I Am Mine

"I Am Mine"
Single by Pearl Jam
from the album Riot Act
B-side "Down"
Released October 8, 2002
Format CD single, vinyl
Recorded February 2002 at Studio X, Seattle, Washington
Genre Alternative rock
Length 3:35
Label Epic
Writer(s) Eddie Vedder
Producer(s) Adam Kasper, Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam singles chronology
"Light Years"
(2000)		 "I Am Mine"
(2002)		 "Save You"
(2003)
Riot Act track listing
"Ghost"
(Track 5)		 "I Am Mine"
(Track 6)		 "Thumbing My Way"
(Track 7)
Audio sample
file info · help

"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 (2002). The song peaked at number six on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003).

Origin and recording

"I Am Mine" was written by vocalist Eddie Vedder in a hotel room near Virginia Beach, Virginia before the band's first show after the Roskilde tragedy in 2000.[1] Vedder said that he wrote the song to "reassure myself that this is going to be all right."[2]

Composition

Drummer Matt Cameron on "I Am Mine":

It seems like it has all the elements this band is known for: strong lyrics, strong hook, and a good sense of melody. It wasn't a really tough decision to have that be the starting point for the record.[3]

Lyrics

The lyrics for "I Am Mine" tackle existential matters. At the band's April 8, 2003 show in New Orleans, Louisiana at the UNO Lakefront Arena, Vedder stated, "This song is about what's inside you. You own it, and you have the freedom for it to come out. It's allowed to come out."[2] At the band's July 8, 2003 show in New York City at Madison Square Garden, Vedder stated, "This song’s about personal safety, and the feeling of being secure, and even free."[4]

Release and reception

"I Am Mine" was released as a single in 2002 in various versions with the previously unreleased B-sides "Down" and "Undone", both of which can also be found on the compilation album, Lost Dogs (2003), the latter as an alternate version. "I Am Mine" was the most successful song from Riot Act on the American rock charts. The song peaked at number 43 on the Billboard Hot 100, number seven on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and number six on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

Outside the United States, the single was released commercially in Australia, Austria, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In Canada, the song reached the top ten on the Canadian Singles Chart. "I Am Mine" reached the top 30 in the UK and peaked at number 12 on the Australian Singles Chart where it was also certified gold. "I Am Mine" reached the top 60 in Germany, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, the top 50 in New Zealand, the top 40 in Ireland, the top 30 in Sweden, and was a top ten success in Italy and Norway. It was a moderate top 20 success in Finland.

Music video

The music video for "I Am Mine" was directed by James Frost.[5] The video was filmed at Seattle, Washington's Chop Suey club in September 2002.[6] 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 "Save You", "Love Boat Captain", "Thumbing My Way", 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 October 2002.[7]

Live performances

"I Am Mine" was first performed live at Neil Young's 2001 Bridge School Benefit.[8] The band played this song when it appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman in November 2002 in support of Riot Act. Live performances of "I Am Mine" can be found on various official bootlegs and the Live at the Gorge 05/06 box set. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs Live at the Showbox and Live at the Garden.

Cover versions

On June 12, 2014 Cincinnati Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo performed an acoustic rendition of the song on the MLB Network program, "Intentional Talk" when interviewers Kevin Millar and Chris Rose inquired about his music hobby.

Track listing

All songs written by Eddie Vedder, except where noted:

CD (US, Austria, and Canada) and 7" Vinyl (US, Australia, Europe, New Zealand, and UK)
  1. "I Am Mine" – 3:35
  2. "Down" (Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, Vedder) – 3:17
CD (Australia and Europe)
  1. "I Am Mine" – 3:35
  2. "Down" (Gossard, McCready, Vedder) – 3:17
  3. "Bu$hleaguer" (Gossard, Vedder) – 3:57
  4. "Undone" – 3:08
CD (UK)
  1. "I Am Mine" – 3:35
  2. "Bu$hleaguer" (Gossard, Vedder) – 3:57
  3. "Undone" – 3:08

Chart positions

Chart (2002) Position
Canadian Singles Chart[9] 2
Italian Singles Chart[10] 4
Norwegian Singles Chart[11] 10
Polish Singles Chart[12] 1
Australian Singles Chart[13] 12
Finnish Singles Chart[14] 20
UK Singles Chart[15] 26
Swedish Singles Chart[16] 29
Irish Singles Chart[17] 35
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[18] 43
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks[18] 6
U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks[18] 7
U.S. Billboard Adult Alternative Songs[19] 3
New Zealand Singles Chart[20] 48
Dutch Singles Chart[21] 58
Swiss Singles Chart[22] 59
German Singles Chart[23] 60

References

  1. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan. "The 'Pearls' of Pearl Jam". Billboard. April 14, 2006.
  2. 1 2 Fricke, David (May 29, 2003). "Eddie Vedder's Combat Rock". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 19, 2004. Retrieved March 19, 2004.
  3. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan. "Inciting a 'Riot': Pearl Jam's New Album" at the Wayback Machine (archived October 30, 2002). Billboard. November 2002.
  4. ↑ Live at the Garden. Pearl Jam. Video. Epic, 2003.
  5. ↑ Mills, Fred. "Yield Not". Seattle Weekly. November 6, 2002.
  6. ↑ Pearl Jam: 2002 Concert Chronology. fivehorizons.com.
  7. ↑ "Pearl Jam music videos". Music Video Database. Retrieved 2008-02-22.
  8. ↑ "Pearl Jam Songs: "I Am Mine"". pearljam.com.
  9. ↑ "Pearl Jam – Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 2007-06-11.
  10. ↑ "Classifice Artisti - Archivio". FIMI. Archived from the original on March 5, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-05.
  11. ↑ "Norwegian Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  12. ↑ "Polish Singles Chart |".
  13. ↑ "PEARL JAM - I AM MINE (SINGLE) (5368)". Australian-charts.com. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
  14. ↑ "Finnish Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay". finnishcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  15. ↑ "EveryHit.com". Retrieved 2007-02-16.
  16. ↑ "Swedish Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  17. ↑ "Irish Album/Singles Chart". irish-charts.com. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  18. 1 2 3 "Pearl Jam Artist Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
  19. ↑ Chart Beat Thursday: 'Hope' Helps Haiti
  20. ↑ "PEARL JAM - I AM MINE (SONG)". New Zealand-charts.com. Retrieved 2007-07-17.
  21. ↑ "Dutch Single/Album Chart / Pearl Jam / Longplay". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  22. ↑ "Schweizer Hitparade". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  23. ↑ "Chartverfolgung / Pearl Jam / Single". musicline.de. Retrieved 2007-06-11.
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