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The Fixer (song)

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For other uses, seeFixer (disambiguation).

"The Fixer"
SinglebyPearl Jam
from the albumBackspacer
B-side"Supersonic"
ReleasedAugust 24, 2009
RecordedFebruary 16–27, 2009
StudioHenson Recording Studios,Hollywood,California
GenreAlternative rock,[1]pop rock[2]
Length2:58
LabelMonkeywrench(US),Universal Music Group(international)
Songwriter(s)Eddie Vedder,Matt Cameron,Mike McCready,Stone Gossard
Producer(s)Brendan O'Brien
Pearl Jamsingles chronology
"Love, Reign o'er Me"
(2007) 		"The Fixer"
(2009) 		"Got Some"/"Just Breathe"
(2009)
Audio sample
Music video
"The Fixer"onYouTube

"The Fixer"is a song by therockbandPearl Jam.Featuring lyrics written by vocalistEddie Vedderand music co-written by drummerMatt Cameronand guitaristsMike McCreadyandStone Gossard,"The Fixer" was released on August 24, 2009, as the first single from the band's ninth studio album,Backspacer(2009). The song debuted and peaked at number two on theBillboardRock Songschart and reached number three on theBillboardAlternative Songschart.

Origin and recording[edit]

"The Fixer" features lyrics written by vocalistEddie Vedderand music co-written by drummerMatt Cameronand guitaristsMike McCreadyandStone Gossard.[3][4]Cameron wrote the majority of the song's music in 2008,[5]while Gossard and McCready would end up writing the song'sbridge.[4]In an interview withRolling Stonein February 2009, Vedder discussed a song matching the description of "The Fixer". Vedder stated, "That could have been a seven-minute, weird, sideways kind of artsy song with a cool groove...I tinkered with it after everyone left, and we shrunk it down and turned it into something else....I'm thinking about set lists: 'Will this be a song we'll play every night?'."[6]

Gossard on the song:

With that song, Matt came in with a riff and we worked out a few different arrangements. Then Ed took it and re-arranged it with Pro Tools, to get the parts he needed in the right place. You don't want to get a final arrangement for a song before he's had a chance to screw around with it, because once he gets it, it can all change. What you thought was a chorus can end up being a verse. There was a real collaborative effort on the whole album. Ed, in particular, worked with everyone on their songs.[7]

Composition[edit]

"The Fixer" is composed in the key ofD major,and uses oddtime signaturesand switches between them regularly throughout the song. The song starts in 5/4, then switches to 6/4 for the verse, while the chorus and bridge are both in 4/4. Gossard stated, "It's relatively straightforward, but it has Matt's love of odd time. It also breaks back down to something very three-chord and fun. We need that. If Pearl Jam is thinking too much, we're not very good. We're much better when we're not thinking."[7]

Gossard on the song:

I think the band definitely progressed and did some things we haven't done before. When people talk about "pop" I think it's about a simplicity of melody and a simplicity of arrangement that doesn't over complicate a good idea or a great lyric. I think "The Fixer" is a great example. You really hear something about Eddie's personality in the lyric and you get a view that a lot of people don't get from him which is a sort of optimistic and playful melody and lyric.[8]

Lyrics[edit]

Commenting on the suggestion that he is "The Fixer" referred to in the song's title, Vedder stated, "My answer is, aren't we all? Maybe I'm wrong to think that, but it seems like we are...I'm thinking more on a worldview or a community view."[7]

Vedder on the song:

Men, we all think we can fix anything. It's not necessarily a good thing. In a relationship, a woman will say 'This is wrong,' and we're like, 'I'll fix that, don't worry about it, we can fix it.' These wonderful people, the woman you're in a relationship with, they don't want you to fix it. They just want you to listen to what's happening: 'Don't fix it, I want you to own this with me—feel it.' This is a reminder song to me, to stop fixing.[9]

Release[edit]

On July 14, 2009, a 30-second clip of "The Fixer" was featured onFox's broadcast of the2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.[10]"The Fixer" was released to radio airplay on July 20, 2009.[10]A 7 "single for" The Fixer "was released commercially through the band's official website on August 24, 2009, accompanied by theB-side"Supersonic", also from the album. The song was also made available commercially as a single download minus the B-side "Supersonic" fromiTuneson the same day. The same track listing that is featured on the 7 "single is also featured on a UK CD single release and a digital download from the UKAmazon.comstore, both of which were released commercially on September 7, 2009.

