“Better Man” (or”Betterman”) by Pearl Jam (1994)

a few thoughts…

*Greatest intro to a Pearl Jam song ever. Immediately sets a contemplative mood, which of course matches “Better Man”’s lyrics.

*Occasionally stylized as “Betterman”. I’m still not sure what the exact title is.

*Best song on a so-so album. Vs. was and is one of my favorite albums (easily one of the 10 best rock albums of the ‘90s), and I remember being a bit meh regarding Vitalogy.

*Epic made a limited edition run of Vitalogy on vinyl (because NO one bought, played or even sold new vinyl by 1994) and released it a week or two before the CD and cassette. I bought a copy, and I didn’t even have a record player at the time. I wound up either selling or losing it.

*This song comes on in a bar? At least five people are singing along.

*Fantastic opportunity for Eddie Vedder to get his Springsteen on. There wasn’t a video for this as Pearl Jam was not doing the video thing at this time (not that it hurt sales), but I always pictured Eddie Vedder strumming a guitar in black and white while the lyrics are acted out before him. Almost like Springsteen’s “Brilliant Disguise” video. Amazing how the brain works.

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