''Merkin Ball'' is an

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by 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 EP contains two songs: A-side "I Got Id" (also known as "I Got Shit") and B-side "Long Road", both written by Pearl Jam lead singer

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 ...

. The EP features Canadian-American musician

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

and was released on December 4, 1995, through

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

. ''Merkin Ball'' is a companion to Young's 1995 album, '' Mirror Ball''. The EP became a chart hit, particularly in Australia and Scandinavia. It reached number two in Australia, number three in Finland, number five in Norway, and number 10 in Denmark. In the United States, the EP peaked at number seven 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 ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

, number two on the ''Billboard'' Album Rock Tracks chart, and number three on the ''Billboard''

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. It has been certified

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. "I Got Id" 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. I ...

''.

Recording

The tracks on ''Merkin Ball'' were recorded at the tail end of the ''Mirror Ball'' sessions in February 1995. The songs were produced and mixed by Pearl Jam sound engineer Brett Eliason. Pearl Jam vocalist

was not around much for the ''Mirror Ball'' recording sessions due to what he called a "pretty intense stalker problem".Weisbard, Eric, et al. "Ten Past Ten". ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

''. August 2001. Vedder said that "leaving the house wasn't the easiest thing to do." He would refer to the issue in the song "

Lukin Lukin or Lukins is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Andrey Lukin (born 1948), Russian chess player and coach * Dean Lukin (born 1960), Australian weightlifter * Henry Lukin (1860–1925), South African military commander * Ge ...

" from Pearl Jam's 1996 album, ''

No Code ''No Code'' is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Pearl Jam, released on August 27, 1996 through Epic Records. Following a troubled tour for its previous album, '' Vitalogy'' (1994), in which Pearl Jam engaged in a much-publicize ...

''. Vedder wrote and performed vocals and guitar on the songs "I Got Id" and "Long Road", which were omitted from ''Mirror Ball''.Strauss, Neil
"The Predictably Unpredictable Neil Young"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. July 2, 1995. Retrieved on March 27, 2008. Because of legal complications between

and

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Enya, Michael ...

, the songs and the band name "Pearl Jam" were not allowed to be included on the full ''Mirror Ball'' album, so they were released separately as a Pearl Jam single.

contributed lead guitar to "I Got Id" and pump organ to "Long Road". ''Mirror Ball'' producer

Brendan O'Brien Brendan O'Brien may refer to: *Brendan O'Brien (bishop) (born 1943), Roman Catholic archbishop of Kingston, Ontario, Canada *Brendan O'Brien (cricketer) (born 1942), Irish former cricketer *Brendan O'Brien (journalist), senior Irish journalist on R ...

plays bass on "I Got Id", and Pearl Jam bassist

Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician and songwriter who is best known as the bassist of the American rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Prior to his wo ...

plays bass on "Long Road". Pearl Jam drummer

Jack Irons Jack Steven Irons (born July 18, 1962) is an American drummer. He is the founding drummer of the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers and is a former member of Pearl Jam and Eleven. Alongside his work with Red Hot Chili Peppers and Pearl Jam, Irons h ...

plays drums on both tracks. Pakistani

Qawwali Qawwali ( Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali: কাওয়ালি (Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating from the Indian subcontinent ...

singer

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ( pa, ; born Pervez Fateh Ali Khan; 13 October 1948 – 16 August 1997) was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, and music director. He was primarily a singer of qawwali — a form of Sufi music, Sufi devotional music. ...

contributed backing vocals to a later recording of "Long Road".

Music and lyrics

''Mirror Ball'' and ''Merkin Ball'' complement each other musically. Jonathan Cohen 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 ...

said that "I Got Id" was "an even mix of ''

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 ...

''s raw

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

and ''No Codes major-key majesty" and said regarding "Long Road" that "Vedder's melody is uplifting, his lyrics poignant." "I Got Id" is also known by its original title "I Got Shit" by the band and its fans. It is rumored that when Vedder proposed the idea of a single to Epic, the label made him change the title of the song. In some concert performances, Vedder has also introduced the song as "I Got I.D.". Upon introducing the song at Pearl Jam's September 19, 1998, concert in Washington, D.C. at

Constitution Hall DAR Constitution Hall is a concert hall located at 1776 D Street NW, near the White House in Washington, D.C. It was built in 1929 by the Daughters of the American Revolution to house its annual convention when membership delegations outgrew Memo ...

, Vedder stated, " gave me a song writing lesson at a half-price rate; this is what I came up with...on my final, he gave me a B+ I think." At Pearl Jam's May 10, 2006, concert in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Canada, at the

Air Canada Centre Scotiabank Arena ( French: ''Aréna Scotiabank)'', formerly known as Air Canada Centre (ACC), is a multi-purposed arena located on Bay Street in the South Core district of Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the home of the Toronto Rap ...