Chart performance[edit]

The song debuted and peaked at number 56 on theBillboardHot 100,number ten on theBillboardMainstream Rock Trackschart, and reached number three on theBillboardAlternative Songschart. InCanada,the song reached the top 20 on theCanadian Hot 100."The Fixer" reached the top 100 in the UK and peaked at number 27 on the Australian Singles Chart. It also reached the top 20 inNew Zealandand the top 100 inGermanyandJapan.

Critical reception[edit]

Stephen M. Deusner ofPitchforksaid in his review of the song that "neither the band nor Brendan O'Brien has a light touch for this sort ofclassic rock-orientedpop...Vedder, whose default is tortured defiance, can't help but add too much gravity to these lyrics, as if fixin' things was an obligation instead of a calling. They work too hard here trying to have fun. "[11]Jessica Letkemann ofBillboardsaid in her review of the song that it is "shot through with optimism at a level not seen since Pearl Jam's 1998Yield."She added that" with Vedder mixed down among Stone Gossard and Mike McCready's warm guitars and the throat-ripping moments of his delivery somewhat muted, there's a sense of reserve that makes 'The Fixer' a tease for hearing PJ in its uninhibited natural setting: live. "[12]Josh Modell ofSpinsaid that "'The Fixer'...[exploits] Pearl Jam's leanest,punkesttendencies...when Eddie Vedder pulls out that indignant yet inclusive snarl and proclaims, 'When something's gone, I wanna fight to get it back again,' you can probably assume 'it' is his band's mojo. "[13]In his review ofBackspacer,Rob SheffieldofRolling Stonemagazine said, "There's a definite positivity to the 'yeah, yeah, yeah' choruses that jump out of 'The Fixer', which evoke the old openhearted vulnerability of 'Wishlist'. "[14]In its review ofBackspacer,The Guardianstated that "when Eddie Vedder yells of a 'fight to get it back again' on 'The Fixer', he is surely referring to the band rediscovering their mojo."[15]

"The Fixer" was nominated forBest Rock Songat the52nd Grammy Awards,[16]losing to "Use Somebody"byKings of Leon.

Other uses[edit]

In September 2009, "The Fixer" was made available as downloadable content for theRock Bandseries as a master track as part of the albumBackspacer.[17]

The song is included on the soundtrack of the anti-nuclear documentaryCountdown to Zero,where it plays over the end credits.

The song is included in the baseball video gameMLB 2K10,although it is exclusive to theXbox 360version.[18]

Music video[edit]

Themusic videofor "The Fixer" was directed byCameron Crowe.[4]The video was filmed at The Showbox inSeattle,Washington in May 2009.[19]The video consists of a filmed live performance of the band rather than a conceptual video.[19]The video was released in August 2009.[20]Footage from the video was used for a commercial forTargetadvertisingBackspacerwhich features "The Fixer".[4][19]

Live performances[edit]

"The Fixer" was first performed live at the band's August 8, 2009 concert inCalgary,Alberta,Canadaat theVirgin Festival.[21]Despite being a popular single, it has only been played four times since the end of the Backspacer tour in 2012.[22]When the song is played live, the band plays it in the key ofD♭ major,which institutes the de-tuning of the guitars to ahalf-step down(E♭, A♭, D♭, G♭, B♭, E♭). Live performances of "The Fixer" can be found on variousofficial bootlegs.

Track listing[edit]

All lyrics written byEddie Vedder.

CD (UK), 7 "Vinyl Single, and Digital Download (UK)
  1. "The Fixer" (music:Matt Cameron,Stone Gossard,Mike McCready) – 2:58
  2. "Supersonic" (music: Gossard) – 2:40

Charts[edit]

Chart (2009) Peak
Position
New Zealand Singles Chart[23] 11
Australian Singles Chart[24] 22
Canadian Hot 100[25] 14
BillboardCanada Rock[26] 1
Japan Hot 100[27] 78
German Singles Chart[28] 97
UK Singles Chart[29] 93
U.S.BillboardHot 100[30] 56
U.S.BillboardRock Songs[30] 2
U.S.BillboardAlternative Songs[30] 3
U.S.BillboardMainstream Rock Tracks[30] 10
U.S.BillboardAdult Alternative Songs[30] 5

References[edit]

