All in a voice “Pearl Jam 20″

Its been nearly a week since I got back from seeing “Pearl Jam 20″ at the cinema and the effect hasn’t quite left me yet.  A 20 year summation of one of my favourite bands, brilliantly captured on screen, reminded me of why I love music so much and why for the longest time, all I wanted to be was a musician.  All week long I’ve been going back through the Pearl Jam catalogue with a renewed sense of understanding and vitality.  Catching a glimpse of songs in there conception and in context has left me in a state of delirium and envy at just how good this band were. (I love the last album but unfortunately it seems like the bottled lightning they once possessed has all but dissapeared).

.

I could spend line upon line trying to explain all the different facets that make a band and a song so great to me but I wanted to make a point about the importance of a great singer and more importantly a great voice….  Eddie Vedder, the singer and focal point of Pearl Jam was born with it.  A baritone bluster, that could stop a heart beating one minute and tear down walls the next.  An ability to jump from soulful croon to throat ripping scream at the drop of a hat.  I suppose I’ve spent this week in a state of awe, travelling on trains, headphones on ears, smiling to my self as Vedder chews through another song.  Unfortunately, this has led to a begrudging acceptance as well, something I’ve always known but daren’t admit.  Being a singer myself and for the longest time wanting to emulate my heroes on record,  it’s just not something I possess… I’ve worked at it and feel I’ve improved it (a new album in the works that listening to, I feel attests to this).  I just haven’t got that magic…

.

I’ve always been able to sing, I’ve just never had the voice.

.

I think of all my favourite music and all my favourite bands and every single one of them has it.  A singer born to sing, with a voice gifted from God.  People will tell you that if you work hard enough you can achieve it… I disagree, you can improve your range, pitch even tone, but you can’t create the magic if it wasn’t there to begin with.

.

This isn’t a ‘woe is me’ rant… I feel fortunate to be able to sing well and there are a lot of people out there who can’t.  It’s just that some people are born with it and it takes a bout 10 seconds of hearing Vedder sing to realize he’s one of them.

.

Here’s what I mean.