, Vedder revealed that the song's chorus melody was inspired by the verse melody in Neil Young's "

Cinnamon Girl "Cinnamon Girl" is a song by Neil Young. It debuted on the 1969 album ''Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'', which was also Young's first album with backing band Crazy Horse. Songwriting Music Like two other songs from ''Everybody Knows This ...

" from the 1969 album, ''

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere ''Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'' is the second studio album by Canadian-American musician Neil Young, released in May 1969 on Reprise Records, catalogue number RS 6349. His first with longtime backing band Crazy Horse, it peaked at number 3 ...

''.. TwoFeetThick.com. At Pearl Jam's July 7, 2006, concert in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

Cox Arena Viejas Arena (formerly Cox Arena) is the home stadium of the San Diego State Aztecs men's and women's basketball teams. It is located on the San Diego State University (SDSU) campus in San Diego, California. Viejas Arena opened in July 1997 an ...

, Vedder revealed that he wrote "Long Road" after hearing about the death of his former high school drama teacher and mentor, Clayton E. Liggett. He added that he began to hit the opening D-chords of "Long Road" as if he was "trying to ring a bell to say that 'We lost one of the good ones,'" and after "about eight minutes," the rest of the performers on the track joined in without saying anything and began to bring the song to life.

Release and reception

Epic Records released ''Merkin Ball'' on December 4, 1995, as a CD and

7-inch single In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separate ...

. David Browne of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' gave ''Merkin Ball'' a B+. Browne called "I Got Id" a "standard PJ chest thumper" and stated that "Long Road" " akesYoung and Pearl Jam into a mystical zone never hinted at on 'Mirror Ball''" AllMusic staff writer Jonathan Cohen gave the record two and a half out of five stars, saying, "By no means essential, but well worth a spin." ''Merkin Ball'' debuted and peaked at number seven on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also reached number two on the ''Billboard'' Album Rock Tracks charts and number three on the ''Billboard''

chart. Worldwide, the EP reached number two in Australia, number three in Finland, number five in Norway and number ten in Denmark. It additionally became a top-forty hit in Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden and the United Kingdom. It has been certified

by the

for shipments of over 500,000. In September 2001, Vedder and Pearl Jam guitarist

Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician who serves as the lead guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the band. McCready wa ...

were joined by Young to perform "Long Road" at the '' America: A Tribute to Heroes'' benefit concert. "Long Road" was also used in the films '' Dead Man Walking'', '' Outsourced'', and ''

Eat Pray Love ''Eat Pray Love'' is a 2010 American biographical romantic drama film starring Julia Roberts as Elizabeth Gilbert, based on Gilbert's 2006 memoir of the same name. Ryan Murphy co-wrote and directed the film, which was released in the United St ...

'' and in the episode "My Five Stages" of the sitcom ''

Scrubs Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," o ...

''.

Packaging

wrecking ball A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a crane, that is used for demolishing large buildings. It was most commonly in use during the 1950s and 1960s. Several wrecking companies claim to have invented the wrecking ball. An e ...

graces the cover art of ''Merkin Ball''. ''Mirror Ball'' and ''Merkin Ball'' complement each other in the layout and content of the packaging. The title ''Merkin Ball'' is a play on ''Mirror Ball''. A

merkin __NOTOC__ A merkin is a pubic wig. Merkins were worn by sex workers after shaving their mons pubis, and are now used as decorative items, erotic devices, or in films, by both men and women. History and etymology The '' Oxford Companion to the ...

is commonly known as a pubic wig. Vedder came up with the title. In an interview, Vedder said that the title refers to an "

arrowhead An arrowhead or point is the usually sharpened and hardened tip of an arrow, which contributes a majority of the projectile mass and is responsible for impacting and penetrating a target, as well as to fulfill some special purposes such as sign ...

Live performances

"I Got Id" was first performed live at the band's February 21, 1995, concert in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

, Japan, at Kosei Nenkin Kaikan."Pearl Jam Songs: "I Got Id""
. pearljam.com. Live performances of "I Got Id" can be found on various official bootlegs. A performance of the song is also included on the DVD ''

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 DV ...

''.

Track listing

Personnel

Pearl Jam *

–

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

on "Long Road" *

–

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

–

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

Additional musicians and production *

– guitar,

pump organ The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. T ...

, vocals *

– bass guitar on "I Got Id" *

Joel Bernstein Joel Bernstein is a photographer, guitarist, and record producer based in Oakland, California. His photographs have appeared as the album covers to, among others, '' After the Gold Rush'', '' 4 Way Street'', ''Rita Coolidge'', ''Wind on the Wa ...

–

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

s * Brett Eliason –

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

and mixing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

''Merkin Ball'' information at pearljam.com
{{Authority control 1995 EPs Collaborative albums Epic Records EPs Neil Young EPs Pearl Jam EPs