydney Stadium, which had been demolished to make way for a new railway. The centre is currently owned by the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority, which administers...
, Vedder said, "This song's about hitchhiking your way through a broken heart."
Reception
In its review of Riot Act, The GuardianThe Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
stated that "Thumbing My Way" "resembles an acoustic 'Love Will Tear Us Apart
Love Will Tear Us Apart
"Love Will Tear Us Apart" is a song by the British post-punk band Joy Division. It was written in August and September 1979, and debuted when the band supported Buzzcocks on their UK tour in September and October 1979. It is one of the few songs in which singer Ian Curtis played guitar...
'" and called it one of the album's "best moments." Brett Hickman of Stylus
Stylus Magazine
Stylus Magazine was an online music and film magazine launched in 2002. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, a number of different podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog....
said, "Never a band to make their quieter forays really work, the band deliver their best one with "Thumbing My Way". Through its muted organ, acoustic guitars, brushed drums and Vedder's semi-coherent line readings, the band matches intent with mood perfectly."
Music video
The music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Thumbing My Way" was directed by James Frost. The video was filmed at Seattle, Washington's Chop Suey club in September 2002. The video consists of a filmed live performance of the band rather than a conceptual video. It was one of five videos shot at the club to promote Riot Act (including "I Am Mine
I Am Mine
"I Am Mine" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Written by vocalist Eddie Vedder, "I Am Mine" was released on October 8, 2002 as the first single from the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act . The song peaked at number six on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart...
", "Save You
Save You
"Save You" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam, released on February 11, 2003 as the second single from the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act . Although credited to all members of Pearl Jam, it features lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music primarily written by guitarist...
", "Love Boat Captain
Love Boat Captain
"Love Boat Captain" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music co-written by Vedder and keyboardist Boom Gaspar, "Love Boat Captain" was released on February 18, 2003 as a single from the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act .-Origin...
", and "1/2 Full
1/2 Full
"½ Full" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music written by bassist Jeff Ament, "½ Full" is the thirteenth track on the band's seventh studio album, Riot Act .-Origin and recording:...
"). Up to that point the band had not made any music videos since 1998's "Do the Evolution
Do the Evolution
"Do the Evolution" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music written by guitarist Stone Gossard, "Do the Evolution" is the seventh track on the band's fifth studio album, Yield . Despite the lack of a commercial single release, the...
". The video was released in late 2002.
Live performances
"Thumbing My Way" was first performed live by Vedder during a solo performance at the Wiltern Theatre in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
on February 26, 2002. The first performance of the song with the full band took place at the band's December 6, 2002 concert in Seattle, Washington at The Showbox. Live performances of "Thumbing My Way" can be found on various official bootlegs
Pearl Jam Official Bootlegs
The Pearl Jam "Official" Bootlegs are a large, continually growing series of live albums by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam. Pearl Jam noted the desire of fans to own a copy of the shows they attended and the popularity of bootleg recordings...
and the live album Live at Benaroya Hall
Live at Benaroya Hall
Live at Benaroya Hall is a two-disc live album by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, recorded on October 22, 2003 at Benaroya Hall, Seattle, Washington and released on July 27, 2004 through BMG.-Overview:...
. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs Live at the Showbox
Live at the Showbox
Live at the Showbox is the third DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, the first of a complete show. It was released on May 7, 2003.-Overview:...
and Live at the Garden
Live at the Garden
Live at the Garden is the fourth DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, recorded on July 8, 2003 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was released on November 11, 2003.-Overview:...
.