"Once" is a song by the American

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 ...

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 ...

. Featuring lyrics 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 ...

and music written by guitarist

Stone Gossard Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician who serves as a guitarist and songwriter for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the band. ...

, "Once" is the first track on the band's debut album, '' Ten'' (1991). On ''Ten'', it is preceded by a brief interlude of the album's closing hidden track, "Master/Slave". Besides ''Ten'', the song was also featured as a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

on the single for "

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". Remixed versions of the song were 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 ...

'', and the 2009 ''Ten'' reissue. The song is one of the band's heaviest compositions to date.

Origin and recording

"Once" features lyrics written by vocalist

and music written by guitarist

. The song originated as an instrumental demo titled "Agyptian Crave" that was written by Gossard in 1990. The instrumental was one of five songs compiled onto a tape called ''Stone Gossard Demos '91'' that was circulated in the hopes of finding a singer and drummer for the group.Pearlman, Nina. "Black Days". ''

Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original art ...

''. December 2002. The tape made its way into the hands of Vedder, who was working as a

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attendant in

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California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

at the time. He listened to the tape shortly before going surfing, where lyrics came to him. Vedder recorded vocals for three of the songs on the demo tape, one of which was "Once", and mailed the tape back to Seattle. Upon hearing the tape, the band invited Vedder to come to Seattle and he was asked to join the band.

Lyrics

"Once" is the middle chapter of a trilogy of songs in what Vedder later described as a "mini-opera" entitled ''Mamasan'', with it being preceded by "

" and followed by "Footsteps". "Once" tells the tale of a man's descent into madness which leads him into becoming a serial killer. During the bridge of the song, Vedder can be heard muttering. He is actually saying "You think I got my eyes closed/But I'm lookin' at you the whole fuckin' time..."

Reception

Stephen M. Deusner of

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

said, "On songs like 'Once', with its insistent breakdowns...there's a hardscrabble dynamic that the band would be unable to capture on subsequent releases." "Once" has received considerable radio airplay as Pearl Jam's popularity has endured. In March 2009, "Once" was made available as downloadable content for the ''

Rock Band A rock band or pop band is a small musical ensemble that performs rock music, pop music, or a related genre. A four-piece band is the most common configuration in rock and pop music. In the early years, the configuration was typically two guita ...

'' series as a master track as part of the album ''Ten''. The song was featured in the ''

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'' episode "Into the Blue" in 2009.

Live performances

"Once" was first performed live at the band's October 22, 1990 concert in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

at the Off Ramp Café."Pearl Jam Songs: "Once""
. pearljam.com. Live performances of "Once" can be found on the "

Dissident A dissident is a person who actively challenges an established political or religious system, doctrine, belief, policy, or institution. In a religious context, the word has been used since the 18th century, and in the political sense since the 20th ...

"/''Live in Atlanta'' box set, various official bootlegs, 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 G ...

'' box set, and the ''Drop in the Park'' LP included in the Super Deluxe edition of the ''Ten'' reissue.

References

External links

*
Lyrics at pearljam.com
{{Authority control 1991 songs Pearl Jam songs Songs written by Eddie Vedder Songs written by Stone Gossard 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 Krusen Song recordings produced by Rick Parashar Works about serial killers