"Corduroy" is a song by the American

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...

. The song is the eighth track on the band's third studio album, ''

Vitalogy ''Vitalogy'' is the third studio album by American rock band Pearl Jam, released on November 22, 1994, on Epic Records. Pearl Jam wrote and recorded ''Vitalogy'' while touring behind its previous album '' Vs.'' (1993). The music on the record is m ...

'' (1994). Although credited to all members of Pearl Jam, it was primarily written by vocalist

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and one of four guitarists of the rock band Pearl Jam. He also appeared as a guest vocalist i ...

. Despite the lack of a commercial single release, the song managed to reach number 13 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks (1988–2009) and Alternative Songs (2009–2020)) is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in ''Billboard'' magazine since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-played ...

chart. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, ''

rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003) ''Rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003)'' is a two-disc compilation album by the American rock band Pearl Jam, released on November 16, 2004 through Epic Records. The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA in the United States. It was ...

''.

Lyrics

The lyrical content for "Corduroy" can be interpreted in many ways, but one common theory is that they are about the pressures of fame. In an interview, vocalist

stated:

It is about a relationship but not between two people. It's more one person's relationship with a million people. In fact, that song's almost a little too obvious for me. That's why instead of a lyric sheet we put in an X-ray of my teeth from last January and they are all in very bad shape, which was analogous to my head at the time.

Regarding the song's title, Vedder stated:

Yeah, that song was based on a remake of the brown corduroy jacket that I wore. I think I got mine for 12 bucks, and it was being sold for like $650. The ultimate one as far as being co-opted was that there was a guy on TV, predictably patterned, I guess, after the way I was looking those days, with long hair and an Army T-shirt. They put this new character on a soap opera, so there was a guy, more handsome than I, parading around on ''General Hospital''. And the funny thing is, that guy was
Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...
.

Reception

Without being released as a single, "Corduroy" peaked at number 22 on the ''Billboard''

Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

chart and number 13 on the ''Billboard''

chart in 1995.

Al Weisel Al Weisel (July 18, 1963 – February 27, 2010) was a freelance writer who lived in New York City. Weisel graduated from Columbia University in 1987. He wrote for ''Rolling Stone'', ''The Washington Post'', ''New York Newsday'', and Us Weekly, ''Us ...

of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' called the song "hard edged and catchy."Weisel, Al
''Vitalogy'' review
''

''. 15 December 1994. Retrieved on 1 March 2008. Chris True of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

described it as "simple, straightforward rock, the kind that Pearl Jam excelled at." He added, "Classic Pearl Jam—earnest lyrics and vocals, powerful classic sounding guitars, loose yet in control rhythm section, bass driven and tension filled breakdown (with Eddie mumbling in the background, of course) is all here, even down to the loose jam style outro." "Corduroy" can be heard in a 2008 advertisement for

Conservation International Conservation International (CI) is an American nonprofit environmental organization headquartered in Crystal City, Arlington, Virginia. CI's work focuses on science, policy and partnership with businesses, governments and communities. The organ ...

that features

Harrison Ford Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. His films have grossed more than $5.4billion in North America and more than $9.3billion worldwide, making him the seventh-highest-grossing actor in North America. He is the recipient o ...

. The song was also featured in the ''

Cold Case A cold case is a crime, or a suspected crime, that has not yet been fully resolved and is not the subject of a current criminal investigation, but for which new information could emerge from new witness testimony, re-examined archives, new or re ...

'' episode "The Long Blue Line" in 2009.

Live performances

"Corduroy" was first performed live at the band's performance of 15 March 1994 at the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis, MO."Pearl Jam gives concert that hits at the soul" - Edwardsville, IL Intelligencer 22 March 1994 The song has become a concert favorite, although in concert it is generally played at a considerably faster tempo. Some live performances are preceded by a brief jam of

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

's "

Interstellar Overdrive "Interstellar Overdrive" is an instrumental composition written and performed by Pink Floyd. The song was written in 1966 and is on their 1967 debut album, ''The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'', clocking in at almost ten minutes in length. The son ...

". Live performances of "Corduroy" can be found on the live album ''

Live on Two Legs ''Live on Two Legs'' is the first major live album by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, released on November 24, 1998 through Epic Records. The album has been certified platinum by the RIAA in the United States. Overview ''Live on Tw ...

'', various official bootlegs, the iTunes exclusive release ''The Bridge School Collection, Vol. 1'', the ''

Live at the Gorge 05/06 ''Live at the Gorge 05/06'' is a seven-disc live box set by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, released on June 26, 2007 through Rhino Entertainment/Warner Music Group. The box set documents the band's 2005 and 2006 shows at The Gorge ...

'' box set, and the live album ''

Live at Lollapalooza 2007 ''Live at Lollapalooza 2007'' is a live album by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam that was released as an iTunes exclusive on September 18, 2007. Overview The album contains Pearl Jam's set from the band's August 5, 2007 appearance at ...

''. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs ''

Touring Band 2000 ''Touring Band 2000'' is the second DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, culled from performances from the North American legs of the band's 2000 Binaural Tour. It was released on VHS and DVD on May 1, 2001. Overview DVD ...

'', ''

Live at the Showbox ''Live at the Showbox'' is the third DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, and the first DVD of a complete show. It was released on May 7, 2003. Overview It was recorded on December 6, 2002 at The Showbox in the band's home ...

'', and ''

Immagine in Cornice ''Immagine in Cornice'', Italian for "picture in a frame", is a live concert film documenting the 2006 five-concert tour of Italy by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam. It was released on September 25, 2007. Overview The film documents P ...

''. The version of the song on ''The Bridge School Collection, Vol. 1'' is an acoustic performance that has some lyrical changes towards the end, as well as a complete tempo change, with the song being played much slower and which more emphasis on Vedder's voice. There are also no drums in this version, with the percussion being played on a set of bongos. This version of the song was recorded live at the

Bridge School Benefit The Bridge School Benefit was an annual charity concert usually held in Mountain View, California, every October at the Shoreline Amphitheatre from 1986 until 2016 with the exception of 1987. The concerts lasted the entire weekend and were organ ...

Chart positions

References

External links

Lyrics at pearljam.com
* Review of "Corduroy"at

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{authority control 1994 songs Pearl Jam songs Songs written by Eddie Vedder Songs written by Stone Gossard Songs written by Dave Abbruzzese Songs written by Mike McCready Song recordings produced by Eddie Vedder Song recordings produced by Stone Gossard Song recordings produced by Jeff Ament Song recordings produced by Mike McCready Song recordings produced by Dave Abbruzzese Song recordings produced by Brendan O'Brien (record producer)