  1. ^Kreps, Daniel (August 24, 2009)."Cameron Crowe's Video for Pearl Jam's" The Fixer "Premieres".Rolling Stone.RetrievedMay 24,2017.
  2. ^Deusner, Stephen (July 22, 2009).""The Fixer" by Pearl Jam ".Pitchfork.Condé Nast.RetrievedMay 24,2017.
  3. ^"Tuesday July 21 Guests & Highlights".WRXP.July 21, 2009.RetrievedJuly 22,2009.
  4. ^abcd"Interview with Stone Gossard".WMMR.July 23, 2009.RetrievedJuly 29,2009.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^"Listen to Mike McCready Interview Where He Talks About Possible Pearl Jam EP".grungereport.net. July 20, 2009. Archived fromthe originalon July 26, 2009.RetrievedJuly 22,2009.
  6. ^Hiatt, Brian (February 19, 2009)."Pearl Jam to Release New LP in 2009".Rolling Stone.Archived fromthe originalon May 17, 2009.RetrievedJune 3,2009.
  7. ^abcCohen, Jonathan (September 8, 2009)."Pearl Jam: The 'Backspacer' Audio Q&As".Billboard.RetrievedSeptember 8,2009.
  8. ^"Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam".WRFF.July 23, 2009. Archived fromthe originalon July 4, 2008.RetrievedJuly 26,2009.
  9. ^Wheeler, Brad (September 16, 2009)."Jamming Over Pearl's Latest Tracks".The Globe and Mail.RetrievedSeptember 16,2009.
  10. ^abLetkemann, Jessica (July 15, 2009)."Pearl Jam Debuts 'Fixer,' Reveals Track List".Billboard.RetrievedJuly 15,2009.
  11. ^Deusner, Stephen M."Pearl Jam:" The Fixer "".Pitchfork Media.July 22, 2009. Retrieved on July 22, 2009.
  12. ^Letkemann, Jessica (July 24, 2009)."Pearl Jam," The Fixer "".Billboard.RetrievedSeptember 19,2019.
  13. ^Modell, Josh."Pearl Jam,Backspacer(Monkeywrench) ".Spin.August 15, 2009. Retrieved on August 20, 2009.
  14. ^Sheffield, Rob (September 14, 2009)."Pearl Jam:Backspacer".Rolling Stone.Archived fromthe originalon September 22, 2009.RetrievedSeptember 14,2009.
  15. ^Simpson, Dave."Pearl Jam,Backspacer".The Guardian.September 18, 2009. Retrieved on September 18, 2009.
  16. ^[1]ArchivedDecember 7, 2009, at theWayback Machine
  17. ^Cohen, Jonathan (July 31, 2007)."Pearl Jam: 'Back' to the Future".Billboard.RetrievedJuly 31,2009.
  18. ^"2K Sports - 2K Sports to Rock Video Game Consoles with Major League Baseball® 2K10 Soundtrack".2ksports.com.Archived fromthe originalon February 19, 2010.
  19. ^abcWerde, Bill (June 1, 2009)."Exclusive: Pearl Jam Confirms Target Tie-Up".Billboard.RetrievedJune 1,2009.
  20. ^Kreps, Daniel (August 24, 2009)."Cameron Crowe's Video for Pearl Jam's" The Fixer "Premieres".Rolling Stone.Archived fromthe originalon August 29, 2009.RetrievedAugust 25,2009.
  21. ^"Pearl Jam Songs:" The Fixer ""ArchivedOctober 6, 2009, at theWayback Machine.pearljam.com.
  22. ^"The Fixer by Pearl Jam song statistics | setlist.fm".setlist.fm.
  23. ^"PEARL JAM – THE FIXER (SONG)".New Zealand-charts.com.RetrievedSeptember 1,2009.
  24. ^"PEARL JAM – THE FIXER (SONG)".Australian-charts.com.RetrievedAugust 30,2009.
  25. ^"Chart History".Billboard.RetrievedDecember 9,2018.
  26. ^"Chart History".Billboard.RetrievedDecember 9,2018.
  27. ^"Japan Hot 100".Billboard.September 15, 2009.RetrievedSeptember 15,2009.
  28. ^"Chartverfolgung / Pearl Jam / Single".musicline.de.RetrievedJune 11,2007.
  29. ^"TOP 100 SINGLES CHART:: CHART WEEK ENDING DATE 05/09/09".Archived fromthe originalon October 23, 2008.RetrievedSeptember 1,2009.
  30. ^abcde"Pearl Jam Artist Chart History".Billboard.Archivedfrom the original on July 25, 2018.RetrievedJuly 29,2009.

External links[edit]

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